The Philadelphia Phillies are scouring the trade market for a potent bat, and they could be zeroing in on a former National League MVP.
Cody Bellinger of the Chicago Cubs is emerging as a possible acquisition for Philadelphia, according to a new report from Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer.
With Bellinger’s availability becoming a rapidly growing narrative, Rymer ranked the Phillies at No. 2 of the ten teams most likely to deal for Bellinger.
“Center field is … an obvious weakness (for Philadelphia),” Rymer said. “(Johan) Rojas only has a .571 OPS personally, while the position has produced a .609 OPS and four home runs. The Phillies would likely be fine if they left good enough alone in center field, but the point of this season should be to be better than fine. After falling short of World Series glory in 2022 and 2023, there's no reason for them to be anything less than all-in. … It wouldn't hurt to have Bellinger as a potential weapon for a playoff matchup against the Dodgers. Judging from his 1.185 OPS against them, he didn't much appreciate being non-tendered in 2022.”
In Rymer’s theoretical trade of Bellinger to Philadelphia, he predicted that the Cubs could receive catcher Eduardo Tait in return for Bellinger.
Tait is the Phillies’ No. 8 prospect.
Rymer asserted that a return of Tait for Bellinger would be more advantageous for the Cubs than what the Yankees could ostensibly offer Chicago for Bellinger, namely their own catcher prospect, Agustin Ramirez.
“Though the 17-year-old Tait is further from the big leagues, this proposal arguably has more upside for Chicago than the Ramirez version,” Rymer said. “Tait projects as a bat-first catcher with a strong arm.”
Bellinger in a Phillies uniform would be a juicy storyline in July for Major League Baseball. Will Philadelphia make a move?
More MLB: Phillies are 'obvious' option to land Yankees superstar with massive deal
