The Philadelphia Phillies bounced back from a brutal sweep at the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers by beating the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday.
The team enjoyed an offensive burst as Bryce Harper returned to the lineup, but it knows all too well that you can’t have too much production when the World Series is the goal. Last year, even after performing as one of the best teams in baseball, the Phillies won just a single playoff game before being eliminated as their bats went quiet.
If they want to avoid a similar fate this year, they could look to a new trade idea from On Pattison’s Tim Kelly. Kelly suggested the Phillies call their in-state rival Pittsburgh Pirates about acquiring Bryan Reynolds.
This came shortly after USA Today insider Bob Nightengale reported that the Pirates are open to trading anyone on the roster other than Paul Skenes and Oneil Cruz.
“The Pittsburgh Pirates are flatly rebuking all interest from teams wanting to engage in trade talks for ace Paul Skenes, but will listen to offers on every other player but him and outfielder Oneil Cruz,” Nightengale wrote. “Two intriguing players are third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes and outfielder Bryan Reynolds.”
Though Reynolds is a two-time All-Star, he’s seeing a slump to start the third season of an eight-year, $106 million deal with the Pirates. If the Phillies were to acquire him, they’d be betting that he’d bounce back for the remainder of that deal.
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However, the fit makes sense in that Reynolds could be an upgrade in left field, where the Phillies currently have Max Kepler playing. Kepler is set for free agency at the end of this season, while Reynolds could be a longer-term solution.
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