Philadelphia Phillies: 8 Reasons Why Ben Revere Is Exactly the CF the Team Needs

Ben Revere may not have been the center fielder that many Phillies fans wanted this offseason, but once you learn a little bit about him, it is clear that he is exactly the center fielder that this team needs. Before I get into detail as to why that is, let’s first address the question I can guess has been on many minds since the trade was announced: “Ben, who?”

You were not alone if this was your response to the Philadelphia Phillies trade with the Minnesota Twins. Leaving to go to Minnesota: Vance Worley, a former 11-game winner from 2011 and Trevor May, a top prospect in the organization who fell off a bit after a 10-13 season in 2012 at Reading. Returning to Philadelphia was the 24-year-old native from the state of Georgia, Ben Revere.

When the offseason began, Revere was a name that wasn’t even on the Phillies’ radar. BJ Upton was considered the team’s major target and top goal, but he chose to sign with the rival Atlanta Braves. San Francisco‘s Angel Pagan was another option, but he too went elsewhere. Free agency seemed to be the direction the Phils were heading in, but the Colorado Rockies‘ Dexter Fowler came up as a possibility as well. The Phillies did have remote interest in a Twins’ center fielder, but his name was Denard Span, and like Upton, he ended up with an NL East rival in the Washington Nationals.

When it was announced that the Phillies had found their center fielder, the expectation was that Michael Bourn would be making his return to the team. I don’t think many expected however, that taking Shane Victorino’s spot next year would be a second-year player who has a .278 batting average, 33 extra base hits and 74 stolen bases in his career.

To be honest, “Ben, who?” was exactly the question I asked when I first heard the trade. Being the baseball enthusiast I am however, I wasn’t content with that question. So I asked around and I did my research, and came to the conclusion I stated above.

While Revere may not be Upton or Bourn or really anybody that many would have wanted to see in Phillies pinstripes, he fills a need perfectly for this team. And for those of you still questioning how, hopefully I can clear some of that up.

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Josh Hamilton Rumors: Could Philadelphia Phillies Make Him December Surprise?

Two years ago, it was widely assumed that free-agent pitcher Cliff Lee would sign with the New York Yankees or Texas Rangers.

But the Philadelphia Phillies swooped in and snatched Lee from the American League powerhouses, signing him to a five-year, $120 million contract reportedly lower than what was offered elsewhere. 

Could the Phillies make a similarly surprising move this winter with free-agent outfielder Josh Hamilton? 

According to Anthony Gargano of Philadelphia’s 94WIP, the Phillies have offered a three-year contract to Hamilton. The financial terms of the deal weren’t known, but the Dallas Morning News‘ Gerry Fraley told Gargano that he believed an $80 million package would get Hamilton. 

Last week, Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reported that the Seattle Mariners had discussed three-year deals with Hamilton with an average annual salary of $20 million to $25 million. The magic number for Hamilton has always reportedly been $25 million per season, but no team has been willing to offer the six- to seven-year package he’s been seeking. 

The presumption has been that if Hamilton could be talked down to a three-year contract such as the one the Mariners were supposedly discussing, other interested teams would jump back into the bidding. Perhaps those would include the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees.

Hamilton could also very well return to the Texas Rangers under those terms. According to reports, Texas won’t offer Hamilton any contract longer than three years. The market has apparently worked in the Rangers’ favor, as Hamilton hasn’t found any team interested in giving him four years.

But the Rangers likely feel more urgency to re-sign Hamilton than they may have a week ago.

Texas looked like a favorite to sign pitcher Zack Greinke and was ready to follow that up with a trade for Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Justin Upton. 

However, Greinke ended up signing a six-year, $147 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Meanwhile, the D-Backs weren’t going to trade Upton without getting a shortstop. The Rangers didn’t want to trade Elvis Andrus or Jurickson Profar and were trying to arrange a multi-team deal that would get Arizona another team’s shortstop, such as the Indians’ Asdrubal Cabrera.

But thanks to a three-team trade with the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds, the D-Backs now have their shortstop in Didi Gregorius and probably are not going to trade Upton.  

