Possibly a Mariner?
As you know, the Mariners have been rumored to be shopping Jarrod Washburn. The Mariners are on a 4 game skid and things are not looking up.
As you also know, The Phillies are looking to add a solid starter to there rotation. Although they would prefer Halladay, Jarrod Washburn is not to far of a step down. He has been putting up career numbers across the board and is not showing any signs of slowing down.
Although 34 years old, Jarrod Washburn would be a very solid addition to a team like the Phillies. Many people believe Washburn’s season is a fluke, but is it? That answer would be no. The Mariners pitching coach, Rick Adair, has been working with him through out the season and he has managed to sharpen his pitches, add another pitch, and locate his pitches exceptionally, all while learning to pitch without top notch velocity.
Many people have rumored the fact that the Phillies would turn to Jarrod Washburn if things didn’t pan out with the Jays and Halladay. If this was the case than Jason Donald and Brad Harman for Washburn and Wladimir Balentien is a very legitimate trade. Wlad has an extremely high ceiling but never grew into that role. He has plus plus power and is still very young. He still has the possibility to reach his full potential, and if he can learn to lay off of the curve then he can be great, and when it comes to the fastball, Wlad can hit just about any you try and throw at him. So if Halladay does not work out, look for the Phils to be giving GM Jack Zduriencik a call.
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Washburn would be the Plan C option for the Phillies now that they have started up negotiations with the Indians for Cliff Lee. I do not think that the Phils would give up Donald for Washburn. They would most likely try and trade someone else, but not a prospect as highly touted as Donald for Washburn. ( no offense to him.)
I understand what you mean man, but there are very few quality pitchers out there right now. Many people think that this season is a fluke for Washburn, but what they don’t realize is that he is mixing up his pitches very well and has developed a great pitch which they call “The Dolphin”. I definitely get where your coming from though. He is not an ace but is a great number 2 pitcher in the Phillies case. All I was stating in my article is that the Phillies could possibly turn to Washburn as a final resort, and that Donald would not be much for Washburn and Balentien.
Thanks for the comment Brant
Anytime Chad. I’m not debating whether this is a fluke season for Washburn, I have always thought of him as a quality pitcher, whether it was choosing him for my team on video games, or just checking his fantasy stats, I think very highly of him.
I do not think that he would be a number 2 though for the Phils. The Phils have a complicated starting rotation. Being a 2 on the Phils does not necessarily mean that he is a true number 2. Having a true #2 is a huge privilege to have. If the Phillies were to acquire Lee or Doc, then they would have one of the best combos in the league.
No offense, but right now I do not think that Washburn would be that big of an upgrade over Joe Blanton right now. Blanton is pitching the lights out, and while Washburn is too, would it really be worth it to trade Donald and someone else for basically another Blanton who may be only a little bit better.
I get what your talking about. Blanton has been pitching phenomenal baseball as of lately. We will just have to wait it out and see what the deadline brings to us. Thanks again for the comment Brant
Hey any time, check out some of my stuff over at TBOH. Again, the Washburn would most likely be the Phils 3rd choice, but I really see no way that they give up Donald and someone else for Washburn and Balentien. Is Balentien a righty?
Yes, Balentien is a righty. He unfortunately never came into his own. He was labeled as a plus plus power player and has a rocket arm, but he never developed a great eye for the off speed pitches and swings right through them. It’s not to say that he still can’t, he is still very young. He just needs to put some work into it. As for the fastball, as I said earlier in the article, he can hit that as far as anybody in the league no matter the speed. Alright that sounds great I will definitely give your stuff a look. As for Donald, I can see how you would think Washburn is not worthy of a prospect with Donald’s capability. He is a wonderful talent. An article was just released on foxsports.com, and it said that the Mariners GM has said that the Mariners other young talent are now available as well. Those players would include; Sean White, Mark Lowe, and Brandon Morrow. So I wonder if those could possibly be in a deal that I envision with the Phillies. Again we will see. Thanks