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NL East Notes: Strasburg, Syndergaard, Phillies, Braves

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Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg left his start Friday after two innings with “a little inflammation” in his pitching shoulder, manager Dave Martinez told Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post and other reporters. Strasburg revealed that the issue began bothering him a few starts ago, and he’ll undergo an MRI on Saturday. Injuries have long been a concern for the 29-year-old Strasburg, though he has always delivered terrific results when healthy. He has once again offered high-end production this year, having notched a 3.46 ERA with 10.6 K/9 and 2.12 BB/9 in 80 2/3 innings. The Nats can ill afford to lose Strasburg as they seek a third straight division title, then, especially with fellow starter Jeremy Hellickson currently on the disabled list with a hamstring strain.

More injury notes from the NL East…

  • Mets righty Noah Syndergaard won’t come off the DL to make his scheduled start against the Yankees on Sunday, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. Syndergaard, who has been out since May 26 with a strained finger ligament, experienced a setback after playing catch this week. It’s unknown how much more time Syndergaard will miss, but with him unavailable, the Mets will start fellow righty Seth Lugo on Sunday.
  • Phillies left fielder Rhys Hoskins could return from the DL on Saturday, Matt Breen of Philly.com reports. That would represent a quick comeback for a player who suffered a fractured jaw May 28. In other positive news for the Phillies, the club has ruled out the possibility of thoracic outlet syndrome for injured righty Jerad Eickhoff, general manager Matt Klentak announced. Still, even though the Phillies have “ruled out a lot of bad stuff” for Eickhoff, according to Klentak, they’re unsure what’s causing the numbness in his fingers. Both that problem and a strained lat have shelved Eickhoff for the entire season thus far.
  • Braves third base prospect Austin Riley is set to miss “several weeks” after suffering a sprained PCL in his right knee, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. The promising 21-year-old had been faring nicely in his first action at Triple-A, where he has slashed .284/.345/.431 in 113 plate appearances (with a 33.6 percent strikeout rate, however). It’s possible Riley’s injury could affect his chances at a major league promotion this season and influence the Braves’ trade deadline plans. Atlanta’s top two options at third are Johan Camargo and Ryan Flaherty, but both players’ numbers have fallen off as the season has progressed. In the event the Braves seek a veteran upgrade at the hot corner over the summer, there should be some proven commodities available, as MLBTR’s Jeff Todd and Steve Adams pointed out Friday.

NL Injury Notes: Soroka, Hoskins, Bailey, Cards

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A few injury updates from the National League:

  • Right-hander Mike Soroka could return to the Braves’ rotation as early as June 16, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports. Soroka, who has been on the disabled list since May 14 with shoulder inflammation, made a successful rehab start Friday at the Single-A level and will throw two more – the first with Triple-A Gwinnett on Wednesday. The 20-year-old rookie began his major league career in impressive fashion prior to the injury, tossing 14 2/3 innings of 3.68 ERA ball with 9.2 K/9 and 2.45 BB/9 over three starts.
  • Despite suffering a fractured jaw this past Monday, Phillies left fielder Rhys Hoskins told reporters (including Matt Breen of Philly.com) that it’s possible he’ll be able to return as early as June 9. Whether that happens will depend on the news Hoskins receives during his follow-up appointment with the Phillies’ oral surgeon next week, per Breen.
  • The Reds have placed righty Homer Bailey on the DL, retroactive to May 30, with right knee inflammation, Jay Paris of MLB.com relays. Interim manager Jim Riggleman revealed that Bailey has been dealing with a knee issue “for about a month,” though the club doesn’t regard it as a serious injury. In any case, the DL placement continues a tough week for Bailey, whom the Reds demoted to a relief role on Wednesday. To this point, all 204 of Bailey’s MLB appearances have come as a starter. Unsurprisingly, then, Bailey’s “not thrilled” about shifting to the bullpen, according to Paris.
  • Cardinals reliever Dominic Leone went on the DL on May 5 with a nerve issue in his right biceps. Nearly a month later, Leone has shown some improvement, but there’s still no timetable for his return, Joe Trezza of MLB.com writes. Leone’s injury is an unusual one, as Trezza details, and the righty noted that “I still have yet to receive a true diagnosis as to why it happened, and it might never come. Any other injury, you have a timetable.” That’s certainly a letdown for both Leone and St. Louis, which acquired him from Toronto as part of a trade for outfielder Randal Grichuk in the offseason. Leone was coming off an outstanding 2017 at the time, though he has only been able to chip in 13 innings of 4.15 ERA ball this year.

