5 trade targets from the Philadelphia Phillies for the Colorado Rockies

The Philadelphia Phillies and Colorado Rockies are two teams with fanbases that are not thrilled with their teams right now. The Phillies have the second-longest playoff drought in MLB entering 2022 and the longest drought in the National League as they last made the playoffs in 2011.

The Phillies have made some moves that have panned out, like hiring Joe Girardi as their manager, trading for catcher J.T. Realmuto, signing starter Zach Wheeler, and signing Bryce Harper to a 13-year deal (the last few years will be bad but he won the 2021 NL MVP award) but they have had some other bad moves and shoddy pitching. The bad moves include resigning Didi Gregorius for 2021 and 2022 and signing outfielder Odubel Herrera to a five-year extension.

But, by and large, their issue has been pitching. Both the Phillies and Rockies have had one of the worst bullpens in each of the last four seasons. The best bullpen from the two teams since 2018 is the 2019 Phillies bullpen, which was 16th in ERA at 4.38 and a FIP that was 23rd in MLB at 4.84.

In 2020, the Rockies were 29th in MLB in bullpen ERA of 6.77 and the Phillies were the only team worse at 7.06. In 2021, the Phillies were 25th in bullpen ERA at 4.60 and the Rockies were 27th at 4.91.

The Rockies were far from a perfect team in 2020 or 2021 but the Phillies lack of quality bullpen arms cost them a playoff spot in 2020 and, in 2021, their 34 blown saves were tied for the all-time MLB lead … with the 2004 Colorado Rockies. You can have multiple blown saves in a game and still win the game but the Phillies were still 15-13 in games with a blown save. They were 6.5 games back of the eventual World Series champion Atlanta Braves in the NL East. You do the math.

However, considering both teams pitching issues and the Phillies being a better overall team than the Rockies, there are five trade targets the Colorado Rockies should examine further with the Philadelphia Phillies, including four pitchers.

Philadelphia Phillies starter Kyle Gibson is a rotation fit for the Colorado Rockies

Kyle Gibson has had a spotty track record as a starting pitcher but if his 2021 season with the Texas Rangers and Philadelphia Phillies is any indication, he could be a good starter for the Colorado Rockies.

Gibson, 34, has spent parts of nine seasons in the majors and in 2021, he made an All-Star team for the first time. Overall on the season, Gibson went 10-9 with a 3.71 ERA in 31 appearances (30 starts). He had a 116 ERA+ with a 3.87 FIP, a 1.220 WHIP, and he averaged 3.2 walks and 7.7 strikeouts per nine innings.

The Phillies got Gibson from the Texas Rangers at the trade deadline in a six-player deal that also sent closer Ian Kennedy and one of the Rangers top pitching prospects Hans Crouse to Philadelphia in exchange for one of the Phillies top pitching prospects, Spencer Howard, and two other prospects.

Prior to 2021, Gibson’s last season with an ERA+ that was better than league average was in 2018 when he was with the Twins. He had a 3.62 ERA in 32 starts with a 118 ERA+.

Gibson was successful in 2018 and 2021 because his WHIP was lower and, more specifically, he allowed fewer hits. In 2018 and 2021, his WHIP was 1.302 and 1.22. In 2016, 2017, 2019, and 2020, Gibson’s hit rate was over one per inning and his WHIP was 1.444 or higher.

The thing that could make Gibson an intriguing fit for the Colorado Rockies is his groundball rate. As Rockies fans know, the Rockies rotation has been successful because their high groundball rates. Since 2019 among starters with at least 300 innings pitched, the Rockis had three starters among the top 17 in groundball rate (Antonio Senzatela, Germán Márquez, and Jon Gray). All three pitched better at Coors Field than on the road.

For Gibson, in that same span, he is sandwiched in between Senzatela (6th highest) and Márquez (8th) as Gibson’s groundball rate is 51.6 percent.

Gibson is entering the final year of a three-year contract for $28 million.

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Ranger Suárez could help the Colorado Rockies in a few ways

Back in October, we chose Ranger Suárez as the one target that the Colorado Rockies should focus in on from the Philadelphia Phillies when we chose one for each and every MLB team and it’s for good reason.

