Phillies Prospect Rankings Could Feature Major Shake Up Ahead of MLB Trade Deadline

The Philadelphia Phillies are locked in a tight race with the New York Mets for the top spot in the National League East as they prepare for the second half of the season.

With a record of 55-41, they currently hold a half-game lead over their rivals in a race that looks like it will go down to the wire.

Not only are the Phillies and Mets battling it out for the division, they could be going at it on the trade market as well.

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There have been reports that both Philadelphia and New York are in the market for a late-game, high-leverage relief pitcher to add to their respective bullpens.

Whichever team comes away with such a caliber of player could be the deciding factor in who wins the NL East this year.

It will be worth keeping an eye on, as both franchises have done a wonderful job of upgrading their farm systems in recent years.

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For the Phillies, only one of their draft picks this year, right-handed pitcher Gage Wood, who was selected No. 26 overall out of the University of Arkansas, cracked their top-10 prospect rankings.

His landing at No. 7, with second baseman Aroon Escobr moving up to No. 6, led to right fielder Hendry Mendez dropping to No. 8, center fielder Dante Nori falling to No. 9, and fellow center fielder Griffin Burkholder rounding out the top 10.

Atop the rankings, right-handed pitcher Andrew Painter and shortstop Aidan Miller swapped spots, with the future ace taking over the No. 1 spot.

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Alas, those rankings aren’t going to hold because Philadelphia is widely expected to make some trades ahead of the MLB trade deadline in two weeks.

“You'd have to believe the Phillies will be adding at the deadline again and any players in this top six could be major parts of a real trade package. Wood can't be traded before the deadline and the players below him have value that will vary from team to team,” wrote Kiley McDaniel of ESPN in a piece updating each team’s prospect rankings.

Where in the prospect rankings Philadelphia chooses to build a package around will be determined by how high on the relief pitcher trade market they look to go.

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If they show interest in someone under multiple years of team control, such as Emmanuel Clase of the Cleveland Guardians, Miller could be in the mix.

The same goes for Felix Bautista of the Baltimore Orioles.

Pitchers such as David Bednar and Dennis Santana of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who are under team control through 2026, wouldn’t cost a top prospect, but Escobar could be the centerpiece of that deal.

A rental, such as Aroldis Chapman of the Boston Red Sox, would cost considerably less than all three of the aforementioned arms, but likely still demand a top-10 prospect in return.

For more Phillies news, head over to Phillies On SI.