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After watching teams such as the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers find success in signing international talent, the Philadelphia Phillies have decided to try their own luck.

According to Jeff Passan on Yahoo!, the Phillies have reached a deal with Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez on a six-year deal potentially worth nearly $60 million.

The Phillies have not spent as much on international prospects as other teams in recent seasons. However, with players such as Maikel Franco, Freddy Galvis and Cesar Hernandez in their minor league system and having success at various points in their minor league careers, it made sense for the team to trust their scouting department on another international signing.

Gonzalez, a 26-year-old right-handed pitcher, will receive $48 million guaranteed.

The Phillies have struggled for a season and a half now in trying to push their record above .500 and keep it there while climbing back into playoff contention.

This season, with players such as Chase Utley, Roy Halladay, Carlos Ruiz and Michael Young nearing free agency and the team once again struggling to reach .500, general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. and the front office have multiple difficult decisions to make.

Ideally, Amaro will find a way to trade the right players who bring back the types of prospects who can help continue to improve a farm system that should benefit from a solid First-Year Player Draft this past June, while putting the team back into contention as soon as next season.

Ideally, Amaro will give the Phillies at least a chance to make a run at the second Wild Card spot this season, while pushing for the National League East next season.

In signing Gonzalez, he just might have made a move in that direction.

Gonzalez, who has a fastball that can reach 96 mph, a curveball, changeup and splitter, should be sent to the minor leagues before potentially receiving a major league promotion by mid-August, according to Passan.

If the Phillies want to at least make things interesting in the National League playoff race, they must improve a bullpen that has been among the worst in the major leagues for more than a season and a half now.

However, as the recent trade of Francisco Rodriguez to the Baltimore Orioles showed, the price for bullpen help is very high, with the demand far outweighing the supply. The Orioles traded a highly ranked prospect for essentially an eighth-inning reliever.

The Phillies’ bullpen currently has the third-highest ERA in the National League at 4.18 and the third-highest opponents’ batting average at .262.

Although Gonzalez projects as a starting pitcher, the Phillies could use the right-hander out of the bullpen for the final two months of the season as he acclimates to the major leagues.

Just as the Cincinnati Reds had plans of Aroldis Chapman moving into the starting rotation at some point, the team first—and still is—enjoying his tremendous success out of the bullpen.

Gonzalez could pick up his first few major league innings as a reliever and potentially become the Phillies’ best bullpen option besides Jonathan Papelbon for the rest of this season.

Once the non-waiver trade deadline passes, Gonzalez could turn out to be one of the best bullpen additions in the second half of the season.

After this season, with Roy Halladay and John Lannan possibly reaching facing free agency, the Phillies should have at least one opening in their starting rotation, if not more.

Gonzalez could move into one of these spots and, in the best case scenario, give the Phillies a solid starting pitcher under contract through at least 2018.

Jesse Sanchez on mlb.com recently wrote that scouts believe that signing Gonzalez is like picking up a top pitcher before the non-waiver trade deadline. 

Few options exist for the Phillies to improve in the future without giving up young talent that may also help the team in the future seasons.  However, signing an impact free agent in the middle of the season is a unique opportunity that the Phillies and six other teams, according to Sanchez, had an interest in doing.

With demand outweighing supply on the trade market and teams signing their own players to long-term extensions, both the trade deadline and free agency could take a hit in upcoming years.

If that’s the case, it makes sense for the Phillies to hold onto their prospects while making sure that any trades involves more prospects entering their system rather than leaving.

In signing Gonzalez, the Phillies were able to keep their farm system intact, possibly improve their bullpen for the rest of this season and avoid bidding wars this offseason, if multiple starting pitchers had been needed.

At an AAV of likely less than $10 million, Gonzalez’s contract could pay him less than what free agent starters will make this offseason.

Gonzalez’s signing could improve the Phillies both in 2013 and in future seasons, and at least gives the team a chance to follow in Oakland and Los Angeles’ footsteps and find success in the international market and leave more of a global foot print.

