Phillies Rumors: Philadelphia Refused to Trade 22-Year-Old Phenom for Mason Miller

The Philadelphia Phillies got a closer who throws triple-digit fastballs at last week’s trade deadline. But there was a world in which they could have landed two such closers.

One day after Philadelphia acquired Jhoan Duran from the Minnesota Twins, former Athletics closer Mason Miller was traded to the San Diego Padres with 4 1/2 years left on his rookie contract.

Not only was it surprising to see Miller traded, but the Padres sent back a consensus top-10 prospect in all of baseball in shortstop Leo DeVries, who was the most highly-regarded prospect dealt by any team in the 2020s so far.

It was one of the most stunning blockbusters in recent trade deadline memory. And according to a report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Phillies had a chance to beat the Padres to the punch.

On Tuesday, Rosenthal reported that the Phillies were approached by the A’s about a potential Miller trade, but their refusal to include their No. 1 prospect Andrew Painter in the deal made a fit impossible to find.

“The three clubs (the A’s) identified as most likely to meet their price were the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets and New York Yankees,” Rosenthal wrote. “All three clubs turned to other options, declining to go to the same lengths the Padres did to acquire Miller for four additional years, sources with each of those teams said.

“The Phillies were unwilling to part with right-hander Andrew Painter, the No. 7 prospect in Keith Law’s latest top 60, and traded two other young talents, righty Mick Abel and catcher Eduardo Tait, for Minnesota Twins closer Jhoan Duran.”

It’s entirely understandable that the Phillies wanted to hang onto Painter, who they see as the heir apparent to veteran Zack Wheeler as the ace of their staff. The 22-year-old has incredible talents, and he’s slowly finding his form this year after returning from Tommy John surgery.

Still, it will be interesting to look back on this year’s playoff run and wonder whether things would have gone differently with Miller throwing smoke out of the Phillies bullpen.

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