Less than three years ago the Phillies continued their rebuild by trading closer Ken Giles, an electric righty with velocity and tenacity that were off the charts. A 63-win team didn’t need a reliever the caliber of Giles, so pulling a seven-player deal with the Houston Astros, a team on the cusp of a championship, made sense for both sides.
The Phillies sent Giles and prospect Jonathan Arauz to Houston for former number one pick Mark Appel, starter Brett Oberholtzer, and prospects Vince Velasquez, Harold Arauz, and Thomas Eshelman.
It felt like a tremendous haul at the time with Appel and Velasquez each having tremendous potential.