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Murphy: Free-agent classes loaded when Phils are ready to go for it

TWICE, Pete Mackanin summoned three intriguing words to convey his point. This was Wednesday, in the long-dormant interview room at Citizens Bank Park where he met the media after each of the Phillies' 37 wins and 44 losses at home last season. Reporters were asking him this year's version of a question that has defined the club since Mackanin's bosses acknowledged the obvious and officially labeled themselves rebuilders.

TWICE, Pete Mackanin summoned three intriguing words to convey his point. This was Wednesday, in the long-dormant interview room at Citizens Bank Park where he met the media after each of the Phillies' 37 wins and 44 losses at home last season. Reporters were asking him this year's version of a question that has defined the club since Mackanin's bosses acknowledged the obvious and officially labeled themselves rebuilders.

Once upon a time, everybody would have spent the session blowing smoke up each other's keisters with talk of Howie Kendrick or Michael Saunders or Danny Tartabull being just what the doctor ordered to make a serious playoff push. That's one of the nice things about the macroscopic leanings of today's well-informed fan: The conversation this time of year is much more honest. Mackanin has a good enough relationship with general manager Matt Klentak and president Andy MacPhail that he not only understands their blueprint but considers himself their foreman. He wants to compete, and he has been open about his thoughts on the tools he needs to do so. But he's seen enough baseball in enough roles to understand the validity of their plan (and in his darker moments, he can simply look across the street to see how much fun things can get when the finish line starts to arrive).

"Over the last couple years, it's been, as I call it, an experiment," the second-year manager said. "We're trying to find out who's gonna fit in and buy time until we're going to spend a little bit of money and make our move."

Those last three words are the ones I referenced at the top. A little later on, he called on them to defend the goal he'd set for his team of getting to the late summer months with a .500 record.

"We're going to start making our move toward more wins," he said.

It might not be the most original imagery to come out of a manager's mouth, but you'll be hard-pressed to find a more accurate summation of where the Phillies feel they are in a process they only began in earnest a couple of offseasons ago. Plus, it's fun to picture Mackanin on a horse, maybe wearing knee-high boots and a helmet. For the last couple years, they've been drafting at the back of the pack, picking their spots early in the season, building toward that fateful turn in that critical race when they ease toward the outside and let the beast loose.

Mackanin's reference to the Phillies' immense financial wherewithal only further confirms the widely held premise that, one of these days, they are going to open the checkbook and start making the dollars rain. The manager certainly sounds as if he thinks that day is coming soon; that next offseason, you won't see the Phillies on the sidelines waiting for market values to reveal themselves. The big offseason is the following one, post-2018, when the generational talents of Manny Machado and Bryce Harper are scheduled to reach the open market at an unheard-of 26 years old, headlining a potentially unprecedented class of free agents that could also include 29-year-old Madison Bumgarner, 30-year-olds Chris Sale and Matt Harvey, and a host of more traditionally aged stars (Michael Brantley, Andrew McCutchen, David Price, A.J. Pollock, to name a few).

But next year's crop features some intriguing options too, including a pair of Royals who will reach free agency before their 30-year-old season: first baseman Eric Hosmer will be 28, and third baseman Mike Moustakas will be 29. Tigers outfielders Justin Upton and J.D. Martinez will both be heading into their 30-year-old seasons when they reach the market after this year. Carlos Gonzalez, Lorenzo Cain and Carlos Gomez will be 32. Add to them a wide array of pitchers – Masahiro Tanaka, Yu Darvish, Jake Arrieta, Lance Lynn, Tyler Chatwood, Alex Cobb, Tyson Ross, Nate Eovaldi – and the Phillies will have plenty of options to fit whatever spending strategy they deem appropriate.

With regard to identifying that strategy, 2017 will be key. Last year's pleasant surprises will play a big role in determining the path the Phillies will follow. You won't find many infielders on next year's market who reach base at the .371 clip Cesar Hernandez did in 155 games at second base. Meanwhile, Tommy Joseph's .813 OPS and 21 home runs in 347 plate appearances were far better than Hosmer's averages over the course of his first six years in the majors. Meanwhile, the organization's top three hitting prospects will continue their developments in the upper levels of the minors. If the Phillies are getting close to the point where they feel they can start spending money, they're also getting to the point where they can be players on the in-season trade market, where the smaller-revenue clubs often try to move their soon-to-be big-money stars a year or two ahead of when they are scheduled to reach the open market.

In all likelihood, the Phillies themselves don't have a clear idea on how they will proceed. The ideal scenario would see Joseph, Hernandez and Odubel Herrera repeat their 2016s, Maikel Franco emerge as the middle-of-the-order stud the Phillies believe he can be, and J.P. Crawford, Nick Williams and Jorge Alfaro all force their way into big-league promotions. The Cubs rode that kind of progression to a World Series just three years after picking at No. 2 in the draft. The Phillies aren't ready yet. But from Mackanin's perspective, by the end of the season, the rest of the majors could be hearing the footsteps.

dmurphy@phillynews.com

@ByDavidMurphy

Blog:philly.com/Philliesblog