Abreu Trade In 2006 Helped Phillies Get To 2008 World Series

"Realistically, I think it's a stretch to think that we're going to be there in '07. I think probably right now, it's going to take longer than that."

These were the words of Phillies General Manager Pat Gillick in August of 2006, after he traded outfielder Bobby Abreu and Corey Lidle to the Yankees. However, looking back this may have been more than just the proverbial salary dump move.

In making this move Gillick did something that changed the direction of the franchise and lighted a fire inside rising stars like Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. Looking back on it, removing Abreu from the Phillies may have been the single most important move Gillick made for this franchise and he did not even get much in return.

In sending Abreu to New York he removed a negative influence from a locker room full of young and developing players. After all Abreu took heat from fans and writers alike for refusing to go near the outfield walls to make big catches and was a player who lacked or at least appeared to lack a sense of urgency.

Now fast forward two seasons and the Phillies have captured back-to-back National League East Titles, have two NL MVP's, several all-star players, and are heading to their first World Series in a decade and a half. Meanwhile two hours north the Yankees are in disarray and failed to make the playoffs for the first time in thirteen years.

Whats the common denominator? Bobby Abreu. A player who may bat over .300 on a consistent basis, but still fails to run out every fly-ball and never makes an attempt to play up against the wall.

Not to say he is the sole cause of the Yankees demise, but it certainly raises questions about the affect he has on a clubhouse. As they say "it only takes one bad apple to ruin the bunch."

Pat Gillick deserves most of the credit for building this team, Ed Wade helped, but he would have never traded Abreu, Gillick did and look what happened. So that leaves two questions about this seemingly insignificant trade and the comment about the Phillies not contending.

First, did Gillick recognize Abreu's attitude and trade him to keep the younger players from falling into the trap of only playing to collect a paycheck?

In my opinion the answer is Yes!  Gillick is a very smart successful GM and all the teams he has been in charge of have been a success. Ahem, Phils' fans remember the 1993 Blue Jays. Additionally, Gillick knows ball players and recognizes attitudes or at least I think he does.

But I could be wrong because he wastes his time with Rule-5 drafts looking at players who have never produced. I mean its not like the rule-fiver Shane Victorino hit a Grand-Slam in the NLDS to give the Phillies a big jolt or hit a crucial two-run homer in game four of the NLCS.

Could you feel the sarcasm there because Gillick has an unbelievable eye for talent and Victorino is a G-E-M... GEM! In moving Abreu he opened up a lineup spot for Victorino, who at the time was a reserve player.

Also Gillick realizes that it takes more than superstars to win and he has found guys to fill in as role players over the last three seasons like the "ageless wonder" pitcher Jaime Moyer.

Moyer has proven to be a major influence on this team in many different ways. He has been crucial in the development of Cole Hamels and he helped to change the dynamic in the locker room.

Abreu was the guy who did that prior to his departure and when he was traded there was a vaccum left over and the team was missing an identity. Jaime Moyer brought with him experience, work ethic, and a whole new outlook, which contributed to the attitude change.

The second question is: was Gillick just wrong about not contending or did he do it to motivate the younger players to prove him wrong?

The answer to this question lies within the numbers, the players and a quote.

Once Abreu left, the Phillies finished the final two months of the 2006 season with a thirty-six and twenty-two record. This was followed in the off-season when Jimmy Rollins said something that changed the Phillies and got peoples attention.

"I think were the team to beat in the NL East," Rollins said prior to the start of the 2007 season. Rollins along with the new young leadership in the Phillies clubhouse changed the attitude from "maybe we can win" to "we will win".

Since Gillick made that statement the Phillies have done one thing and that is win baseball games.

Once the laid-back personalities of Abreu and even former catcher Mike Liberthal were removed from the Phillies' clubhouse that was when this franchise changed. The fans noticed it, the writers noticed it, the players noticed it and most of all Pat Gillick noticed it.

In my opinion, from that moment on Gillick took the approach of trying to find the final pieces to the puzzle. He had the nucleus he wanted with Utley, Howard, Rollins, Victorino, Myers, and Hamels. Add in role players like Jayson Werth, Pedro Feliz, Ryan Madson and Chris Coste.

All that Gillick needed to do was build the bullpen and he did just that over the last two seasons. He brought in reliever J.C. Romero after the Red Sox put him on waviers and he brought in a stellar closer, Brad Lidge, from Houston for Michael Bourn and Geoff Geary, which is basically like giving up a "Cheesesteak and a Side of Fries."

Gillick has also brought in players that were left in the Major League scrap heap and they have made important contributions like pitcher Scott Eyre and NLCS game four hero Matt Stairs.

Gillick has done what general managers are suppose to do and that is build off of a nucleus in order to win a championship, rather than trying to purchase stars in order to buy a championship (i.e. Both New York Teams).

Removing Abreu from this team was just the first and the biggest step Gillick took in getting the Phillies over the hump and into the World Series.