Philadelphia Phillies reportedly eyeing two unheralded trade targets

The lead-up to the MLB trade deadline has generated plenty of Philadelphia Phillies rumors regarding potential trade targets and a few players the team isn’t pursuing. Now, two more of Philadelphia’s targeted players have been revealed.

While the Phillies sit atop the MLB standings , there is still plenty of room for improvement. Entering MLB games today , the club ranks 16th in bullpen ERA (4.00) and its outfielders place 26th in OPS (.653), per FanGraphs .

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Some of the latest Phillies rumors have also linked the team to starting pitching, suggesting there’s a possibility Philadelphia will try to upgrade the end of its rotation. As for the organization’s primary needs – outfield and bullpen – a pair of Phillies trade targets have emerged.

According to Matt Gelb of The Athletic , the Phillies are interested in Washington Nationals outfielder Lane Thomas and Nationals’ closer Kyle Finnegan.

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Thomas, age 28, is enjoying a breakout season in Washington. He is among the fastest MLB players in 2024 with 26 steals and he’s posted a respectable .714 OPS with 13 doubles and 8 home runs. Just as important for Philadelphia, Thomas is under team control next season and would be owed less than half of his remaining salary ($5.45 million ) for this year.

Finnegan, age 32, would add another strong right-handed reliever to the Phillies bullpen. Across 42.2 innings pitched this season, Finnegan has a 2.32 ERA with a 26 percent strikeout rate, 0.98 WHIP and .181 batting average allowed. Under team control through 2025, Finnegan has converted 28-of-32 save opportunities this season.

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