Savvy Trade Deadline Deal Replenished Philadelphia Phillies Farm System

After a very savvy trade deadline deal, the Philadelphia Phillies are already reaping the benefits of that move.

Sep 3, 2021; Miami, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski (left) talks to former player Harold Reynolds (right) prior to the game against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot Park / Rhona Wise-Imagn Images

When the Philadelphia Phillies were seen as World Series favorites prior to the trade deadline, Dave Dombrowski and his front office had a chance to be ultra-aggressive and bring in impact players to improve the roster.

That largely didn't happen.

Despite the clear need for an outfield upgrade, the Phillies were tame on that front when they acquired Austin Hays from the Baltimore Orioles.

They instead made some waves when improving their bullpen, bringing in closer Carlos Estevez in a deal with the Los Angeles Angels that saw them ship out two of their best prospects, George Klassen and Sam Aldegheri.

Both players were ranked within the top 10 of their pipeline, a hefty price to pay for a half-year rental, but based on how things ended for Philadelphia this past season, there are a lot of people saying the front office didn't do enough.

However, one of the most under-the-radar deals the Phillies did make was to ship out embattled reliever Gregory Soto to the Orioles in exchange for pitching prospects Seth Johnson and Moises Chace, and based on Baseball America's updated rankings, that might have set them up for future success.

Johnson, who made his Major League debut last season, ranks seventh in their pipeline.

Once the 40th overall pick in the 2019 draft by the Tampa Bay Rays, the right-hander put together an impressive showing early in his career before he underwent Tommy John surgery. He was traded to Baltimore in 2022 where he still continued to impress, posting an eye-catching 2.84 ERA across his 69 minor league outings and 62 starts.

He was rocked in his lone start for Philadelphia, allowing nine earned runs in 2.1 innings of work when the team was searching for a reliable fifth starter, but he projects to have a bright future.

Chace is ranked one spot higher than Johnson by Baseball America, coming in at No. 6.

The 21-year-old is an intriguing player, showing that he might be able to become a starter at some point in his career if he can have better control of the strike zone, but if that doesn't happen, his elite swing-and-miss stuff could turn him into a high-level bullpen arm.

Chace reached Double-A for the first time last season after the Phillies acquired him, so he still has more developing to do. And while he might not have the elite numbers like Johnson, he's been able to produce a 4.42 ERA across his 72 outings and 43 starts, striking out 320 batters in 230.1 innings of work.

All of this is to say Philadelphia was able to replenish their farm system after they traded away two of their best arms to land Estevez.

If they are able to bring back the closer in free agency this winter, their deadline day will look much better from a pipeline talent standpoint for the future even though they weren't able to win the World Series.