Phillies Place Rhys Hoskins On DL, Promote Dylan Cozens, Designate Drew Hutchison

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3:51pm: The injury will not require surgery and is considered “weeks thing, not a months thing,” Matt Gelb of The Athletic was among those to tweet.

2:14pm: The Phillies announced on Thursday that they’ve placed Rhys Hoskins on the DL with a fractured jaw and recalled outfield prospect Dylan Cozens from Triple-A Lehigh Valley in his place. Additionally, the Phils recalled right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. and cleared a spot on the roster by designating fellow righty Drew Hutchison for assignment.

Hoskins incurred the fracture on Monday this week when he fouled a ball into his jaw and was forced to exit the game. Initial x-rays proved to be negative, it seems, as Hoskins somewhat remarkably hit a pinch-hit double a day later on Tuesday. However, a CT scan revealed the fracture last night. At the time, he was reportedly set to return to Philadelphia for further evaluation by an oral surgeon. The Phillies have yet to announce the findings of that exam, though surgery was at least mentioned as a possible option.

Until the Phils make that announcement, there’s no way of knowing just how long Hoskins will be sidelined. In his absence, though, the organization will turn to former Cozens, the former second-rounder who has long held intrigue due to his light-tower power but has also displayed considerable struggles making contact in Triple-A.

It’s the first call to the Majors for the 23-year-old Cozens, who garnered plenty of attention with a 40-homer campaign as a 22-year-old in Double-A. Cozens posted an overall .276/.350/.591 batting line that season in a year which he and Hoskins were teammates who served as a source of great excitement for Phils fans. However, while Hoskins ascended to the Majors late in 2017 and took the big leagues by storm over the season’s final two months, Cozens struggled with a strikeout rate north of 35 percent in Triple-A. Overall, between 2017 and 2018, he’s batted just .214/.307/.424 with a 36.4 percent strikeout rate in 739 PAs at the Triple-A level.

With Hoskins on the shelf, the Phils could utilize Nick Williams, Odubel Herrera and Aaron Altherr as the primary outfielders, although given Altherr’s struggles against righties, perhaps the makings of a corner-outfield platoon are present at Citizens Bank Park.

As for Hutchison, the 27-year-old made the Opening Day roster after coming to camp on a minor league deal, but he’s scarcely been used by skipper Gabe Kapler in recent weeks. Hutchison posted a 2.76 ERA with a 16-to-8 K/BB ratio in 16 1/3 innings of relief from Opening Day through May 4, but he appeared just two more times over the remainder of the month. The Cardinals tagged him for five runs in a long relief appearance on May 18, and he allowed a run in two innings to the Dodgers yesterday.

In all, Hutchison has a 4.64 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 5.5 BB/9 in 21 1/3 innings this season. He has experience starting in the Majors and is earning a fairly minimal salary, so perhaps a club in need of some rotation depth or a long man in the ’pen would be interested in adding him to its ranks, be it via waivers or a minor trade.

Rhys Hoskins Likely Headed To DL Due To Broken Jaw

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A CT scan taken of Rhys Hoskins’ jaw revealed a fracture that will likely send the slugger to the disabled list, writes Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia. Hoskins, who fouled a ball into his jaw Monday, is headed back to Philadelphia for further examination by an oral surgeon to determine whether he’ll require surgery or simply just rest and rehab. Salisbury’s colleague, Corey Seidman, writes that the Phillies look poised to recall prospect Dylan Cozens from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to replace Hoskins on the active roster.

