PHILS PHACTS:
Making Some Noise! – Nobody
expected the Phillies to make much noise at this week's Winter Meetings. But then the Phils agreed to a potentially
significant trade Wednesday night. The deal sent closer Ken Giles and infielder
Jonathan Arauz to the Astros for five players: lefties Brett Oberholtzer and
Mark Appel -- the first pick in the 2013 MLB Draft -- and right-handers Vincent Velasquez,
Harold Arauz and Thomas Eshelman. Folks at the Winter Meetings like the package
the Phillies received from Houston. Velasquez went 1-1 with a 4.37 ERA in 19
appearances (seven starts) with the Astros last season. He has the talent to be
a No. 3 starter or a dominant late-inning reliever, like Giles. Appel, who
ranked as the Astros' No. 2 prospect before the trade, went 10-3 with a 4.37
ERA in 25 starts spread across Double-A and Triple-A. He struck out 110 batters
and walked 51 in 131 2/3 innings. Oberholtzer went 2-2 with a 4.46 ERA in eight
starts. He is 11-20 with a 3.94 ERA in 45 appearances (42 starts) in his big
league career. Oberholtzer projects into the Phils' rotation in 2016. No
pitcher in the history of college baseball threw more strikes than Eshelman. He
led NCAA Division I in walks per nine innings as a freshman (0.2), sophomore
(0.6) and junior (0.5) at Cal State Fullerton, establishing new records for a
single season and a career (0.4). Eshelman projects as a back-of-the-rotation
starter. Giles essentially became a luxury to the rebuilding Phillies. They
hope they swapped 65 innings a season from Giles for three pitchers who
potentially could throw 200 innings a season, plus a future everyday left
fielder in Fisher. Deals done: The only official deal at this point is a
one-year, $3.9 million contract with right-hander David Hernandez, who
signed Wednesday. He immediately becomes a candidate to close if the Giles
trade is finalized. Hernandez had some success as a setup man in Arizona before
Tommy John surgery forced him to miss 2014, plus the first two months of 2015. Rule
5: The Phillies selected outfielder Tyler Goeddel with the first pick in
the Rule 5 Draft. He is the No. 19 prospect
in Philadelphia's system, according to MLBPipeline.com. The Phils hope he plays
like some of the other outfielders pro scouting director Mike Ondo has selected
in the Rule 5 Draft: Shane Victorino,
Ender Inciarte and Odubel Herrera. Goeddel
has potential to grow offensively, and he played all three outfield positions
last season, which should make him versatile in the Phillies' outfield. The
Phils also selected left-hander Daniel Stumpf, who will compete for a bullpen
job. He pitched in Kansas City's system last season. Goals accomplished:
The Phillies continue to stockpile pitching and young talent with an eye on the
future. Will the Phils compete in 2015? Probably not. But are they putting
themselves in position to turn a corner in the future by adding as many young
players as possible? Yes. It's a numbers game. Not every prospect is going to
hit (see Domonic Brown). But the more prospects a team has in its system, the
better chance there is that some of them will hit. And that should help the
Phillies win again. Unfinished business: The Phillies can always use
more pitching. They currently have Jeremy Hellickson, Aaron Nola, Jerad Eickhoff,
Oberholtzer, Velasquez, Adam Morgan,
David Buchanan and Alec Asher as candidates
for the rotation. But Phils general manager Matt Klentak has correctly pointed
out that a team rarely gets through a season with just five or six starters. The
more, the merrier. GM's bottom line: "We're trying to balance it
all. That makes us no different from any team. We have a lot of balls in the
air, most of which you're working on never comes to fruition. But every once in
a while, something will." – Klentak.
THE BEGINNING:
The
Phillies finally put an end to the season finishing in last place in the NL
East with a record of 63-99. Given the departures, aging stars, injuries, and
bipolar performances, this has ended up being one of the worst seasons in
franchise history! However, at least Ryan Madson got another ring this year.
