Phillies Shockingly Named Best Fit for Star Pitcher

May 2, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting hats and gloves sit on the bench against the Miami Marlins during the fifth inning at loanDepot Park. Rhona Wise-Imagn Images

Phillies Shockingly Named Best Fit for Star Pitcher

Originally posted on Philadelphia Phillies on SI
By Nick Ziegler | Last updated Jun 6, 2026 1:00 PM ET

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The Philadelphia Phillies were able to start off their series against the Chicago White Sox on a positive note, and the team is now on a four-game winning streak. With the team now five games over the .500 mark, they will clearly be buyers at the trade deadline.

Despite a terrible start to the season, the Phillies are getting closer to where they want to be following a great May and a strong start to June so far. Even though the Atlanta Braves are still up by 8.5 games in the division, Philadelphia should be focused on themselves and continuing to win games. This is now a team that is squarely in the mix for the NL Wild Card, and there is still plenty of season to go.

While the team has been performing well, there are going to be some areas that they will be looking to improve. This is a team that is far from perfect, and they have a couple of areas that they should be seeking improvements for before the trade deadline.

Jeff Passan of ESPN recently wrote about an early trade deadline preview for all of the teams in baseball. For the Phillies, he shockingly wrote about Tarik Skubal as the best fit for the team.

Adding Skubal Would Be Shocking

When looking at the needs for Philadelphia, starting pitching is near the bottom of the list. Since the return of Zack Wheeler, this is a unit that has been really strong, and they figure to have their rotation set. Wheeler obviously plays a big part in that, and he has been joined by Cristopher Sanchez as a star at the top of the rotation.

With these two, the Phillies are going to be a threat against any team in the playoffs. While there is no denying that Skubal is an amazing player and one of the best pitchers in baseball, he isn’t a top need for Philadelphia.

The Phillies have some strong options after their top two in Jesus Luzardo, Aaron Nola, and Andrew Painter. While these three have had some inconsistencies, they are capable of winning playoff games.

Furthermore, while Skubal would be a great addition, Philadelphia is lacking in terms of their farm system, and the cost wouldn’t be cheap. While he is an elite talent, the Phillies would be better off adding two bats to a lineup that has been very lackluster so far.

This article first appeared on Philadelphia Phillies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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