Phillies rumors: Club ‘potential landing spot’ for Howie Kendrick

By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly Editor  

The Philadelphia Phillies have already made one move this offseason, acquiring veteran reliever Pat Neshek from the Houston Astros. They also went to Greg Holland’s showcase in Arizona earlier this week to see whether or not the former Royals closer looked strong following Tommy John surgery that caused him to miss the 2016 season. While they definitely need upgrades in the bullpen, their offense could use some depth as well. 

According to Ken Rosenthal, the Phillies are one of the teams that could land second baseman Howie Kendrick from the Dodgers in a trade:

The Phillies are one possible landing spot for Kendrick, sources say — the Phils are looking for short-term upgrades, and their general manager, Matt Klentak, was the Angels’ assistant GM during the latter part of Kendrick’s tenure in Anaheim.

Rosenthal goes on to mention that Kendrick’s frustration with his role last season is a reason that the Dodgers are willing to deal him. He played the majority of his games in left field but also mixed in some starts at second base, first base and third base, which could be valuable for the Phillies, who could likely move on from a guy like Andres Blanco.

Kendrick under performed to some degree in 2016, hitting .255 with a .326 OBP. His batting average was 40 points lower than 2015 and well below his .289 career average. He started in just three of the 11 Dodgers playoff games this postseason with the Dodgers giving more at-bats to Andrew Toles. 

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