Done Deal: the Phillies acquire Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco

The Phillies got themselves the rotation help they needed. Cliff Lee, the 2008 AL Cy Young winner, was acquired from the Indians, along with outfielder Ben Francisco, for pitchers Carlos Carrasco and Jason Knapp, infielder Jason Donald and catcher Lou Marson.

Ever since Brett Myers went down, the Phillies needed someone to help them at the top of the rotation. While the Phillies would have loved to get Roy Halladay, when the price was determined to be too steep, the Phillies went to Plan B, getting a pitcher that wasn't quite at Halladay's level, but was still a top pitcher in the game. Cliff Lee immediately shores up the top of the Phillies rotation, giving them a great one-two punch with Cole Hamels.

To make the deal even better, the Indians threw in the right handed bench bat that the Phillies have been wanting, Ben Francisco. Francisco will be a nice piece off the bench, and his acquisition likely means John Mayberry is headed back the Triple A, where he belongs.

The Phillies did have to give up four prospects, but none figures to be a major loss. Carrasco was supposed to be an untouchable pitcher for the Phillies the last few years, but he has struggled mightily this season, posting an ERA over 5 in Triple A. Carrasco will probably turn out to be a decent back of the rotation starter in the majors, nothing more.

Donald was a solid minor leaguer with plenty of upside, unfortunately, his best two positions were second and short, two spots that are filled for the foreseeable future by Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley. Having no position to play made Donald expendable.

Losing Marson and Knapp are the two bigger blows to the Phillies. Marson figured to be their catcher of the future, on course to be a backup to Carlos Ruiz next year and be a starter in the coming seasons. Knapp also has tremendous potential, but he is still very young and only in Single A, so who knows what the future will hold for him. You have to give up something good to get something good, so the Phillies rightfully parted with these two.

In all, an excellent move by the Phillies. They get their top of the rotation starter without having to give up J.A. Happ or Kyle Drabek, two players that the Blue Jays demanded in return for Roy Halladay. In addition, the Phillies didn't even have to give up their best two outfield prospects in Michael Taylor and Dominic Brown, so Ruben Amaro comes out looking great in this deal. Adding Lee to this team gives them a rotation of Hamels, Lee, Joe Blanton, Happ and Jamie Moyer, with Pedro Martinez waiting in the wings, although I wouldn't count on him contributing at all for the Phillies. While some may be disappointed with not getting Roy Halladay, you have to be happy that the Phillies got a great pitcher without mortgaging away their future. This move doesn't guarantee a return to the World Series for the Phillies, but it sure makes it much more likely.

Phillies release Giles, cut Mayberry, Carrasco, 3 others

The Phillies continued trimming down their roster in preparation of Sunday's opener and things are shaping up just as I have predicted. Marcus Giles, who signed with the club in the offseason with the hopes of playing second base until Chase Utley was healthy, was released, likely ending his major league career. Once Utley was deemed ready to play, Giles had to see the writing on the wall.

The Phillies also sent OF John Mayberry and P Carlos Carrasco to the minors and informed P Mike Koplove, OF Jason Ellison and IF Pablo Ozuna that they wouldn't be making the major league club. Mayberry had a decent chance to make the club after a solid March but will be better off getting some seasoning in the minors. Carrasco is still a year away, or maybe more. I could see him taking Jamie Moyer's spot in the rotation when the old man finally retires.

There are still a few moves left for the Phillies to make. They still need to sort out their bench with either Geoff Jenkins, Matt Stairs or Miguel Cairo getting cut or traded. They also have to figure out their 5th starter spot, a move that will dictate who gets the final bullpen spot. If Chan Ho Park is the 5th starter, the Phillies will likely keep Gary Majewski in the bullpen and send lefty J.A. Happ to the minors. If Happ gets the final rotation spot, Park will be in the bullpen.

The next moves the Phillies make could be the most interesting. Don't be surprised if they pull off another trade to clear things up even more.

What to do with Adam Eaton?

The Phillies really screwed up with Adam Eaton. He's in the second year of his 3 year contract worth 24.5 million dollars, and he stinks. Because of his huge contract, Eaton is the front runner for the Phils number 5 spot in the rotation, despite having an ERA of 15.75 in two spring appearances. Now he is using the lame excuse that he has a bad back that has been affecting his performance since July.

So what are the Phillies supposed to do? Despite how bad he has been, the Phillies have no other choice but to trot him out every fifth day. They can't trade the guy because no one would want him. They won't release Eaton because the Phillies aren't in the habit of giving away money. He would be terrible out of the bullpen because of the way he gets rocked in the early innings of his starts.

The other fifth starter options aren't all that appealing, either. J. D. Durbin has shown flashes of what made him a prospect a few years ago, but he looked awful last September. Chad Durbin is very average and would be better suited in a long relief role. Travis Blackley is also an option, although he had an ERA over 7 last year with the Giants.

Prospect Carlos Carrasco has been a long-shot option, and he has the best stuff out of any of these back-end guys, but he won't be ready for at least another year. By the way, I know that everyone in the Phillies organization is high on Carrasco, but before we get our hopes up, Baseball Prospectus projects him to be only a "solid, mid-rotation innings-eater". Doesn't sound like glowing praise for a guy the Phillies are counting on to be a stud.

So, getting back to Eaton, it looks like the Phillies are stuck with him. Expectations couldn't be lower. If the Phillies could get 6 innings out of Eaton and he only gives up 3-4 runs, they will be ecstatic. The Phils are probably hoping to get about a month of decent pitching out of Eaton until Kris Benson is healthy. They can then stick Benson into the rotation and then figure out what to do with Eaton.

Of course, if it was me, I would sign Kyle Lohse for the 1 year, 4 million dollar contract he is seeking, and then cut my losses with Eaton. It would be tough to swallow that huge contract and admit they made a mistake, but the Phillies can't afford to have such an inept pitcher in their rotation. The Phillies have an amazing offense that can pile up runs in a hurry, but they still can't risk using a starting pitcher who consistently spots the other team 5 runs in the first two innings. Hopefully a few more awful spring performances will force the Phillies to get rid of the dead weight known as Adam Eaton.