GaryMrMets
07-28-2004, 10:44 PM
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/sports/9258008.htm
Posted on Wed, Jul. 28, 2004
On Baseball | Clubhouse looking for Wade to deal
By Jim Salisbury
Inquirer Columnist
MIAMI - Steve Finley is out.
OK, who's in?
It almost sounds as if it doesn't matter. The sentiment in the Phillies' clubhouse is that a deal, any deal that would help, needs to be made before Saturday's 4 p.m. non-waiver trade deadline.
Manager Larry Bowa, whose team fell to 6-9 in its last 15 games with another loss to Florida last night, seems to be biting his tongue - at least when it comes to trades - more than his fingernails these days. But remarks such as those he made after Monday night's loss sound like all-out pleas for help.
"What do we have now?" Bowa said. "Three triple-A pitchers. So we'll see what happens."
Even before Finley dropped out of the mix yesterday - the Arizona outfielder wants to play for a West Coast team - Phillies players favored getting pitching help for this $93 million team that has battled injury and has underachieved all season.
"To me, when you put together a team like this, you add to it when you have needs," outspoken closer Billy Wagner said.
Reliever Rheal Cormier added: "I think we really need to do something. Knowing we made a trade would be very valuable. When I was in Boston, they brought in guys they needed, even if they had to pick up salary or give up people. There's no telling when you'll be in [a winning] situation again. There's only two months left. We're trying to make a run for it. A trade would be huge for the clubhouse."
If the Phillies don't make a deal?
"It would definitely be a letdown," catcher Mike Lieberthal said. "Anybody that could help improve the team, even a little, you want that opportunity."
As the Phillies took the field against Florida last night, general manager Ed Wade and advisers Ruben Amaro Jr., Mike Arbuckle and Dallas Green were across the state in Clearwater burning up the phone lines trying to make a deal.
An embarrassing - Bowa's word - 5-2 loss could only increase the urgency.
Earlier in the day, Wade pulled himself away from trade talks to speak with a scribe by telephone shortly after it was learned that Finley, who has the power to veto a trade, didn't want to come East. Wade offered his most expansive comments on the trade front in weeks.
"We're working on a lot of things," he said. "We're being aggressive. But we've hit some dead ends, some of them for circumstances beyond our control."
Wade was asked about the perception that the Phillies aren't trying hard enough to get a deal done.
"We've spent a lot of hours trying to improve our club," he said. "We've had scouts in parks all over the country. We've made last-minute trips to see guys we hadn't seen in a while. We've been aggressive in our offers. It all may lead us to do nothing. Who knows? At the same time, we can't control perception of our aggressiveness. It's a limited market, and some players control their own destiny. That doesn't mean we've been complacent.
"We've got financial flexibility. That's not an impediment. We've also got good players in our system - some we're more protective of than others - but we have good players. With all these factors, we've been aggressive. We just haven't gotten to the finish line."
It's difficult making trades these days. No-trade clauses and big contracts are obstacles. Everyone wants young, cheap, big-league-ready (or close to it) talent.
League sources say the Phils have dangled Placido Polanco, Marlon Byrd and minor-league prospects Ryan Howard and Elizardo Ramirez. Teams have responded by asking for Chase Utley, Ryan Madson, Cole Hamels or Gavin Floyd, four players the Phillies envision joining Thome and Bobby Abreu to form the team's nucleus in the near future.
"I think they should keep those guys, too," Lieberthal conceded.
With Finley headed to Los Angeles, San Diego or San Francisco, the Phils' best bet for an upgrade in center might be the Yankees' Kenny Lofton. The Yanks are trying to get Randy Johnson from Arizona. The Diamondbacks scouted the Phils' system in preparation for a possible Finley deal. If there's a player the D'backs like in the Phillies' system, he could be funneled through New York in a three-way deal, with the Phils getting Lofton. That's all contingent, however, on Arizona's deciding to deal Johnson to the Yankees.
With all the working parts, a potential Lofton deal might not come together until close to the deadline, if at all. That has left the Clearwater Quartet focusing on pitching.
"We've told people all along that if we can improve our pitching, we will," Wade said. "The last couple of days, we've proposed things that have been shot down. Things have been proposed to us that we've shot down."
Wade was asked whether he thought the team had to make a deal to get to the postseason.
"No, I don't," he said. "To say that would be to minimize the ability of the guys on this team. But people shouldn't interpret that as we're not trying to improve, because we are."
Today is Wednesday. Three days until the deadline. The manager can't hide his desire for a trade. The players want one. The fans want one. It's up to Ed Wade to give the people what they want.
