Gillick Making Up for Lost Time
Having neglected the Phillies bullpen all winter long and into the spring, Phillies general manager Pat Gillick has spent the past few days playing catch-up. On Thursday, the Phillies acquired Francisco Rosario from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations, and on Friday, the team signed recently released Rick Bauer.
In today’s local papers, Gillick stated that the next relief pitcher they will evaluate will be Dustin Hermanson. The team worked out Hermanson in March but took a pass, and he ended up in the Reds’ camp where he got off to a hot start, faded, and was released.
One has to wonder if Gillick’s renewed interest in Hermanson is due to something he saw from the former White Sox closer that impressed him, or, if it is more because of what he has seen from the Phils’ bullpen depressed him.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Phils Get Help for the Pen
Phillies assistant general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. announced that the Phillies have acquired Francisco Rosario from the Toronto Blue Jays in return for "cash considerations". The Phillies have started the season 0-2 with both games being lost in extra innings after allowing the Braves to score on the bullpen late in regulation to tie the game, squandering a good start by Brett Myers and a great start by Cole Hamels.
Rosario pitched to a 6.65 ERA in 17 appearances with the Blue Jays last season, but as we mentioned last week, he was having a very good spring. Out of options, the Jays elected to trade him rather than cut someone else from the 25-man roster.
The Phillies are expected to make another roster move in order to create room on their 25-man roster for Rosario. Since Zack Segovia will be needed to start a game against the Marlins this weekend, it’s likely Joe Bisenius or Clay Condrey will be the odd man out.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Ron Villone Draws Interest
Several teams, including the Phillies, have contacted Ron Villone and his agent Scott Boras about joining their bullpens. The Rockies are also among those that have inquired. Villone is available after being released by the Yankees last week.
At 37, Villone has a lot of mileage and struggles against right-handed batters, but he is still quite effective against left handed batters. In 2006, he held left-handed batters to a .179/.279/.330 AVG/OBP/SLG line.
For teams that are in need of a LOOGY, it might be worth it to kick Villone’s tires.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Last Minute Trade Talks Left Some Rosters Short
At least two teams entered yesterday’s Opening Day with only twenty-four players on their roster, one short of the maximum allowed. Both the Philadelphia Phillies and Cincinnati Reds were hoping that a last-minute trade would bring quality relievers to fill the final spots, but when nothing materialized, both elected to add players already in the fold.
The Phillies added Joe Bisenius to their final spot, a hard-throwing right-hander who has never pitched above AA Reading, where he had 33 strike outs in 23 and a third innings and many in the Phillies organization see him as the closer of the future. If the 24-year old pitches well on 2007, he could become the long-sought after set-up man the team needs.
The Reds turned to Victor Santos, a 31-year old journeyman who can pitch out of long relief or the rotation. Santos has a weakness for the long-ball, so manager Jerry Narron may want to reduce his appearances at home.
Expect both teams to continue looking for late-inning relief either through trades or the waiver wire.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Phillies Non-Trade Rumors, Vol. III
The Phillies bullpen has pitched better as of late, but according to assistant general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr., someone it appears general manager Pat Gillick relies on quite heavily, that isn’t stopping them from looking at ways to improve the situation.
But at the same time, he also reported that nothing is about to transpire. "We continue to talk to clubs and we’ll look for possibilities, but right now we don’t see anything imminent." With both Freddy Garcia and Jon Lieber on the disabled list (Garcia could come off the list to pitch on April 7th or 8th), there is little wiggle room for a trade.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Phils Make Offer for Rosario
From Ken Rosenthal’s latest:
The Phillies are one of three clubs that have made trade offers for Blue Jays right-hander Francisco Rosario, who is out of minor-league options.
Rosario has very little major league experience, just 23 innings with Toronto last year, but put up some very good numbers in the International League before that and has had a very good spring in Dunedin.
Outside of inexperience and a checkered health history, Rosario has the type of stuff the Phillies could use in their bullpen right now. His fastball reaches 96 and misses bats, something even good pitchers in the Phillies pen don’t do a lot.
It might be worth the low-level prospect the Jays would want.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Today’s Waiver Deadline Could Force Teams’ Hands
When it comes to making baseball personnel decisions, there are deadlines after deadlines. Today at 2 P.M., teams must decide about players to ask waivers to release or outright waivers. The speculation in Philadelphia is that this could make some players available for trade that had been unavailable earlier.
One such player is RHP Francisco Rosario of the Blue Jays. He’s out of options, has had a decent spring training, and yesterday, the Phillies had a radar gun pointed in his direction.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Potential Trade Partner for the Phils
Philadelphia’s Daily News speculated this morning that a new possibility may emerge for bullpen help for the Phillies:
Veteran righthander Rudy Seanez might be an option if the Dodgers make him available. The Dodgers are planning to keep only 11 pitchers on their roster, and Seanez, despite his 1.93 ERA in 9 1/3 innings this spring, might be the odd man out.
Seanez is in a way the classic veteran reliever available for trade. In his upper thirties? Check. ERA fluctuates from year to year? Check. More recent down years than up? Sigh. Check.
One has to believe that the Phillies can do better than this if they are patient enough. There are 29 other teams in the league who are just one bad elbow away from needing Jon Lieber.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".
Rowand Trade Coming?
In his latest Under The Knife article, Will Carroll writes:
"A rumor making the rounds is that the Phillies are holding Aaron Rowand out to make sure he doesn’t hurt himself as they try to deal him."
Rowand is, however, playing in today’s game against Kei Igawa and the Yankees. Prior to today, he sat out three straight games. To me it seems like the White Sox are probably the top suitor.
Garcia’s Injury Halts Lieber Trade
This is my second contribution to MLBTradeRumors.com and with this entry, I have yet to comment on a trade that might be happening. So far, when it comes to the Phillies, it’s been all about trades that aren’t going to happen.
Yesterday afternoon, manager Charlie Manuel told reporters that Jon Lieber, the subject of considerable trade speculation since December, would begin to pitch exclusively out of the bullpen, not because of poor performance, but because he was the odd-man out on a team with six starting pitchers. Later in the evening, Freddy Garcia was pulled from the first inning. Besides suffering from numerous big hits by the Toronto Blue Jays lineup, Garcia’s velocity was down and he reported experiencing tightness in his right biceps.
With this development, it’s likely that for the time being, life will change very little for Lieber and he will slide right back into the starting rotation while Garcia’s health problems are sorted out. Lieber won’t be traded anywhere any time soon.
Tom Goyne is the author of Balls, Sticks, & Stuff, a Phillies-centric site, and maintains the Phloggers’ Pheeds page, a source for the latest commentary from around the "phlogosphere".