{"id":9759,"date":"2024-11-18T09:00:37","date_gmt":"2024-11-18T09:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=9759"},"modified":"2024-11-18T09:00:37","modified_gmt":"2024-11-18T09:00:37","slug":"exploring-trade-partners-for-devin-williams-philadelphia-phillies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=9759","title":{"rendered":"Exploring Trade Partners For Devin Williams: Philadelphia Phillies…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Both the Brewers and Phillies have had shorter-than-expected postseason runs as of late. Could a Devin deal bring them both closer to the World Series?<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Why They Need Him<\/strong><\/u><\/p>\n

There isn\u2019t a lot in common between Philadelphia and Milwaukee. Other than the phonetic parallels between \u201ccheese\u201d and \u201ccheesesteak,\u201d the main shared characteristic between the two cities is how their baseball teams have struggled to translate regular season success into meaningful playoff performances.<\/p>\n

The Phillies have had back-to-back heartbreaks after making the World Series in 2022 as a Wild Card team.<\/p>\n

In 2023, they seemed nigh untouchable at home but folded under the pressure of a seven-game Championship Series against the Diamondbacks.<\/p>\n

In 2024, they won 95 games, the second-most in baseball, but once again lost to an underdog team that barely squeezed itself into the bracket, as the Mets needed just four games to end Red October before the Phillies even made it back to the NLCS.<\/p>\n

The statistics reflect this lopsided success story. The team had a regular-season OPS of .750 (5th in MLB) and an ERA of 3.85 (11th in MLB).<\/p>\n

The rotation was especially solid, led by\u00a0Cy Young\u00a0finalist\u00a0Zack Wheeler, and strong seasons from\u00a0Aaron Nola,\u00a0Cristopher S\u00e1nchez, and\u00a0Ranger Su\u00e1rez, all of whom are still under team control in 2025. The bullpen picture was a little iffier, a problem that would rear its ugly head at the worst possible time.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Hoping to recapture the success he found in 2023, they redeployed\u00a0Jos\u00e9 Alvarado\u00a0as their closer to subpar results, eventually pivoting to\u00a0Jeff Hoffman.<\/p>\n

To his credit, Hoffman was pretty good, posting a 2.17 ERA and ten saves, but wanting a more experienced closer, the team acquired Carlos Est\u00e9vez from the Angels at the deadline. With great backup options like Matt Strahm and even Orion Kerkering, it seemed like the bullpen was set, but the postseason figures told a different story.<\/p>\n

Phillies relievers combined for a gruesome 11.37 ERA across 12 \u2154 innings during the NLDS. Hoffman (40.50 ERA, 1 \u2153 IP), Alvarado (27.00 ERA, \u2154 IP), and Strahm (18.00 IP, 2 IP) couldn\u2019t get it together, and despite pitching admirably, Est\u00e9vez blew a crucial save by giving up an epic grand slam to\u00a0Francisco Lindor\u00a0in the final game of the series.<\/p>\n

Devin Williams\u00a0doesn\u2019t have the greatest postseason record, but with Est\u00e9vez now a free agent, he could be the fix the team needs to have more pitching stability in later innings.<\/p>\n

Hoffman\u2019s past two years have been great, and Strahm has shown incredible promise, but Williams would be the only reliever with extensive experience as a closer, giving the bullpen a leg up.<\/p>\n

What They Have to Offer<\/strong><\/u><\/p>\n

The Phillies have a decent group of prospects under control, topped off by four names in MLB\u2019s Top 100 ranking. The type of player most closely aligns with Milwaukee\u2019s typical trade haul would be prospects ready to make the big leagues within the next year or two.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, with a strong nucleus of young position players in the lineup and farm system, they\u2019ll likely hone in on pitchers with high developmental upside.<\/p>\n

Andrew Painter<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Mick Abel<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0fit this description well but are likely too juicy for a rental reliever. Instead, an interesting alternative could be\u00a0Jean Cabrera<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0(#13 PHI prospect), a right-handed starter who posted a 3.39 ERA over 14 starts with High-A Jersey Shore. He jumped to Double-A Reading towards the end of the season and struggled to find the same success, but he\u2019s just turning 23 and still has plenty of time to figure things out. Scouts note him as having a sinker in the mid-90s and a four-seamer up to 98 mph, two weapons that play well off of his changeup.<\/p>\n

While likely insufficient by himself, right-handed reliever\u00a0Wen-Hui Pan<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0might also be worth a look. He posted a 1.29 ERA and 9.4 K\/9 over 21 innings with High-A Jersey Shore. Scouts credit his high-velocity fastball that can touch 100 mph with a good arm-side run for his success and an outstanding splitter with very little spin. His inning count is low after missing time due to a broken pinkie he sustained in spring training, but that shouldn\u2019t be a recurring issue.<\/p>\n

Mois\u00e9s Chace\u00a0was a trade piece that sent\u00a0Gregory Soto\u00a0to the Orioles at this year\u2019s deadline. After performing well in High-A, the Phillies promoted him to Double-A Reading, where he made four starts.<\/p>\n

Over the 80 \u2153 innings he pitched this year, he had a 3.59 ERA and a wicked 13.9 K\/9.<\/p>\n

His fastball has a lower velocity than some, but with a great ride and low vertical approach angle, he makes it work in the upper part of the strike zone, akin to\u00a0Paul Sewald. His unorthodox profile could be yet another fun project for the Brewers’ pitching lab to perfect.<\/p>\n

Outside of pitchers, the Phillies don\u2019t have a lot to offer that would feasibly make the Brewers better.<\/p>\n

Milwaukee could ask for someone like\u00a0Otto Kemp, an infielder with solid numbers in Single-A and Double-A, to use in a future trade to acquire someone else, but the pickings are slim otherwise.<\/p>\n

So what\u2019ll it be for the Phillies: another awesome regular season followed by a bullpen collapse at the eleventh hour or a fresh closer ready to save the city from its rabid fans?<\/em><\/p>\n

With so much talent already on the team and just one primary area of weakness, adding Devin Williams could be like sealing up that one gap in the Death Star and making this roster impregnable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Both the Brewers and Phillies have had shorter-than-expected postseason runs as of late. Could a Devin deal bring them both closer to the World Series? 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