Posted on Wed, Jul. 28, 2004
On Baseball | Clubhouse looking for Wade to deal
By Jim Salisbury
Inquirer Columnist
MIAMI - Steve Finley is out.
OK, who's in?
It almost sounds as if it doesn't matter. The sentiment in the Phillies' clubhouse is that a deal, any deal that would help, needs to be made before Saturday's 4 p.m. non-waiver trade deadline.
Manager Larry Bowa, whose team fell to 6-9 in its last 15 games with another loss to Florida last night, seems to be biting his tongue - at least when it comes to trades - more than his fingernails these days. But remarks such as those he made after Monday night's loss sound like all-out pleas for help.
"What do we have now?" Bowa said. "Three triple-A pitchers. So we'll see what happens."
Even before Finley dropped out of the mix yesterday - the Arizona outfielder wants to play for a West Coast team - Phillies players favored getting pitching help for this $93 million team that has battled injury and has underachieved all season.
"To me, when you put together a team like this, you add to it when you have needs," outspoken closer Billy Wagner said.
Reliever Rheal Cormier added: "I think we really need to do something. Knowing we made a trade would be very valuable. When I was in Boston, they brought in guys they needed, even if they had to pick up salary or give up people. There's no telling when you'll be in [a winning] situation again. There's only two months left. We're trying to make a run for it. A trade would be huge for the clubhouse."
If the Phillies don't make a deal?
"It would definitely be a letdown," catcher Mike Lieberthal said. "Anybody that could help improve the team, even a little, you want that opportunity."
As the Phillies took the field against Florida last night, general manager Ed Wade and advisers Ruben Amaro Jr., Mike Arbuckle and Dallas Green were across the state in Clearwater burning up the phone lines trying to make a deal.
An embarrassing - Bowa's word - 5-2 loss could only increase the urgency.
Earlier in the day, Wade pulled himself away from trade talks to speak with a scribe by telephone shortly after it was learned that Finley, who has the power to veto a trade, didn't want to come East. Wade offered his most expansive comments on the trade front in weeks.
"We're working on a lot of things," he said. "We're being aggressive. But we've hit some dead ends, some of them for circumstances beyond our control."
Wade was asked about the perception that the Phillies aren't trying hard enough to get a deal done.
"We've spent a lot of hours trying to improve our club," he said. "We've had scouts in parks all over the country. We've made last-minute trips to see guys we hadn't seen in a while. We've been aggressive in our offers. It all may lead us to do nothing. Who knows? At the same time, we can't control perception of our aggressiveness. It's a limited market, and some players control their own destiny. That doesn't mean we've been complacent.
"We've got financial flexibility. That's not an impediment. We've also got good players in our system - some we're more protective of than others - but we have good players. With all these factors, we've been aggressive. We just haven't gotten to the finish line."
It's difficult making trades these days. No-trade clauses and big contracts are obstacles. Everyone wants young, cheap, big-league-ready (or close to it) talent.
League sources say the Phils have dangled Placido Polanco, Marlon Byrd and minor-league prospects Ryan Howard and Elizardo Ramirez. Teams have responded by asking for Chase Utley, Ryan Madson, Cole Hamels or Gavin Floyd, four players the Phillies envision joining Thome and Bobby Abreu to form the team's nucleus in the near future.
"I think they should keep those guys, too," Lieberthal conceded.
With Finley headed to Los Angeles, San Diego or San Francisco, the Phils' best bet for an upgrade in center might be the Yankees' Kenny Lofton. The Yanks are trying to get Randy Johnson from Arizona. The Diamondbacks scouted the Phils' system in preparation for a possible Finley deal. If there's a player the D'backs like in the Phillies' system, he could be funneled through New York in a three-way deal, with the Phils getting Lofton. That's all contingent, however, on Arizona's deciding to deal Johnson to the Yankees.
With all the working parts, a potential Lofton deal might not come together until close to the deadline, if at all. That has left the Clearwater Quartet focusing on pitching.
"We've told people all along that if we can improve our pitching, we will," Wade said. "The last couple of days, we've proposed things that have been shot down. Things have been proposed to us that we've shot down."
Wade was asked whether he thought the team had to make a deal to get to the postseason.
"No, I don't," he said. "To say that would be to minimize the ability of the guys on this team. But people shouldn't interpret that as we're not trying to improve, because we are."
Today is Wednesday. Three days until the deadline. The manager can't hide his desire for a trade. The players want one. The fans want one. It's up to Ed Wade to give the people what they want.