Padres, Nick Castellanos Agree To Contract
The Padres and outfielder Nick Castellanos have agreed to a Major League deal, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post (multiple links). Castellanos will earn $780K on the contract, which is the MLB minimum salary for the 2026 season. The Padres have an open spot on their 40-man roster, so no corresponding move will be required once the deal is finalized by Castellanos passing a physical. Castellanos is represented by Mato Sports Management.
After signing Miguel Andujar to a one-year, $4MM guarantee a few days ago, San Diego has now added another veteran right-handed bat to its list of DH or bench candidates. Castellanos will also be in the first base mix, as per The Athletic’s Dennis Lin, which is noteworthy since Castellanos has never played the position during his pro career. Given how Castellanos has struggled badly in the field as a third baseman and corner outfielder over his career, a move to first base is seemingly long overdue, though Castellanos has been blocked at the position throughout pretty much the entirety of his 13-year MLB tenure.
The left-handed hitting Gavin Sheets is lined up as the Padres’ top choice at first base, so Castellanos makes sense as a platoon partner. Ramon Laureano figures to get most of the time in left field, so Andujar will be used primarily as a DH, providing competition for Castellanos at another spot. Castellanos’ old position of right field is filled by Fernando Tatis Jr., so Castellanos probably won’t be getting much or any time in right unless Tatis is hurt or is getting a DH day.
Given the Padres’ stated need for hitting depth, they were seen as a potential candidate to acquire Castellanos during the Phillies’ winter-long attempts to find a trade partner, and Lin reports that the two teams did indeed have some trade talks before Castellanos was released two days ago. It would seem like the Padres (and other teams) were willing to just wait the Phillies out on a Castellanos release rather than give up anything in value, as the Phils didn’t exactly have much leverage given how open the front office has been for months about their desire to move on from Castellanos.
The Padres’ $780K commitment will be subtracted from the $20MM owed to Castellanos in 2026, leaving the Phillies on the hook for $19.22MM in the final season of the five-year, $100MM deal the slugger signed during the 2021-22 offseason. That nine-figure investment translated to 0.8 fWAR and a perfectly average 100 wRC+ over four seasons and 2477 plate appearances, with Castellanos hitting .260/.306/.426 and 82 home runs in a Philadelphia uniform.
This so-so offense was paired with very subpar right field defense, as Castellanos was locked into an outfield position due to Kyle Schwarber‘s presence at DH, and Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper acting as the starting first basemen. Castellanos’ lack of production on the field led to some tension off the field, as detailed by The Athletic’s Matt Gelb two days ago. Castellanos bristled at suggestions that he should alter his swing or be removed from games for defensive purposes, and he clashed with manager Rob Thomson and hitting coach Kevin Long.
The low point came last June 16, when Castellanos was removed for a late-game sub and Castellanos had to be prevented by teammates from drinking a beer in the dugout as a public protest of Thomson’s decision. Castellanos addressed this incident and apologized in a post on his Instagram page, but he’ll surely face plenty of questions about his controversial Phillies stint when he arrives at the Padres’ spring camp.
It remains to be seen if Castellanos can play first base at a passable level, or if he’ll be able to adjust to more of a part-time role after taking such pride in being an everyday regular throughout his career. The simple fact is that Castellanos has no choice but to adjust, as he is now entering his age-34 season and is looking to revive his career following his disappointing run in Philadelphia.
A bounce-back performance would go a long way towards reviving Castellanos’ value for future contracts following the 2026 campaign. He’ll get that chance on another NL contender in San Diego, and there is some irony in the fact Castellanos is joining a Padres team that has seen more than its share of clubhouse tumult over the last few years. A revolving door in the manager’s office has contributed to the Padres’ issues behind the scenes, and new hire Craig Stammen will be San Diego’s fourth different skipper since Opening Day 2020.
Phillies Release Nick Castellanos
The Phillies have released outfielder Nick Castellanos, per a club announcement. He’s now a free agent who can sign with any club for the league minimum.
Castellanos was slated to report to camp in the next few days. He’ll now stay at home and wait to learn where his next opportunity will come. He’s entering the final season of a five-year, $100MM contract that calls for a $20MM salary in 2026. The Phillies will remain on the hook for the entirety of that sum, minus the prorated portion of the league minimum paid to him by any other club who picks him up for even a portion of the season.