*All statistics courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise noted.

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Ryan Howard of the Philadelphia Phillies and the word “injury” have been used together in the same sentence for more than a year now. 

Last season, after returning from an Achilles injury and struggling for the remainder of the season, Howard’s poor performances could have been attributed to needing more time to fully heal while the Phillies played through a disappointing season.

This season, however, is a bit different. 

With more current and former key contributors set to become free agents after the season, the trade deadline should bring even more intrigue for the Phillies.  If they continue to have trouble winning consistently, a number of players may also be mentioned in trade talks, even more so than last season.    

The Phillies have just one fewer loss this season than they did this time last year, yet general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. has said that he will take his time deciding what to do at the trade deadline.

Amaro was recently quoted, after talking about sticking with the Phillies core until the trade deadline, in an article by Jim Salisbury on CSNPhilly.com as saying:

The reason I say that is because [the races] are still really dicey, he said.  No one has really stepped out and gone crazy.  The Dodgers are playing their butts off now all of a sudden.  Now they’re six games back and they’re in it.  We’re only seven back.

We had one streak where we’ve really played well.  And we’ve only had a brief period where we’ve had our whole team on the field.  We’ll find out.  I honestly think it’s going to end up going to July 20 or July 30 or somewhere around then and we’ll decide which direction we’re going to go.

If Amaro intends to let the team continue to play as is until right before the trade deadline, he must be hoping that the team can show signs of consistent improvement at the end of the first half and beginning of the second half of the season.

If that’s the case, the Phillies should place Ryan Howard on the disabled list now.

Hopefully that the rest will give his knee time to recover and lead to more of a power surge following the All-Star break.

Howard is currently batting .268 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI, which includes a .304 average against right-handed pitchers.  However, it also includes a .173 average against left-handers.

He has actually had a very solid June, batting .298 with two triples, three home runs and a .386 OBP.  However, in the power department, Howard’s 10 home runs on the season are only three more than he hit during spring training.

Howard hit seven home runs in 28 games during spring training.  It was not until game No. 53 of the regular season that he hit his seventh home run.

Word came yesterday that Howard will be given two days off, June 28 and June 29, to clear his head and continue to work on his hitting, as noted in Ryan Lawrence’s article on Philly.com. 

The article also says that Amaro has not ruled out placing him on the disabled list.

As a power hitter, it’s reasonable to think that Howard’s lack of home runs so far could be due to his knee.  If he cannot generate enough power from his lower body, it will be difficult for him to see any increase in home runs. That means he will stay well on pace to have the lowest home run total for a full season in his career.

Rather than trying to modify Howard’s swing to compensate for a lack of power from his lower body, the Phillies would be better off trying to let Howard heal and return with the same swing.  Even if Howard is able to adjust his swing for the rest of this season, he would likely have to return to his previous one after an offseason of rehabbing and healing.

If his knee is already too sore for him to play at 100 percent and generate power consistently, chances are it will only become more difficult as he has more innings and more games under his belt.

By placing him on the disabled list, the Phillies would likely lose offense at first base, unless the team decided to move Michael Young to first and play Kevin Frandsen at third.  However, the Phillies have consistently remained around seven to seven-and-a-half games out of first place even with Howard’s bat in the lineup.

A few weeks off could improve Howard’s knee, which could lead to higher power numbers during the second half of the season.

The Phillies will still need much more than Howard’s improved offense to turn around the season, but more offense from the cleanup spot in the lineup would be a start. 

And as it currently stands, Howard playing at less than 100 percent is not helping the team win with any more consistency.

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For anyone who was concerned that Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels would not be able to match his incredible rookie season following a slow first month of the season, his recent performances should put an end to any doubt.

Just two games after the 21-year-old hit for the cycle, Trout continued with his outstanding month of May by blasting one of the longest home runs of the 2013 season against the Kansas City Royals.

