PITTSBURGH — The Phillies’ first move ahead of the trade deadline came early Saturday afternoon when they acquired shortstop Edmundo Sosa from the Cardinals in exchange for left-handed reliever JoJo Romero, who had most recently been pitching for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Sosa is a glove-first shortstop, who also can fill in at second base and third base. With Jean Segura able to be activated off of the 60-day injured list as early as Sunday, Sosa provides some flexibility as Segura eases back into an everyday role.
Sosa is now the Phillies’ best infield defender. Over 219 2/3 innings at shortstop this season, he has five defensive runs saved and 13 defensive runs saved over his last two seasons. He is plus-7 in outs above average at shortstop over his past two seasons. The 26-year-old righty has hit .189/.244/.270 over 131 plate appearances this season and slashed .271/.346/.389 over 326 plate appearances last season.
