Phillies

Phillies Reportedly Agree in Principle to Deal for Jean Segura

By Bob Wankel

Published: Dec 2nd, 2018 · 11:22 PM EST

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It’s been somewhat of a quiet start to the offseason for the Phillies, but it looks like that is about to change. According to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, the Phillies and Mariners have agreed to a deal that will bring infielder Jean Segura east:

The Seattle #Mariners and Philadelphia #Phillies have agreed in principal to a trade that will send Jean Segura to the Phillies for shortstop J.P. Crawford that involved other players as well. The deal will be announced Monday. @Ken_Rosenthal first that they were in serious talks

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 3, 2018

While Nightengale implies Segura has waived his no-trade clause, FanCred’s Jon Heyman isn’t so sure:

As of this moment no word that Segura has agreed to waive his full no-trade yet. Mariners have been in talks with Philly about Segura and @BNightengale says they have agreement on players.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 3, 2018

UPDATE: Segura’s agent checked in with Heyman:

Segura’s agent Nez Balelo differed from the person outside Segura’s camp who said JS “wanted out worse than anyone.” Nez says: “If a deal makes sense to Jean then he will consider and there are a lot of variables to consider in order to waive his full no trade and move on …”

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 3, 2018

 

Lots of variables to consider, eh? I have no idea how Segura feels about Philly, but I imagine that selling him on leaving a rebuild to join a team that’s expected to control the free agent market can’t be overly difficult.

The 28-year-old Segura was an American League All-Star with the Mariners a season ago, slashing  .304/.341/.415 over 632 plate appearances. Although he doesn’t possess the plate discipline the Phillies typically covet (he walked only 32 times last season), he is a legitimate .300 hitter who posted a 3.8 fWAR in 2018. Defensively, Segura, who is signed through 2022 and owed $60 million, is regarded as an above average infielder and would rectify the team’s shaky defensive play at shortstop last season. Consider this: according to FanGraphs, Segura had five defensive runs saved in 2018, while Phillies shortstops combined for -33.

It’s still unclear what the package will include beyond Crawford, but let’s talk about him for a moment.

I know plenty of Phillies fans shit on him and would willingly drive him to the airport after disappointing 2017 and 2018 seasons, but count me among those who think it’s unwise to write off a 23-year-old with upside after only 225 Major League plate appearances. Still, if the Phillies are serious about winning now, a deal headlined by Crawford and perhaps another notable piece seems like a fair price to pay in exchange for a reasonably priced upgrade who is under contract for at least four more seasons.

Oh, by the way, the addition of Segura wouldn’t take the Phillies out of the Manny Machado hunt, or any hunt, according to Nightengale:

The #Phillies say they’re still interested in signing Manny Machado to play third, as well as Bryce Harper in the outfield and Patrick Corbin on the mound. Hey, it’s only money, right?

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 3, 2018

That echoes what NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury wrote on Saturday regarding the Phillies’ continued interest in Machado:

According to a source, the Phillies remain committed to pursuing Machado with the hope of playing him at third base should they be able to land Segura. Machado has played both third base and shortstop in his career. Though he enjoys playing shortstop and has said he’d like to stay there, he is a much better third baseman, elite by some standards.

 

Status. pic.twitter.com/VX64bqYP4R

— Bob Wankel (@Bob_Wankel) December 3, 2018