Buy or Sell: Philadelphia Phillies

July 31 is rapidly approaching. Buy or Sell lets each team know where they stand on the trade market with the deadline right around the corner.

Here's where Chase Utley stands on the trade market:

"You want to know what the possibilities are out there," Utley said Tuesday before playing in his third All-Star Game. "I know our organization wants to win, and if they can find a piece that will fit into our puzzle to give us a better chance, they'll do that."

Sounds like "Buy" to me. Case closed (It's like Utley wrote the blog entry for me). But I suppose you'd like some more details. All right. It's obvious that the Phillies could use a front-line starter. And with CC Sabathia and Rich Harden already gone, they seem to be getting creative ... as a name you wouldn't expect is starting to surface.

The latest has the Phils hoping San Francisco, an NL West pretender, will shop 23-year-old right-hander Matt Cain.

Word is the Giants might part with Cain, who is 5-7 with a 4.06 ERA in 20 starts, if offered an intriguing package of young talent.

The Phillies, who reached the break with a half-game lead in the NL East, have some good young prospects at Double-A Reading to dangle - right-hander Carlos Carrasco, outfielder Greg Golson and shortstop Jason Donald.

It's very preliminary, and it seems unlikely to happen, as the Giants have always hoped to build the team around the trio of Cain, Tim Lincecum, and Jonathan Sanchez. But if the Phillies really want to land a top flight starter who's name isn't Burnett (and the linked article claims the Phillies aren't as high on him as we thought), then they may have to give up all three of those prospects. Cain is the type of pitcher who's essential for Citizens Bank Park with his 8.62 K/9 which would lead the Phillies (minimum 100 IP). With the Phillies built for now, and the Giants obviously built for the future,a 3-for-1 swap might make sense for both teams.

That said, I think Cain is a pipe dream, and that the Phillies might have to go the Burnett route if they want to land a guy who can team with Cole Hamels to form a formidable one-two punch. And aside from Burnett's injury history, he wouldn't be a bad second option for Philly, as Burnett's K/9 (8.93) is actually higher than Cain's, making A.J. just as good a fit for Citizens Bank as Cain would be. If the Phillies are willing to take the chance that Burnett can opt out of his deal after this season, then he would be just as beneficial for this season as Cain would be.

And if all else fails, Freddy Garcia is still out there.