Anything's possible in Phillies offseason

The last gasps of the 2014 Phillies filled the room while Cole Hamels spoke. He stood in the middle of the clubhouse Sunday afternoon as his teammates packed boxes and hugged. The exits for most were quick; no one wanted to dwell on this disaster.

Hamels is not a man tasked with making franchise-altering decisions - "I'm glad I don't have to make those changes," he said - but his answers about the current state were more forthcoming than the rhetoric of his bosses. The 30-year-old ace agreed that the last two seasons are evidence of how far the Phillies are from contention.

And he wondered whether it was time, finally, for everyone to halt their nostalgia. Hamels, asked about organizations such as the St. Louis Cardinals that retool to avoid prolonged droughts, recalled a key moment.

"They had Albert Pujols for a while and they got rid of him," Hamels said.

Everything is possible this winter. Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg, after meetings with team executives, used the word "open-mindedness" to describe the tenor.

"That's kind of what I sense," he said.

The Phillies will entertain offers for every player. Some are more realistic than others. None is worth dismissing, not when the Phillies have few internal answers.

The Pujols example was a thinly veiled reference to Ryan Howard. The Phillies signed Howard two years before his free agency because of the fear Pujols would drive up Howard's price. They remained committed to the core group even as results suffered. This time, Phillies officials have promised change. But those words have been uttered before.

The reason general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. and most of his lieutenants will remain in place is because ownership believes that the blame should be shared among the executives and owners. The edict is that something must change below them.

Hamels raised a sound point: The Phillies - at least their lineup - remained healthy for much of the season. And it did not matter.

"That was kind of the tough part," Hamels said. "The last few years, everyone was waiting for us to be healthy so we can be on the field and be the collective group we know how, but it didn't show. I think that will make for a lot of difficult decisions for upper management."

Phillies president David Montgomery, who took a medical leave of absence in August, once emphasized the importance of "fan identification" when it comes to the team's iconic players. The precipitous drop in season-ticket holders indicates the current sentiment among fans. When the season ended, there was less anger and more apathy. That lack of emotion is tough for a professional sports franchise to combat.

Pat Gillick assumed Montgomery's duties on an interim basis. He said he agreed with most of Amaro's decisions, but hinted that the core players may have been pushed too far.

Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins have full no-trade rights. Howard, Hamels, Jonathan Papelbon, and Cliff Lee have partial no-trade clauses. So does Marlon Byrd, although his is less restrictive.

Rollins, who plans to remain in Philadelphia for the final season of his contract, voiced his confidence in Amaro.

"He'll find a way," Rollins said. "He's been pretty good at that in the past when it's been needed."

Extra bases. The Phillies will pick 10th in June's draft. That pick is protected from compensation should the team sign a top free agent. . . . The Phillies have five free agents: Mike Adams, Kyle Kendrick, Wil Nieves, Grady Sizemore, and Jerome Williams. A.J. Burnett could be a free agent if he declines his $12.75 million option. . . . A 73-89 record in 2014 matched the team's 2013 mark, but the Phillies improved their run differential. They were outscored by 68 runs in 2014 and by 139 in 2013.

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