After a disappointing end to the regular season, it was clear to many fans that the Philadelphia Phillies needed to be big-time players in free agency. No matter, how much money it takes, they must come away with one or two game-changing players.
As we all know, the Phillies will be players in both the Manny Machado and Bryce Harper sweepstakes. However, you can also now add a starting pitcher to their free agency wish list.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Phillies are also expected to be a major player for Patrick Corbin. A couple of days ago, the Arizona Diamondbacks extended a $17.9 million qualifying offer to him, but all signs point to him going elsewhere.
Corbin is the best free-agent pitcher on the market and is on the radars of many perspective teams.
One of those teams that Philadelphia might have to compete with for Corbin’s services is the New York Yankees. Last month, Jon Heyman of Fancred Sports reported that New York is expected to pursue the southpaw this winter.
The Yankees, along with the Phillies, have young, talented arms in their rotation, but could also use a certified ace to bolster their pitching staff.
From the Phillies’ perspective, if they could get the left-handed Corbin it would give them the best rotation not only in the National League East but also in the National League.
A rotation consisting of Aaron Nola, Jake Arrieta and Corbin would be downright impressive and definitely help the Phillies reach the postseason in 2019.
Last year towards the tail end of free agency, the Phillies inked Arrieta to a three-year, $75 million deal. Arrieta did not have the best season on the mound with a record of 10-11 with an ERA of 3.96, but Nola sure did elevate his game to another level.
The 25-year-old Nola made his first All-Star team this past season and it was well-deserved. He had a record of 17-6 with an ERA of 2.37 while striking out 224 hitters over 212.1 innings pitched.
Along those same lines, Corbin had a career-year on the mound with the Arizona Diamondbacks this season. He racked up 246 strikeouts over 200 innings pitched with a record 11-7 and ERA of 3.15.
In addition to his career-best ERA to date, the 29-year-old had an impressive 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings, which ranked third in the N.L. behind Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer.
Nevertheless, if the Phillies do decide to sign either Machado or Harper, they should have enough money to go after Corbin.
According to Spotrac, they predicted that the lefty’s market value is a five-year deal worth $104 million. When you compare that hypothetical amount to what Arrieta and Yu Darvish received as free agents, it is almost a steal.
However, we shall see how everything comes together with the winter meetings starting this week in California.