After 226 career games, Trout already ranks among the league’s best players.  But where does his home run rank among the biggest blasts this season?

Let’s take a look at the 10 longest home run blasts of the 2013 season.

*All statistics and supporting information courtesy of ESPN.com, while information on each home run can be found at ESPN Home Run Tracker.

Begin Slideshow

For the first time all season, the Philadelphia Phillies will have their full lineup available when the team begins its series with the Cleveland Indians tonight.

No, the Phillies’ most recent roster additions are not the same as last season’s, when Chase Utley and Ryan Howard returned prior to the All-Star break.

However, the arrivals of two right-handed hitting lineup options this year can still boost an offense that is slowly heating up as the first month of the season concludes.

The first option, Carlos Ruiz, returned from a 25-game suspension last Sunday and picked up a double in the Phillies win.

Just two days later, the Phillies have now activated Delmon Young from the disabled list according to Paul Casella on the team’s official website.  

Young’s presence means that the Phillies’ lineup has picked up two right-handed hitting options in three days, and gives the team its full set of roster options for the first time this season.

Casella also notes that Ezequiel Carrera has been designated for assignment. 

While the Phillies know what they are getting with Ruiz, Young’s arrival is a bit more intriguing.

For one, following the brief series against the Indians, Young will have to play right field in order to remain in the lineup.  He has not played right field since 2007, and only played 31 games in the outfield last season while primarily serving as the designated hitter for the Detroit Tigers.

If Young’s defense in right field is not up to par or fails to remain consistent throughout the season, the Phillies could have an interesting decision to make going forward regarding his status.

Additionally, the Phillies have currently drawn the second fewest number of walks in the National League and have the fourth lowest team OBP.

Last season, Young had 112 strikeouts to 20 walks and finished with a .296 OBP.

In seven minor league appearances this season, Young struck out seven times and did not draw any walks.  However, he also batted .367 between High-A ball and Triple-A, picking up 11 hits in 30 at-bats.

Young’s arrival gives the Phillies another lineup option following Ryan Howard.  Ruiz batted fifth in his return, but Young also received 508 at-bats from the five spot last season.  With Domonic Brown also batting behind Howard, the Phillies’ lineup will have power potential, but question marks remain surrounding how often the team can get on base.

If the Phillies decide to keep Chase Utley and Michael Young batting second and third, respectively, Ben Revere’s next appearance in the lineup could come from the eighth spot.

A batting order that features two more right-handed batters with double-digit home run potential, followed by Revere, the pitcher’s spot and Jimmy Rollins, could make for a solid lineup. 

Combined with a starting rotation that is beginning to heat up, the Phillies are getting their full team together at a great time.

One player whose stock could take a hit if Young’s return is a success is Darin Ruf.  With Young, Brown, Revere, John Mayberry, Jr. and Laynce Nix currently set in the outfield, and Freddy Galvis also playing adequate outfield defense, Ruf has his work cut out for him to earn a call-up.

For now, however, the Phillies will have their full lineup together has they begin a stretch of six straight games against opponents with losing records.

Young’s arrival will not single-handedly push the Phillies into first place, but his presence combined with Ruiz’s, as well as continued success from Utley and Michael Young, gives the Phillies a potent lineup that should no longer be at a disadvantage against left-handed starters or relievers.

Furthermore, the Phillies have now exhausted their two remaining internal options for improving their offense, meaning that they could now look externally for other lineup options.

In the meantime, the Phillies’ activation of Young gives them another right-handed lineup option at a time when its pitching staff has the third lowest ERA in the NL in the last seven days.

*Young’s minor league statistics can be found on MiLB.com, while all other statistics can be found on ESPN.com.

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Final Score: Phillies 9

                         Mets 4

WP: Jonathan Pettibone (1-0)

LP: Shaun Marcum (0-1)

The Phillies and Mets will conclude their series tomorrow at 1:10 p.m. ET.  The Phillies will be sending out Cole Hamels, who is winless this season despite pitching eight innings and giving up just two earned runs in his last start.  For the Mets, Jonathon Niese will take the mound and try and help the team avoid a sweep, after leaving his last start after taking a ball off his leg in the third inning.

