A New Holliday In Philadelphia?

Everyone knows that the Phillies are in the market for a legitimate starting pitcher, especially after their National League rivals the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers made serious acquisitions last week. They have been trying to work out a deal for Erik Bedard from the Seattle Mariners, and have expressed interest in A.J. Burnett, Bronson Arroyo, Jarrod Washburn, and Randy Wolf. As you can tell, there isn't a lot out there in terms of premier pitching talent, with arguably Bedard being the only bona fide ace. Phillies GM Pat Gillick has publicly stated that the Phillies are not willing to part with the few top prospects they have in their farm team for less than acceptable pitching. That basically means they are going to make a deal for Bedard, or they're just going to stick with the pitching they have, unless they can convince a team to deal a "B" or "C" list pitcher for lesser prospects.

It appears that as a result the Phillies have turned their sights onto acquiring a significant offensive upgrade. One name that has been out there as being on the block is Pirates' outfielder Jason Bay, who has struggled over the past two seasons but has shown that he is capable of some serious offensive numbers. However, it was reported Wednesday on ESPN Radio 950 Philadelphia by host Jody Mac that the Phillies are in talks with the Colorado Rockies about what it would take to bring stud outfielder Matt Holliday to Philadelphia.

Before you get excited, if the Phillies were to make a trade for Holliday, it would most likely require most, if not all, of the team's top prospects, including Carlos Carasco or Adrian Cardenas. That being said, a guy like Holliday could be worth it. This year he is batting .337 with 14 home runs and 51 RBIs. In addition, he has 13 stolen bases and 42 walks. Last year Holliday was the runner up to Jimmy Rollins for the NL MVP when he hit .340 with 36 home runs and 137 RBIs. The addition of Holliday would solidify the Phillies offense as the best in the majors.

Unfortunately, adding Holliday will do nothing to help the Phillies' pitching needs. Opening day starter Brett Myers is set to return to the Phillies on July 23rd and former No. 1 pick Kris Benson continues to progress through the majors and could join the Phillies in early August. In a deal for Holliday, the Phillies could also acquire former Rockies' closer Brian Fuentes. He would provide the much needed second left arm in the bullpen and would serve as the team's primary set up man. Fuentes could also give closer Brad Lidge a day off every few games. He has 99 career saves in his seven plus year career.

One possibility is that the Phillies could try to trade slugger Ryan Howard for a premier pitcher. By putting Howard on the market, it would open up the market to players not previously available for a trade. Howard has shown, to me at least, a glaring lack of interest to stay in Philadelphia after his contract expires in 2011. He has taken the Phillies to arbitration the past two seasons, winning a $10 million contract this past off season. Howard is currently leading the league in home runs and RBIs. Over the past month he hit a very respectable .284. This is the best opportunity to trade Howard as the Phillies will get the biggest return on him. If they wait, they'll end up losing him with no return, or having to trade him with a gun to their head with a much less significant return. I say trade Howard now for that premier pitcher, or a set of top prospects to replace those lost by trading for Holliday.

The time is now for the Phillies to win. The National League is the weakest it has been in years. There are only a handful of legitimately good teams, such as Chicago, Milwaukee, Arizona, the Mets, and maybe the Cardinals. The Phillies need to strike while the iron is hot and get done the deals that will put them in a position to compete and win this year.