The Philadelphia Phillies are forced to start figuring out Plan B. Plan A was B.J. Upton, but he decided to sign with the Atlanta Braves instead. They are now pushing for Angel Pagan, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.
Fortunately for the Phillies, there are number of quality center fielders on the free agent market this winter. With Upton off the board, Pagan, Michael Bourn and former Phillie Shane Victorino are still available, as well as former MVP Josh Hamilton. The Phillies could prefer Pagan because of his price tag; he will likely fetch less than Bourn and will certainly fetch less than Hamilton.
Pagan enjoyed a career season with the World Series Champion San Francisco Giants in 2012, hitting .288/.338/.440 while leading the league in triples and playing strong defense. He even received an MVP vote. The Giants seem to be in a tough position with Pagan, as he played a vital role in their championship season and they do not have a ready replacement. If they fail to sign him, they may have a tough time filling the void.