Before the MLB trade deadline, the Philadelphia Phillies would like to address a few obvious areas of weakness on their roster.
They consider a right-handed hitter—more especially, an outfielder—to be their top objective. Due to Adolis Garcia’s season-ending injury, there is a significant void in right field, forcing Gabriel Rincones Jr. and Derek Hill into key positions.
The Phillies’ right-handed hitters’ output against left-handed pitchers this season has been lackluster. Although there will be some pressure on Dave Dombrowski to add someone to the roster, he will be searching for other things as well.
Recently, it was revealed that Philadelphia will also be searching for pitching assistance. Garrett Whitlock of the Boston Red Sox is one player they might target, according to MLB expert Buster Olney, who recently appeared on ESPN.
Olney said that the Red Sox are not yet ready to raise the white flag on their season and become sellers, but the time is ticking. As of July 4, they are 38-48, 5.5 games behind in the Wild Card race and 14.5 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East standings.
Boston has some fascinating trade pieces that would help the Phillies push for the playoffs and make some noise in October, so Philadelphia is undoubtedly hoping that Boston decides to become a seller.
Whitlock, who can fill the void left by closer Jhoan Duran in the starting lineup, would be a significant improvement to the Philadelphia bullpen. With Brad Keller on the injured list and Jose Alvarado erratic, interim manager Don Mattingly hasn’t been able to regularly find guys he can rely on late in games aside from Orion Kerkering.
Whitlock has made 29 appearances so far, pitching 28 innings with a 2.57 ERA, 32 strikeouts, and just six walks. With a 0.6 bWAR, he has a good 2.86 FIP and 159 ERA+, making him an excellent weapon out of the bullpen.
The Phillies may seek other Red Sox pitchers besides Whitlock. Aroldis Chapman, a closer, could also be made available to help with their need for a southpaw out of the bullpen.
Mattingly would find it much easier to handle late-game and high-leverage situations if he and Duran were paired as a lefty/righty late-game closer tandem.
