MLB Trade Deadline: Best Non-Kevin Youkilis Options for the Phillies at 3B

Third base is not a position of strength or the Philadelphia Phillies.  Placido Polanco is an adequate-to-excellent defensive third baseman, but as father time has taken his toll, his lack of power and consistency with the bat have made him an offensive liability. 

If the Phillies find themselves in contention upon the returns of Chase Utley and Ryan Howard—a huge "if" given the current landscape of the National League East—then an upgrade at third base is probably on the short wish list for GM Ruben Amaro Jr.

While that's all well and good in theory, though, a pretty bare market coupled with an exhausted farm system might make the task significantly more difficult. 

The first name I'm crossing off the list is Kevin Youkilis, a name that's been discussed a lot.  That's not necessarily to mean that I don't think it could happen, but despite his struggles offensively this season, he will no doubt be the target of many teams if things continue the way they're going.  So this piece is written from the standpoint that he is no longer available. 

All of the stars at third—guys like Chipper Jones, Evan Longoria, Miguel Cabrera, Adrian Beltre, and Alex Rodriguez—find themselves on contenders.  They won't be going anywhere before July 31. 

Other bigger names—David Wright, Ryan Zimmerman, and Hanley Ramirez, to name a few—are on teams playing above expectations, with chances to be buyers at the deadline for the first time in a while.  Don't expect them to sell off cornerstones (pun intended) without crumbling first.

Then there's the young guys—Will Middlebrooks, Mike Moustakas, Kyle Seager, Pedro Alvarez—that would demand far too much in return, and are more building blocks than trading chips.

So what's left?

A mix of journeymen and poor defensive fits is what this market will consist of.  While some may be upgrades over Polanco in terms of power, they might be inferior on defense, or might not be as good at getting on base.  But for a team that's fourth in the NL in hitting and second in fielding, it might be a trade-off worth taking.

Placido Polanco

2012 Stats: .279/.311/.379 1 HR 8 RBI 1.000 Fld% 2.67 RF/9

Before you start to consider an upgrade at a position, you have to know what the alternative is.  In other words, the value of the player to be replaced must be taken into account.

While some third basemen might be more compliments than replacements if brought on, it still must provide an upgrade in some capacity to really make sense.

What Polanco does provide that few around the league could match is his exquisite ability to field his position. 

He has won three Gold Gloves in the last five seasons, including last year.  This season, he has yet to make an error in 30 starts at the hot corner. Amazingly, his lifetime fielding percentage at two positions—third base and second base—are each the best in major league history.  So, one could argue, he is the best fielder ever to play the game.

He also is a good singles hitter.  The lifetime .300 hitter has never had a full season batting average under .277.  He is a professional hitter with the ability to consistently move runners over and make contact.

So while he is a fantastic defensive player who can hit bloop singles with the best of them, Polly cannot hit for power, plain and simple.  He hasn't hit over 10 homers since 2004, and accumulated only 19 extra base hits in all of 2011. 

That kind of lack of pop from a position requiring power can be detrimental of an offense, especially an offense which already employs singles hitters like Juan Pierre, Jimmy Rollins and Freddy Galvis.

Chase Headley

2012 Stats: .245/.371/.415 5 HR 20 RBI .964 Fld% 2.58 RF/9

The Padres third baseman clearly has more power potential than Polanco, which is what we are looking for here. 

While the 28-year-old has never hit more than 12 home runs, he appears to be hitting his stride at the pinnacle of his career.  He also also shown to be a good doubles hitter, cracking at least 28 in each of the last three seasons. 

His 15 extra-base hits would put him in a tie for second on the Phillies, tied with Carlos Ruiz and behind Hunter Pence.

He is also a quality defensive third baseman, with a fielding percentage and range factor both above the league average for the position.  

Headley will be arbitration eligible after this season, and with the Padres apparently no where near contention, he might be available with a reasonable price tag.  A package centered around a Cody Asche-like prospect might get it done.

Of the knocks on Headley, the biggest might be his strikeout totals—especially relative to Polanco. 

Headley has twice in his career made more than 600 plate appearances, and in each of those seasons, he has struck out over 130 times.  Polly, meanwhile, has never struck out more than 47 times in a season.

Still, Headley might be the only starter-worthy option—outside of the Youker—available at the deadline. 

Ian Stewart

2012 Stats: .201/.287/.343 4 HR 13 RBI .964 Fld% 2.22 RF/9

Stewart represents an interesting possibility for Philadelphia. 

The longtime Rockie is an inconsistent, mediocre fielding third baseman with a .233 lifetime average.  Still, power potential and platoon splits make him an option that must be considered.

His professional peak came in 2009, when he swatted 25 homers and slugged .464.  His lifetime .420 SLG leads one to believe that their is still something in there, and at only 27 years old, his skill could resurface.

His role in Philadelphia would likely be situational, with him starting on occasion against right handers, against whom he has slugged .428 in his career.  Think the reverse of Ty Wigginton's current role.

It should also be noted that he is a traditionally slow starter, hitting a career .213 from March to June, and .279 in July and August.  A trade for him at the right time could pay dividends down the line as he starts to warm up with the weather. 

If he ever revitalizes the potential we've seen from him, he could become the every third baseman in Philadelphia by Opening Day next season.

Todd Frazier

2012 Stats: .268/.317/.554 3 HR 6 RBI (56 AB) .913 Fld% 2.01 RF/9 (94.0 Inn)

Frazier actually makes a lot of sense for the Phillies.  The Toms River, NJ native and Rutgers alum has shown pretty nice pop in limited playing time in Cincinnati.

It's unclear how exactly the Reds front office views the former first-round pick, but at the age of 26, he is still no lock to remain with the big club for any extended period. 

But with a 37-year-old Scott Rolen, a replacement at third needs to be in the works.  That is why I think any swap between the two clubs involving Frazier would need to send a third baseman to Cincinnati in return, like Cody Overbeck, with a mid-level pitching prospect.

In the short term, Frazier would help the Phillies get younger in the infield—where age is a pretty big infield—while providing the raw power that Polanco cannot. 

I expect the price to be too high, but it still wouldn't shock me to see the Phillies make a deal like this one—for the present and the future.

Mark Trumbo

2012 Stats: .348/.416/.607 6 HR 18 RBI .714 Fld% 1.43 RF/9

Ty Wigginton 2.0.

He isn't a great fielder at any position, but Trumbo is pretty versatile, and has extraordinary, almost Giancarlo Stanton-like, raw power.

Under almost any other circumstances, trading a player with the potential to be a 40 homer guy would be ludicrous. But Albert Pujols, Kendrys Morales, and Alberto Callaspo are pretty locked in between first base, designated hitter, and third base, respectively. 

Couple that with the fact that they are falling out of contention, and they could be selling off pieces by the time the deadline comes around.

They have needs at a corner outfield spot, with Vernon Wells and Torii Hunter both getting up there in age.  From their prospective, a trade of Trumbo for Domonic Brown and a mid-level pitcher like Austin Hyatt could make a ton of sense. 

In the short term, Trumbo would do what Ty Wigginton does, just 10 times better.  He is a right handed bomber who can play first base and third base for now, while working his way to becoming the everyday third baseman for the start of 2013.

I see this as a trade that could keep the Phillies' window open for a little while longer, and is absolutely something that should be considered, if the Angels will listen.

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