The Philadelphia Phillies are among a slew of teams said to “like” Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Bryan Reynolds, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post. Heyman even goes as far as saying that the Yankees “covet” Reynolds.
Alas, Heyman hears that the Pirates that the Pirates are “unlikely” to part with the 27-year-old.
Of course, at this time a year ago, it would have been more than a fair statement to say that the Washington Nationals were unlikely to trade Trea Turner. And yet they ended up doing so in a megadeal that also sent Max Scherzer to the Los Angeles Dodgers and brought back prospects Keibert Ruiz and Josiah Gray to Washington.
If the Pirates aren’t altogether slamming the door in the idea of trading Reynolds, then a trade package exists that would get them to seriously consider parting with Reynolds.
Whether the Phillies could or should meet what’s likely to be a very high asking price from Pirates’ general manager Ben Cherington is another discussion.
Perhaps catcher Logan O’Hoppe is someone that president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski would consider parting with because J.T. Realmuto is under contract through the 2025 season. With that said, star catchers don’t grow on trees, and O’Hoppe has a .904 OPS for Double-A Reading in 2022 and was selected to play in the MLB Futures game. Is it possible that the 22-year-old could co-exist with Realmuto for a year or two at the major leagues before eventually taking over for him on a full-time basis? Sure.
To acquire Reynolds, it’s pretty likely that the Phillies would need to part with one of their two most recent first-round draft picks in Mick Abel or Andrew Painter. It’s unclear if they would be willing to do that given that one of the directives Dombrowski had when hired was to improve the team’s farm system.
It’s hard to know what type of value Alec Bohm or Bryson Stott would have in a trade. Certainly, neither would headline this type of deal, but perhaps they could be a secondary piece. Then again, would the Phillies move off of Stott this quickly? That’s hard to imagine, especially considering the close relationship he and fellow Las Vegas native Bryce Harper have developed.
Much of this comes down to just how good the Phillies believe Reynolds is, and whether they think center field is the No. 1 need on their roster.
A year ago, Reynolds posted a 6.1 fWAR, playing at a borderline superstar level. If the Phillies think he can replicate that production and know that he can’t become a free agent until after the 2025 season, then that’s the type of player you trade a franchise-altering package for.
After posting a .912 OPS in 2021, Reynolds has an .800 OPS and 1.2 fWAR in 2022. He also has -8 defensive runs saved and -5 outs above average in center field. No one is questioning whether Reynolds is an excellent player, but if you believe he’s more likely to be a star that had one superstar-type season in 2021, that would certainly affect what you’re willing to part with to acquire him.
The guess here is that if there is a trade of Reynolds, another suitor — Heyman also mentioned the Miami Marlins, San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners as teams that “like” him — would probably put together a more enticing package for the Pirates.
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