Do Phillies Want To Trade Fan-Favorite Outfielder?

So do the Philadelphia Phillies want to trade outfielder Nick Castellanos or not?

The belief on Thursday was that the Phillies intended to explore it, after an MLB.com report noted that the Phillies had put their fan favorite on the trading block.

"According to a source, the Phillies are open to the idea of trading Nick Castellanos, whose streaky ways and disappointing performance in the NLCS could result in an offseason change," wrote MLB.com’s John Feinsand.

Well, on Friday, an ESPN.com report, well, complicated matters.

Their report, filed by Buster Olney, stated that, well, the Phillies aren’t shopping him.

“Phillies source: they aren’t interested in moving Nick Castellanos. They consider him an important part of the team and value his production, and have no intention of trading him,” Olney tweeted.

So, could this simply be gamesmanship on the Phillies part being played out through the media? Sure. It’s also possible that Feinsand and Olney have different sources who might both have accurate information.

But it’s that time of year when teams like the Phillies assess what they have and what they might be willing to do in order to make their team better.

Castellanos had a fine regular season, slashing 272/.311/.476/.788 with 29 home runs and 106 RBI.

While he hit well in both the NL Wild Card series and the NL Division Series, his performance in the NL Championship Series was, well, bad. He batted .042, hit one home run and drove in two runs. He had one hit in 24 official at-bats and struck out 11 times.

The Phillies have solved some of their glut in the outfield. They’ve officially moved Bryce Harper to first base and have determined that Kyle Schwarber will spend most games in the designated hitter role.

That leaves Castellanos with a group of outfielders that include Jake Cave, Brandon Marsh, Simon Muzziotti, Cristian Pache and Johan Rojas.

That would seem to leave enough room to keep Castellanos.

But, he’s entering the third year of a five-year, $100 million deal. He’s 31 and he may have more value as a trade piece to bring in starting pitching than as a part of the everyday lineup. The Phillies appear likely to lose Aaron Nola to free agency.

His batting average, power numbers and durability give him value in trade. The conflicting reports only fuel a belief that the Phillies may be mulling their options but not ready to pull the trigger.