The Philadelphia Phillies are going nowhere fast this season. While the Miami Marlins are building for multiple runs at the playoffs and a National League East title, the Phillies are looking to make a Marlin-like fire sale. Anybody and everybody is available as they look to rebuild. With the focus on the future, the biggest Christmas gift for the Phillies would be finding a trade partner for Ryan Howard.
At one point, Howard was the best piece of the Phillies’ offense and a bat who was going to lead them to multiple titles, but injuries (and his alarming strikeout rate) has made him a nearly immovable player at the age of 35. The former MVP was a consitent leader in home runs and RBIs, but now he is coming off a season where he did stay healthy enough to play 153 games, but he also led the league in strikeouts and batted just .223.
With at least $60 plus million committed to Howard for the next three seasons, he is almost impossible to move and even harder to sit if he is on the roster. Sitting a player making more than $20 million is something that no team can afford, but if he does play, that means that a player like Cody Asche or Maikel Franco would need to sit to accommodate Howard’s mostly lackluster and declining bat.
This offseason, the Phillies have made it clear that anyone can be moved, but moving Howard would be their greatest gain. Even if the return was minimum, getting him off of the roster to free up space for others would be a step in the right direction for the club as they look to become players in the East again in the near future.
Pete Schwichtenberg is a MLB writer for Rantsports. Follow @schwick26_pete, Like him on Facebook, or Add him to your Google Network.
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