Suárez, 26, had a fantastic season in 2021 as a starter, reliever, and and a closer. He made 39 appearances and he made 12 starts, finished 13 games, and had four saves and he had an ERA of 1.36. He had a FIP of 2.72, a WHIP of an even 1.0, and he averaged 2.8 walks and 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

He only appeared in three games in 2020 but in 2019, he also pitched well as, in 37 relief appearances, Suárez had a 3.14 ERA (142 ERA+). He had a 3.89 FIP, a 1.315 WHIP, and he averaged 2.2 walks and 7.8 strikeouts per nine innings.

For the Rockies, he would be intriguing in any role for two reasons. First of all, he’s a lefty. If he was in the bullpen, he would provide them with another left-handed reliever and the Rockies are thin on that. Rookies Lucas Gilbreath and Ben Bowden were at the top of that very small group at the maor league level or in the high minors in 2021.

Suárez would also be intriguing for his groundball rate. In 173 2/3 innings in the majors, he has a groundball rate of 56.5 percent, which would make him the highest groundball pitcher for the Rockies and by far the case in the bullpen.

Additionally, Suárez isn’t even arbitration-eligible yet so the Rockies would have four years of control with him (at least under the current CBA).

Philadelphia Phillies reliever José Alvarado is another bullpen option for the Colorado Rockies

José Alvarado is another left-handed reliever that the Philadelphia Phillies have that could help the Colorado Rockies out but, unlike Ranger Suárez, Alvarado would definitely be a reliever.

Alvarado, 26, was acquired by the Phillies from the Tampa Bay Rays in a three-team, three-player deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 2021 season. In his first season with the Phillies, Alvarado appeared in 64 games and he had a 4.20 ERA (100 ERA+). He had a FIP of 4.80 and a WHIP of 1.599 and he also had five saves.

Alvarado averaged 99.4 MPH on his sinker (his primary pitch) in 2021 but while he has major velocity, that WHIP is so high because, often, he doesn’t know where the ball is going. In 55 2/3 innings, Alvarado walked more batters (47) than he allowed hits (42).

It’s been a problem for him for a few years now as he averaged six walks per nine innings in 2020 (albeit, only in nine games) and 8.1 walks per nine innings in 2019.

However, if he could get his control issues under control as he had in 2017 and 2018 as, in a combined 105 games, he averaged 3.7 walks per nine innings. As a result, he had an ERA of 2.79, a FIP of 2.36, and a much lower WHIP of 1.11.

For the Rockies, he could be good for them with his groundball rate as in his career, it is 53.6 percent.

He is entering his second year of arbitration eligibility this offseason.

Philadelphia Phillies reliever Seranthony Domínguez is another good bullpen option for the Colorado Rockies

Seranthony Domínguez has not been healthy in the last two years for the Philadelphia Phillies since he had Tommy John surgery in July 2020 but now that he is healthy, he could be an asset for the Colorado Rockies.

Dominguez, 27, returned to pitch for the Phillies in one game in 2021 and missed the entire 2020 season but in 2018 and 2019, Dominguez was very effective. In 2018 (his rookie season), he appeared in 53 games and he had an ERA of 2.95. He finished 24 games and had 16 saves along with a 40 ERA+, a 2.85 FIP, a 0.931 WHIP, and an average of 3.4 walks and 11.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

In 2019, he appeared in 27 games before he suffered his torn UCL (he had the Tommy John surgery more than a year after he suffered the injury in early June 2019). In those 27 appearances, he had a 4.01 ERA with a 112 ERA+, a FIP of 4.02, a 1.459 WHIP, and he averaged 4.4 walks and 10.6 strikeouts per nine innings.

While he hasn’t pitched consistently for a while, he could be a good option for the Rockies since he has closing experience and his high groundball rate. In his career, he has a groundball percentage of 55.3 percent.

Dominguez is eligible for arbitration for the first time this offseason so the Rockies would have a few years of control with him.

Our trade target series finishes up the NL East with the Washington Nationals next before we move on to the National League Central.