February 19, 2024
Kim Klement Neitzel/USA TODAY Sports
Phillies president Dave Dombrowski stuck to a conservative winter.
The Phillies' first full-squad workout of the spring was Monday morning, bringing baseball that much closer to being back.
The Phils' World Series ambitions are still the same, but how they plan to strive for them – mostly by running it back with the same roster – has altered a bit compared to recent offseasons.
And now that everyone is down in Clearwater, here's what they're saying about it....
It was a relatively quiet winter for Dave Dombrowski and the Phillies as they now appear set to run it back with largely the same roster they had in 2023.
And that isn't really much of a bad thing. This group can definitely get you to the postseason, though might need one or two more upgrades later to push them to a World Series.
It's not like they didn't go looking for those upgrades now, however. The Phillies did just add Whit Merrifield for further outfield depth, but as for why they didn't go around making any big splashes this offseason, it mostly comes down to this: They can't try to outspend their problems this time.
But, as club officials tell it, money was less important in these negotiations. The Phillies could not guarantee a certain number of starts to these pitchers they viewed as swingmen. Earlier this month, they thought they had a match with Jakob Junis, a useful 31-year-old righty who filled various roles for San Francisco a season ago. Then, after Milwaukee traded Corbin Burnes to Baltimore, the Brewers came to Junis with a better offer: He could be a full-time starter for them. To reflect that, Milwaukee offered slightly more money than the Phillies, according to multiple major-league sources. Junis jumped at that. The Phillies moved further down their list of pitchers.
Only one major-league team spent more money on free agents this winter than the Phillies, who will have a payroll that again ranks among the highest in baseball. The Phillies, for years, have solved most of their problems by throwing money at them. But, as they begin this spring training with high expectations, the Phillies have reached a point in their cycle where it’s more challenging than just outspending everyone else. [The Athletic]
Staying on the subject of money, that beat about a Bryce Harper contract extension didn't go anywhere.
Phillies owner John Middleton isn't worried about it, per Scott Lauber, but it is a unique circumstance with so much time left on Harper's current 13-year contract and there being no real precedent for a move like this in baseball.
It's easier said than done, though it ultimately might get done eventually.
Some of Lauber's current read of the situation:
If it was as straightforward as tacking on a couple of years to the existing deal, it might be up for more immediate consideration. But Harper wants to reopen the contract. [Agent Scott Boras] said Harper recently cited Patrick Mahomes’ restructured contract with the Kansas City Chiefs as an example.
Six years after it was signed, Harper’s contract is the eighth-largest in baseball by overall value. But his $25.385 million annual average salary ranks 46th, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, and third among first baseman behind the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman ($27 million) and the Cardinals’ Paul Goldschmidt ($26 million).
Last year, Manny Machado leveraged the opt-out after four seasons of his 10-year, $300 million deal with the Padres to renegotiate an 11-year, $350 million deal. But without an opt-out, it’s more difficult for Harper to lean on the Phillies, who aren’t compelled to do anything. [The Inquirer]
The Phillies' expectations are still set on the World Series, but with the 2024 squad mostly set to run it back, the responsibility all comes down on the returning roster getting better.
Nick Castellanos in particular knows he has to be way better with two-strike counts.
“I’ve thought a lot about how the season ended,” Castellanos said. “Last year sucked. There’s no way around that. But you can use that as fuel.”
They’ve talked about it. Zack Wheeler said he wants to throw a better changeup to give hitters another thing to think about. Kyle Schwarber said he wants to hit the ball the opposite way frequently after seeing a career-high pull rate last year. Alec Bohm said he wants to improve his angle, range and first step at third base.
Castellanos?
“I want to be much better with two strikes,” he said. “Punching out 180 times is way too much.” [MLB.com]
This is Boots:
Meet Boots, the BayCare Ballpark cat. Grounds crew says she takes care of mice and geckos. She is scared of batting practice so the players don’t see her around a lot, but every once in a while, they do pic.twitter.com/0Yxclwq5jm
— Alex Coffey (@byalexcoffey) February 18, 2024
We appreciate you, Boots.
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