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Last week, I mostly talked strategy. That is the easy part. Now let’s talk players*.

(*With the obvious caveat that I have no idea who is actually available, and that I am mostly going off the national reporting.)

TIER 1: THE GUY WHO I WANT

Eugenio Suárez: The Phillies lineup is starting to hit the ball out of the park, which is a good sign. Even in yesterday’s loss to the Yankees, playing in a stadium that admittedly has the fakest dimensions in baseball — Bryson Stott reached the warning track on a ball he did not barrel up, it is laughable — they went deep three times.

That is great. But I want more pop, particularly from the right side. And when it comes to that player archetype on the trade market, there is Suárez and everybody else. The 34-year-old, who has always hit for power, has taken it to a new level this year with 36 home runs already. In doing some quick research, Suárez has opened his stance up dramatically over the past calendar year. I love that element of baseball, that a 10-year vet can find a minor tweak that opens everything up. Only happens in baseball and golf to that degree.

Two things on Suárez:

So, a Suárez addition would definitely mess with the defense unless you make a trade elsewhere. You do not want to become the Yankees, with eight total butchers in the field. That Paul Goldschmidt throw was a work of art. I ultimately am willing to roll the dice for Suárez, though. Go get this guy, make your lineup tougher to pitch to and figure out the defense later.

TIER 2: THE AL CENTRAL BULLPEN ARMS

Emmanuel Clase, Jhoan Duran, Griffin Jax: And I could have included Cleveland’s Cade Smith in here, but I cannot imagine he is available. Heck, I do not know if any of these guys are available for a reasonable price. Cleveland (Clase) is 3.5 games back of the final wild-card spot, Minnesota (Duran and Jax) are 5.5 games back.

These guys are listed here because they seem to be the best three relievers available. And all three guys are under team control through at least 2027, so they are gonna cost some real prospect capital. Duran throws 100, Jax strikes out a ton of batters, and Clase rebounded nicely from a terrible first month of the season.

Even if these are the three best relievers, I am not sure I would shop in this aisle. The Guardos and Twins are reportedly asking for a lot to acquire one of these players. But as we saw with the Phillies last year, the playoffs can go haywire for even the best relievers. Clase is a perfect example, too. He went from a bonkers 0.61 ERA in the regular season last year to getting shelled by the Yankees in the ALCS.

TIER 3: THE ULTIMATE WILD CARD

Luis Robert Jr.: I got scared even typing that name out.

Jayson Stark, who is my favorite national baseball writer, listed Robert as his American League LVP and quoted a friend of his who works in baseball: “He has one job — to get himself traded. And he’s failing!”

Quite a precipitous fall for a guy who finished 12th in AL MVP voting just two years ago. Robert’s slash line is hideous, and I am not sure my heart could take him and Nick Castellanos chasing pitches in the same lineup. But there is talent there. Robert is right-handed with a track record of power, steals bases and can play center field at an average to above-average level. Very unique profile, if things click. Plus, the White Sox will be very motivated sellers in this case. The ultimate buy-low option.

If the Phils acquired LRJ, Kevin Long would immediately become the most important coach in the organization. But if the front office just looked at the hitting profile and passed, I would totally get it.

The Phillies were also linked to Pittsburgh’s Oneil Cruz in some rumours over the weekend. I would put him ahead of LRJ, if he were in fact available. Cruz would definitely cost more, as he provides basically LRJ’s baserunning/defense with a much higher floor at the plate. Cedric Mullins is another less exciting name that has been floated. That one does not do it for me.

TIER 4: THE NL CENTRAL BULLPEN ARMS

David Bednar, Ryan Helsley, Pete Fairbanks: OK, so Fairbanks plays in the AL East but close enough. My guess, and it is just a guess, is that the Phillies shop in this aisle.

Like LeSean McCoy (Harrisburg to Pitt to Eagles) before him, Bednar (Pittsburgh to Lafayette to the Pirates) is a Pennsylvania Man. The guy just loves playing ball in the commonwealth. That only leaves one team for him to move to at the deadline. Crazy season for Bednar, who was sent to Triple-A after a disastrous first week. But since returning, Bednar has a 1.50 ERA in 36 innings pitched. His nickname is “The Renegade,” because he runs out of the ‘pen to Styx’s “Rengade.” Sign me up.

Helsley, who blew a save in a huge Phillies playoff win in St. Louis a few years ago, throws gas and heavily features his slider. He has closed a bunch of games over the past few years and has a 3.00 ERA, although he does give up some hard contact. And Pete Fairbanks is Pete Fairbanks.

TIER 5: CONTACT HITTERS I AM LESS HIGH ON

Steven Kwan, Jarren Duran: We do not know if these guys are available, either. My guess is that Duran is not.

