The Phillies have acquired 30-year old lefty starting pitcher Cliff Lee and 27-year old righty swinging outfielder Ben Francisco from the Indians for 22-year old righty starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco, 24-year old righty swinging 2B/3B Jason Donald, 23-year old righty swinging catcher Lou Marson and 18-year old righty starting pitcher Jason Knapp. The Phillies want to repeat as World Champions and getting Lee was a solid move in that direction. He has pitched in 22 games (all starts) for the Indians this season and he is 7-9 with a 3.14 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. Lee has now pitched in 182 games (178 starts) in his major league career and he is 83-48 with a 4.01 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. Lee won the Cy Young Award in the American League last season and he could have a huge second half for the Phillies this season as he will have increased run support. Ben Francisco has played in 89 games for the Indians this season and he is 77 for 308 (.250 avg, .758 OPS) with 48 runs scored, 10 homers, 33 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. In his three year major league career, Francisco has played in 235 games in which he is 213 for 817 (.261 avg, .768 OPS) with 123 runs scored, 28 homers, 99 RBIs and 17 stolen bases. Francisco will likely be the #4 outfielder for the Phillies as he can handle all three spots on defense.

Lee and Francisco didn’t come cheap for the Phillies. Carlos Carrasco was the #2 rated prospect in the Phillies’ minor league system heading into the 2009 season according to Baseball America. Carrasco has started 20 games in AAA-ball this season and he is 6-9 with a 5.18 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. The Indians will likely give him a look next month in the starting rotation. Lou Marson was the #3 rated prospect in the Phillies’ minor league system heading into this season according to Baseball America. Marson played in 7 games this season for the Phillies and he was 4 for 17 (.235 avg, .644 OPS) with 3 runs scored, He has also played in 63 games in AAA-ball this season in which he is 62 for 211 (.294 avg, .752 OPS) with 32 runs scored, 1 homers, 24 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Marson should get a lot of playing time for the Indians if they do indeed trade Victor Martinez tomorrow. Jason Donald was the #4 rated prospect for the Phillies coming into this season according to Baseball America. Donald is having a rough time in the minors so far this season. Donald has played in 60 games in AAA + Rookie Ball this season and he is 55 for 234 (.235 avg, .629 OPS) with 30 runs scored, 1 homer, 17 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Donald could fit in at 2B where the Indians have a hole right now. Jason Knapp might have the biggest upside of this bunch. He was the #10 rated prospect in the Phillies’ system coming into this season according to Baseball America. Knapp has started 17 games in A-ball this season and he is 2-7 with a 4.01 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. Knapp has outstanding stuff as he has whiffed 111 batters while allowing only 63 hits in 85 1/3 innings this season. This was a trade the Phillies had to make as they try to be back to back World Series Champions.

46-year old lefty Jamie Moyer looked like he was toast during the first three months of this season, but in July he has been outstanding. Moyer has started 5 games this month and he is 4-1 with a 3.30 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Moyer’s overall numbers however are not that impressive. He has pitched in 20 games (all starts) this season for the Phillies and he is 10-7 with a 5.32 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. Moyer has been hit hard this season allowing 131 hits (21 of them homers) in 113 1/3 innings. Still, this is Moyer’s 14th season in double figures in the win column. It will be interesting to see how long Moyer wants to pitch as he does have 256 wins in his major league career. Could he win 300? I wouldn’t bet against him as I thought he was toast a long time ago.

The Phillies have designated righty reliever Tyler Walker for assignment to make room on the active roster for 33-year old righty reliever Clay Condrey who is returning from the D.L. Walker pitched in 9 games (0 starts) for the Phillies in which he was 1-0 with a 1.64 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. He should have little problem finding a new job. Clay Condrey has pitched in 33 games (0 starts) for the Phillies this season and he is 4-2 with 1 save, a 3.71 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. The Phillies should have found another way to keep Walker around as he pitched well for them this season.

UPDATE: Walker is back with the Phillies after Clay Condrey returned to the D.L.

It appears that the only thing Pedro Martinez has to do to join the Phillies’ rotation is pass a physical tomorrow. The 37-year old righty Martinez started 20 games for the Mets last season in which he was 5-6 with a 5.61 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. He appeared to still be injured last season but he is well rested now. Martinez has now pitched in 467 games (400 starts) in his major league career and he is 214-99 with 3 saves, a 2.91 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. He also has 3,117 strikeouts in only 2,782 2/3 career innings showing how dominant he used to be. This was a good move for the Phillies who have nothing to lose and everything to gain by giving a future Hall of Fame pitcher a chance.

The Phillies are going to be looking for at least 1 starting pitcher at the trade deadline. They will be hot after Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee but the price tag in prospects might scare them off. If that is the case the Phillies will inquire about the following pitchers: Jeremy Guthrie, Brian Tallet, Doug Davis, Jon Garland, Jonathan Sanchez, Carl Pavano, Scott Olsen, Chad Gaudin, Kevin Correia, Ian Snell, Andy Sonnanstine, Bronson Arroyo, Homer Bailey and Greg Smith. The Phillies are bound and determined to improve the rotation so they will get one of the above mentioned pitchers. The Phillies could also be in the market to improve the catching situation. Victor Martinez of the Indians would be the big prize but the price for him will be huge. With that in mind, Rod Barajas, Chris Snyder, Kelly Shoppach, Taylor Teagarden, Miguel Olivo and John Buck could likely be had. Only Teagarden and Shoppach would likely cost more than a so-so prospect in this bunch of catchers. The Phillies are hungry to win back-to-back World Series and they are willing to pay the price to make that happen.