Matt Klentak acknowledges need for bat, but stays committed to rebuild

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ATLANTA – The day after Phillies manager Pete Mackanin talked about the need to add a hitter to his lineup this offseason, general manager Matt Klentak agreed with his skipper.
 
“I think Pete is right,” Klentak said Wednesday.
 
On Tuesday, Mackanin mentioned the impact that Yoenis Cespedes had on the New York Mets after he joined that eventual World Series participant last season. Mackanin said he planned to offer Cespedes as an example of what one difference-making hitter can do for a lineup when he and the coaching staff meet with the front office Friday. Cespedes can opt out of his contract at the end of the season and become a free agent. But a big-ticket free agent like that does not appear to be in this team’s plans. Not this winter, at least.
 
“We need to work at improving our offense however we can,” Klentak said. “Whether that comes in the form of a free agent or in a trade or promotions of younger players or the continued development of the players that are here – all of those are ways for us to improve our offensive production. Those are all things we're going to focus on.”
 
The Phillies remain committed to rebuilding through their farm system and with young players. That creates a balancing act for the front office as it looks to add talent.
 
“Every decision that we make will be measured against the short-term implications and the long-term implications,” Klentak said. “We want to do everything we can to field the most competitive team on the field that we possibly can. We also want to make sure we continue to provide opportunities to our young players to develop. That's the fine line that we'll have to tiptoe all offseason.
 
“The goal remains to continue to provide meaningful opportunities to our young players, but also to supplement that group with players from the outside that give us the best chance to win.”
 
Though the Phillies rank last in the majors in runs, Klentak said it remains committed to building with starting pitching. Adding a veteran stabilizer to the starting rotation seems to be as big a priority for Klentak as adding a bat.
 
“I don't think we will ever have the luxury of ignoring starting pitching,” Klentak said. “Starting pitching is the name of the game. We saw it for the first month or two of the year. Every night we were pitching. Our starters were performing. The back of our bullpen was performing. We were competitive almost every night. At times, throughout the rest of the season, we've sputtered along. We've had our good stretches and we've had some not-so-good stretches. But if you can dictate the pace of the game on the mound, you always have a chance to win. We're never going to ignore that.”
 
Jeremy Hellickson was a solid veteran stabilizer this season, but he will become a free agent and is likely to sign elsewhere. The Phillies would like to capitalize on Hellickson’s signing elsewhere and get a compensatory pick between the first and second round of next year’s draft. They must make Hellickson a one-year offer of about $17 million for 2017 and the pitcher must reject it for that to happen.
 
The Phils will also look to add bullpen help this winter.
 
But don’t look for a free-agent spending spree until the club has built more of a core.
 
“Free agency is an important market for us and every team to improve,” Klentak said. “Just how strongly we invest in it is going to depend, No. 1, on the types of players that are available and, No. 2., on where the organization is at that moment.”
 
The organization is still in a rebuild.
 
Draw your own conclusion.

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