Kwan is interesting, because his bat-to-ball skills are incredible. He never swings and misses, he never chases, he never strikes out. Good player for sure, one who I would not mind on the Phillies. But like Duran, Kwan is much worse against lefties. And like Duran, Kwan is not gonna give you much in the way of power. Ironically, and Tyler has mentioned this on the Phillies pod, I feel like Kwan is an 80th percentile outcome for Justin Crawford. If you were to acquire Kwan, I would hope Crawford would be among the prospects on the way out. Too much overlap there.

Now, could Cleveland be one-stop shopping? Basically, could the Phillies dangle a couple of top prospects for both Kwan and Clase? Interesting to think about!

TIER 6: RIGHTY OUTFIELD BATS

Taylor Ward, Ramon Laureano: The Austin Hays aisle, gulp.

Ward destroyed the Phillies a week ago. And what I like about both of these guys is that they hit lefties hard. Putting Ward or Laureano behind Schwarber and Harper would not be the same as putting Suárez behind Schwarber and Harper, but it would make an opposing manager think a little bit more about running a lefty specialist out there. Schwarber has mashed lefties all season, in fairness.

Did I miss someone? Probably. But that is all I have for you today!

Training Camp Day 3: Bo and Zach had a nice little recap here. The biggest takeaway? Jihaad Campbell is already mixing in with the first-team defense #AsExpected.

A big takeaway? Moro Ojomo is having a good camp. From Zach’s practice notes:

That is most of what I have. A.J. Brown got the better of Kelee Ringo a few times, and Kevin Patullo said that he will call plays from the sidelines

Oh, and Jordan Hicks retired. And no, not the wild Red Sox reliever, the veteran linebacker. Good dude who lasted ten years in the NFL. He was awesome for a surprisingly good Eagles defense in 2016.

Two of three in Da Bronx: Nice series for the Phils, who largely dominated the Yankees. Second straight series where a frustrating Game 3 start — Zack Wheeler weirdly giving up four runs in the second inning, in large part because he hit back-to-back hitters with his sweeper — did not allow the Phils to get a sweep. No complaints about a 4-2 week against the Yanks and Sawx, though.

Of course the Mets got a sweep, for their seventh win in a row. Sure feels like they are winning every close game right now, while the Phillies are losing most of their close games. By the way, I do not care at all for the entire San Francisco Giants organization. Oracle Park is the absolute worst. Bad place.

J.T. Realmuto is OPSin’ .952 in the month of July, which is a massive development for the local baseball team. Just seems like he is doing all of the good J.T. stuff, getting the front foot down faster and using the opposite field. On Friday against Luke Weaver, he decidedly did not use the opposite field.

But that was not even J.T.’s best play of the weekend. On Sunday, he made a sick mid-air tag on a high throw from Johan Rojas. Legitimately great play.

Kyle Schwarber absolutely destroyed two baseballs on Friday night. And on the topic of Friday’s game, I do not want the boomers to come after me, but the Apple TV cameras are pretty sharp once you can put on the game. Enjoyable watch.

And how about Otto Kemp going deep twice on Sunday? I like me an Otto Kemp.

Ricky Council IV, no more: *Sad voice, for old time’s sake* Go get ‘em, Rick.

Not the most shocking news. Ricky played quite well on a two-way as a rookie in 2023-24, earning himself a standard NBA contract. But he regressed across the board this season, which was super disappointing. Ricky shot 26 percent from beyond the arc, in part because he shoots the ball from three feet farther than he has to on a routine basis. Incredible athlete, but he did not make use of his athleticism like we saw as a rookie. Oh well, we will always have that insane wrap-around pass around Wemby.

This serves as a cautionary tale for someone like Justin Edwards, who is where Ricky was after Year 1 (albeit with a more varied skill-set). If you stink up the joint in Year 2, they can and will move on from you.

Sixers Film Session: Like we did with Fran and the Iggles a few weeks ago, our Sixers crew will be in studio and breaking down some tape tomorrow night. Make sure you come on by!

Union 3, Colorado 1: Doop it up, doop it up! Tai Baribo scored first, and then two late goals for Mikael Uhre to give the Union a comeback dub. Uhre’s name is pronounces OO-wah, and that is the exact sound I made after his first goal. Perfect placement.

Colorado’s goaltender is Zack Steffen, a local kid. He could be on the USMNT squad next summer at the World Cup.

We will have another Eagles practice today, before Cris Sánchez gets the ball on the South Side (7:40 p.m., NBC Sports Philly). Quick power rankings of South Side television shows:

The White Sox are actually 6-4 out of the All-Star break, I wonder if Pope Leo is keeping tabs on his favorite team.

Your tentative Monday schedule at ​PHLY​:

Let's make it a good one.

Rich Hofmann
Daily Newsletter Editor
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