Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported earlier today that Philadelphia Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. was looking to deal All-Star Domonic Brown, and would plan to sell high. What would make Amaro want to deal arguably the best hitter on the Phillies, at a time when the Phillies need young talent? Is he crazy for wanting to do this? For once, I actually agree with Amaro Jr., especially if he deals Brown in a package that includes Jonathan Papelbon, as was reported by Jim Salisbury, a CSN Philly Insider.
If Brown is indeed the Phillies best hitting option, that means a guy that had a .272 batting average with 27 homers and 83 runs batted in will be the heart of the Phillies for the future. That is pretty good for a years span, but consider that half of Brown's homers came in that three week stretch at the end of May and beginning of June where he was arguably the best player in baseball. What does that mean? It means that Dom Brown was great for three weeks last year, and was average the rest of the season.
The Phillies do not need to have an average player as their best option when they could trade him for more than he is worth. If Amaro Jr. could trade an average player in Dom Brown along with Jonathan Papelbon and can actually good prospects/young talent in return, he would be insane not to do it. Get rid of Brown while his stock is high, and if the Phillies have to eat money with Papelbon, Amaro Jr. should not hesitate to do so.
It is evident that the Philadelphia Phillies will not be good for a couple of years, maybe more, as they have an aging core and a horrific farm system. There is no point in keeping your best player, who is average, if his talent will not be contributing towards success. Trade him while his stock is high as he's entering his prime, and eat the money on Papelbon if he's a part of the package.
If Ruben Amaro Jr. can trade Dom Brown for top prospects along with Jonathan Papelbon, it would be a genius move (Ruben Amaro Jr. and the word "genius" in the same sentence, you won't see that too often). I would actually like to see Papelbon go before Brown, but no team will take him unless they get Brown, which I would not be upset with either.
To sum things up, Ruben Amaro Jr. is not crazy for looking to trade Domonic Brown, the most average All-Star I have ever seen; and he especially is not crazy for wanting to deal Brown along with Papelbon. But, if Ruben cannot trade Papelbon in the same package as Brown, I would not trade Brown at all. Take it for what it's worth Ruben, I am with you on this one.
Image Source: CSN Philly (http://www.csnphilly.com/sites/csnphilly/files/062513_domonic-brown.jpg)
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