Jack Etkin of the Rocky Mountain News reported the Phillies had asked the Rockies about third baseman Garrett Atkins. According to Etkin, the Phillies are among teams who “made the strongest inquiries.”
Atkins, who will be 29 in December, hit .286 with 22 HR and 99 RBI in 2008. He had a career season in 2006, hitting .329 with 29 HR and 120 RBI.
I can see why the Phils would ask about Atkins — they have before, and it’s possible he could play left field (he played three games there in 2004, and the transition from third to left isn’t bad). Also, as we all know, he and Chase Utley are best friends. It could also be a move to replace Pedro Feliz, but there’s no indicators that Feliz is being shopped. And if he was, he wouldn’t get much return. It’s strictly an outside-the-box move.
Atkins earned $4.3875 million in 2008, and is an arbitration candidate for two more seasons.
Tim MalcolmTim first found the Phillies as a little infant at Veteran’s Stadium, cheering on a Juan Samuel game-winning home run in his very first game. With the pinstripes in his blood, he witnessed Terry Mulholland’s 1990 no-hitter, “Steve Carlton Night” at the Vet, game three of the 1993 World Series, countless games during the charmed 2008 championship season and various road excursions. Since November 2007 Tim’s been writing about them daily at Phillies Nation, becoming one of the world’s most popular Phillies scribes. You can catch him on Twitter and Facebook, as well. When he’s not talking about the Phils he’s relaxing with a St. Bernardus ABT 12 or one of his many favored brews.
