The Amato Report - Phillies
- Jim Santora
- 20 hours ago
- 3 min read
Hey, did you know that deGrom was available for trade? I bet you didn't because he wasn't available for trade. Then he wasn't. Then he was. Then he wasn't again. And then the big trade happened right before cuts.
Joking aside, the Phillies made it to back-to-back World Series, which is no small feat. They made it the ol' Sammy way: hitting and defense and him rolling out pitchers you didn't even know were in the league. But I can't say anything; it worked and it beat me twice. Though falling to the Nats in the World Series, the team went into the offseason with pretty much the same needs heading into 2025: pitching and 3B.
NOTABLE OFFSEASON TRANSACTIONS
Acquired: Gabriel Moreno, Adrian Morejon, Randy Rodriguez, Alec Bohm, Walker Buehler
Departed: Ronny Mauricio, Spencer Strider, Dylan Crews, Jordan Lawlar, Jacob deGrom, Ke'Bryan Hayes
Sam did his usual Sam moves: trade good pitching for hitting and then give up a bunch of prospects (along with Spencer Strider) for a few good pitching pieces. Nothing to see here, folks.
STRENGTHS
Per the annual Phillies teams, the offense will be good. Led by the main culprits of Bryce "not elite" Harper, Francisco Lindor, and Corbin Carroll. Gabriel Moreno and his injury on a 7 join the team, which I actually thought was a really good acquisition.
The Phillies defense will be among the best, as you can look at almost any position and there will be a 1 there. Plus, their bullpen after the big trade is right up there with the top bullpens (it may even be the best one entering the draft). The question is, with no solid SP, how quick will these relievers be used up???
OPPORTUNITIES
You know what it is. But let's be real we know Sam won't use any collateral to bring in any SP. Not just SP, but depth is an issue with a lot of positions. The draft has some usable pieces for the bench, but I imagine once one goes, they'll go pretty quick. And guys like Marsh and Michael Harris are guys you do NOT want up against a lefty late in the game (just thinking of one scenario).
Top picks in the upcoming draft:
Phillies #3
Giants #4
You laugh, but these are probably the highest picks Sam has probably had ENTERING the draft in years (this doesn't count trading up).
Projected lineup (as of now vs RHP)
C - Gabriel Moreno / Henry ".000 AVG in Spring Training" Davis
1B - Bryce Harper
2B - Bryson Stott
3B - Alec Bohm
SS - Francisco Lindor
LF - Brandon Marsh
CF - Michael Harris II
RF - Corbin Carroll
DH - Jose Altuve
Projected rotation
A whole bunch of "just a guy[s]", like the Guy Fieri commercial:
Keep an eye on these players in 2026 (in real life)
Bryce Harper - hell I'll take the WIP bait and wonder: will he ever be elite again? Chime in now: 2159249494.
Ozzie Albies - I've heard about his fish collection on MLB Network about 100 times but nothing about how he is trying to get better (also, can we talk about how awful Harold Reynolds is these days on that Network, wowwwww). The talent is obviously there but can he ever reclaim it or will he be...swimming with the fishes??? ding
Gabriel Moreno - a guy I always wanted on my team, but literally cannot stay healthy. If he can put together a full year, that card would be one of the best overall cards in the game.
2026 projection based on Ed's power rankings: 8.15; 5th place (.05 above yours truly). NOTE: This was before the deGrom trade.
You want me to predict this team, but it's impossible. Sam will make his monster trade at the deadline and fuck everything up and will likely trade his first 4 picks on Tuesday. So while the projections have him in 5th place, I say he is in the running for 3rd-4th depending on the trades made. But I am not as bullish on 5th place if the team stayed the same throughout the year; there's depth issues and the Guy Fieris at pitching are not desirable...but that bullpen will keep Sam in a ton of games since we all know he'll go to them as early as the 2nd inning lol
I look forward to Sammy trying to draft a guy in the 13th round after he was drafted 8 rounds prior. We end everything with the Nats on Friday, and then it's draft time!
