The Philadelphia Phillies will almost certainly shake things up this winter.
Coming off four consecutive years of progressively more upsetting playoff losses, the Phillies know their formula has grown a bit stale. The lineup hasn’t performed in October, and a good way to prevent that next year could be putting together a fresher and perhaps more talented lineup combination for next year.
Stars Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto are slated for free agency, but there’s a strong case to be made for keeping both. That would mean trades are the Phillies’ best bet, and third baseman Alec Bohm knows he’s likely to hear his name in trade rumblings all winter once again.
Though he was an All-Star a year ago, Bohm’s trade value probably hasn’t changed much since last winter, but for the fact that he’s only a year away from free agency now. Does that mean the Phillies are out of luck in terms of trying to get something of substance for him?
On Thursday, Jim Bowden of The Athletic provided hope that the Los Angeles Angels could be a decent fit, signaling that the Phillies might at least have one enthusiastic suitor for Bohm.
“At 29, Bohm could benefit from a change of scenery, and an upgrade at the hot corner would help the Phillies too,” Bowden wrote. “With both Alex Bregman and Bo Bichette being viable options in free agency, it would make sense for the Phillies to deal Bohm at this time.
“He’s controllable for two more years and his best trade fit could be with the Los Angeles Angels.”
Los Angeles’ third-base position has been a merry-go-round, which is of course ironic, because they have the highest-paid third baseman in the sport on their payroll in Anthony Rendon. Knowing they can’t count on Rendon to play most of the time, the Angels might indeed be interested in a cost-controlled year of Bohm — if they believe they’re in play for the postseason.
Aiding that notion is the fact that both general manager Perry Minasian and new manager Kurt Suzuki are on one-year contracts, so perhaps a win-now Angels team would gift the Phillies a prospect or two for their depreciating trade asset.
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