Philadelphia Phillies Trade Promising Catcher to Cubs

The Philadelphia Phillies have decided to move one of their catchers to a National League team.

A detailed view of a Philadelphia Phillies hat and glove on the bench / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

When J.T. Realmuto went down with a knee injury that required surgery, there was some thought the Philadelphia Phillies might be looking at the market to bring in another option while they wait for their star catcher to return.

They shut that down immediately by already having a plan in place with backup Garrett Stubbs getting the majority of the work while newly promoted Rafael Marchan would platoon against left-handers.

Their former minor leaguer has played well in his limited three-game sample size, going 5-12 with a homer and three RBI.

That likely silenced any of the concerns the Phillies might have had about this situation and it gives them some leeway until Realmuto is back in roughly a month.

Because of that, Philadelphia decided to trade away one of their own catching options to a needy team in the Chicago Cubs.

According to Darragh McDonald of MLB Trade Rumors, they shipped out William Simoneit to the Cubs in exchange for cash considerations.

Only a minor league player throughout his career, the 27-year-old has a slash line of .251/.354/.401 with 24 homers, 82 extra-base hits and 135 RBI during his four professional seasons.

He had just been promoted to the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate but will be sent to Chicago's Double-A team upon the completion of this deal.

There likely wasn't a major runway for Simoneit in Philadelphia as Realmuto looks to still have years in front of him and Marchan seems like he could be the future of that position. There are also three catchers within their Top 30 prospects.

Getting back cash in this deal is ideal for a team who will be looking to spend at the deadline.