Hoskins, 25, took the NL by storm in an explosive rookie season last year, hitting .259/.396/.618 with 18 homers and seven doubles in just 212 trips to the plate. His 2018 work has been solid but diminished, as he’s currently sporting a .233/.363/.415 slash with six homers in 216 PAs with a considerably higher strikeout rate (21.7 percent in 2017, 28.2 percent in 2018).

With Hoskins out of action for the time being, the Phils will likely turn to Nick Williams, Odubel Herrera and Aaron Altherr as their primary outfield contingent, though Cozens will surely be dropped into the mix as well. It’s not clear how long Hoskins would be out in either the surgical or non-surgical route of treatment just yet, but manager Gabe Kapler did call a trip to the disabled list likely.

For the 23-year-old Cozens, this’ll represent the first call to the Majors. The 2012 second-round pick has long been considered to be among the Phillies’ top farmhands, but his star has dimmed a bit in recent seasons. Cozens had no trouble with Class-A Advanced pitching (.282/.335/.411) and utterly obliterated Double-A pitchers at the age of 22 (.282/.352/.594), but he faceplanted with a .210/.301/.418 slash in 542 Triple-A PAs last season.

More troubling was Cozens’ 35.8 percent strikeout rate in Lehigh Valley last year, and while his overall batting line has improved to .228/.323/.432, his strikeout rate is up to 38.3 percent. Cozens has walked in 11 percent of his plate appearances in Triple-A, helping to salvage a decent OBP, but his contact issues do present concern about how he’ll handle MLB pitching. As Seidman notes, though, the left-handed-hitting Cozens has been markedly better against right-handed pitching and does have a 40-homer season on his resume in the minors, so he’ll likely be utilized in a platoon capacity in his first stint with the Phils.

Nationals, Braves Interested In Christian Yelich, J.T. Realmuto

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11:59am: The Nationals, too, are interested in both Realmuto and Yelich, writes MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. The Nats’ interest in Realmuto has been previously reported by the Washington Post and MLB.com, among others, though GM Mike Rizzo’s club hasn’t been prominently linked to Yelich due to its own strong collection of outfielders. Per Frisaro, the Nats could have interest in trying to land both players, though that’s likely true of many teams.

Frisaro notes that the Marlins would covet both Victor Robles of the Nationals and the Braves’ Acuna, though both clubs would likely be reluctant to part with their top-ranked minor league talents. Rosenthal tweets that the Nationals would be loath to part with either Robles or fellow outfield Juan Soto, for instance. It’s a similar tale for the Phillies — an oft-cited Yelich suitor — as Frisaro writes that Rhys Hoskins would surely appeal to the Marlins, but it stands to reason that he’d be near untouchable after his stellar 2017 debut.

Talks regarding both Yelich and Realmuto are expected to pick up next week, according to Frisaro.

8:52am: Not only have the Braves called the division-rival Marlins to express interest in Christian Yelich (as has been previously reported), they’ve also tried to engage Miami in talks on catcher J.T. Realmuto, per Jon Morosi of MLB.com. Talks between the two sides haven’t advanced too far in either case as of late, he notes, but it seems as though the Braves have some level of interest in attempting to pry one or both players out of South Florida. David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution hears that the Braves have expressed interest in acquiring the pair, though he classifies it as doubtful that new GM Alex Anthopoulos would part with the overwhelming level of talent it’d take to land both players.

Atlanta will trot out a pair of solid veterans on one-year commitments — Tyler Flowers and Kurt Suzuki — to handle the bulk of their catching duties in 2018, whereas Realmuto and his remaining three years of control would give them a longer-term answer behind the dish. There’s a clearer spot for Yelich following the trade of Matt Kemp to the Dodgers, but Atlanta wants to leave space for top prospect Ronald Acuna to debut in an outfield corner as well. O’Brien speculates that perhaps the Braves could convince Miami to take on Nick Markakis and his salary if Martin Prado or another pricey veteran heads back to Atlanta in the deal.

While both Yelich and Realmuto are immensely popular trade targets — Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes (subscription required/recommended) that “virtually every club” is interested in trading for Yelich — it seems that there was at one point some positive momentum between the two sides. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets that Atlanta and Miami “made some progress toward” a trade involving Yelich back at the Winter Meetings. The Marlins, though, pumped the brakes on talks a bit as they dealt with significant PR backlash from trading away the likes of Giancarlo Stanton, Dee Gordon and Marcell Ozuna, according to Bowman. He does add that talks were expected to resume eventually.

