Jon Conahan of Athlon Sports recently pitched a shocking trade idea that would send Milwaukee Brewers ace Freddy Peralta to the Philadelphia Phillies in an attempt to replace Taijuan Walker, but there are a few issues with this idea.
“The Phillies arguably have the best duo in Major League Baseball with Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler, but they could use another arm in the middle of their rotation,” Conahan wrote. “Peralta would be exactly that and has proven to be a guy who can be counted on throughout his career.
“In 2024, he tossed to a 3.68 ERA and struck out 200 hitters in 173 2/3 innings. In a Phillies rotation where he could be the fourth option, it’s scary to think about how good this team would be in the postseason.”
While Peralta would be an upgrade in Philadelphia’s rotation, it’s not one the Phillies need to make. While Walker isn’t an ideal fifth starter, he’s not going to ruin the Phillies’ season.
Plus, the team will return Ranger Suárez to the rotation in the near future from an injury. Even then, the Phillies have top prospect Andrew Painter, who’s been banging on the door of the big leagues this offseason. Painter returns to the minor league mound on Sunday for the first time in well over a year after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Peralta would be a solid addition to any starting rotation, but the Phillies have enough starting pitching already. It would likely cost a pretty big haul to land Peralta, so this trade idea makes no sense for Philadelphia.
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