Some of the money that would have gone toward signing Greinke is now available for Hamilton. And the Rangers still need an outfielder, unless the preference is to pursue someone like Nick Swisher or Michael Bourn instead. 

While the Rangers haven’t been able to acquire the player they want and need, Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. has a way of getting his man. Roy Oswalt, Roy Halladay, Hunter Pence and, of course, Lee were all targeted by Amaro and ended up in Philadelphia. 

Upgrading the Phillies outfield was Amaro‘s offseason priority before the 2012 season even ended. He wanted a center fielder and a power hitter for one of the corner spots, preferably a right-handed batter. 

The Phillies eventually got their center fielder, trading pitchers Vance Worley and Trevor May to the Minnesota Twins for Ben Revere. But Amaro still hasn’t gotten the middle-of-the-order run producer he needs. 

Swisher would be a good fit with the ability to play both corner outfield spots and first base. As a switch-hitter, he would also supply a right-handed bat when the Phillies face left-handed pitching. Cody Ross would be a less expensive option, also able to play left and right field. He also provides 20-homer power while batting exclusively right-handed.

But if the Phillies want a star player, someone who can be a major slugger in the middle of the lineup, Hamilton is the one who can fill that role like no other.

He bats left-handed, which isn’t the best fit with Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. However, Hamilton hit well against lefty pitching this year, batting ,291 with an .853 OPS. He would not be an automatic out when facing tough left-handers, nor would he have to sit on the bench for such matchups. 

The big question for the Phillies is whether or not Hamilton and a salary likely to exceed $25 million (it will be nearly $27 million if his contract is for $80 million over three years) fits a payroll that Amaro wants to keep below the $178 million luxury tax threshold for 2013. 

According to Cot’s Contracts, the Phillies already have nearly $144 million committed to player salaries for next season.

That only gives Amaro $34 million to play with 13 players to sign for next season, several of whom will get raises through the arbitration process. Is there really $27 million available for Hamilton under those circumstances?

Perhaps that’s why a source with the Phillies told ESPN’s Jayson Stark that he would be “shocked” if Hamilton wound up in Philadelphia. 

But there actually might be some wiggle room in that $144 million already on the Phillies’ payroll.

Cot’s Contracts has Michael Young down for $16 million, his salary for 2013. But according to USA Today, the Phillies will only have to pay $6 million of that figure. Perhaps that extra $10 million is just what Amaro needs to fit Hamilton into his budget. 

Could the Phillies pull off another heist that leaves the Rangers wondering what happened? Signing Hamilton wouldn’t be as much of a surprise as getting Lee because no team has emerged as the true favorite for his services. 

But Amaro has been patient this offseason while other outfielders like B.J. Upton, Angel Pagan and Denard Span went to other teams. That approach might finally pay off, resulting in the Phillies catching the biggest fish in this year’s free-agent sea. 

 

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Josh Hamilton: Signing with Phillies Makes Most Sense for Slugger

Josh Hamilton may want to return to the familiar confines provided by the Texas Rangers, but the Rangers may not offer him the contract he wants. The Seattle Mariners will probably be willing to offer him the contract he wants, but he won’t be joining a winning team.

Suddenly, the Philadelphia Phillies seem like the most logical place for Hamilton to sign. 

Let’s get one thing straight—if the Rangers match the biggest offer he gets on the market, he’ll return to Texas. And with Zack Greinke off the market and a Justin Upton trade seeming less likely by the day, the Rangers may have no choice but to throw a ton of cash at Hamilton.

But let’s say they aren’t willing to do that—something that seems possible given Hamilton remains unsigned. If money and years weren’t a major consideration for the Rangers, Hamilton would already be re-signed. 

And its possible the Mariners or some other team will start throwing cash around or be willing to offer more years, driving the Rangers past their comfort zone in the negotiations. They’ll have a breaking point when it comes to offering Hamilton a contract, no doubt about that.

