No, Roy Oswalt isn’t Cliff Lee, and may never be Cliff Lee. But he’s pretty damned close to it, and he was the best option available for the Phillies to acquire just before the trade deadline. Maybe that’s why it’s so baffling to hear the number of Phillies fans that have come down hard against this trade, preferring instead to retain J.A. Happ as opposed to acquiring Oswalt. 

Oswalt may be 6-12 this year, but when you peel through that mess, it’s very misleading. The right-hander has a 3.42 ERA. Opposing teams are hitting a paltry .229 against him and in five of his 12 losses, the lowly Astros were shut out (one alarming note is that Oswalt is winless lifetime against the Braves, 0-3, with a 7.58 ERA; but on the plus side is a combined 33-5 lifetime against playoff contenders Cincinnati and San Diego). The most important record right now is that Oswalt is 0-0 as a Phillies’ starter–and in joining Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels–the Phillies have arguably the best starting pitching in Major League Baseball.  No opposing manager would want to face that trio in a playoff series. 

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