Phillies Trade Rumors: Could Jason Giambi Be Moving to Philly?

Yesterday, Ken Rosenthal tweeted that the Phillies might be interested in Jason Giambi of the Colorado Rockies.

This is a very interesting yet unsuspecting thought for the Phillies.

On one hand, this move is almost reminiscent of acquiring a much better Matt Stairs.

Giambi, 40, would definitely come off the bench swinging for the fences to be that powerful threat late in the game.

In 96 at-bats this season, he has 10 home runs, which is a pretty high rate especially for someone who is normally coming into the game cold.

Overall, he is batting .260 but draws enough walks to make his on-base percentage rise to .357.

These numbers are substantially below his career averages, but he is playing in a different role now and is aging.

On the other hand, one of the main problems with this trade would be that it is obviously more of the same.

Giambi would be another left-handed bat who has problems hitting left-handed pitchers.

This season, he is only batting .200 against them.

Obviously, this would not be a trade that would help reinforce that weakness on the roster.

This is sort of a surprising twist for the Phillies even if it is nothing but a rumor. With Ryan Howard entrenched at first base, obviously there would not be much playing time for anyone else there.

However, if the price is low enough, this trade could be some help.

Pinch hitting can be very valuable at times, and Giambi would provide that powerful shot off the bench.

This is not a high-profile trade or even a necessity, but I can see where Giambi would fit on the Phillies bench.

The Phillies definitely should not trade much for a guy who will be relegated to the bench, but at the same time there could be a little bit of value here.