"We really don't have any room for him," Amaro told MLB.com. "We have five, six starters, and our resources are about where we want to be right now. I think he wouldn't mind coming back, but I don't know that's feasible or a real possibility."
With Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Joe Blanton, Vance Worley and Kyle Kendrick all signed and all healthy, the Phillies are about as close as you can come to disproving the axiom about never having too much pitching. Plus, with Blanton coming off the books after this year and Hamels in need of a long-term deal, the Phillies would like to see whether Worley can repeat his 2011 season and would love to see that Kendrick has finally broken through some self-made psychological block and can operate efficiently as a fourth or fifth starter.
They also will pay Dontrelle Willis $850,000 if he makes the big club as a middle reliever/spot starter.
Adding Roy2 gets in the way of all that. Except that you're not sure about any of them past the big 3. Plus, Kendrick and Worley can be used in middle relief, too, and their noses won't get too far out of joint. Which makes the idea of Oswalt returning on a 1-year deal, returning for one more stab by the Big 4, not terrible. Especially if his asking price plummets from what it is reported to be now, between $8 million and $12 million.
Now here's the hitch. Or hitches.
After adding pricey bench depth in Jim Thome, Laynce Nix and Ty Wigginton, signing Juan Pierre to a minor league deal, and signing Jonathan Papelbon to that $50 million sweetheart of a deal, Amaro has reiterated over the last few weeks that his budget, which could approach $180 million with incentives and bonuses, is maxed out. He's said that before, of course, most notably 14 months ago, right before he rescued Lee from the clutches of the Yankees and Rangers.
