Trading Thome — keeping Howard — transformed Phillies

It was the greatest trade the Phillies never made.

Eleven years ago today, then- Phillies GM Pat Gillick didn’t trade Ryan Howard, but instead shipped out rock-star-popular Jim Thome. The Phils sent Thome to the White Sox in exchange for Aaron Rowand, Gio Gonzalez, and somebody named Daniel Haigwood.

Trading Thome wasn’t just a trade — it was a resounding boom of confidence for Ryan Howard, who hit 22 HR and won the Rookie of the Year in 2005, while Thome lingered on the disabled list for most of the season.

Howard’s emergence presented the Phillies with a conundrum during the offseason: Who will play first base in 2006, the younger Howard or the beloved Thome? At first, irrational solutions…