Phillies Push Back Cole Hamels’ Next Start
Phillies starting pitcher Cole Hamels. Photo | Eileen Blass-USA TODAY Sports
Rumors about where Cole Hamels might end up are only intensifying as Friday’s 4 p.m. trade deadline approaches. Yesterday, we told you that the Rangers and Dodgers were the frontrunners in the chase for the Phillies ace. Today, there are new developments.
The Phillies brass have made it almost inevitable that Hamels will be out of Philadelphia by Friday afternoon. The Phils have first pushed Hamels’ next start back to Friday night against Atlanta, ESPN reports, so that if he is traded, his new team could use him immediately; the Phillies also want to avoid a risk of injury or poor performance, either of which could happen if he were to start Thursday, as was originally planned.
Cole Hamels will NOT pitch Thursday as scheduled. He's scheduled for Friday, but that's after the deadline. Phils don't want to risk it.
— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) July 28, 2015
The Phillies have also asked interested teams to submit their best offers by the end of today, ESPN said, so that Ruben Amaro and company can sift through the possible trade packages and decide which team will get Hamels, if they trade him at all.
Now, for Hamels’ suitors:
The Boston Red Sox, one of the teams in the chase for Hamels, is unlikely to get him, WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford reports. Hamels has a no-trade clause in his contract that allows him to block a trade to many of MLB’s 30 teams, and the Red Sox are one of those teams, Bradford says. He adds that the clause has proven to be a “roadblock” in the Red Sox’s pursuit.
CSNPhilly’s Jim Salisbury tweeted out the teams the Phillies could trade Hamels to without his signature:
Just a reminder: Hamels' 9-team "trade to" list is: NYY, TEX, WAS, STL, ATL, SD, LAD, CUBS, METS. All other teams require his approval.
— Jim Salisbury (@JSalisburyNBCS) July 26, 2015
(Interesting that he could be traded without approval to NL East division rival Nationals, Braves and Mets.)
Meanwhile, the Dodgers, considered a frontrunner in talks for Hamels, have apparently made getting the lefty their trade deadline priority, hoping to go through all of their options before resorting to another pitcher, as the New York Post‘s Joel Sherman tweets:
#Dodgers prioritizing Hamels. Want to exhaust possibility b4 act on Plan B such as Gallardo, etc. Still insist will not move Seager/Urias
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) July 28, 2015
The San Francisco Giants, 2014’s World Series champions, have also been heavily looking at Hamels, Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal tweeted, making a late and strong push for the lefty. If Hamels — who has a World Series MVP and no-hitter to his name — were to be traded to San Francisco, he would join a rotation already loaded with Madison Bumgarner (1 World Series MVP — 2014), Tim Lincecum (2 no-hitters — 2013, 2014), Matt Cain (1 perfect game — 2012), and rookie Chris Heston (1 no-hitter — 2015):
Sources: #SFGiants making strong push for #Phillies’ Hamels. Nearly $50M coming off Giants’ payroll at end of season.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 28, 2015
However, yesterday morning, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweeted that the Giants could not pull off a deal — despite Rosenthal’s aforementioned financial breathing room – because they don’t have a package of prospects they think the Phillies would bite on:
The #SFGiants would love to acquire #Phillies ace Cole Hamels, but they don't have a strong enough package of prospects to pull off deal.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 28, 2015
A source close to the Giants also told ESPN that talks between the Giants and Phillies were getting nowhere. “Nothing happening,” the source said.
Finally, the Houston Astros have also been said to be making a push for Hamels, sources have confirmed to ESPN, but the Astros, too, are on his trade embargo list.
When the clock hits 3:59 p.m. today, the Phillies – and the rest of Major League Baseball — will have 48 hours to make any trades.
