The Phillies Could Have Themselves a Huge Dramatic Moment

The Phillies need pitching.

Desperately.

The Cubs need to make some decisions about whether to go for it or to trade some assets.

Cole Hamels might be available.

The Phillies traded him several years ago, at the end of the Ruben Amaro era, for a handful of prospects, none of whom has turned into a good player, at least just yet.  What they have to show for that trade, in part, is all-star catcher J.T. Realmuto, whom they received in a trade for several prospects, among them catcher Jorge Alfaro, who was one of the players received in the Hamels trade to the Texas Rangers.  Hamels didn't excel in Texas; he found some new life in Chicago.

Hamels made one of the all-time last starts in a team's uniform when he no-hit the Cubs in Wrigley.  That is not easy to do, and it was a great punctuation mark on an outstanding career in Philadelphia.  Remember this, since World War II, the Phillies have developed only five #1 starting pitchers -- Robin Roberts, Ferguson Jenkins (who was traded to the Cubs so early in the career that it is a stretch to take credit for him), Curt Schilling (okay, he bounced around, but he blossomed in Philadelphia), Hamels and now Aaron Nola.  That's it.  For what it's worth, the Phillies weren't so good at developing #1 starters before WWII, either.

So imagine that GM Matt Klentak gets on the phone with the Cubs' brass and talks a trade for Hamels, a hard worker, a cerebral pitcher, a clutch pitcher.  Imagine that it won't cost too much for a 35 year-old starter with a recent history of injuries.  That needs to be the case because the Phillies' farm system isn't the strongest these days.  Yes, they have some promising position players, but they are untouchable.  Pitching prospects seem the most likely to be dealt, and lesser ones than that because of Hamels' age.  Translated -- the team traded Sixto Sanchez to Miami in the Realmuto deal, so it's unlikely they'll trade one of their top three pitching prospects for Hamels.  But, seemingly, there is always a way to make a deal like this work.

And, if it were to work, imagine the turnout at Citizens Bank Park for Hamels' first start.  Ticket sales would rocket, and unless the temperature will traverse 95 degrees or the game will be played in a downpour, there will be a sellout.  Good feeling will abound, and the fans will leap to their feet the moment #35 walks out to the mound to take his first warm-up pitches.  The ovation will reverberate.  

Because that is how much Cole Hamels means to them.

He can come home.  

Now it's up to the Phillies' management to make it happen.