Phillies acquire NL batting leader Luis Arraez from Giants before the trade deadline

Scott Lauber, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Aug 3, 2026

Published in Baseball

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PHILADELPHIA — Luis Arraez is neither an outfielder nor a right-handed hitter.

But he’s the Phillies’ solution to help the offense.

The Phillies beat the trade deadline Monday by acquiring Arraez and reliever Caleb Kilian from the San Francisco Giants. They will send breakout pitching prospect Ramon Marquez and minor league reliever Marty Gair to San Francisco.

In a trade that was completed almost concurrently, the Phillies acquired veteran lefty reliever Brooks Raley from the New York Mets for minor-league outfielder John Spikerman and right-hander Luke Gabrysh.

Arraez, 29, is a contact-hitting savant, a three-time batting champion with a bead on his fourth crown. He’s leading the National League with a .324 average and has struck out only 21 times in 464 plate appearances.

In short, he’s like almost no other modern hitter, a throwback to Tony Gwynn and Rod Carew, his mentor early in his career with the Minnesota Twins.

But in pivoting to a hitter whom they believe will have a bigger impact than any of the righty-hitting outfielders they were scouting, the Phillies threw into flux an infield that already ranks among the worst defensive groups in the majors.

Arraez indicated he prefers to stay at second base, where he has improved defensively this season. In that case, the Phillies must shuffle the defense. It’s unclear how they will do that.

The most likely option calls for Bryce Harper to move back to right field for the rest of the season. He hasn’t played the outfield since April 2022 and became a first baseman in 2023 while recovering from Tommy John elbow surgery. But Harper has repeatedly offered to move back to the outfield “for the right player,” as he reiterated in June.

In that case, Alec Bohm would move to first base and Bryson Stott to third, opening second base for Arraez.

In the weeks leading up to the deadline, the Phillies zeroed in on righty-hitting outfielders to help boost the offense. As a team. they are tied for second-to-last in the majors in on-base percentage (.304). In particular, they have gotten less production than any team from the right side of the plate, with a worst-in-the-majors .280 on-base percentage and .644 OPS.

But neither Mike Trout nor Byron Buxton has signaled a willingness to waive their no-trade rights. (In Buxton’s case, the Twins are a playoff contender in the American League.) The Cincinnati Reds’ Spencer Steer injured his wrist and may miss the rest of the season; the Kansas City Royals traded Lane Thomas to the Atlanta Braves; the Los Angeles Angels’ Jo Adell has a .279 career on-base percentage; and the Baltimore Orioles were noncommittal on trading Taylor Ward.

(Adell and Ward were ultimately dealt to the Cleveland Guardians and Seattle Mariners, respectively, Monday.)

Given the state of the market, the Phillies felt they needed to get creative. So, they widened their search over the weekend, according to major league sources, and landed on Arraez, who has a .360 on-base percentage and figures to help set the table for Kyle Schwarber and Harper.

The Phillies also acquired Kilian, a 29-year-old righty, to add depth to the middle of the bullpen. He has a 4.26 ERA in 46 games this season, but hasn’t allowed a run in eight of his last 11 appearances.

The move comes at a cost for a farm system that was already ranked among the worst in baseball.

Marquez, a hard-throwing 20-year-old right-hander, has emerged this season, prompting debate among scouts about whether he or 2025 first-round pick Gage Wood was the best pitching prospect in the system. Scouts are impressed by Marquez’s changeup and an uptick in his fastball velocity. He has a 1.50 ERA in six starts since moving up to High-A Jersey Shore.

Gair, 23, was recently promoted to Jersey Shore. He has a 4.50 ERA and six saves in 30 appearances overall this season.

In acquiring Raley from the Mets, the Phillies added a 38-year-old with a 1.96 ERA in 41 1/3 innings. A pending free agent, he figures to slot into the bullpen alongside fellow lefties José Alvarado and Tim Mayza and righties Orion Kerkering and Jonathan Bowlan as the primary pieces in the bridge to closer Jhoan Duran.

To make room for Arráez and Kilian on the 40-man roster, right-handed pitcher Lou Trivino and catcher Payton Henry were designated for assignment. To open a spot for Raley, the Phillies designated reliever Nolan Hoffman for assignment.

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