Brandon Phillips is reportedly more open to a trade this winter. Does he still have value? (AP) There’s a reason Brandon Phillips didn’t make our list of 25 players who could get traded this offseason. The 35-year-old second baseman owns full no-trade rights as a result of his 10-and-5 status, which means 10 years in the major leagues and the last five with the same team (in this case the Cincinnati Reds),*and in the past he hasn’t been afraid to use them.
In fact, Phillips vetoed a trade to the Washington Nationals last offseason after his failing to reach an agreement on a long-term contract. Instead, he hung around another season with the rebuilding Reds, while the Nationals rebounded to sign Daniel Murphy, who came up percentage points short of winning the N.L. batting title.
Now though, it appears Phillips is taking a different approach. According to Fox Sports Jon Morosi, he’s*expected to be more open to consider waiving his rights with one year left on his contract, which should have the Reds phone ringing in short order.*Now the question is: How much trade value does Phillips still have left?
Here’s what we can safely assume: The*Reds will explore any possible trade options. That’s because they’re hopeful to save as much of his $13M salary as possible, and also anxious to free up second base to get an extended look at Jose Peraza, who’s a potential future fixture.
Here’s the reality: It’s going to be a tough sell with a player who’s combined to hit 31 home runs the last three seasons after hitting at least 17 in eight straight seasons. He also committed 14 errors, his highest total since 2006, which indicates a player in complete decline. The Reds will try, and his market could be larger than expected, but it will be far from a blockbuster for Cincinnati.
Now, here are some notable news, notes and rumors from around MLB:
DONE DEAL: The A’s shipped veteran Danny Valencia to the Mariners for minor-league pitcher Paul Blackburn. [Jeff Passan report*— Big League Stew analysis]
SHORT LIST: Free agent Derek Holland has the Pittsburgh Pirates on the short list of team he’s considering. [Pittsburgh Tribune Review]
MOVING ON: In further evidence the Blue Jays are prepared to move forward without both Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista, they’ve now expressed interest in right-handed hitting Steve Pearce. The Jays already signed Kendrys Morales to a three-year deal on Friday. [@Ken_Rosenthal]
BULLPEN DEPTH:*The Braves have signed veteran reliever Jordan Walden to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. He will receive M if he’s in the Majors, plus a possible M in incentives. [@ChrisCotillo]

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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