Another day, another rumor -- and another rumor involving the Texas Rangers and a potential top of the rotation pitcher. Danny Knobler of CBS Sports reported that the Rangers sent a scout to watch Cole Hamels in person on Thursday, despite the fact that there's no guarantee that the Phillies will trade their prized left handed ace.
As play begins on Saturday, the Phillies find themselves 13 games behind the Washington Nationals for first place in the National League East. Perhaps even worse, the Phillies are five behind the Miami Marlins for fourth place in the division, so Philadelphia clearly has a lot of work to do to exit the cellar and enter the playoff picture.
Since the Phillies are in such rough shape, it might seem to be logical that the Phillies move the free-agent-to-be Hamels. That's not quite the case. There's still half a season of baseball left, and the Phillies did just get both Chase Utley and Ryan Howard off the disabled list -- so, for at least a few weeks, it's likely that the Phillies will stand pat.
It's unknown what the asking price for Hamels would be, but it's likely that Philadelphia would ask for Texas third base prospect Mike Olt in any type of deal.
We'll see how everything plays out in the coming weeks. A lot depends on how well the Phillies are playing up until the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.
For more on the Rangers, check out Lone Star Ball.