Ryan Howard was benched today and didn’t appear too pleased about his diminished role after the game. While this makes for a potentially uncomfortable situation in the Phillies clubhouse, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports that the club is “working hard” to trade him.
Of course, Howard’s trade value is essentially nothing at this point, especially after a report yesterday that the Phillies have considered releasing him after the season. With that in mind, Heyman hears that the Phillies would be willing to eat most of the roughly $70 million remaining on his contract, which runs through 2016. Still, the market for him figures to be very limited. He can also block trades to 20 teams, but might welcome a deal given his current situation.
Howard, 34, is batting just .224/.305/.377 over 97 games this season. His .682 OPS is 23rd out of 24 qualified first baseman in MLB. Only Cleveland’s Nick Swisher (.635 OPS) has been worse.
