Report: Phillies scouting Twins as sellers, interested in bullpen help

With the MLB trade deadline inching closer, several contending teams have begun scouting the Twins as potential sellers. One of those teams, according to a recent report, is the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Phillies are 54-39 and hold a narrow lead in the NL East. Their specific need, it seems, is at least one high-end arm for a bullpen that ranks 23rd in ERA. That makes Minnesota a logical trade partner. If the Twins — who sit four games back of a wild card spot heading into Friday night — decide to sell, they have a couple elite, controllable relievers who could fetch a big return: Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax. Those could be the targets for the Phillies, according to The Athletic's Matt Gelb.

"The Phillies have a specific interest in the American League Central; they began scouting the Minnesota Twins more heavily this week in anticipation of them being sellers, league sources said," Gelb wrote. "Griffin Jax and Jhoan Durán will be prized targets if Minnesota makes them available. They’re expected to listen."

Duran and Jax each have two more arbitration years after this one. Between their contracts and their talent, they'd likely each fetch multiple legit prospects in a potential trade. Duran has a 1.52 ERA this year and has been one of the best relievers in baseball since his 2022 debut, even with a slightly shaky 2024. Jax hasn't been as sharp this year after a dominant 2024, but his incredible strikeout and walk rates suggest he's been more unlucky than anything.

The Phillies have mostly acquired rentals for lower-level prospects in recent trade deadline periods, but Gelb wrote that this year, they "sound more willing to trade bigger prospect chips for controllable big leaguers, especially a shutdown, late-inning reliever."

Philadelphia's farm system has six players currently ranked in MLB.com's top 100 prospects. Pitcher Andrew Painter, their top prospect, is likely untouchable, according to Gelb. But any of the other five could be on the table. Those are 21-year-old shortstop Aidan Miller (No. 22), 21-year-old outfielder Justin Crawford (No. 49), 18-year-old catcher Eduardo Tait (No. 63), 23-year-old pitcher Mick Abel (No. 87), and 20-year-old second baseman Aroon Escobar (No. 97).

If the Twins could land, say, Miller and Abel for Duran or Jax, that might be quite tempting. Louis Varland's emergence as an outstanding high-leverage reliever would help ease the long-term blow of losing one (or both) of their top two bullpen arms.

Duran and Jax seem like the two big names to watch for the Twins before the deadline. If they end up in sell mode, they might look to move a rental like Harrison Bader or Willi Castro, but it would be the two relievers who could really generate a strong prospect return. ESPN's Jeff Passan recently named the ideal trade deadline addition for each of the 16 teams with winning records — and he chose Jax for the Tampa Bay Rays and Duran for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

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