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| Swihart (L), Betts (R) |
The one quick way for the Red Sox to become the odds-on favorite to win the American League East is to trade for left-handed ace
Cole Hamels. He would
immediately upgrade the current rotation and put the finishing touches on an aggressive off-season by GM
Ben Cherington. Of course, Philadelphia GM
Ruben Amaro Jr. is
still demanding
either #1 prospect
Blake Swihart or soon-to-be-top-of-the-order phenom
Mookie Betts in return. This is a tough one. As much as we talk about the need for a number one starter like Hamels—we feel that the asking price is just too high. Swihart and Betts could be two of the centerpieces of what Chrington likes to call "the next great Red Sox team". One could argue that with depth at both catcher (
Christian Vazquez,
Ryan Hanigan) and outfield (
Rusney Castillo,
Hanley Ramirez,
Shane Victorino,
Daniel Nava,
Allen Craig,
Jackie Bradley, Jr.), Boston can afford to lose
one of these two budding super-starts. We say no. There are enough other very good prospects in the organization that—bunched together—should satisfy Philadelphia's need to rebuild.
