Proposed Philadelphia Phillies Trade Brings Silver Slugger to Outfield

The Philadelphia Phillies have been in search for the perfect match of value and performance in the outfield ahead of the MLB trade deadline.

Jul 14, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins (31) celebrates with manager Brandon Hyde (18) after a win against the New York Yankees at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. / James A. Pittman-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Phillies are still in the market for a new outfielder, but don't want to ship away everything they have for one of the biggest names.

While the market may not be as strong as some may have believed earlier in the season, there will still be some good names available.

Zach Pressnell of FanSided put together an intriguing package for Baltimore Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins that wouldn't break the bank.

The trade would see Philadelphia land Mullins in exchange for a package of outfielder/first baseman Carlos De La Cruz and right-handed pitcher Christian McGowan.

Mullins has had an interesting career. He bounced back between the minors and majors for a few seasons until finally breaking out in 2021 with an All-Star and Silver Slugger awarded season. He had a very nice slashing line of .291/.360/.518 while hitting 30 home runs and swiping 30 bases.

He burst onto the scene with an incredible season but has failed to live up to that level since. Between 2022 and 2023 he had a just okay .248/.313/.408 line. He slowed down in terms of power but maintained his ability to steal a bag.

Now in 2024, he's slowed down majorly. He's mustered just a .214/.256/.373 line. The intriguing, part, though is that he's begun to look more like himself, up to .276/.300/.483 line over the past month.

The Phillies could buy low on him with the hopes that he returns to form. He's also under team control through the end of next season.

A package of De La Cruz and McGowan would be very affordable Philadelphia.

De La Cruz has proven to be consistently solid in the minor leagues, but is getting a bit too old to stick around in the minors for much longer.

Finally reaching the Triple-A level, he's slashed .253/.333/.423 this across that and Double-A.

His ceiling isn't much higher than a rotational outfielder, but that's not much more than Mullins will be for Baltimore for much longer.

McGowan has a powerful fastball when he's healthy, but the problem has been staying healthy. He's only played 20 games across four seasons in the minors.

When he has pitched, though, he's looked good. He has a career 3.27 ERA and 10 K/9. He could work easily out of the bullpen, but the Phillies do believe he could become a solid starter.

Overall, this makes sense from the standpoint of Philadelphia but might not be enough to pull the outfielder away.