Should the Philadelphia Phillies Really Be Interested in Rafael Devers?

There has been plenty of buzz about how or if the Philadelphia Phillies will react to the New York Mets' spending spree this winter. That spree was just capped off by the surprise signing of shortstop-now-turned third baseman Carlos Correa.

Despite the ludicrous spending by the Mets, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski doesn't feel the need to have to respond with an equal financial response.

“No, no, no,” he said. “We’re always trying to put the best club you can on the field, we’re always trying to get better, but we like our club. There’s a lot of times you don’t have to be the top-spending club to be the best club. I feel really good about our club.”

But, Dombrowski has always held the fact that he is willing to make the club better. Listening and entertaining offers is how that happens, so what about the rumors of Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers potentially being traded for by the Phillies?

Does it make sense for both the Phillies and Red Sox?

On the Red Sox' end, it makes perfect sense. After a winter of little spending and seasons of unwillingness to extend star players such as Devers and Xander Bogaerts, trading away Devers for something makes sense.

For the Phillies, it could work.

For starters, the package to acquire an entire year of Dever's services, not just half a season as would be the case at the 2023 trade deadline, would be expensive in terms of prospects.

Yes, the Phillies have plenty of arms and some bats that are of interest to all 30 MLB teams, but to part with them for the hope that Devers signs an extension with Philadelphia is a tough pill to swallow.

That being said, if the Phillies were to pull the trigger on a Devers trade they would almost certainly be sure he was ready to sign an extension upon arrival.

Which brings up the next hurdle: the extension itself.

Currently, Philadelphia has the third-highest payroll in baseball and have two position players in Bryce Harper and Trea Turner that are locked up for the remainder of their careers. A similar extension would have to be offered to Devers who just completed an incredible season in which he boasted a 141 OPS+ and slashed .296/.358/.521 with 27 home runs.

10-years, $310 million? That is likely what it would take to get Devers to agree to a long-term extension. That would put three $300 million-plus men on the Phillies' roster.

Let's hypothesize the prospect cost and the financial commitment are swallowable by Philadelphia, where does that leave current third baseman Alec Bohm?

He could shift to first base, but then that makes first baseman Rhys Hoskins expendable. Hoskins, who is the definition of "hot and cold" but has been the face of the franchise for years, would then likely be moved.

Is that a possibility after Dombrowski said that a contract would be tendered to him this offseason? One could argue he could be part of the package back to Boston in a potential Devers deal. But then the Red Sox would have to extend Hoskins to make the deal worth it, something they haven't shown they are willing to do since Chaim Bloom has taken the reigns in Boston.

The other option is that Devers takes over third base and whichever of the two between Hoskins and Bohm doesn't man first base would fill the designated hitter role. That would only be the case until Harper's return, which just may coincide with the trade deadline. . . which would then allow the team to ship off either Bohm or Hoskins, whichever they find most expendable at the time.

There would be a lot of moving parts for this deal to not only come to fruition but for it to make sense.

In the end, is it worth it to sell off part of the farm, extend another massive contract, and usher out a fan favorite in favor of a perennial All-Star and MVP candidate?

Absolutely, especially if you intend to keep up with the Mets.

More From SI's Inside The Phillies:

Make sure to follow Inside the Phillies on Substack and Twitter!