November 01, 2024
If the Phillies choose not to tinker with their outfield this offseason, they'll have Nick Castellanos, Johan Rojas and Brandon Marsh manning the grass at Citizens Bank Park in 2025.
Setting aside Castellanos, whose fate with the Phillies is more or less sealed as he'll be back making $20 million next season, the Phillies have two flawed but talented players they can either continue to roll with or replace.
Rojas has proven to be excellent defensively in center field, but carries a very light bat at the plate. He is just 24, and the team certainly hopes he can improve, but they can't really afford to wait. Marsh is a candidate for a Gold Glove in left field this fall and can hit against right-handed pitching, but he's basically an automatic out against lefties and requires a platoon partner.
The Phillies could trade or bench either player in 2025.
One of the richest groups of free agents this winter is in the outfield, where 26-year-old Juan Soto — already a four-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger and World Series Champ – is expected to make more than $35 million per season. Are the Phillies interested? Should they be?
Soto is not the only prize that could help the Phillies solidify their outfield next season. Here's a look at 15 outfielders who could fit nicely on the Phillies' roster next spring:
The generational talent: (1) Juan Soto
Soto does it all. With the Yankees on the way to the AL pennant this past season, the phenom slashed .288/.419/.569 and hit 41 homers with 109 RBI while leading the AL in runs scored. He's done it for his entire career, and has some former teammates on the Phillies right now in Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber going back to his time in Washington. Each could help campaign for his services. The real question comes down to the money. How much would the Phillies be willing to offer, and how much is Soto looking for?
Spotrac.com predicts that the Phils, as currently constructed, are already going to be right on the edge of paying the luxury tax for 2025. Will that make the team more or less willing to break the bank for another superstar?
The All-Stars: (4) Cody Bellinger, Teoscar Hernandez, Anthony Santander, Jurickson Profar
Likely none of these hitters, all of whom have been an All-Star at least once, will be cheap either. And neither is likely to find a new home before Soto breaks the dam first — though Bellinger has a $27.5 million opt-out with the Cubs and could decide to stay in Chicago.
• Bellinger is a former MVP and has been tied to the Phillies before via trade rumors. He is coming off a down year (at least by his standards) in 2024, so if he doesn't like the market for his services, he could elect to forego free agency for one more year in Chicago at just 29 years old.
• Hernandez might want to stay in L.A. after winning a title with them this week, but if he hits free agency, the Phillies should be very interested. He hit 33 homers and 99 RBI last year, and batted .272.
• Santander was a huge source of power for the Orioles the last few years, but the Phillies might want to avoid another home run or bust typehitter (he had 44 homers and hit .235 last year).
• Profar had a career year in San Diego last season hitting .280, with 26 homers and 85 RBI. This was a substantial leap from his previous seasons. Is there enough evidence of success to warrant a big contract?
The everyday starters: (5) Tyler O'Neill, Alex Verdugo, Tommy Pham, Randal Grichuk, Kevin Pillar
All five of these players are flawed, but do have a little more consistency than the two outfielders the Phillies currently have in place.
• O'Neill had 31 homers in just 113 games for the Red Sox last year.
• Verdugo has a .272 career batting average and a ton of postseason experience.
• Pham has a long body of work over an 11-year career and can play all three outfield spots.
• Grichuk hit .291 in a breakout year with Arizona in 2024.
• Pillar has a .255 career average over 12 MLB seasons.
Platoon guys: (5) Joc Pederson, Mark Canha, Kevin Pillar, Michael Conforto, Jason Heyward,
If the Phillies elect to keep Marsh, they'll need someone who can hit left-handed pitching. Which would eliminate Conforto and Heyward, as each of them hit very well against righties and could offer some power and veteran leadership, but each falls into the same category as Marsh (and to a lesser extent second baseman Bryson Stott).
Pederson, Canha and Pillar are veteran hitters who thrive against southpaws. If the Phillies do not take a big swing on an everyday outfielder, it seems likely they'd at least explore solidifying the Marsh platoon situation.
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