Certainly, acquiring even one of the two would require a massive haul. (Rosenthal, for instance, spoke to one exec who suggested that the Marlins could rightly ask three to four “genuine assets” in exchange for Yelich alone.) Acquiring both in one swoop would presumably require one of the largest packages of young, controllable talent in recent memory.

Even after being stripped of a dozen prospects on the heels of their recent front office scandal, the Braves have one of the game’s strongest farm systems, though there are still untouchable players in the organization (O’Brien has tweeted more than once that Acuna simply is not available in discussing scenarios with his followers). On paper, then, it’s possible that the two sides could line up for a swap, though things are never quire so simple. Other factors to consider include the financial component of a deal, whether the Marlins would charge some type of premium for dealing their top two remaining stars to a division rival, and what type of splash the new Anthopoulos-led Braves front office wants to make on its first significant move in Atlanta.

It’s worth stressing, again, that the Braves are merely one team that is interested in the pair of young Miami stars. In that same column, Rosenthal writes that the Nationals have already checked in on Realmuto, while the Astros “would figure to be interested” in the Miami backstop as well. MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro wrote yesterday that upwards of  dozen clubs were in on Realmuto. As for Yelich, the Cardinals, Phillies, Diamondbacks, Giants, White Sox and even the outfield-heavy Cubs are among the teams that have been connected to him in previous reports, and surely there are others that have at least gauged the asking price as well.

NL East Notes: Turner, Bruce, Braves, Hoskins

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The Nationals welcomed Jayson Werth and Max Scherzer back to the roster last night, with both making strong contributions in their win. Today (weather permitting), they’ll see shortstop Trea Turner come off the disabled list as well, giving them another boost down the stretch as they gear up for the NLDS. As Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post writes, that’s just one step closer to whole for a Nats club that has played well through injuries but hasn’t gotten a chance to showcase how formidable it can be with its key lineup pieces and summer bullpen additions all healthy at the same time. Bryce Harper and Ryan Madson are the final major pieces of the puzzle, Svrluga notes, though surely the Nats would also relish the opportunity to add a healthy Koda Glover and Enny Romero to the mix as well.

A few more notes from the National League East…

  • Jay Bruce was the focal point of trade rumors and (earlier in his tenure) criticism for much of his time with the Mets, but the slugger tells Dan Martin of the New York Post that he is “absolutely” open to a reunion with the Mets in free agency this winter. Bruce tells Martin that he’s never seen a team as gutted by injuries as the 2017 Mets and still believes the team has the talent to contend in 2018. “I believe the Mets are a team that feels obligated to put a winning group out there, barring any injuries,” says Bruce. “I enjoyed my time in New York. It’s a great group of guys there. The talent’s there. The nucleus is there. We’ll see what happens.”
  • The Braves made what appear to be some fairly minor changes in their front office, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required and recommended), but some within the organization wonder if they’re the start to larger alterations. Among the more notable changes, Dom Chiti has moved from director of pitching to farm director, per Rosenthal. Special assistant Dave Wallace will step into Chiti’s former role. Dave Trembley will no longer serve as farm director and will instead be a field coordinator. Many teams make changes to their front office structure and scouting departments around this time, so the exact timing of the moves isn’t a surprise. One club official, though, spoke to Rosenthal about a “power struggle,” rhetorically asking: “Is John Schuerholz running the club or are John Hart and John Coppolella running it?” Rosenthal cites other Braves sources in reporting that Hart refutes the validity of that view. Hart, according to Rosenthal, is expected to return next year (his contract runs through 2017), and the Braves are also expected to eventually hire another exec to work under current Coppolella, who is currently the GM.
  • The Phillies still aren’t certain exactly where Rhys Hoskins will play for the remainder of the 2017 season once Aaron Altherr and Odubel Herrera are activated from the disabled list, writes MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. But, Hoskins’ historic start to his MLB career all but ensures that he’ll be in the lineup on a daily basis down the stretch. Manager Pete Mackanin suggested that he knows fully what Herrera and Altherr are capable of, so Hoskins could get some at-bats at their expense down the stretch. He’ll also be mixed in at first base, though Mackanin suggested that current first baseman Tommy Joseph “is an asset” for the Phils as well. Also of note, Zolecki notes that top prospect J.P. Crawford “is certain” to receive a September call-up, so Phils fans will soon have another look at one of the team’s hopeful core pieces.
  • Zolecki focuses on the 2017 season, but the issues that he raises lead to the greater question of Joseph’s future with the team. The Phillies have likely seen enough from Altherr and rookie Nick Williams that they’ll want each to get regular at-bats in the outfield corners next season, thus preventing Hoskins from playing left field. It seems largely inevitable that Hoskins will claim the regular first base role in 2018, barring the trade of a young outfielder this winter, which either makes Joseph himself a trade candidate or pushes him into a bench role.

