As the first-place Phillies approach the MLB trade deadline

Unlike recent seasons, when the Philadelphia Phillies entered the trade season with significant holes to fill as they tried to catch up in the NL East, this year’s team is on top of the baseball world, having the best record in the sport heading into the last weekend of July — but that doesn’t mean they won’t have a say in the trades for the rest of the trade period.

Sure, the Phillies have some minor issues to deal with, considering they rank first in the league in runs scored and third in runs prevented, but denying the chance to improve the roster goes against the grain of their chief decision-maker, Dave Dombrowski. At least that’s what one rival evaluator says, who laughed off the notion that Dombrowski won’t be a big deal in the trade market.

“Why do you think there were these rumors about Luis Robert Jr. in the Phillies?” the executive said. “Dave always wants to be great.”

Dombrowski on Friday made a move toward a smaller lineup, addressing one of the team’s weaknesses by adding Austin Hays in a trade with the Baltimore Orioles. The Phillies hope he can improve the team’s outfield numbers, as they rank 25th in the league in OPS. Adding a reliever is also a possibility, according to league sources, for the team, which plans to use its bullpen through the end of October.

Any additions by Dombrowski would be designed to bolster a team that has already proven itself as a World Series favorite, not necessarily a blockbuster that catapults it into the lead. Philadelphia has dominated the standings since Day 1 and has increased its lead in the NL East since the All-Star break.

With a nine-game lead in the division, the next few days should be relatively stress-free for the front office, right? Well, sort of. Dombrowski was recently asked if this year’s trade deadline is different for him because his team is on top instead of chasing it.

“Yes and no,” he told ESPN. “It’s different, but any time you have a chance to win, you try to make your club the best it can be. That was our focus last year. What’s different is this team is really solid. We’re in a situation where the number of players you want to get and the impact of those players may not be as big as we needed them to be in the past.”

Dombrowski has acquired Brandon Marsh and Michael Lorenzen, among others, over the past two trade deadlines, and the new additions have helped the Phillies reach the postseason. He admits that the lack of pressure to need that spark to get to October is a new feeling this time around.

“We had to fight to get in,” Dombrowski said. “And we’re not in yet — but that’s a whole other thing.”

After finishing the last two seasons 14 games behind the Braves in their own division, this year’s outlook seems so different in large part because management had a plan to increase the workload earlier than ever, starting in spring training — and the players did everything they could to execute that plan.

“We had planned to increase the number of innings for pitchers and at-bats for batters in the spring, but we had an illness that kept everyone out for a week,” manager Rob Thomson explained with a smile. “That proved difficult.”

The club overcame that early hurdle and got to work as soon as the regular season began. By the end of May, they had a 6 1/2-game lead in the division and haven’t looked back since.

“There was definitely an emphasis from the top down,” All-Star shortstop Trea Turner said. “Maybe we were just learning how to be the favorite. It took a year or two. Now we’re expected to win, so that mentality changes a little bit. It’s not about trying harder or wanting to win more, of course. It’s more about the schedule of how baseball works.”

The club has offered a variety of reasons for this year’s fast start, starting with players pointing to the team’s historically strong starting rotation. Ranger Suarez, Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola and Christopher Sanchez were all in their primes after the conclusion of spring training, resulting in the Phillies leading the MLB in ERA among starting pitchers all season long, and all four pitchers making the NL All-Star team.

Some key players, most notably All-Star third baseman Alec Bohm, also took their game to the next level, making the lineup less reliant on big men Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber.

Some players pointed to another factor that has united the team since arriving at spring training: collective anger over losing Games 6 and 7 of the NLCS at home to the Diamondbacks last October despite entering the series as heavy favorites to advance to the World Series for the second straight year.

“We left last season with a bitter taste in our mouths,” All-Star reliever Matt Strahm said. “You could tell how hungry we were when we came into Clearwater and how we started the season.”

Baseball is too capricious a sport to expect a plan developed in January or February to be executed exactly as intended, but thanks to the commitment of the people at club headquarters, it was possible.

“It was a realization that we couldn’t wait until June to get this going,” Thomson said. “That was among the players, coaches and the entire organization. That helped.”

“As a team, they achieved success.”

Now, as the team prepares for what could be a championship-ending run, front office must decide whether a splashy addition or a quieter trade deadline is the right path. Whichever way they decide, the Phillies know they are in an enviable position at a time when many executives are already thinking about next season.

“We were there,” Dombrowski smiled. “This year seems different.”