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The Philadelphia Phillies lineup saw minimal changes through the first 15 games of the regular season, with both Chase Utley and Ryan Howard in the batting order together in April for the first time since 2010.

Of course, all the Phillies had to show for these returns was a 6-9 record after April 17 and a 6.5 game deficit behind the Atlanta Braves in first place.

Following their 15th game of the season, the Phillies decided to move Jimmy Rollins back into the leadoff spot and Ben Revere to the seventh spot.  Since the move, Rollins’ average has gone from .232 to .258, while Revere’s average has increased from .194 to .207, including a .240 average from the seven hole.

These changes haven’t led to much to much more success as of yet, as the Phillies are now 3-5 since moving Rollins back into the leadoff spot.

However, on Sunday, the Phillies will have another lineup decision to make with hopes of improving the team’s .301 OBP, which ranks as the third lowest in the National League, and 80 total runs scored, which ranks as fifth lowest.

Catcher Carlos Ruiz is set to return from a 25-game suspension, which he served for testing positive for a banned stimulant, on Sunday in time for game No. 26 of the season.

Ruiz’s return will also give manager Charlie Manuel a few more options for a lineup that recently saw Chase Utley and Michael Young move up in the batting order.

For the majority of this season, the Phillies have had four consecutive left-handed batters at the top of their order against right-handed pitching (causing Rollins to bat from the left side).  Rollins is batting .246 from the left side, compared to .292 from the right side. 

Young, who has primarily batted fifth, was the first right-handed batter that other teams faced at times.

When Laynce Nix started over John Mayberry, Jr. in right field, the Phillies lineup only had two right-handed batters at times, with either Erik Kratz or Humberto Quintero joining Young in the batting order.

With Ruiz back in the lineup, the Phillies will have the option of batting Young third and Ruiz fifth, likely leaving no more than two left-handers batting in consecutive spots in any part of the batting order.

Ruiz is coming off of the best statistical season of his career after he batted .325 with 16 home runs and 68 RBI in 2012, all career highs.  Ruiz also posted a .394 OBP, an improvement over his .371 mark in 2011, despite drawing 19 fewer walks.

The chances of Ruiz batting above .300, let alone .325, this season are slim, but his return could still play a crucial part in helping to boost an offense that is now under pressure to succeed before first place it too far out of reach.

If Ruiz can match, or exceed, the .265 batting average he had from the fifth spot in the lineup last season, and Domonic Brown can continue to regain the form he showed during spring training, the Phillies lineup will potentially have a pair of power hitters lower in the lineup. 

Add in Delmon Young to the mix, with Revere potentially batting eighth, and the Phillies lineup will have undergone the last few changes it can using internal options.

Ruiz’s return will also mean that a player currently struggling to find consistent offensive success will move to a reserve role.

Phillies catchers have combined to have the fourth-lowest batting average in the National League so far this season, and have the lowest OBP in the league.  Kratz is currently batting .185 with 16 strikeouts to 12 hits, while Quintero is batting .313 but has played in just six games.

Although solid work behind the plate initially could have outweighed any early offensive struggles, the Phillies now find themselves seven games out of first place before the first month of the season has ended.

Ruiz’s return should lead to an offensive upgrade by putting his bat in the lineup and also by moving either Kratz or Quintero primarily into a reserve role.  Although Ruiz only had one hit in two games in a High-A ball tuneup recently, his one hit was a three-run home run.  He also did not strike out in his eight at-bats.

It’s not often that a team adds a .300 hitter from the prior season to their lineup in late April, but the Phillies will be doing just that when Ruiz returns on Sunday. 

More importantly, they will be adding a right-handed batter to a lineup that primarily features left-handed batters against opposing right-handers at a time when any sustained offensive success has been difficult to find.

