Time to get creative

Despite all of the tough talk of the Phillies taking six starters into the season, Pat Gillick knows he needs to work a trade before the season begins. There should be plenty of demand for what the Phillies have to offer. Almost every team in baseball could use another legit starter on their roster. Still teams don’t want to buy what the Phillies are selling. It’s time for Pat Gillick to sweeten the pot.

The Houston Astros are counting on Roger Clemens to come back and save their rotation. I’m not crazy enough to presume to know if Clemens will play baseball and if he does for what team. Nevertheless if Clemens stays in Houston than the Astros will still have an unproven rookie as their fifth starter. The Astros could really use Jon Lieber to bolster their cause in a division with the World Series Champion Cardinals and a much-improved Chicago Cubs squad.

The Phillies need to make the offer that the Astros can’t refuse by pairing catcher Carlos Ruiz with Jon Lieber. The current Astros catcher Brad Ausms doesn’t have much value if he hits .230 like he did last season. Houston has no good catching prospects and could really use a young backstop with potential upside. Carlos Ruiz has some very solid numbers. In his past two seasons at the AAA level he hit over .300 with both power and speed.

In return the Phillies should ask for much maligned closer Brad Lidge. Two seasons ago Brad Lidge was the best closer in baseball. Last season the Astros yanked him back and forth between the closer and setup roles. Lidge could benefit from the stability of staying in the same role for the whole season. He could also be the hard throwing reliever the Phillies need to get to the next level.

Source:
Picture of Brad Lidge from mcall.com