Buster Olney, ESPN’s baseball guru, tweeted this morning that Jayson Werth could well find himself in a new city before the july 31 trade deadline.

“Heard this: The Phillies are casting a wide net and talking with a lot of teams about possible matches for Jayson Werth,” he tweeted. “They continue to look for a proven starting pitcher who could be a No. 2 or No. 3 type of guy.“

Jayson Werth could be growing facial hair in a new city by the end of the month.

Once an unfathomable thought by Phils fans, trading Werth becomes a more likely scenario with each passing loss. Werth is a solid ballplayer, but is not turning in the kind of season we hoped for when he started out on a tear hitting in the .350s into May.

His current .279 average with 13 home runs, 48 RBI and 26 doubles are nice numbers. They’re probably close to what he is: a .285 hitter with 25-30 HRs and 100 RBI a year. That’ll get him Jason Bay type money on the free agent market, but the Phillies likely don’t want to pay that when Domonic Brown continues to tear up minor league pitching.

As the team gets further out of the division race, the chances of moving him for a pitcher that will help them this year and next becomes more appealing. Werth is 31 and few can see the Phillies giving him a five-year deal at this point.

Dan Haren comes to mind as someone for whom Werth could be dealt. The Diamondbacks pitcher is someone the Phils have been rumored to be looking at. He’s a nice number two option and generally has an ERA in the 3s. This year, he sits at 7-6 with a 4.38 ERA. Something tells me a move to Philly would help him focus.

If not Haren, there are other guys out there. And, don’t rule out a three-team deal.