The Philadelphia Phillies are trying for their third straight National League title and they will likely need external help if they want to achieve that. They sit 2.5 games out of the first in the NL East and they are need help in their bullpen and a starting pitcher. The big question now is how to acquire that external help?

The Phillies have depleted their farm system over the years and Keith Law of ESPN wonders what their next move is.

“They have two premium guys now in Domonic Brown and Jarrod Cosart, and could use either as the head of any trade, but I can’t imagine them giving up either guy. Brown is the heir apparent in RF if Jayson Werth leaves, or could take over LF from Raul Ibanez if Werth stays. Cosart has #1 starter potential and arms like that are almost never available in trade. Beyond those two, however, the system thins out as the result of so many past trades. They have a number of high-quality tools prospects, but beyond Jonathan Singleton, who has only played about half the year so far, most of them — like Trevor May, Anthony Gose, Jiwan James, and Sebastian Valle — have underperformed this year, and the haul from the Cliff Lee trade has also disappointed. The system as a whole is actually pretty good, but doesn’t have the kind of polished prospects below the Brown/Cosart level who tend to headline July trades.”

The Phillies have been mentioned as a suitor for Kerry Wood of the Cleveland Indians. Wood could help as a set-up man or a backup closer to Brad Lidge. The Indians and Phillies have a cordial relationship with each other since they made a trade involving Cliff Lee last July.