Phillies take first step toward Luis Robert Jr. trade with latest roster move

Trea Turner being activated off the IL for Monday's Philadelphia Phillies series opener against the San Diego Padres meant someone was going to go down. Dave Dombrowski had options, but the Phillies predictably optioned Johan Rojas to Triple-A.

While Rojas is a tremendous defensive center fielder, he simply proved his bat was not quite MLB-ready. While he might be ready at some point, the Phillies aren't a team that could afford to waste regular at-bats with a guy like Rojas any longer.

For now, the plan presumably is to move Brandon Marsh from left field to center field against righties with Cristian Pache filling in against the southpaws. As for left field, David Dahl earned at-bats against righties, and Whit Merrifled will get some playing time as well.

While that's their plan for right now, it's hard to envision the Phillies planning on seriously having guys like Dahl, Merrifield, and Pache getting starts in October. They have a clear vacancy in the outfield, and have the assets to pursue the presumed best outfielder available, Luis Robert Jr.

Phillies are a team to watch in Luis Robert Jr. sweepstakes

The asking price is going to be enormous, but the Phillies have the team, the executive, and the prospects at their disposal to make a blockbuster deal like this happen.

At his best, Robert is a bonafide star. Last season, he was an All-Star, took home a Silver Slugger, a Gold Glove, and finished 12th in the AL MVP balloting. He can hit for power, steal bases, play elite defense, and even hit for average. Outside of his durability, there aren't many if any weaknesses to point to.

The Phillies could use another big right-handed bat to compliment left-handed stars Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Bryson Stott, and the fact that Robert has three more full seasons after this one on his deal at very affordable money is only icing on the cake.

Sending Rojas down to the minors now signals that they're going to be players in the outfield market when the trade deadline rolls around. Robert rumors surrounding the Phillies were likely going to pick up steam anyway, but now that they made the move with Rojas, it makes even more sense.