Report: Teams still trying to pry Cole Hamels away from Phillies
For the last couple years, the trade practices of the Philadelphia Phillies have seemed comparable to that guy in your fantasy baseball league who says he’s interested in making a deal — who should be making a deal — but just rejects every proposal.
The allure of ace Cole Hamels is so great that other MLB teams keep knocking on the door of Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr., hoping they can make something happen.
Hamels seems destined for another last-place finish this year if he stays put, but could very much help another team, which is why we’ve heard rumblings about a trade a few times this offseason. More came Tuesday.
Five or six teams are still trying to pry Hamels away from the Phillies, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, even though we know the price is high.
Hamels, 31, is coming off a 2014 season in which he was 9-9 with a 2.46 ERA, plus 198 strikeouts in 204.2 innings. Those numbers definitely make him appealing, and his $22.5-million-per-season contract doesn’t seem so obscene after we saw what Max Scherzer got paid.
If the Red Sox got Hamels, he’d be the ace they need to round out their remade pitching staff. Sorry, Rick Porcello, you’re not a No. 1. If the Dodgers pulled off the trade, they’d take the “best pitching staff in baseball” title from the Washington Nationals. If it were the Padres, then new GM A.J. Preller’s stunning rebuild would hit its apex.
Then again, maybe none of these things happen, Amaro keeps waiting and gets the pleasure of having rival GMs knock on his door from now until July, when the Hamels tradewinds will blow strongly once again.
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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
