MLB insider fuels fire for hard-to-believe Phillies trade rumor

The Philadelphia Phillies are comfortably patrolling the land and sky as the No. 1 seed in the National League, with a comfy nine-game division lead over the second-place Atlanta Braves. Dave Dombrowski is never afraid to throw money at a problem, nor does he hesitate to strengthen a strength.

As the trade deadline nears, Philadelphia is expected to make serious moves. There's no reason not to. We know this team can perform in the postseason and on the precipice of history, Philadelphia would be foolish not to put the pedal to the metal.

The obvious point of concern is the outfield. Nick Castellanos has been better of late, but Brandon Marsh needs a right-handed platoon bat. Maybe Weston Wilson can be that, but even then, Johan Rojas and Cristian Pache comprise an untenable centerfield depth chart. Both offer plenty of skill with their glove, but neither is particularly competent at placing the bat on the ball right now. A slugging centerfielder would really spice up the Phillies' offense.

Luis Robert Jr., Brent Rooker, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. have all been mentioned as potential targets, with all but the former shot down by various reports. Robert is awesome, but Philadelphia won't be the only team after him. There's a good chance the Phils aren't getting the All-Star bat fans want.

Aside from another high-end reliever to buffer Jose Alvarado, there aren't too many pressing needs for Philadelphia to address. That doesn't mean Dombrowski won't swing a major trade, though. According to MLB insider Jon Morosi, the Phils have discussed adding Chicago White Sox ace Garrett Crochet and Detroit Tigers hurler Jack Flaherty.

This rumor came as an absolute shock to most folks, as Philadelphia has the strongest five-man rotation in baseball. It seems, on the surface, like a misuse of resources. Taijuan Walker, lambasted though he is, makes $18 million annually. It seems unlikely that Rob Thomson would simply plug him into the bullpen. Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suarez, and Cristopher Sanchez are All-Stars. Aaron Nola could have been. There just isn't a need for elite starting pitching.

And yet, Morosi provided some historical context for why Philadelphia might engineer such an outside-the-box trade.

Dave Dombrowski could lean on history with shocking Phillies trade

If the Phillies trade for Crochet (or even Flaherty), it will flat-out stun the league. Those are potentially the two best starters available at the deadline, and there is no shortage of pitching need around the league. Philadelphia would need to leapfrog several contenders who need another ace far more than them.

And yet, clearly it's worth at least pondering the implications of such a move. Adding Crochet would presumably push Taijuan Walker to the bullpen. Projecting toward the playoffs, it would be fascinating to see how far Philadelphia pushes the 25-year-old, who has almost doubled his career-high for innings to date. Crochet leads the league in strikeouts and kissed triple digits with his fastball, but there's concern about his ability to hold up down the stretch.

Philadelphia could transition him to a bullpen role down the stretch and for the playoffs, but that defeats the purpose of shelling out major assets — and yes, Chicago will get major assets for a 25-year-old Cy Young candidate with multiple years of team control left on his contract. There's no real reason for the Phillies to pay the going rate for Crochet unless he is essentially viewed as the No. 3 starter behind Wheeler and Nola in the playoffs.

It's a tantalizing thought, and Philadelphia fans would love to shelve their Taijuan Walker concerns for a while. But, Tyler Phillips just mowed through the Pirates over the weekend. Spencer Turnbull, when healthy, has operated commendably in spot starts. It's not like the Phils lack alternatives to Walker already. None on Crochet's level, obviously, but the resources required to land Crochet would be better used on a high-level outfield bat.

If the Phils quintuple down on the whole 'all our pitchers are All-Stars' thing, it will be a fascinating experiment at the very least. Philadelphia's pitching staff would be quite capable of carrying a mediocre offense, not to mention an explosive bunch led by Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, and Alec Bohm. Letting the outfield problems persist in favor of another starter would be risky, bordering on irresponsible, but clearly it has worked out for Dombrowski in the past, so he could be up to his old tricks.