Whether he bats fifth, sixth or even seventh, Ruiz will give the Phillies a potential power addition as they chase down a first-place team whose season has featured anything but a lack of early power.

*Ruiz’s minor league statistics can be found on MiLB.com, while all other statistics can be found on ESPN.com

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After weeks of speculation and predictions, the Philadelphia Phillies have officially set their Opening Day roster and determined which players will be charged with making the 2012 season a distant memory and 2013 a return to the postseason.

According to Ryan Lawrence on Philly.com, the Phillies have chosen Phillippe Aumont, Jeremy Horst, Raul Valdes, Ender Inciarte and Humberto Quintero to fill out the 25-man roster.

The Phillies starting staff has been set since before spring training began, with Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Kyle Kendrick and John Lannan opening the season in the rotation.  Hamels has been chosen as the team’s Opening Day starter and will take the mound Monday night against the Atlanta Braves.

Hamels finished the spring with 15 strikeouts in 19 innings and a 0.95 ERA. 

Halladay remains as the only question mark in the rotation to start the season, health wise, but is currently scheduled to start the second game of the season for the Phils.  Lee, meanwhile, gave up one hit and struck out five in four innings during his last start leading up to the regular season.

The Phillies bullpen remained as the only unsettled area during the final week of spring training, but Aumont has beaten out Michael Stutes to start the season.  Neither pitcher was overwhelmingly successful in their most recent outings, but Aumont’s seven strikeouts to four walks earned him the nod over Stutes’ eight strikeouts to nine walks.

Both Horst and Valdes improved as camp continued and give the Phillies a balanced Opening Day bullpen with three left-handers and four right-handers.

Jonathan Papelbon, Mike Adams, Chad Durbin and Antonio Bastardo have also made the Opening Day bullpen, although all four were considered locks prior to spring training.

The Phillies used 19 different pitchers in a relief role last season, meaning that pitchers such as Stutes, Justin De Fratus and Jake Diekman will all likely see time in the major leagues.

The infield was locked into place following the release of Yuniesky Betancourt, but Kevin Frandsen and Freddy Galvis have now officially made the 25-man roster as reserve infielders.

Galvis, who has recently spent time in the outfield, has now played five positions this spring.  His defense has remained above-average while his offense has also improved.  However, Galvis has also struck out 22 times while drawing just two walks, giving him an OBP of .284.

Both Galvis and Frandsen will backup starters Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins and Michael Young, all of whom had starting positions guaranteed prior to spring training, barring injury. 

Howard and Utley, both of whom were recovering from injury, are batting .337 and .279 this spring, respectively.

Erik Kratz will open the season as the Phillies starter at catcher and will be backed up by Quintero, who beat out a late charge by Steven Lerud to earn a roster spot.  However, Quintero’s spot on the 25-man roster will likely only last until Carlos Ruiz’s return in late-April.

The Phillies entered spring training with one starting outfielder and several players battling for the corner spots.  As spring training concludes, the team now finds itself with two solidified starters in center fielder Ben Revere and corner outfielder Domonic Brown.

Brown, arguably the Phillies best player this spring, is batting .368 with seven home runs and 24 runs scored.  He will play one corner outfield spot, with John Mayberry, Jr. and Laynce Nix platooning in the other.

Inciarte, the Phillies Rule-5 selection, has made the Opening Day roster unless the Phillies are able to make a waiver claim or find another outfielder that has been released by a team.  Inciarte’s roster spot will also be in jeopardy once Delmon Young returns from injury.  For now, however, Inciarte provides a late inning defensive option for the Phils.

The Phillies‘ remaining decision prior to Opening Day involves the starting lineup, with manager Charlie Manuel having options regarding where to bat Revere, Rollins, Young and Brown.

This Opening Day roster differs significantly from the 2012 Opening Day roster, but the Phillies have nevertheless determined which players will be asked to get the ball rolling towards starting a new postseason streak in 2013.

All statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com

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Remember last month when the possibility existed that the Philadelphia Phillies could use a double-platoon for their corner outfield spots, rather than naming a starter at each position heading into spring training?

Although the eventual signing of Delmon Young made it appear as if the Phillies had their candidate for an everyday right fielder, left field was still a mystery.  And following news from Jim Salisbury on CSNPhilly.com that Young could not only miss Opening Day, but also much of April, it appeared as if both corner outfield spots were back up for grabs.

That is, unless Domonic Brown continues with his strong early showing.

The Phillies have only played four spring training games, but manager Charlie Manuel recently spoke on the outfield situation in an article by David Murphy on Philly.com, and made sure he mentioned Brown’s name when it came to which players could claim spots early.

We’ve got 10 outfielders, and somewhere along the line, probably about two-thirds of the way through spring training, we’re going to have to make decisions on at least four of them, Manuel said.  We’re going to try to get them all some playing time where we can see them enough.  If somebody jumps out and really gets going, like Brown right now, the last three days he’s really swung good.  He’s played good in the outfield, things like that.  We could settle on a guy or something.

Again, it’s still very early in camp.  But another week of strong performances, similar to the one he had today, could allow Brown to see his name officially penciled into a starting corner outfield spot.

Brown hit his second home run in four spring training games against the New York Yankees today, and now has three hits in seven at-bats this spring. 

Manuel is not the only member of the Phillies who has been encouraged by Brown so far.  In another article by David Murphy on Philly.com, it is noted that both Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard believe in Brown’s ability this season, and may already think it’s time to give him an everyday starting job.

Brown may not have many opportunities left with the Phillies.  In 147 career games over the last three seasons, Brown has a career average of .236 to go with 12 home runs and 58 RBI.  However, his two home runs already this spring are nearly half his total from a year ago in the major leagues.

With Ben Revere already locked into the starting center field job and John Mayberry, Jr. and Laynce Nix serving as better options off the bench rather than starters, Brown and Darin Ruf give the Phillies two young players with the potential to win starting outfield jobs. 

Once Young returns, both players could also be candidates for being sent down to the minor leagues depending on how they have performed up until that point. 

Throw in Rule 5 draft pick Ender Inciarte, and the Phillies have an even more interesting situation in their outfield.

However, this situation could also mean that the team is hoping at least one player will step up early and earn a starting job, regardless of whether Young is on the roster.

Following his monster home run today, Brown has certainly gotten off to the type of start that the team was hoping for early.  

If Brown is able to keep this fast start going, he could soon earn a starting job for Opening Day, something he has never received.

Since debuting in 2010, Brown has experienced two vastly different situations with the Phillies.  In 2011, Brown had an opportunity to remain as the Phils‘ everyday right fielder, before a .165 batting average in June led to the Phillies acquiring Hunter Pence a month later.  Last season, Brown was not called-up until Pence was traded to the San Francisco Giants in late July.  Following his promotion, Brown batted .235 while playing in an outfield that looked much different after the trade deadline.

In 2011, Brown played on a Phillies team that was on pace to win a franchise record number of games, and win the National League East by 13 games.  Last season he played on a Phillies team that finished 17 games back of first place. 

Playing in these situations allowed Brown to play on a team with little pressure on it during the regular season due to a strong lead in the standings, and on a team that, except for a late season charge at the second wild card spot, was hardly in playoff contention.  Two very different situations, yet two situations that were not as high pressured as some the Phillies have seen in recent seasons. 

However, despite the lack of pressure, Brown was unable to earn and maintain an everyday starter’s job in the outfield.

This year, with an open competition for the corner outfield spots, Brown has a third chance to claim a starting outfield job.

Although the returns are still very early, it appears as if the third time might be the charm.

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The Philadelphia Phillies took their time addressing their needs this offseason, but they have managed to acquire four players whose roles are already defined heading into next season.