But one team that always seems to emerge from left field and make a big offer is the Phillies, a team that saved a lot of cash by trading Hunter Pence and Shane Victorino last season and desperately needs a big bat in the middle of the lineup. 

On Tuesday night, it was rumored the Phillies had entered the fray to sign Hamilton. Frankly, if true, it makes a lot of sense.

Hamilton may be risky, but the Phillies only have a few years left with the current core of aging players to be World Series contenders. If this team is serious about winning a World Series in the next two years, Hamilton is the biggest splash they can make.

Because of that, the Phillies may be willing to offer the superstar a huge contract.

If you were Hamilton and you were looking at two huge contracts from the Phillies and Mariners and a lesser contract with Texas, which route would you go?

The Phillies have quality people throughout the organization, a roster that would be capable of returning to the playoffs, a fanbase that would absolutely adore Hamilton and would be offering a big contract to land him.

How is that not appealing?

I understand why Hamilton would want to return to the Rangers. But when you look at how his market will shape up, more and more I believe the Phillies will represent the best option in terms of money and a chance to succeed.

Don’t be surprised if he’s raising a Phillies jersey at a press conference before the new year.

 

Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets remain in high demand on the Twitter market. And yet I give them away for free…

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MLB Free Agency 2013: Phillies Have Not Offered Josh Hamilton 3-Year, $80M Deal

******UPDATE (2:38 p.m.):*********

According to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, their story on Josh Hamilton being offered a contract by the Phillies was based on a fake source.

 

The Hamilton/Philly reports all sprung out of a fake Jon Heyman account (my fake account is much cooler). Our website was duped. Apologies.

— Evan Grant (@Evan_P_Grant) December 12, 2012

 

 

The fake Jon Heyman Twitter account strikes again.

If you go to the link for the story on the Dallas Morning News site, it has been taken down.

My apologies to any Philly fan who might have gotten their hopes up based off the story or the other one that was published earlier this morning.

And so, we wait some more on where Hamilton signs this winter.

********************************

For the second time in three years, the Rangers may lose a top player to the City of Brotherly Love.

According to Gerry Fraley of The Dallas Morning News, the Phillies have offered free agent slugger Josh Hamilton a three-year deal for $80 million.

CBS Sports in Philly also confirmed the offer, basing it off the story from The Dallas Morning News.

Hamilton hit .285 with 43 home runs and 128 RBI in 2012 with the Texas Rangers.

He won the 2010 AL Most Valuable Player Award and finished fifth in the 2012 AL MVP Award voting.

The Phillies just acquired Hamilton’s former teammate Michael Young, plus the Phillies have another one of his former Texas teammates in Cliff Lee, who was on the Rangers in 2010.

This would be the second winter in three years where the Phillies quietly crept into free agent negotiations and snagged the top player on the market.

Back in December 2010, the Phillies got Cliff Lee after the Yankees and Rangers were negotiating with him all winter.

In fact, it’s almost two years to the day in which the Phillies made the five-year deal with Lee.

The Phillies also recently acquired Twins center fielder Ben Revere, so Philly could put Hamilton in left or right field along with Domonic Brown.

A lot of teams have been skeptical on signing Hamilton because of his past with drugs and alcohol, plus the fact that he is 31 years old, but a three-year offer would only lock Hamilton up until age 34.

The story from the Dallas newspaper said the deal could be done as soon as Wednesday night, so Philadelphia might actually land Hamilton within the next few hours.

Stay tuned, fans.

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Updated Predictions for the Philadelphia Phillies 2013 Opening Day Roster

Coming into the 2013 offseason, we knew that the Philadelphia Phillies‘ Opening Day roster for the upcoming season would look drastically different than it did in 2012, for a number of different reasons. Some players are healthy, and others are no longer with the club. 

The Phillies haven’t even finished adding to their product yet and, already, we get the sense that they are going to be better, stronger and healthier. That should go a long way in erasing the most disappointing season in recent history from memory. 

Pitchers and catchers still won’t report to Clearwater, Florida for more than two months from now, but we already have an idea of what this club will look like. The following slideshow will update what the Phillies could look like on Opening Day in April. 