NL Notes: Hoskins, Phillies, Braves, Brewers

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Phillies rookie Rhys Hoskins hit his 10th home run in his 17th major league game Saturday, making him the fastest player in MLB history to reach the double-digit mark. All the more remarkable: Joey Davis, the scout who implored the Phillies to draft Hoskins out of Sacramento State in 2014 (they did, in the fifth round), only saw him as a potential 15- to 20-homer type at best, according to Matt Gelb of Philly.com. Davis was nevertheless bullish on Hoskins, and after the first baseman/outfielder joined the Phillies organization, minor league hitting coordinator Andy Tracy told him to add a leg kick in order to generate more power. Hoskins did, and both that mechanical adjustment and some mental tweaks he made with the help of Double-A Reading hitting coach Frank Cacciatore turned him into the slugger he is today, Gelb explains. “With scouting, it’s a team effort,” said Davis, who Gelb notes is close with Hoskins to this day. “We have to give them good players, and they have to do a good job of coaching. That’s what happens. You have a kid like this who is willing to learn and put in the work. He has the body and the size. So it was worth a shot in the fifth round.”

More from Philadelphia and the National League:

  • While Hoskins looks like an excellent find for the Phillies, they still own the majors’ worst record (37-81) and appear to be a long ways from contention. One of the team’s problems this season has been a starting rotation that entered Saturday 23rd in the league in ERA (4.82) and 20th in fWAR (6.5). Manager Pete Mackanin would like to see the front office add outside help to the staff over the winter. “I think we have to upgrade,” Mackanin told reporters, including Ben Harris of MLB.com. Among the Phillies’ young starters, the only locks for rotation spots next year look to be Aaron Nola, Jerad Eickhoff and Vince Velasquez, Harris notes. Veteran reinforcements could be on the way, then, and Mackanin suggested that the Phillies should look for more Jeremy Hellickson types or “try to do even better.”
  • Catcher Kurt Suzuki sat on the open market until January before taking a one-year, $2.5MM deal from the Braves last winter, but the production he has posted this season means he could find a deal quicker next offseason, Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. Serving as Tyler Flowers’ backup, Suzuki has slashed a career-best .268/.342/.546 with 15 home runs in 220 plate appearances, and he credits “always positive” Braves hitting coach Kevin Seitzer for some of his success.  Suzuki’s contract status gives him an uncertain future beyond this season, though he informed Burns that he doesn’t necessarily have to be a starter going forward and expressed a willingness to re-sign with the Braves. “Yeah, I don’t see why not,” he said. “It’s a great place. I like all the guys here and stuff. But there’s a lot of factors: family, my kids starting school (in California), proximity to home (Hawaii). There’s a lot of things you can factor in, but you know, this is a place I’ve grown to love.”
  • Infielder Jonathan Villar looked like a long-term core piece for the Brewers last year when he slashed .285/.369/.457 with 19 home runs and stole a major league-high 62 bases as a shortstop/third baseman. That performance was good enough for the Brewers to offer Villar $23MM on an extension in the offseason. Villar rejected the Brewers’ proposal, though, and has taken major steps backward this season as a second baseman, having hit .227/.283/.348 with nine homers and 23 steals over 393 PAs. Now, thanks to his sharp decline from 2016 to ’17, the Brewers are unsure of what they have in the 26-year-old Villar, per Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Haudricourt wonders if the Brewers will commit to Villar at the keystone again next year or look elsewhere, as they did when they acquired free agent-to-be Neil Walker from the Mets a couple weeks ago. General manager David Stearns hasn’t made any decisions yet for 2018, but he admits there’s uncertainty regarding Villar. “How do you judge him?” Stearns said. “I think it’s the right question. I just don’t have a good answer for you.”

