Could the Philadelphia Phillies be looking to acquire a player from a division rival before the MLB trade deadline?
That just might be the case. The Phillies along with the Milwaukee Brewers and Cleveland Indians are among the teams interested in trading for New York Mets second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney.
After failing to win the Manny Machado sweepstakes earlier this week, Philadelphia is searching for ways to bolster their infield with some offensive firepower. Cabrera is just one of many infielders that are on the Phillies’ radar.
Earlier in the week, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reported that the Phillies would be turning their attention to players such as Kansas City Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas and Minnesota Twins shortstop Eduardo Escobar.
This season, Cabrera along with starting pitcher Jacob deGrom has been the only bright spots for an underachieving Mets team. Cabrera is slashing .280/.332/.487 with 17 home runs and 53 RBIs.
The 32-year-old is having a career year and would be a nice pickup for a contending team during the last two months of the regular season.
However, when it comes to the Phillies, it would be hard to imagine that they would make a trade with a division rival, let alone give up significant pieces. But weirder things have happened at the deadline before.
Remember a few years ago when Philadelphia traded closer Jonathan Papelbon to the Washington Nationals and got some guy named Nick Pivetta in return. Or how about just last season, when they traded Howie Kendricks to the Nationals for a minor league pitcher.
What would the Phillies be potentially getting in Cabrera?
With that being said, if the Phillies were to acquire Cabrera, they would be getting a player, who can play both second base and shortstop.
Currently, Philadelphia is fine at second base with Cesar Hernandez but could use an upgrade at shortstop.
J.P. Crawford is on the disabled list, while rookie Scott Kingery is struggling offensively, batting .240 with only four home runs and 28 RBIs.
Kingery is not ready to be an everyday starter at and would be better as a super utility man for the Phillies down the stretch.
Therefore, it should be interesting to see what Philadelphia does at the trade deadline. They have a couple positions of need and will hopefully make a significant move by the end of this month.
