Coming into the offseason of 2018-19, the Philadelphia Phillies' designs on contention, limited payroll commitments, and vast resources were such that they were expected to be serious players for Bryce Harper and Manny Machado. Well, as of Tuesday, Machado appears to be off the board, as he's reportedly agreed to a $300 million contract with the Padres.
Needless to say, those tasked with pondering the Phillies sought out reactions from GM Matt Klentak and company. Here's one:
Matt Klentak: “If the reports are true, this contract will exceed our valuation. Sometimes you have to walk away.”
Phillies, of course, are still in on Bryce Harper.
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) February 19, 2019
And another:
The topmost tweet obviously suggests that the Phillies weren't prepared to go to $300 million for Machado. That, in turn, suggests one of two things -- they valued Harper above Machado, or they're similarly not willing to go to $300 million on Harper. If it's the latter, then the Phillies may freeze themselves out of these two generational free agents. If it's the former, then they may yet get their guy.
The second quote looks like preemptive spin in the event that they don't ink Harper, which is an understandable thing to do from Klentak's perspective. On the other hand, this perhaps works against the "stupid" money declarations on the part of ownership, although as the internet has taught us "stupid" is in the eye of the beholder.
To be fair, it hasn't exactly been a listless offseason for Klentak. The Phillies have, for instance, signed Andrew McCutchen and David Robertson and traded for J.T. Realmuto and Jean Segura. While the SportsLine Projection Model isn't necessarily bullish on the Phillies right now (the system projects them for 80 wins and a mere 19.2 percent chance of making the playoffs), there's no doubt they've bettered the roster. Still, if a Machado- and Harper-less offseason turns into a postseason-less 2019, then the whiff of failure will be strong indeed.
In other words, the Phillies really need Bryce Harper.
