Was Bryce Harper wrong? That might be an easy question to answer after the Phillies’ disastrous loss on Monday in Miami, which capped off a series sweep at the hands of the Marlins. The Phillies have needs, and their star first baseman voiced that the team needs “help” on both sides of t he baseball. Even to Don Mattingly’s dismay, were his words reasonable? The numbers say so. Their right-handed hitters have a .664 OPS against left-handed pitching, the third-worst mark by the club since splits started being tracked in 1974. Their outfield has produced a .658 OPS — the club’s lowest by that position group since 1971. The Phillies have 5 wins and 21 losses whenever their fifth-starter spot takes the ball. That speaks for itself. And their bullpen, which lost Brad Keller for the remainder of the season, is tied for the third-worst ERA in the sport over the last month — a 5.68 mark. Their bullpen has a 4.59 ERA this season if you look at the collection of names without their closer, Jhoan Duran (2.04 ERA). A roster that didn’t experience a great deal of change from last year has taken a step back. Sure, trading Matt Strahm for Jonathan Bowlan and watching Harrison Bader walk to San Francisco was quite beneficial — but at the end of the day, it was the way this roster was put together that led to their 9-19 start, which in turn led to the firing of Rob Thomson. Don Mattingly took over at the end of April, and the Phillies were one of the best teams in the game — until a slow start out of the All-Star break. Now, Harper’s comments about his teammates might not have resonated with the entirety of the clubhouse — but there’s more behind it. There was an entire offseason that routinely hightlighted Dave Dombrowski’s non-elite comments about Harper. It got back to Harper, clearly — a player who’s been nothing but productive, who wants to play into his 40s, and who would like a long-term extension to remain in Philadelphia. Really, from both sides, there’s reason for the face of the franchise to be vocal about the direction of his squad — maybe more in-house, and not on-camera, though — a team that’s made four consecutive postseason appearances, is in play for a fifth, and yet still hasn’t brought a championship parade to Broad St. in 17 years. So with the latest trade deadline in baseball history — outside of the shortened 2020 season — arriving August 3rd, and the three-team Wild Card format around for its fifth year, there are a number of clubs around the league that have been in contention, stayed in contention, or fallen out of the mix. That creates buyers and sellers. And with Philadelphia now 6 1/2 games out of first place in the National League, and 1 1/2 games up in the final Wild Card spot, it’s very clear that Dombrowski, Preston Mattingly and the rest of the front office will be active heading into next week. While the market is scarce, there are multiple avenues they can take to do their very best to make this club — one with a payroll north of $320 million after luxury-tax payments — championship-caliber. Where can they turn? IN-N-OUT Philadelphia’s farm system does not have great depth, but two arms could compete at the big-league level at this juncture, which could bolster the back end of the rotation and add a leverage reliever. Gage Wood, the Phillies’ top-ranked pitching prospect, has had a respectable first full pro season. He’s posted a 3.68 ERA with 94 strikeouts in 63 2/3 innings between Single-A and Double-A. A fearless hurler who loves to race to two strikes, his biggest goal heading into the year was to improve his command overall — not just with his mid-to-high-90s fastball, but with his secondaries as well. Since skipping High-A Jersey Shore and going straight to Reading, he’s dropped his walk rate from 4.1 BB/9 to 2.4 BB/9. He’s maintained his big punchout numbers — and has looked a lot more reliable. And Alex McFarlane, who’s been called up to The Show twice this year but has only appeared once, is a hurler the organization likes, especially in terms of his stuff. He’s got a live arm, highlighted by a fastball that can reach 102 mph, along with a big slider. His biggest focus will be locking down left-handed hitters, which he’s done well this year, holding them to .224 at Double-A. He’s picked up 12 saves, registered a 2.00 ERA and has the tools to be a strong piece in relief for the Phils in the future. So, why not both? And that would free the organization up to pursue a bigger move for a right-handed bat, which has been the longest-standing need of this club over the last couple of seasons. Minnesota’s Byron Buxton would be the most prized name the Phillies could acquire if he’d waive his no-trade clause. Jim Salisbury has reported that last year, Buxton told someone with the club he’d be open to it — but this year, he’s spent the season voicing his loyalty to the Twins. With that name likely off the table, the Giants have two right-handed hitters the Phillies could target: outfielder Heliot Ramos (.322 average .907 OPS vs. LHP) and utility man Casey Schmitt (.314/.820 OPS vs. LHP). Both can play a corner spot, and with Ramos signed through 2029 — same as Schmitt — either would offer the club a more stable right-handed option in the years ahead. Anaheim’s Jo Adell (.313/.941 vs. LHP) leads right-handed bats against southpaws with 10 homers, and Baltimore’s Taylor Ward is an on-base machine (.383 OBP). The former teammates could each apply extra thump and some on-base ability, especially against lefties, in the middle of the order — pairing with the homegrown pitching depth to address multiple needs. In that scenario, the club could still go out and add a left-handed reliever, such as San Francisco’s Erik Miller or the Mets’ Brooks Raley. ONE STOP SHOPPING When you don’t have the deepest farm in the game, you might have to kill two birds with one stone and approach different selling clubs around the league to acquire multiple names to fill multiple needs. Toronto Blue Jays — OF Daulton Varsho SP Shane Bieber (R) The left-handed hitting Varsho could actually strengthen