The Philadelphia Phillies have not seen J.T. Realmuto have great results at the plate and could be looking for an upgrade at catcher.
Replacing Realmuto half a season into a three-year, $45 million deal would be less than ideal, but the Phillies have to find a way to get past the Los Angeles Dodgers and get to the World Series. A few teams are looking for catchers at this year's deadline, and Adley Rutschman's name has popped up in trade rumors. ESPN's Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel reported that the Baltimore Orioles are "certainly listening" to offers on him.
Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley predicted the Phillies would end up trading for Rutschman. He has had a huge bounce-back year after hitting .220 last season. He is hitting .251 this year with a .764 OPS. He has pretty even splits against lefties and righties, and would certainly be an upgrade over Realmuto at the plate.
Defensively, he would also be better than Realmuto. He has also been a victim of some bad luck, as his expected batting average sits at .274, well above his actual average. He has another year of club control before hitting free agency.
Adding Rutschman would improve the Phillies' offense, but would force Realmuto to the bench. Financially speaking, it's not the smartest move. However, it's a move the Phillies really need to explore if they want to win the National League.