Baltimore Orioles Young Star Wants Philadelphia Phillies To Land Superstar

The Baltimore Orioles' former No. 1 prospect wants the Philadelphia Phillies to make a blockbuster trade.

Sep 8, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday (7) throws to first base during the seventh inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. / Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies are expected to make changes this winter.

Whether those changes will be significant remains to be seen, but it's impossible to count out what Dave Dombrowski will do.

There's a reason he's viewed as one of the best executives in Major League Baseball, and with money to spend and a loaded farm system to boot, he has the ammo to make magic happen this winter.

Regarding the pipeline, it might be time for Dombrowski to move some of his guys.

Prospect hugging doesn't always benefit teams, and for a Phillies squad with World Series aspirations, the time to win is now.

Still, unless it's a favorable deal that would put the big league team over the top, Philadelphia has no reason to move any of its big four prospects. Those youngsters are too good and are expected to be legitimate MLB players one day.

But, in any blockbuster deal, the Phillies would likely have to trade at least one of them.

There are a few players on the trade market are worth that, and if Philadelphia is willing to move them, clubs might make players available who weren't otherwise on the trade block.

The Phillies have been linked to multiple trade candidates in recent months.

Over the past few years, they've been in every conversation about Mike Trout, and while those talks have died down a bit due to his injury history, the idea of landing him is an exciting one on paper.

Trout, arguably one of the five best players to ever play this game, would be the perfect addition if he stayed healthy. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case, and betting on it to happen would be a bad decision.

That didn't stop Baltimore Orioles youngster Jackson Holliday from suggesting them to make the trade, saying Philadelphia should trade its entire farm system.

"I think the Phillies would do anything to get him," Holliday said per Essentially Sports. "I think they would give away their whole farm system 'cause he's from Philly, you know. I don't know why he wouldn't be open to that."

Moving multiple elite prospects would be questionable at this stage in Trout's career.

The Los Angeles Angels shouldn't expect to get those types of players in return for Trout, either, unless they're willing to eat some of his salary.

Even if they are, this is a trade Dombrowski should avoid.

It'd be fun, but having him play in 50 games wouldn't be.