I will be factoring in players on the roster, recent additions the club has made and predictions for players that I believe the Phillies could still add. 

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Why the Philadelphia Phillies Should Not Pursue Alfonso Soriano

The Philadelphia Phillies still need a corner outfielder and Alfonso Soriano is not the answer.

Jon Heyman of CBSSports reported the Phillies have potentially discussed a deal with the Chicago Cubs sending Soriano to Philly in return for youngster Domonic Brown.

While the Phillies do need some right-handed pop in their lineup, this would be a step in the wrong direction.

The club recently traded for another aging veteran, Michael Young, who will serve as the Phillies’ everyday third baseman. In that case, shipping out youth for experience made sense. Young struggled last season, but he is an instant upgrade for the Phillies. The free agent market was limited at third and high-profile trades were nearly impossible to execute. Essentially, Young will serve as a stop-gap for prospect Cody Asche.

But the Phillies need to get younger and trading for Soriano is not the way to do that.

Now Soriano was productive last season and still might have some gas left in his tank, but trading away potential years of service out of Domonic Brown is not a wise investment. Even if the Cubs eat most of his salary, the Phils need to run from this deal.

Yes, Brown is unproven and fans are tired of waiting for him to live up to his potential, but trading him for another right-handed power hitter with league-leading strike out potential would be a mistake. The Phillies should give Brown a shot, or keep him and sign Cody Ross, Nick Swisher or Josh Hamilton.  Then let Brown and Darin Ruf battle for the remaining starting spot.

Soriano is also injury-prone and if the Phillies lose him during the season—the club will have no legitimate reserve player for the position. Jon Mayberry Jr. will have to fill the void, and not many want this scenario.

The Phillies have made some exciting moves this offseason, bringing in both youth and experience, but the club’s next moves must be smart and accurate. The team does not have to settle for its current needs, but concentrate on promising players for years to come with low risk.

Soriano’s enjoyed a very nice Major League career but it should not continue in Philadelphia.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 5 Things Charlie Manuel Should Do to Save His Job

Charlie Manuel‘s Baseball Reference managerial page tells you a lot more about him than his career wins and losses at the helm of the Cleveland Indians and the Philadelphia Phillies.

He has 947 major-league managerial wins. Barring a midseason firing in 2013, he will get to 1,000 in a Phillies uniform.

In seven prior seasons as the Phillies’ manager, he had never won fewer than 85 games in a season. That is, until the 2012 Phillies staggered to 81-81.

He enters the 2013 season as a lame duck whose most recent contract extension will run out at the end of the season. Seeing this, the Phillies already seem to have his heir apparent, Ryne Sandberg, training on the job in the coming year.

Given that Manuel left the Indians in 2002 under strained contractual circumstances, that may not bode well for his job prospects in Philadelphia beyond 2013.

But what jumps off the page of statistics depicting Charlie Manuel’s managerial career is his birthdate. Manuel will turn 69 on January 4, 2013. Does he even really need this aggravation any more?

The Phillies’ 2013 results will almost certainly dictate whether the club gives Manuel another contract extension or decides to change course.

If Manuel wants to stay, though, there are some things he really needs to do as soon as possible.

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Phillies Rumors: Fact or Fiction on All the Hottest Rumors in Philadelphia

If this offseason has taught us anything, it’s that baseball is unpredictable. 

From the moment the regular season ended, the Philadelphia Phillies had a clear set of needs. In the post-Shane Victorino era, they needed a center fielder and were favorites to land a free agent from among names like Michael Bourn, Angel Pagan and Josh Hamilton. 

Didn’t happen. 

Instead, the Phillies refused to overpay for a big name free agent and waited the market out, finally striking an eleventh hour trade with the Minnesota Twins to acquire outfielder Ben Revere in exchange for pitchers Vance Worley and Trevor May.

With their center field situation solved (and for cheap), the Phillies then turned their attention to adding a setup man, an affordable starting pitcher, a third baseman and a corner outfielder. While Michael Young appears to be in the Phillies’ future, this is a club that still has some work to do. 

