Since the Arizona Diamondbacks ended the Philadelphia Phillies’ season in the National League Championship Series last year, the topic of starting pitching has been discussed a lot.
Due to rumoured disparities between what the team was ready to provide and what the star player was hoping to receive, it appeared like re-signing Aaron Nola might be challenging.
They were able to get a seven-year contract for their former first-round pick, though.
Then, in an unexpected move given their already large budget, the Phillies extended an extremely generous contract offer to Yoshinobu Yamamoto. They were connected to other starters in free agency when he chose the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The talk right now is about locking down Zack Wheeler for the long term with a contract that would probably keep him with the team until he retires.
Thus, it shouldn’t be shocking that Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report devised a trade proposal that would send promising starting pitcher Josiah Grey from the Washington Nationals to Philadelphia.
In exchange for Grey, the Phillies are reportedly giving pitcher Alex McFarlane, who is ranked No. 11 in the rankings, shortstop Bryan Rincon, who is ranked No. 28, catcher Eduardo Tait, who is ranked No. 23, and pitcher Eduardo Tait, who is ranked No. 28.
As they continue to develop, all three of these potentials for Philadelphia are long-term endeavours. None of them have advanced past the Single-A level, and none of them are older than 23.
After winning Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2019 and ranking as their third-best player in 2020 and second-best in 2021, Grey was once considered one of the Dodgers’ greatest prospects.
At the 2021 trade deadline, Los Angeles made the decision to deal him as part of a package to reclaim Max Scherzer and Trea Turner.
Gray’s Major League career has not yet proceeded according to plan. Before being named an All-Star last season, he had two seasons in a row with an ERA above 5.00.
With the Nationals last season, the 26-year-old may have turned things around, as he tossed 159 innings and made 30 starts with an ERA of 3.91.
Before becoming a free agent in 2028, the gifted righty has four more years of club control, so the Phillies will have plenty of opportunity to mould him into the outstanding starter that was predicted of him.
This is only a trade idea, of course, but since the front office still seems keen on increasing arms, they might give it some thought.
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