Today’s release should come as no surprise. Castellanos stood as an obvious trade or release candidate at season’s end, even before early-November reporting suggested that the Phils would cut ties with him. Earlier this week, it became clear that an inflection point was fast approaching. The Phillies weren’t able to find a taker for even a portion of Castellanos’ salary, it seems, so he’ll now head back to the open market and see if there’s interest from another team as a league-minimum player or minor league/non-roster player in camp.
Philadelphia’s signing of Castellanos always came as something of a surprise. They’d already signed Kyle Schwarber on a four-year, $79MM deal prior to signing Castellanos in the 2021-22 offseason. Both players profile as bat-first corner outfielders who are better suited for DH work, but the Phils opted to ink both to long-term deals, ensuring that one of the two would be in the outfield on a regular basis. That wound up being Castellanos more than Schwarber, and his annually poor glovework has only worsened over the course of his four seasons in Philly.
The hope for the Phils was that Castellanos’ bat would outweigh the negative contributions he’d made with his glove. He’d turned in a huge .309/.362/.576 slash with the Reds the season prior and was carrying an impressive .290/.345/.527 slash over the four years leading up to his Phillies deal.
Things didn’t pan out that way. Castellanos’ bat immediately went south in 2022. He hit just .263/.305/.389 in his first season of that five-year contract. He bounced back to an extent over the next two years (.263/.311/.454) but was barely above replacement level due to poor defense (-20 Defensive Runs Saved, -13 Outs Above Average). The 2025 season marked another step back. Castellanos hit .250/.294/.400 — about 10% worse than league-average, by measure of wRC+ — and was dinged for -11 DRS and -12 OAA.
The Phillies might still have tried to coax something out of Castellanos in 2026 had tensions between the player and club not boiled over during the season. Castellanos was removed from a close game in Miami for defensive purposes and benched the next day after what manager Rob Thomson called an “inappropriate” comment. Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported after the season ended that Castellanos’ teammates and coaches were “disgusted” by what he’d said. The outfielder later took a shot at Thomson’s communication skills down the stretch in the final weeks of the season.
Castellanos himself addressed the “Miami incident,” as he termed it, in a post on Instagram today. He made no mention of the comment that apparently rankled so many of his teammates but admitted to bringing a beer into the dugout out of frustration after being lifted from the game by Thomson.
“After being taken out of a close ball game in front of my friends and family, I brought a Presidente into the dugout,” the Miami-area native wrote. “I then sat right next to Rob and let him know that too much slack in some areas and too tight of restrictions in others was not conducive to us winning.”
In his note today, Castellanos thanked his teammates for taking the drink from his hand before he actually took a sip, apologized to them and reiterated that he apologized to both Thomson and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski for letting his emotions get the better of him. He added that he was prepared to share the details of the incident with the media at the time it happened but was instructed not to by Phillies management.
The question now becomes one of which — if any — team will be willing to give Castellanos a fresh start in hopes that he can get back to his prior levels of offense. While he still hit for a decent average and knocked in 70-plus runs in each of the past three seasons in Philadelphia, much of that had to do with lineup placement and a strong cast ahead of him (e.g. Trea Turner, Bryce Harper, Schwarber).
Castellanos has never walked much and has turned in three of his four career-low walk rates since donning a Phillies uniform. The plus power he showed with the Tigers, Cubs and Reds prior to signing in Philadelphia has dwindled, too; he posted an ISO (slugging percentage minus batting average) north of .200 for six straight seasons prior to his Phillies tenure (.229 overall). He topped .200 just once with the Phillies, in 2023, when he logged a .204 mark. He’s lost two miles per hour on his bat speed over the past three seasons and posted below-average numbers against fastballs for the first time in his career in 2025, hitting .236 with a meek .368 slugging percentage versus four-seamers.
A club with DH at-bats to spare could well look into Castellanos, but it’s unlikely anyone would sign him to log significant time in the outfield. Teams will surely be wary of the manner in which his relationship with the Phillies deteriorated as well. For instance, Isaac Azout of Fish On First reports that the Marlins, despite lacking an obvious solution at designated hitter, aren’t interested in bringing Castellanos into the fold.
Phillies Looking To Move Nick Castellanos This Week
Phillies position players are scheduled for their first official workout next Monday. It’d make for an awkward situation if Nick Castellanos is still on the team. Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported at the end of last season that the Phils would trade or release the outfielder. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has all but confirmed as much on the record, pointing to the need for a change of scenery.
