Looking Back at 5 of the Worst Phillies Moves
The Philadelphia Phillies have made some great moves during their tenure as a professional team.
Yes, there’s a recency bias with this one, but the Bryce Harper signing was akin to the Jim Thome signing in 2003.
A big-name free agent choosing to come to Philly, creating a buzz that was missing for a long time, and putting the team on the path to the playoffs. Thome was traded before he could make it to October with the Phillies, but things are looking optimistic for Harper.
That got me thinking, what are some of the worst moves the Phillies have made? I’m going to stick to moves in the past 20 years or so, including trades, free-agent signings, or non-moves.
Here’s 5 of the worst I could drudge up, but there are more out there.
Not Trading Dom Brown
I’m going to start with the one that makes me cringe every time I hear his name – Domonic Brown. Brown was one of the most highly touted prospects the Phillies have ever had. In 2010, he was one of the top prospects in all of baseball, his name being talked about with the likes of Mike Trout and Harper. Brown was untouchable and was not even considered in any trades leading up to his big league debut.
And then things went south.
He played sparingly from 2010 to 2012 due to injuries and the need to get him regular at-bats in the minors instead of splitting time in the majors. He became the starting left fielder in 2013 and had an amazing first half of the season that saw him make his only All-Star game. He fizzled out the second half of ’13 and could never pick it up again. His ineffectiveness at the plate, combined with his poor defense, led the Phillies to release him in October 2015, bringing a crashing end to what should have been a productive career. He finished his Phillies career hitting .246/.305/.405 with only 54 home runs. He bounced around the minors for a few seasons but never made it back to The Show.
During his meteoric rise, the Phillies could have traded Brown for virtually anyone in baseball. If they did and Brown turned into a stud, they would have been destroyed for the move. But with hindsight being what it is, they held onto Brown for too long and got no value from him. If they were able to trade him, perhaps the mid-2010s teams wouldn’t have been as bad as they were.
Trading Cliff Lee
This is a painful one. After acquiring Roy Halladay in 2009, the Phillies decided it would be too expensive to keep Halladay, Lee, and Cole Hamels. Lee was the odd man out, despite helping lead the team to the 2009 World Series. He was dealt to the Seattle Mariners for J.C. Ramirez, Phillippe Aumont, and Tyson Gillies. All three guys failed to do anything for the Phillies, or make any significant contributions to baseball in general.
Despite re-signing with the Phillies as a free agent after the 2010 season (what happened to him being too expensive?), the Phillies missed out on a prime year of his career. Seattle ultimately traded Lee to the Texas Rangers in 2010, where he helped lead that club to the World Series. After Halladay and Hamels, the Phillies rotation was made up of Joe Blanton, Kyle Kendrick, and a mix of Jamie Moyer and Roy Oswalt, who the Phillies traded for in 2010, ironically needing pitching help.
All in all, trading Lee away almost seems like General Manager Ruben Amaro Jr. was throwing away the 2010 season. The fact that he was traded for nothing and then re-signed a year later shows the Phillies wasted a valuable arm in 2010, one that could have led to them to their third straight World Series appearance.
Trading for Freddy Garcia
Back in 2006, the Phillies traded for Freddy Garcia, a great pitcher, but one who was obviously in the twilight of his career. They sent Gavin Floyd and Gio Gonzalez (who they had just acquired the year before when they traded Jim Thome) to the Chicago White Sox. Disaster ensued pretty much right away.
Garcia only started 11 games in 2007, going 1-5 with a 5.90 ERA. Shoulder surgery in August ended his season and his Phillies career. What makes this even worse than how poorly Garcia performed is how well Gonzalez has pitched in his big league career.
Gio has posted a 130-99 record with a 3.68 ERA in 12 seasons, most of them with the division rival Washington Nationals. So the Phillies had a terrible showing from Garcia and got beat up by the pitcher they traded in the process. Ouch.
Signing Jonathan Papelbon
The Phillies signed Papelbon to a four-year, $50 million contract after the 2011 season, which at the time, was the largest ever for a reliever. But GM Ruben Amaro Jr. thought it was worth it, considering Papelbon was one of the top closers in the game, with 219 saves up to that point. But the Phillies did not need to spend the money on Pap and could have put it elsewhere.
It’s not like he played poorly for the Phillies. In fact, he is the club’s all-time saves leader with 123 saves.
But his negative attitude permeated the clubhouse. He barely had one full season under his belt before he started complaining, famously saying, “I didn’t come here for this,” in regards to the team’s losing record in 2013. He argued with manager Ryne Sandberg and did not get along with the front office. His alter ego of “Cinco Ocho” never really caught on with the fans.
Papelbon joined a club that was fresh off its fifth straight NL East title, and with a solid, albeit aging, core of players. Is he to blame for the team’s collapse into obscurity following the 2012 season? Absolutely not. But could his antics play a part in that collapse, as he sowed discord through the clubhouse? Certainly.
Signing Adam Eaton
Adam Eaton signed a three-year, $24 million deal with the Phillies in November of 2006. One has to wonder why they signed him considering he wasn’t anything special with the San Diego Padres. In 2007, his first season with the club, Eaton went 10-10 with a whopping 6.29 ERA and was left off the postseason roster.
2008 wasn’t any better. He went 4-8 with a 5.80 ERA, lost his spot in the rotation to Joe Blanton, was sent to the minors, and did not appear in another game despite being part of the September call-ups. Oh, and he was left off the postseason roster once more, but still felt he deserved a World Series ring. When he was announced to receive his ring the following season, he was rightly greeted with a chorus of boos.
The only silver lining with Eaton – the Phillies were still able to win despite the fact that Eaton was trying to derail their season every time he toed the rubber.
Featured Image: ---
Discover more from Philadelphia Sports Nation
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Categorized:Phillies Unique Columns