Ben Revere is set to take over in center field, while third base belongs to Michael Young, as long as he can remain healthy while playing regularly in the field for the first time since 2010.  As for the pitching staff, the newly acquired John Lannan will have the inside track on the fifth spot in the rotation, while Mike Adams joins Jonathan Papelbon in giving the Phils an experienced back end to their bullpen.

But what about the rest of the roster?

Although the infield and starting rotation are either set or include few other alternatives, the rest of the roster features players who will be competing for roster spots and playing time during spring training.

And they won’t be competing simply against those players already on the 40-man roster. 

The Phillies currently have nine players who have been named as non-roster invitees to spring training.  Some of these players have played for the Phils in recent seasons, while others were signed this offseason. 

This list includes players who could receive extra attention during spring training as players with either an outside shot at winning a final roster spot or being sent to Triple-A until a call-up is needed during the regular season.  Looking at the Phils‘ current roster, it becomes clear that reserve infielder, bullpen and outfield spots are all up for grabs.

Here are five players who could get long looks by the Phils as non-roster invitees in spring training.

Begin Slideshow

It seems like just a few days ago that nearly every Philadelphia Phillies player could be acquired in the right deal.

Of course, signing an All-Star pitcher to a long-term extension and winning four straight games leading up to the trade deadline can change things.

But that has not, however, stopped teams from displaying their interest in certain players.

According to a recent tweet by Jon Morosi, the San Francisco Giants could make a run at Hunter Pence if the Phillies decide to deal him prior to the trade deadline.

With Hamels in the fold long term, the Phillies’ payroll for this season and next is expected to exceed the $178 million luxury-tax threshold.  Additionally, Pence is likely to receive a salary increase through arbitration, as he is still signed through next season.  Therefore, moving Pence could make sense to give the Phillies payroll flexibility this season and next.

But trading him to the San Francisco Giants?  Not a good idea.

For one, the Phillies are currently 14.5 games back in the National League East and 10.5 games back in the wild-card standings.  The Giants, meanwhile, currently have a two-game lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the National League West.

However, both the Phillies and Giants could have a tough battle in their respective divisions going forward due to the teams near the top of the standings.

The Washington Nationals, who are in first place in the NL East, have a roster that features a starting rotation that has the best ERA in the NL.  Combined with a roster that also features a great deal of young talent, the Nationals could be in contention for NL East titles beyond this season. 

This means that the wild-card playoff spots could come into play for the Phillies until they are able to add young talent to their lineup.

Meanwhile, new ownership for the Dodgers has already showed a willingness to spend money, as they have recently acquired Hanley Ramirez from the Miami Marlins.  The Giants seemingly have their own perennial competition for a division title, and a wild-card spot could also come into play.

If the Phillies were to trade Pence to the Giants, they could be trading an All-Star outfielder to a team they will be in direct competition with for a wild-card spot both this season and next.

Furthermore, trading Pence to the Giants would essentially mean the Phillies are preparing more so for next season, although they just made their task more difficult.

The Giants could have added incentive to try and acquire Pence since they currently have two outfielders set to hit free agency after this season in Angel Pagan and Melky Cabrera.

The team’s farm system, however, is likely lacking pieces that would intrigue the Phillies enough to trade their starting right fielder. 

Between trading an All-Star outfielder to a team that already has a .261 batting average, which ranks fourth in the NL, and improving a team that they could be in direct competition with for a wild-card spot this season and next, any offer from the Giants would have to blow the Phils away.

Chances are a deal with the Giants wouldn’t provide the Phillies with enough value to make the trade.

Trading Pence could still be an option for the Phils as they look to lower their payroll this season and avoid paying the luxury tax.  But with Shane Victorino set to become a free agent after this season, the Phillies would need to replace their entire starting outfield if they deal Pence. 

That doesn’t mean a deal won’t happen, but the Phillies will need to be swept off their feet to make the trade.

And making a trade with the Giants will make a run at the postseason that much harder this season and next.

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