Keeping Castellanos on the 40-man roster into Spring Training would be a needless distraction. It comes as little surprise that the Phils are motivated to get something done within the next week. “We’re doing everything we can to make a move by (Monday),” Dombrowski told reporters (link via Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer). “I’ll leave it at that right now.”
Dombrowski noted that they’re “(continuing) to talk to clubs” in trying to line up a trade. Whether that’s gamesmanship should soon be apparent. Castellanos isn’t going to net the Phillies any notable prospects. They’re trying to offload a fraction of the $20MM salary he’s owed in the final season of a five-year deal.
A release would leave the Phils on the hook for all but the $780K league minimum, assuming he signs a major league deal with another team. The hope is to find a team willing to eat a couple million dollars of that salary rather than waiting until the Phillies release him. If Castellanos becomes a free agent, he’d obviously have a choice of where to sign. He doesn’t have that freedom if a team lines up a trade that saves the Phillies a little bit of money.
The outfielder’s relationship with Philly manager Rob Thomson seemingly became untenable. Castellanos was benched for a game midway through last season after he made what the manager called “an inappropriate comment” after being removed from a game for defensive purposes. As his playing time decreased down the stretch, Castellanos took a shot at Thomson’s communication skills. Philadelphia signed the veteran skipper to an extension this offseason and added Adolis García on a $10MM free agent deal to replace Castellanos as the everyday right fielder.
Castellanos is entering his age-34 season. He’s coming off a .250/.294/.400 showing with 17 home runs over 589 plate appearances. He has been durable and has twice topped 20 home runs during his time in Philadelphia, but his rate statistics (.260/.306/.426) are exactly league average. That’s not what the Phillies had in mind considering Castellanos is arguably the game’s worst defensive outfielder. He should be a full-time designated hitter but obviously doesn’t have that luxury on a team with Kyle Schwarber.
FanGraphs and Baseball Reference each had Castellanos below replacement level last year. That said, a team that can offer him DH at-bats should view him as a capable complementary bat from the right side. The acquisition cost will be minimal, and a 20-homer season with strong numbers against lefty pitching doesn’t seem out of the question.
The Padres are looking for another bat in the DH/bench mix and made an unsuccessful run at signing Paul Goldschmidt away from the Yankees. The Guardians could use a right-handed complement to lefty swingers Kyle Manzardo, George Valera and C.J. Kayfus between first base, right field and designated hitter. No team had fewer home runs or a lower slugging percentage from their right-handed bats than Cleveland. The Marlins ranked 25th in slugging among righties and don’t have a clear answer at first base, and Castellanos is a Miami native. His old team in Detroit doesn’t have much in the way of right-handed power aside from Spencer Torkelson and could use him in a short-side platoon role at DH alongside Kerry Carpenter.
Phillies Notes: Bichette, Roster, Castellanos, Wheeler
The Phillies formally announced their re-signing of catcher J.T. Realmuto this morning. Realmuto, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and manager Rob Thomson were all on hand for a media session conducted over Zoom shortly thereafter. Dombrowski, fielding questions regarding the reported pursuit of Bo Bichette and the late pivot back to Realmuto, candidly acknowledged that his club did indeed feel it was close to closing a deal with Bichette before the Mets jumped in following Kyle Tucker‘s deal with the Dodgers.
“I can’t say that we ever thought it was done,” Dombrowski said when asked if he’d felt they had an agreement in place with Bichette. “We thought we were very close to having a deal done. We thought it was going to happen, but it wasn’t done. … Until you sign a memo of understanding, you don’t have a deal done — and we did not sign one of those. It wasn’t that we weren’t moving toward that direction. It isn’t that we didn’t think we were going to get there. But we just did not get to that point.”
The Bichette talks were serious enough that Dombrowski acknowledged informing Realmuto’s camp that they were likely to go in another direction and wouldn’t be able to make both signings happen at this time. When they got word of Bichette’s deal with the Mets, Dombrowski said he was back on the phone with Realmuto and his agent within an hour or so — his only interim call going to owner John Middleton, to keep him apprised of the situation. The veteran baseball operations executive conceded that it’s a “gut punch” anytime free agent or trade negotiations get to that stage and don’t culminate in a deal before adding, “you can’t just wallow in what took place” and that he had to simply “shake it off” and continue trying to improve his club. Notably, he added that the Phils were never interested in a short-term, opt-out-laden contract with Bichette.
