Phillies could sign veteran bat in offseason

PHILADELPHIA — Could the Phillies sign a veteran free-agent bat this winter?

On one hand, the Phillies have consistently said they don’t expect to be big players in the free-agent market until they view themselves as legitimate contenders. On the other, they added veteran starters Jeremy Hellickson and Charlie Morton last offseason to stabilize the talented but young and largely unproven rotation. A case could be made that the same principle applies to the lineup.

Rumors surfaced recently that hitters like the Marlins’ Martin Prado or the Rangers’ Ian Desmond could be on the radar.

Without commenting on specific names, manager Pete Mackanin said before Monday night’s series opener against the Pirates at Citizens Bank Park that he believes there would be two benefits to such a move.

“I’d like to get a professional hitter, or even two,” Mackanin said. “I think it takes pressure off the young guys when you have [Tommy] Joseph, [Cameron] Rupp and even [Maikel] Franco in the middle of your lineup to produce runs. Your first year in the big leagues, that’s tough to be called upon to be the run producer.

“So if you have a guy you can count on to give you quality at-bats consistently, I believe that’s important. The other players see it, and it’s just as important to have that in the lineup as it is in the rotation.”

The other factor is …

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