Report: Phillies want best trade offers for Cole Hamels by Wednesday
The Philadelphia Phillies seem to be approaching their trade-deadline sale of ace Cole Hamels much like a realtor would sell an in-demand house.
The Phillies have reportedly told teams around MLB that they want their best offers by Wednesday, essentially laying down a “best-and-final” scenario, so the Phils can pick their preferred deal.
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ESPN’s Jayson Stark has the news, but it comes with the footnote that the Phillies would then decide where or whether they want to trade Hamels. Yep, after all this, the Phillies are still trying to play it coy about their desire to trade Hamels. In the past, GM Ruben Amaro Jr. has expressed that he’d have to be “wowed” to trade Hamels and he’s seemingly doing his best to stay in a position of power in the negotiations. Even though everybody in baseball knows trading Hamels is in the best interest of the last-place, eager-to-rebuild Phillies.
The market for Hamels is deep and includes the Los Angeles Dodgers, Texas Rangers, Houston Astros, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees and even non-contenders like the Boston Red Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks, who see netting Hamels as an opportunity for long-term improvement.
[Yasiel Puig on possibility of getting traded by Dodgers: “I’ll play anywhere.”]
Here’s how Stark sizes up a couple notable teams in the discussions the past two days:
Sources have confirmed that the Astros have made a late push to acquire Hamels since the Phillies ace pitched a no-hitter last Saturday. However, Hamels can block a trade to Houston and the Astros have been given no assurance in recent days that that stance has changed.
The Giants, who scouted Hamels’ no-hitter, also continue to talk to the Phillies, but still appear to be having a hard time matching up with the Phillies’ asking price. One source’s description of those talks Tuesday morning consisted of two words: “Nothing happening.”
In other Phillies trade news, Jim Salisbury at CSN Philly reports that the Phillies will trade closer Jonathan Papelbon. Where and when, we don’t know yet. This isn’t terribly surprising, considering Papbelbon’s outspoken requests to get out of Philly and the team’s need to shred big contracts.
It’s another where-will-he-land scenario to watch as we get closer to Friday’s trade deadline.
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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