Given that the Phillies were willing to offer a reported $190-200MM to Bichette over a seven-year term, it’s fair to wonder whether there might be some forthcoming additions. Realmuto, after all, commanded less than 25% of that sum in total. Dombrowski, however, at least strongly implied that his club is done with significant spending this winter. Asked about the lingering availability of impact names like Framber Valdez and Cody Bellinger, Dombrowski declined to get into specifics regarding any particular free agent but demurred to say:
“I really can’t speak to that, by the baseball rules — because they’re free agents — but I’d just say I think we’re content where we are at this point.”
With Realmuto back in the fold, the Phillies’ current payroll (as projected by RosterResource) sits just over $281MM. They’re at more than $317MM worth of luxury obligations, meaning they’d pay a 110% tax on any subsequent additions to the roster. Based on the Bichette pursuit, it seems Middleton was willing to extend further beyond the current price of the roster, but not that the Phillies have the proverbial money burning a hole in their pockets.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for some smaller-scale additions. Dombrowski alluded to the potential of bringing in some depth options for the rotation. He also candidly confirmed on the record that the team plans to move on from Nick Castellanos in some capacity. Castellanos is owed $20MM this season — the last of a five-year, $100MM contract signed in the 2021-22 offseason. Asked point-blank if he still “expect[s] to make a change of scenery [for Castellanos] before spring training opens,” Dombrowski replied: “Yes, we do. We still plan on doing that.”
A change of scenery has been presumed for months now. The Athletic’s Matt Gelb reported early in the winter that the Phils were likely to either trade or release Castellanos. The latter has seemed likelier all along, if only because finding a taker for even part of Castellanos’ salary is a tall order. The 33-year-old (34 in March) hit .250/.294/.400 with 17 home runs last season — about 10% worse than league-average, by measure of wRC+. That lack of offensive help was coupled with more bottom-of-the-scale defense in the outfield, the second-worst walk rate and average exit velocity of his career, and the lowest hard-hit rate he’s ever posted.
It’s feasible that as spring draws nearer, the Phillies might find a buy-low taker willing to pay a few million of the deal. Even getting someone to take on $2MM of that remaining $20MM would actually trim $4.2MM off the Phillies’ 2026 budget, given the previously mentioned 110% tax they’re paying on every dollar over the top luxury threshold. Clubs like the Pirates, Reds and Royals have been looking for more bats all offseason and could theoretically roll the dice on a hopeful rebound. Other clubs could come calling if they incur some injuries in spring training. For now, Castellanos remains on the roster.
One other item of note from today’s media session included a brief update on injured ace Zack Wheeler. The 35-year-old righty underwent thoracic outlet surgery in late September, and a timeline on his return has been murky. That’s generally still true, but both Dombrowski and Thomson noted that Wheeler has been throwing from flat ground and is up to a distance of 90 feet. Thomson added that Wheeler had a “heavy” workload last week and is expected to be at the team’s spring complex for more throwing on Thursday.
“No timetable, but so far the reports have been good,” Thomson said of his veteran righty.
Wheeler was diagnosed with venous thoracic outlet syndrome late in the season. It’s an ominous injury but the less severe form of TOS (as opposed to neurogenic TOS). Venous TOS comes with blood clots that can be life threatening but, as D-backs righty Merrill Kelly explained to Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post several years ago, a “more straightforward” diagnosis and recovery. (Kelly pitched nearly a full season in 2021, the year after his venous TOS procedure, and has since done the best work of his career over the past four seasons.)
The original timetable for Wheeler was six to eight months, though every rehab process is unique and contingent upon the individual pitcher’s body. It’s encouraging that Wheeler appears to be on track, but the fact that he’s not yet working off a mound with only three weeks until pitchers and catchers report doesn’t bode well for hitting the shorter end of that window. A six-month return would’ve put Wheeler in games by late March, just prior to Opening Day. Eight months would set him back until around Memorial Day weekend. The Phillies will surely have plenty of updates as spring training progresses.
In Wheeler’s absence, the Philadelphia rotation will include Cy Young runner-up Cristopher Sanchez, Jesus Luzardo, Aaron Nola and Taijuan Walker. Longtime top prospect Andrew Painter is the current favorite for the fifth spot, but he has yet to make a major league debut and struggled in Triple-A last year during his return season from Tommy John surgery. Righties Yoniel Curet, Alan Rangel and Jean Cabrera are all on the 40-man roster, but none of that trio has a major league start under his belt. Adding at least one veteran swingman or starter, if not two, seems like a prudent course of action — even if it’s only on a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training.