the other half of the Derek Hill platoon and ensure the club has a strong defensive outfield on the field at all times. While he has swung the bat better of late, Varsho — who used to run around the Phillies’ clubhouse as a kid, the son of player and later bench coach Gary — has struggled this season. But don’t forget: he’s a rental who slugged nearly .600 vs. righties last season and tallied eight extra-base hits in last year’s postseason. Bieber, the former Cy Young Award winner, battled elbow and forearm injuries entering the season and has been a rollercoaster since his return. Three of his seven starts have gone at least 5 1/3 innings and allowed two or fewer runs. The other four have been bumpy. If Philadelphia could help reel in his command, he could be a sharp buy-low addition — another rental with postseason experience. New York Mets — OF Tyrone Taylor SP Clay Holmes (R) Staying in the division, that’s right. It’s frightening, but Taylor has been one of the few bright spots of this Mets club in 2026. He’s posted a .780 OPS in 155 plate appearances. The 32-year-old has done a strong job of finding the barrel upon contact while limiting strikeouts. And he’s in the top nine percent of the league in sprint speed. It’s another athletic right-handed hitter with a strong track record against lefties, but if the Phillies are going to continue platooning Brandon Marsh, Taylor is a better offensive and defensive option over Edmundo Sosa. Luis Robert Jr. is another right-handed hitting outfielder the Mets have to keep an eye on. Holmes was enjoying a breakout season as a starter before taking a comebacker that fractured his fibula back in May. Already in the midst of a rehab assignment, the other rental in this deal has a 2.39 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP in nine starts this year. With the heavy use of his sinker, he’s been a strong ground-ball pitcher, missing barrels in his second season starting for the Mets. He spent three years with the Yankees before that, closing games out, so if the Phillies were in a playoff format where they could lean on their top three starters, Holmes does have bullpen experience to fall back on. San Francisco Giants — OF Jung Hoo Lee SP Robbie Ray (L) This combination feels less likely than the latter two, but each name would bring a championship-quality feel to the Phillies. Lee could instantly slide to the top of Philadelphia’s lineup with his phenomenally low strikeout numbers and whiff rate. He’s batting .302 this year with 112 hits. Lee has been strong against both lefties and righties, but the player who idolizes Ichiro has not been as strong with the glove, posting -4 outs above average. Lee is set to make $23.5 million next season and has an opt-out in his deal for the 2028 season, otherwise he’ll make $20.5 million over the final two years of his contract. And when you look at the 34-year-old Ray’s metrics, you might be surprised by his 3.16 ERA. It’s been his offspeed deliveries that have carried one of his best seasons in a number of years. He’s pitched to contact in a pitcher’s park and it’s worked in his favor. His best metric per Statcast has been limiting hard contact, sitting well above league average there. Plus, he’s a name with strong playoff experience. A deal of this nature would hit the Phillies’ luxury tax hard for the rest of the season. A TURN TO LEFT? Is it a secret that Trea Turner has struggled badly at shortstop this year? After being one of the best defensive players, period, in 2025, Turner has already committed a league-leading 19 errors — three more than the next name (SS CJ Abrams, 16). That’s four shy of the big-league lead he posted in 2024, when he committed 23 errors. While there’s a strong belief in Turner the player, the Phillies need to put themselves in the best position to win ballgames, and at this moment, him playing one of the most demanding positions on the diamond is not wise. This has been a season where Philadelphia has regularly played a below-average fielder in Félix Reyes, as well as Sosa, in left field, especially within a platoon. So why not give Turner, a former outfielder, a shot in left field? That might be unlikely mid-season, but… That means one fewer right-handed-hitting outfield bat they’ll need to pursue — outfielders that are already scarce to begin with — and it opens up their middle infield for a big splash. If Bryson Stott, who’s been one of, if not the, best defensive second basemen in the game, moved to short, the Phillies could trade for three-time batting champ Luis Arraez, another contact-hitting Giant (hitting .325), and yet another who could lead off every game moving forward. Landing Arraez would cost a solid package, but it could also keep the door open to bolster the bullpen’s setup role from within the NL West too, with the Padres’ left-hander Adrián Morejón. Or, as ESPN’s Jeff Passan has floated, the Phillies have reached out to the Los Angeles Angels about shortstop Zach Neto, who’s signed through 2029. The 25-year-old might lead the American League in strikeouts, but possesses a very strong, balanced profile at the position. He’s blasted 19 homers and stolen 14 bases. He’s coming off back-to-back seasons with at least 56 extra-base hits and 20-homer, 25-steal production. A move for Neto would be quite hefty. It would likely include both Aidan Miller and Andrew Painter, but it’s the kind of move that keeps Philadelphia’s opportunity to win it all open past this year. And with the organization’s commitment to Dave Dombrowski beyond this season, this seems like the kind of acquisition this hungry front office could pull off and turn heads all around baseball. That just comes with a willingness to be flexible with Turner, or to open the door on moving Alec Bohm to a club like Boston, which could very well be looking for another right-handed-hitting third baseman at this point. It’s an interesting, important and potentially organization-altering trade deadline we have on our hands. Is that “help” on the way, Bryce? It certainly looks that way. ...read more read less