The Phillies’ trade for Clay Buchholz Tuesday is right out of the Chicago Cubs' rebuild playbook -- another investment in the future, and something that other teams that have slashed their payrolls should really consider.

In fact, the Phillies should think about taking advantage of the incredible bargains that are starting to take shape in the free-agent market and do more of what they'll do with Buchholz, which is the baseball equivalent of house-flipping in a hot real estate market. The Phillies gave up almost nothing in prospect value in return for Buchholz, and if he pitches effectively in the first three months of the 2017 season, for a salary of $13.5 million, they can swap him in June or July to some contending team desperate for a starting pitcher, and get in return more than they paid for the right-hander.

As they build toward their expected surge in 2019, the Phillies have the money to spend: They were 26th in payroll last season. Philadelphia’s deal with Odubel Herrera last week represents their only contractual obligation beyond 2017, and with the new collective bargaining agreement locked in and the Phillies taking in a river of revenue, the money is there for the Phillies to deploy. Not putting it to work in the market is the baseball equivalent of stuffing dollars under a mattress. The Cubs did this as they reconstructed their franchise from 2012 through 2015, signing the likes of Scott Feldman and Jason Hammel and then subsequently including them in deals for Jake Arrieta and Addison Russell.