Rowand trade falls apart

The San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that a trade involving Aaron Rowand and Scott Linebrink won’t go through for now. The fact that trade negotiations took place hadn’t actually been confirmed until Padres GM Kevin Towers announced the trade had been tabled.

The deal isn’t dead yet. Towers commented that, “It might be something we discuss again later this spring. But right now I want to see what we have in spring training. I want to see how (outfielder) Terrmel Sledge plays and how our bullpen shapes up.”

If the deal went through Linebrink would be the missing piece in the Phillies bullpen. Over his career Linebrink has compiled some impressive statistics pitching in 313 games with a 3.12 ERA. 2006 was a sub par for Linebrink who saw his opponents batting average jump about .030 from his career average. However, his other numbers including K/BB and K/9 stayed solid. The Phillies might be able to benefit in a trade from the perception that Linebrink is in decline. Linebrink a battle-tested reliever would serve as a fine set up man to Tom Gordon and could pitch in save situations if necessary. His presence would solidify what would be a very good bullpen.

This potential future deal presents some interesting scenarios for the Phillies. If Rowand left Philadelphia, Victorino would move from right to center and the Phillies would be a man down in the outfield. The Phillies like what current bench player Jayson Werth has to offer but don’t consider him a starter and the free agent market by this point of the off-season no longer has valuable players.

The Phillies still have trade chip Jon Lieber. There are several teams with poor starting pitching depth and available corner outfielders. One possible option is Kevin Mench who has been mentioned in trade talks with the Phillies in the past. Another possible trade could involve the Pirates and Xavier Nady. Both aren’t great options and would require the Phillies hypothetical trade partner to sweeten the pot with a prospect to get the deal done.

A Rowand for Linebrink swap could benefit the Phillies, but hopefully Pat Gillick will make sure they have a Lieber trade finished before they made their move. A Rowand trade by itself doesn’t really help the Phillies. It just moves the Phillies hole in their bullpen to their outfield.

Sources:
Linebrink-Rowand deal off for now
From San Diego Union-Tribune

Picture of Scott Linebrink from sportsillustrated.com