Philadelphia Phillies: 5 Things Ruben Amaro Must Do This Winter

As the Philadelphia Phillies make their way through a very busy September, I am sure that they are extremely focused on the present and on finishing successfully.

However, Ruben Amaro Jr. must already be considering the offseason in the back of his mind. He needs to worry about the Phillies' future as well. There will be several big decisions that need to be made this winter, and several of them will be difficult.

Let's take a look at five things that Ruben Amaro Jr. must make happen this winter.

5. Do Not Overpay for Ryan Madson

I like Ryan Madson a lot. He has been an excellent setup man, and now closer, for the Philadelphia Phillies. Ever since 2006, when the Phillies decided that he should not be a starting pitcher ever again, he has never posted a season ERA over 3.26.

He is 27-for-29 in save opportunities with a 2.90 ERA this season.

However, his agent is Scott Boras. Boras is famous, or perhaps notorious among general managers, for getting his clients huge contracts. A perfect example of this is the huge Jayson Werth contract of the last offseason.

Again, I would love to see Madson return to Philadelphia. I think that he is a great pitcher. However, the Phillies need to be careful that they do not overpay for Madson.

Antonio Bastardo seemed to be comfortable in the closer's role earlier this season, so the Phillies do have an internal replacement if Madson does depart.

4. Solidify the Bullpen

Despite the fact that Ryan Madson might leave in the offseason, the Philadelphia Phillies will most definitely need to solidify the bullpen either way.

This very well could be from within, however. Michael Schwimmer has already made appearances in Philadelphia after considerable success in Lehigh Valley (9-1, 1.85 ERA, 1.07 WHIP). Justin De Fratus and Philippe Aumont have also been having very promising years and could become pieces in the bullpen next season.

Antonio Bastardo and Michael Stutes have been having very good campaigns in Philadelphia, so they will be joined by some new pieces.

The Phillies could also go out on the free-agent market to grab a veteran arm or two. That experience might be helpful as well.

Either way, the Phillies do need to figure out what their bullpen will look like next season.

3. Make Sure That Domonic Brown Learns How To Play Left Field

I realize that as the general manager, Ruben Amaro Jr. will probably not be on the field teaching Domonic Brown how to adapt to left field.

However, Amaro should make sure that there is support in place to aid his development throughout the winter so he will be entirely comfortable there. He is probably going to be the Opening Day left fielder for the Philadelphia Phillies unless John Mayberry Jr. performs at the level he has shown glimpses of the season.

Brown has a great level of potential, but he's going to need to learn to play left field if he wants to break through with the Phillies next season. He is working on it in Lehigh Valley, but hopefully that development will continue right up until next spring.

2. Re-Sign Jimmy Rollins

I was very tempted to put this as the No. 1 priority. I feel that the Phillies have so many reasons to re-sign Jimmy Rollins.

The first reason is intangible. He is the leader of the Phillies, and I think that team morale would decrease if he was to leave. I'm not really sure how to quantify the contribution, but he has been one of the centerpieces of the Phillies for several years and his departure would not be good for team chemistry.

However, in terms of statistics, he is still one of the better shortstops in baseball even though his numbers have declined. In terms of wins above replacement among shortstops, he is tied for sixth-best. In terms of traditional statistics, he is batting .268 with 14 home runs and 28 stolen bases.

He is on the DL right now, but I think that the Phillies would be smart to re-sign him in the offseason. They could go after Jose Reyes, but I think that they would be better served to keep Rollins in town.

1. Build a Champion

I know, this is not a very specific thing. However, as it always is, this needs to be the top priority. The World Series is the ultimate trophy, and hopefully the combination of all the moves that Ruben Amaro Jr. makes will put the Philadelphia Phillies in the best possible position to pursue this goal.

I think that what I have outlined above in the previous four slides would be positive moves or decisions for the Phillies to make.

However, we will see what Amaro will do in the offseason. He seems to have a knack for pulling off the unexpected move.