Could Phillies Pull Off Blockbuster Trade for Star Pitcher?

 

The Philadelphia Phillies are expected to have much of their same team back for the 2024 season.

Many of their stars are locked into long-term contracts and are the building blocks of the franchise

moving forward. Aaron Nola and Rhys Hoskins are the Phillies’ two biggest free agents. Their ace

will be highly sought after when the offseason officially begins. President of baseball operations,

Dave Dombrowski, has made it clear that re-signing Nola is their No. 1 priority. He will likely be in

the market for a $200 million deal, something that Philadelphia was not fond of giving before the

2023 season started. If they’re unable to keep Nola, then replacing him will be the most important

task of the front office. Could the Phillies pull off a blockbuster trade with the Chicago White Sox to

land star Dylan Cease? With the White Sox seemingly entering a rebuild, they could be looking to

offload their best pitcher and get prospects back in return. Financially, it would make since for

Philadelphia. Cease will be eligible for arbitration in the $8.3 million range for the 2024 season and

would be under club control through 2025. In 2022, he finished second in the AL Cy Young Award

voting results after posting a record of 14-8 with an ERA of 2.20 across 32 starts. In 184 innings

pitched, he struck out 227 batters. The ace had his worst year in 2023 since becoming a full-time

starter. His ERA ballooned to 4.58 and opponents hit .250 off of him. His strikeout numbers were

still elite, finishing the year with 214 over 177 innings pitched. Even if the Phillies are able to re-sign

Nola, they should explore this trade. They’re looking for more pitching depth and adding someone

with Cease’s talent would make them extremely hard to beat during the regular season and in the

playoffs.