Phillies Promote Rhys Hoskins

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The Phillies have promoted young slugger Rhys Hoskins to the active roster for the first time today, as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki first reported (via Twitter). It had been anticipated that he’d receive a promotion at some point in the near future, but the precise arrival date was not yet clear.

Hoskins, 24, has raked in obscurity for most of his minor-league career since going to the Phils in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. But prospect evaluators have come around on his future outlook as Hoskins has continued to dominate opposing pitchers into the upper minors. He’s currently considered one of the game’s hundred-best prospects by both Baseball America and MLB.com.

While Hoskins could surely have drawn an earlier call-up, the Phillies were not willing to bump him up in place of fellow young first baseman Tommy Joseph. Instead, the Phils have decided to give Hoskins a run in left field. Whether he can handle the position in the long run remains to be seen, but he’ll get a shot to do so in the majors and will test his bat against top-level pitching — allowing Philadelphia to assess both him and Joseph for the future.

At some point, production is hard to deny. In Hoskins’s case, he has impressed more than ever this year at Triple-A. Over 475 plate appearances, he’s slashing a robust .284/.385/.581 with 29 long balls. That’s impressive in and of itself, but what’s especially encouraging is the fact that he’s walking nearly as much as he’s striking out (13.5% versus 15.8%).

It’ll be interesting to see how Hoskins looks in left and how the Phils handle the logjam over the winter. For now, the rebuilding club will be content watching its top young talent compete in the majors. Several other players have filtered up this year, and long-awaited shortstop J.P. Crawford may not be long in making his own move — depending upon how the organization decides to handle incumbent middle infielders Freddy Galvis and Cesar Hernandez.

Phillies Notes: Franco, Joseph, Hellickson

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Here’s the latest on the Phillies, who will be one of the most notable sellers in the market as we approach the trade deadline…

  • Maikel Franco is available in trade talks “but the price is high,” CSNPhilly.com’s Jim Salisbury writes.  Previous reports suggested that the Phils were looking to move on from Franco, though he has hit better over the last month, so Philadelphia is perhaps looking to recoup more value for the third baseman.  Of course, it wasn’t long ago that Franco was a highly-touted prospect who was seen as a potential cornerstone of the Phillies’ rebuild, though he has been below-average at the plate in both 2016 and 2017.
  • Also from Salisbury’s piece, it seems like Tommy Joseph will have to be moved so the Phillies can get a look at Rhys Hoskins as the regular first baseman.  “They can’t coexist on the same team,” manager Pete Mackanin said.  “There is no way I could [get playing time for both]. It wouldn’t be fair to either guy. It wouldn’t be fair to us….If [Hopkins] could play another position, if either one of them could, it would make it easier for me to do. But I don’t think it would help either guy or us to find out about Rhys Hoskins if he is not playing on a regular basis.”  Joseph has 36 homers and a .254/.310/.487 slash line in 662 career plate appearances, so between his production, age (26 next week) and five-plus years of team control, he’ll certainly get some attention on the trade market.
  • Jeremy Hellickson looks like a sure bet to be traded, and PhillyVoice.com’s Ryan Lawrence looks at the Phillies could receive in a deal for the veteran innings-eater based on past recent deadline deals for somewhat comparable pitchers.  The Phils seem likely to eat some or most of Hellickson’s remaining salary in order to receive a better prospect return.  Salisbury suggested that the Royals and Mariners could be potential trade suitors for Hellickson, as both teams are looking for low-cost rotation help.

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