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Phillies trade talk: Could be a quiet deadline for the Phils

On Episode 134 of The Felske Files host John Stolnis speaks with CSN Philly’s Marshall Harris about Stanton, Yelich, and rumors it could be a quiet deadline for the Phillies again this year.

By John Stolnis

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MLB: Arizona Diamondbacks at Philadelphia Phillies Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Episode 134 of The Felske Files is brought to you by Anthony Arot and The Nash Wealth Management Group! Check them out here!

We all want the Phillies to do something.

If you’re the general manager of a Major League Baseball team, however, that’s never the mindset you want to have at the trade deadline. You never want to make moves for the sake of making them. There has to be logic behind them.

In the case of the Phillies, there are young players in AAA who are close to being ready for the promotion to the big leagues, or in the case of Rhys Hoskins, already are ready. Unfortunately for them, there are players blocking their path at the Major League level.

The Phils also have a collection of veteran rentals that could be of interest to teams in a normal year. But this is not a normal year.

This is a buyer’s market. Very few contenders have positional needs. Most are looking for pitching and want to get controllable starters and relievers. Sure, the market for rentals will pick up as we get closer to July 31, but for all the veterans on one-year deals the Phillies have, there is very little being said about them in the MLB rumor mill.

So are we looking at another quiet trade deadline? It appears so, according to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. It also appears as if nothing is going to happen with Giancarlo Stanton and/or Christian Yelich in the next 10 days, which isn’t surprising, given that Stanton would have to waive his no-trade clause to go and play for the “worst team in baseball.” And it also appears as if the other guys the Phils want to move might not have that much interest around the league.

It takes two to tango and right now, the Phillies may not have a dance partner for most of their players. But that doesn’t mean Matt Klentak isn’t doing all he can, and Yahoo!’s Jeff Passan says the Phils are being “sneaky aggressive” at the deadline, specifically regarding controllable starting pitchers.

On Episode 134 of The Felske Files, Marshall Harris of Comcast SportsNet talks about the trade deadline and whether the Phillies are going to be able make any moves of consequence, as well as the possibility of the Phils trading for the two Miami stars at some point in the next few months.

Also discussed on this episode of the podcast...

  • The latest on the Stanton/Yelich rumors, why it’s not happening now and obstacles to it happening in the winter.
  • Do the Phillies have anything other teams want?
  • Phils players aren’t generating much interest on the trade market, and no one is talking about them in the national media
  • The Phils’ offense is red-hot in July
  • Nick Williams has added a much-needed spark to the lineup
  • Maikel Franco has also started to get hot
  • Aaron Altherr to the DL sucks
  • Jhailyn Ortiz is a stud 18-year-old tearing it up this year in the low minors
  • Jeff Israel of PhilliesMinorThoughts.com joins the show for the weekly #TrustTheProspects segment
  • He saw Sixto Sanchez in action last week and gives his scouting report
  • Is J.P. Crawford still a top prospect?
  • Who are the few untouchables in the Phillies’ minor league system?
  • Low-minors arms Jo Jo Romero and Ranger Suarez lead a resurgence of left-handed pitching prospects
  • Carlos Tocci is hitting everything in Reading, what is his ceiling as a Major Leaguer?
  • A look around the Majors at moves already made this month ahead of the July 31 Trade Deadline
  • STAT OF THE WEEK
  • PLEASE VISIT THE FELSKE FILES TEEPUBLIC.COM STORE! Click right here for phenomenal T-shirts and other apparel, and take advantage of the BIG SALE happening through Sunday!

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