Phillies Notes: Outfield, Castellanos, Rotation
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski spoke with the media this week and said that the club was mostly set with their outfield after the Adolis García signing. Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports that the club is looking for a right-handed platoon bat to add into the mix.
That’s a sensible target, given the current setup. García should have right field spoken for with Brandon Marsh in left. The Phils want to give Justin Crawford a chance to take over the center field job. Both Marsh and Crawford are lefties. Marsh has notable career splits, with a .213/.278/.303 line and 61 wRC+ against southpaws in his career. Crawford actually fared slightly better against lefties in the minors this year but in a tiny sample of just 91 plate appearances against southpaws.
Having another righty bat who hits lefties well would make sense, particularly to platoon with Marsh. Crawford is more of a speed-and-defense guy anyway. He has hit well in the minors but with a high-contact, low-power approach that might be harder to pull off when facing better pitching and better defense in the majors. Time will tell how it plays but the Phils might be willing to live with whatever offense he can provide against lefties if he’s stealing bases and running the ball down on the grass.
Gelb mentions Rob Refsnyder as the kind of profile the Phillies are looking for, a righty bat who has mashed lefties in his career. He is one of many free agents to fit this profile, alongside guys like Miguel Andujar, Randal Grichuk, Austin Hays, Tommy Pham, Austin Slater and others. Old friend Harrison Bader would be a nice fit but he can probably get an everyday center field job elsewhere.
The Phils also have a potential solution already on the roster in Nick Castellanos. His offense has tailed off in recent years but he has largely stayed effective with the platoon advantage. He didn’t hit well against pitchers of either handedness in 2025 but still hit lefties as recently as 2024, when he had a .269/.324/.506 line and 124 wRC+ in the split.
Gelb reported back in October that the Phils would likely trade or release Castellanos. He re-asserted that position in this week’s column, linked above. It’s an interesting dynamic for the Phils as Castellanos is potentially the profile they are looking for but it seems they will look elsewhere. Perhaps that’s due to his defensive shortcomings or the fact that he hit just .243/.293/.387 against lefties in 2025 for an 87 WRC+.
It’s also theoretically possible that it’s due to off-the-field dynamics. Castellanos and manager Rob Thomson don’t seem to have the best relationship. Castellanos was benched in June for some kind of inappropriate comment made to the skipper, per ESPN. Castellanos also publicly criticized Thomson for his communication skills. With the apparent friction, perhaps things would get even worse if Castellanos were bumped into a part-time, short-side platoon role.
Whatever the reasoning, it seems the Phils are in a strange position. Castellanos is still owed $20MM next year. If they can’t find a trade partner, they could end up releasing him. It appears they will also look for a replacement, probably spending another $5MM or so on some new guy. The Phillies are a repeat tax payor and are over the top line, meaning that they pay a 110% tax on any additional spending. In the end, it’s possible they give Castellanos $20MM to go away, then spend a few million more on his replacement, plus taxes.
On the pitching side, Gelb reports that the Phils are looking for rotation depth but don’t appear to be looking for any guys on multi-year contracts. That makes some sense with what they have in place already, as they have a few questions but might have enough arms.
Zack Wheeler is recovering from surgery to address venous thoracic outlet syndrome. He is expected to begin the season on the injured list but could rejoin the rotation fairly early in the campaign. While he’s out, the Phils should start the season with a rotation consisting of Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker and Andrew Painter.
There’s an argument for the club to sign another starter but things could theoretically get tight once Wheeler is back. If they did sign a big free agent, then there’s a scenario fairly early in the season where this free agent, Wheeler, Sánchez, Luzardo and Nola have the five rotation spots. That would bump Walker to long relief and Painter to Triple-A.
The Phils might actually want to have a path open for Painter in case 2026 is his breakout year. His 5.40 earned run average in Triple-A this year wasn’t pretty but that was mostly due to a home run spike, unusual for him. 17.6% of his fly balls allowed went over the fence, whereas he was at just 5.6% in 2022 before getting hurt. This year’s 23.7% strikeout rate and 9% walk rate were pretty close to average.
