Philadelphia Phillies: 4 Possible Replacements for Jimmy Rollins

Jimmy Rollins is a free agent this offseason and he apparently wants a five-year deal. The Philadelphia Phillies may not be willing to give that type of deal, and it would not be hard to blame them.

Rollins is no longer an MVP-caliber player and he will be 33 years old at the end of November. He has also said that he is willing to leave the Phillies, a team that he has spent his whole career with. It will be very interesting to see how this scenario plays out during the winter.

Jose Reyes

Jose Reyes is the least likely to sign with the Phillies out of all of the players on this list. He will come at a very high cost and if the New York Mets know that the Phillies are in the bidding, they will almost definitely up their offer.

Reyes would help offset the loss of Ryan Howard for at least the first half of the 2012 season. He would also be a huge spark plug for the Phillies' lineup. In fact, Reyes is not the first Mets player that the Phillies have been linked to.

Alex Gonzalez

It appears as if the Atlanta Braves will not try to retain Alex Gonzalez this offseason. The Philadelphia Phillies could be interested in Gonzalez as a short-term solution at shortstop.

Gonzalez still has the ability to hit for power. He is only a decent defender, but he would be a good choice if the Phillies decide that Freddy Galvis is not ready.

Rafael Furcal

The St. Louis Cardinals hold a $12 million option on Rafael Furcal that they will most likely decline. When he hits the free-agent market, the Phillies should consider him if they know that Jimmy Rollins will not be back.

Furcal would give the Phillies a speedy player who can play good defense. While he may not be the best replacement for Rollins, Furcal would still be a fairly solid choice.

Freddy Galvis

If Jimmy Rollins leaves the Phillies this winter, they do not have to go with an external option. The Phillies have Freddy Galvis in their system.

The big positive about Galvis is that he is outstanding defensively. While he may not be able to replace Rollins' bat, he will certainly be a defensive improvement.