The Phillies went into Tuesday night with the third and final National League wild-card berth, one game ahead of the Cardinals.
But to be a viable postseason threat, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski needed to upgrade the roster at the MLB trade deadline.
The Phillies, while playing .647 baseball under interim manager Rob Thomson (33-18 going into Tuesday’s game against the Braves), could use a center fielder, another starting pitcher and a reliever.
That Thomson kept having to trot the maddening Odubel Herrera out there in center tells you all you need to know.
Dombrowski was able to address all three needs by trading for starter Noah Syndergaard, defensive-minded outfielder Brandon Marsh and re-acquiring veteran reliever David Robertson.
“We were able to add a starting pitcher, a bullpen guy and solidify our ballclub from a defensive player (with) an everyday position player,” said Dombrowski during a Tuesday evening Zoom call. “I think we’re a lot better ballclub.”
It came down to the Phillies and Blue Jays for Syndergaard right before the Tuesday 6 p.m. deadline, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network. The Angels went with the Phils’ offer of former No. 1 overall pick Mickey Moniak and Single-A outfield prospect Jadiel Sánchez for Syndergaard.
A 29-year-old former Met on a one-year, $21 million contract, $7.4 million of which is remaining. Syndergaard, who underwent Tommy John surgery in March 2020, is 5-8 with a 3.83 ERA in 15 starts this year for the Angels. He’s averaging 5.3 innings per outing, with a career-low (by far) strikeout percentage of 18.9.
“I was starting to think we weren’t going to get a starting pitcher,” Dombrowski said. “It became very questionable. The asks were very high. … The last 15 minutes or so, Anaheim came back to us and asked us about Syndergaard. We’ve been talking to them about Syndergaard for a couple days.”
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With Zach Eflin ineligible to return earlier than Aug. 25 due to the troublesome right knee that kept him out the final 2½ months of 2021 and required September surgery, the Phillies desperately needed another starter. Journeyman Bailey Falter made seven starts this season and his 4.85 ERA, along with just a 4.4-inning average, showed he’s not an ideal fill-in option.
While he’s not the ace-caliber starter he was earlier in his career, Syndergaard has a very good sinker and was a far better option than Falter despite being a two-month rental.
“His stuff is down from where it was in the past — there’s no question about that,” Dombrowski said. “But he’s still throwing mid-90s. He’s just a different pitcher.”
The way Dombrowski sees it, picking up Robertson to strengthen the bullpen makes picking up a 5- or 6-inning guy like Syndergaard more viable. Other teams wanted a highly touted young starter — Mick Abel, Andrew Painter or Griff McGarry — for a top-of-the-rotation starter, which Dombrowski had no intention of doing.
The 37-year-old Robertson spent two injury-filled years with the Phillies (2019-20) in which he appeared in a total of nine games. He’s having a quality 2022 as a Cub, compiling 51 strikeouts in 40⅓ innings with a 2.23 ERA and 14 saves.
“We like him a great deal,” Dombrowski said. “We think he can pitch high-leverage innings.”
The Phils, who sent High-A pitcher Ben Brown to Chicago, are only responsible for $1.23 million of Robertson’s $3.5 million salary.
Marsh, who bats left-handed and throws right, should improve the Phils’ shaky defense no matter which of the three outfield position he plays, though he’s only hitting .226 with 51 more strikeouts (117) than hits (66) with the Angels this season.
At 24, he’s only making $710,000 and is under team control through 2027. It cost Dombrowski quality Double-A catching prospect Logan O’Hoppe to get him.
“Our hitting people think there are some fixes for him that are not very difficult,” Dombrowski said. “He’s a very talented individual. He is a premium defensive center fielder. … I love the way he improves our defense in center field.”
The Phillies also finally designated Herrera and batting-practice reliever Juerys Familia for assignment Tuesday. Talk about addition by subtraction.
Claiming left-handed reliever Andrew Vasquez off waivers from the Blue Jays on Tuesday didn’t move the needle. Vasquez, who has been on the injured list (ankle) since June 10, sports an 8.10 ERA in nine appearances this season. But Dombrowski ensured that would only be a minor move with his three afternoon trades Tuesday.
With a $243 million payroll, the Phillies are paying the luxury tax for the first time. They took on an additional $10 million Tuesday to move roughly $13 million above the $230 million threshold.
While the Phillies would like to end an 11-year drought and make the playoffs, it’d be nice to have a real chance to win a series. Tuesday’s moves increased the odds of that happening and only cost one top 100 prospect (O’Hoppe), which means Dombrowski did his job.
Tom Moore: tmoore@couriertimes; @TomMoorePhilly
