Phillies reportedly interested in Scranton native Jake McCarthy

The Phillies could be on the lookout for outfield depth at the trade deadline.

The team is “keeping an eye on” left-handed hitting outfielder Jake McCarthy from the Arizona Diamondbacks, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

McCarthy, 25, is having a good season at the plate for Arizona after a down year in 2023. He holds a slash line of .268/.354/.370 with two home runs and 19 RBIs. McCarthy can play center field, but has spent a lot of time in the corner spots with Corbin Carroll entrenched at the position. He missed the D-Backs’ run to the World Series after straining his oblique before the NL Wild Card series against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Interestingly enough, the left-handed hitting McCarthy has crushed left-handed pitching in limited plate appearances this season. He is 12-for-29 with a .917 OPS against southpaws in 2024.

The Scranton, Pa. native can also make an impact on the bases. He has 58 stolen bases in the majors over the last three seasons.

A deal for McCarthy would be akin to the Brandon Marsh for Logan O’Hoppe trade for the Phillies, though they probably would not expect McCarthy to take down an everyday role immediately. The Phillies could acquire McCarthy with the expectation that he is a fourth outfielder who could spell Johan Rojas in center field. If Rojas continues to struggle at the plate, the Phillies could also option Rojas to the minors and use a player like McCarthy in center. McCarthy can also hold down left or right field if Marsh and Nick Castellanos go on the injured list.

McCarthy’s best stretch at the plate in the majors came at the end of the 2022 season, when he batted .303 with a .793 OPS from July 13 to the end of the regular season.

It’s unclear if Arizona would be willing to deal him come trade season. The D-Backs are in win-now mode after upsetting the Phillies in seven games in the NLCS last season, but they do have outfield depth and could use him in a deal to upgrade other parts of the roster.

The big question with McCarthy is whether or not there is more power in the bat. If the Phillies are already deploying scouts to Arizona to get their eyes on him, there has to be at least some belief that the Phillies hitting staff led by Kevin Long can help facilitate some improvement.

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