Now that the Phillies have a few dollars to spend, the rumor mill is churning in full force once again. Who are some of the players that could legitimately wind up in Philadelphia? Which rumors are completely fabricated? Only one way to find out.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 5 Top Fallback Outfield Options Following Recent Signings

The offseason may not have gotten off to the kind of start that the Philadelphia Phillies thought it would when free agency began last month.

However, general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. has still managed to do the unthinkable. In an offseason full of numerous options, despite none being guaranteed to pay off, Amaro has managed to acquire two inexpensive players, giving the Phillies even more options as the offseason continues.

Ben Revere gives the Phils a young center fielder that is under team control through the 2017 season, while Michael Young provides experience for at least one season at third base.

Combined, the two players will likely cost the Phillies under $7 million next season.

With two needs filled, the Phillies still have plenty of payroll flexibility to acquire a pitcher for the eighth inning, or even a starter to take Vance Worley’s spot in the rotation.

However, another outfielder is still needed to improve a lineup that could still use an infusion of youth, power or stability.

Although players such as B.J. Upton, Angel Pagan and Shane Victorino have signed free-agent deals, a handful of outfielders at the corner spots still remain as options for the Phils, who still have money to spend if they so choose.

Here are five fallback outfield options that the Phillies can still sign as the offseason continues.

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Why Phillies’ Second Half and Recent Acquisitions Show They Can Win in 2013

The 2012 Philadelphia Phillies had their worst record (37-50) at the All-Star break since the 1997 Phillies. What many fans don’t realize is that without Shane Victorino, Hunter Pence and Joe Blanton, the Phillies were able to finish the season with a record of 44-31, which correlates to a .586 winning percentage.

During the Phillies’ second half, they also saw Vance Worley hit the disabled list in late August and Roy Halladay pitch as a shell of what he has been for the Phillies in the past. 

Chase Utley and Ryan Howard were both back in the everyday lineup, but everyone watching them knew they were not playing close to 100 percent, leaving even more room for the team to improve in 2013.

On a positive note, one player who helped the Phillies turn it around in the second half was Kyle Kendrick. When Kendrick became a fixture in the starting rotation in August, he finished the month with a record of 4-1 and a 2.95 ERA. He completed the season with a career-high 116 strikeouts.

The second half of 2012 also gave us a small glimpse into Darin Ruf, who could potentially take the reins in left field and bring the 2013 Phillies a much-needed power bat from the right side. In Ruf’s 33 major league at-bats he hit .333 with three home runs, 10 RBI and an OPS of 1.079. 

So what does all this mean?

If the Phillies can play the type of quality baseball they played in the second half of 2012 throughout the entire 2013 season, get their core players healthy and receive solid contributions from the recently acquired Ben Revere and Michael Young, not only can they compete for a playoff berth in 2013, but they can challenge the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals to retake the NL East title.

With their holes at third base and center field filled—at a very cheap rate I might add—the Phillies should have enough cash to go after a quality corner outfielder or starting pitcher and still bring in some bullpen help.

Revere is said to play excellent defense and brings a true leadoff hitter to Philadelphia. He has the potential to swipe more than 40 bags and hit .300 in a season. Plus, he will turn just 25 in May, giving the Phillies some much-needed youth. The Phillies’ starting outfield in 2013 could potentially not have one player over the age of 26 when the season begins in April with Ruf, Domonic Brown and Revere.

Bringing Michael Young in to play third base is huge for the Phillies. He is a career .300 hitter who has won a Gold Glove and is a true veteran. Young played games and first base, second base, third base and shortstop in 2012. He also gives the Phillies some right-handed balance to a lefty-heavy lineup. 

The Phillies will also be looking to add some starting pitching depth with the departure of Vance Worley in the Ben Revere deal. A guy like Kyle Lohse would look great in a Phillies uniform.

2013 is beginning to look very promising for Phillies fans. With one or two more moves the Phillies should have the depth to seriously contend for a title in 2013.     

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