DEALS BRIGHTEN PHILLIES’ FUTURE
Trading Hamels no easy choice, Amaro says
If the trade of Jimmy Rollins during the offseason wasn’t a clear enough sign the Philadelphia Phillies planned to rebuild, the decision to move Cole Hamels should send the message.
Hamels, reliever Jake Diekman and cash considerations were officially traded to the Texas Rangers on Friday in exchange for six players, five of whom are prospects. In three separate trades in a three-day window, the Phillies added eight prospects and one big-league player in lefthander Matt Harrison, who was put on the 15-day disabled list Friday with lower back inflammation.
The moves have provided much-needed depth and top-tier prospects within the minor league system, even though it meant trading Hamels.
“There’s nothing at all easy about any of these decisions and trades,” general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said Friday. “Jimmy Rollins, Cole Hamels, they’re difficult because these are iconic players for our organization. But these are exactly the types of things we set out to do when we went into this transition in the offseason. We’ve got a very good package of players that I think will help propel this organization forward in the future.”
Of the five prospects the Phillies got for Hamels and Diekman — outfielder Nick Williams, catcher Jorge Alfaro and right-handers Jake Thompson, Alec Asher and Jerad Eickoff — Alfaro and Williams were viewed as premium prospects, according to Amaro. Alfaro had left ankle surgery in June and will be examined by Philadelphia doctors before the Phillies determine whether he will play again this season.
At some point during next season, Amaro anticipates some of these players will start reaching the majors. Eickhoff and Asher are especially close to earning a call-up and will be assigned to Class AAA Lehigh Valley (Allentown, Pa.). Either of them could see time in the majors this season.
In MLB.com’s updated prospect rankings, Thompson, Williams and Alfaro are ranked as the Nos. 2, 3 and 4 players in the Phillies system. Shortstop J.P. Crawford is the top-rated player. Nick Pivetta, acquired in the Jonathan Papelbon trade with the Washington Nationals, Eickhoff and Alberto Tirado, part of the Ben Revere trade with the Toronto Blue Jays, are also rated in the top 20 in the Phillies organization.
“It’s hard to predict where the market was going to be this next offseason,” Amaro said of Hamels. “I think that this was the time when we felt that we maximized our leverage with him. The reality of it is there is going to be a lot of players out there on the free agent market.”
Amaro said the Phillies felt comfortable that Alfaro would be fine, though he acknowledged there’s risk because healthy ankles are important for catchers.
“Now the risk is, the biggest risk is not so much from the injury, but how these guys will con- tinue to develop and what they might be able to do here in Philadelphia,” Amaro said. “That’s the risk, because they’re prospects. But we think they’re guys we think are going to impact our club hopefully in the near future.”
Alfaro is one of the prizes of the Phillies’ haul in the Hamels-headlined deal. Amaro expects Alfaro to stick at catcher, which would be huge for a Phillies organization that has no marquee player at that position in the minors.
“The beauty of Alfaro is that this guy is so athletic he can play another position if the catching thing doesn’t work out,” Amaro said. “But he’s made great strides over the past few years, particularly with his work behind the plate. And we think he can impact us obviously behind the plate.”
The money involved in the trade with the Rangers contributed to it taking more than 36 hours to get approved by Major League Baseball. But as the Los Angeles Dodgers have shown — and as the Phillies are starting to — being a big-market team has its advantages. The Phillies were able
to pay off some of Hamels’ contract as well as take on Harrison’s bad deal to get a better haul of prospects. It’s an approach the Phillies are willing to embrace, especially since they have proved they aren’t afraid to spend money.
“We’re in a world where teams are buying talent,” Amaro said. “This is one of the ways we can use our economic muscle to buy talent. I think ... that’s what we did. But we bought talent with talent. We bought talent with dollars and cents as well.”
Amaro conceded he was essentially told by the Rangers that their two top prospects, outfielders Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara, were untouchable. But he isn’t disappointed with the return and expects the acquired players to make an impact in the majors at some point.
Williams and Thompson, both 21, will join Class AA Reading (Pa.) to begin their careers in the Phillies organization.
“Could we have continued to hold out for those types of players? Maybe, but would we have gotten the same level of depth and quality? I do not believe so,” Amaro said. “We had a lot of names that were tossed around, and they have a ton of talent. We haggled and haggled and haggled and got to the point where both sides were very comfortable with the deal that was made.”
Thompson’s fastball sits between 89 and 92 mph, and he has an above-average slider and average changeup. He projects as a No. 3 or 4 starter.
On the scouting scale, Williams has 65 power and good control of the bat to be able to make solid contact in all areas of the zone. He’ll have to do a better job of not swinging at every pitch he sees, his main weakness, according to ESPN prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. But Amaro likes how Williams has developed and thinks he has the chance to be a real impact player offensively.
“Finding offense is not easy, and he has a nice combination of speed and power,” Amaro said. “He’s not going to necessarily be a blazer, but he’s a very good athlete who has got some power, and we need as much talent as we can, particularly in the outfield in our system.”
While trading Hamels will hurt in the short term, the Phillies expect to reap the benefits in the coming years as they try to regain their status as perennial contenders.