Rumor time: The Phillies are looking at some relief help AND STARTING PITCHING HELP

UPDATE: Looks like the Phillies are talking to Pittsburgh about other pitchers as well.

What would the team be getting in Tyler Anderson? Well, pretty much exactly what they haven’t gotten from Chase Anderson and Vince Velasquez.

The Phillies need bullpen help and are scouring the market, especially teams that are rebuilding.

The Pirates are rebuilding and have bullpen pieces to trade to the teams that are scouring the market.

Seems like a match made in heaven. Usually, we try to avoid unnecessary trade rumors, but when the big boys of Phillies coverage weigh in, you pay attention.

Richard Rodriguez is a reliever with Pittsburgh who is having his best season as a professional, pitching to a 2.82 ERA (2.58 FIP) with 14 saves in 17 chances. He’s striking out players at a 22.8 % clip, walking only about 4% of hitters. He’s got some what look to be unsustainable numbers like a really low home run rate, but it’s also late July and he’s still doing what he’s doing.

In return for Rodriguez, Salisbury is saying that the team has been discussing Rafael Marchan with the Pirates. Marchan as a trade chip makes a lot of sense now that J.T. Realmuto has a stranglehold on the catching position with the Phillies for the forseeable future, so moving Marchan makes the most sense. He wouldn’t be more than a backup anyway, so while his trade value is at its highest, the team should be looking to deal him.

We’ll see how this goes as Friday looms, but when Salisbury says it, you believe that it’s being worked on.