While Wheeler is out, the Phils can give Painter a chance to hold a rotation spot. By the time Wheeler gets back, the Phils can decide whether Painter needs more Triple-A time or if he’s ready to take off.
This all assumes everyone is healthy at the same time. Given the likelihood of injuries to the pitching staff, perhaps the Phils should bolster the group anyway. With Walker and Luzardo impending free agents, signing a multi-year deal now would also help the club in 2027.
However, the club’s 2026 payroll is already pretty close to where they were in 2025. According to RosterResource, they are within $14MM of where they finished the most recent season. If they re-sign J.T. Realmuto as hoped, they would end up making up most or all of that difference. In terms of CBT, as mentioned, they are already over the top line and facing a 110% on further spending. Rather than go after a big splash for the rotation, they will add some depth but will mostly be hoping that the guys they already have can step up.
Photo courtesy of Kyle Ross, Imagn Images
Phillies’ Outfield Largely Set; Justin Crawford To Get Opportunity In Center
The Phillies finalized their one-year deal with free agent outfielder Adolis Garcia, and that’s likely to be their only notable addition in the outfield this winter, it seems. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski tells the team’s beat that the outfield is “pretty well set” (via Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer). Garcia is expected to play right field regularly. Brandon Marsh will be in left field versus right-handed pitching. Most notably, top prospect Justin Crawford will be given a chance to take the center field job and run with it.
“If you’re going to give Crawford an opportunity, you’ve got to give it to him, and that’s where we are,” said Dombrowski. “We’re going to give him an opportunity and have him play a lot.”
Crawford, 22 next month, was Philadelphia’s first-round pick (17th overall) in 2022. He’s considered to be among the game’s top 100 prospects at both MLB.com (No. 54) and Baseball America (No. 83). There was talk of a potential midsummer promotion this past season, but Philadelphia’s acquisition of Harrison Bader (now a free agent) presumably contributed to the decision to leave Crawford in the minors, where he thrived with the Phillies’ top affiliate. Based on today’s comments from Dombrowski, a reunion with Bader seems unlikely.
Crawford has minimal power but plus speed that could make him a rangy, quality defender in center. He also upped his walk rate to a career-high 11.5% in 2025, nearly doubling his rate from 2024, while hitting .334/.411/.452 with seven homers and 46 steals (in 57 tries) at the Triple-A level this past season. Crawford struck out in 18% of his plate appearances and made the most of his wheels, putting nearly 60% of his batted balls on the ground.
If nothing else, a Marsh-Crawford-Garcia trio should have a strong floor as a defensive trio. Marsh has plus grades in left field throughout his career (19 Defensive Runs Saved, 9 Outs Above Average in 1751 innings), Crawford can fly (though some scouting reports suggest he needs further work on his reads and jumps), and Garcia has been an above-average to plus right fielder every season except 2024 (when he’d suffered a strained patellar tendon in the final weeks of the preceding season). For a club that spent much of last year trotting Marsh out in center field, where he’s miscast, and gave a team-leading 1208 outfield innings to Nick Castellanos, the defensive upgrade should be immense.
As for Castellanos, it seems increasingly clear that his Phillies tenure has come to an end. He’s owed $20MM next season, the last of a five-year, $100MM contract that hasn’t gone as the team hoped. Castellanos hasn’t hit like he did in Chicago and Cincinnati prior to signing with the Phils, and his long-maligned glovework has only worsened. The Phillies have been trying to offload a portion of his contract — no one is taking more than a small fraction of it — without success. It’s expected that he’ll be released if no trade comes to fruition.
The Philadelphia outfield isn’t so much remade as it is reshuffled, and it bears emphasizing that there are still concerns on the offensive side of the coin. Crawford has yet to take a major league plate appearance. Garcia was a star-caliber hitter with the 2021-23 Rangers, keying their 2023 World Series victory in many regards, but he’s seen a stark decline in performance over the past two seasons. Texas non-tendered him last month, and he’s a pure rebound play for the Phillies heading into the 2026 season.
Meanwhile, Marsh was productive overall in 2025 but is a career .213/.278/.303 hitter versus fellow lefties. He’ll need a platoon partner, clearly. In-house options include Edmundo Sosa, Weston Wilson, Otto Kemp, Johan Rojas and waiver claim Pedro Leon.
Neither Wilson nor Rojas hit lefties well in 2025. Leon has an uneven track record against southpaws in the minors but hit them well in 2024 before barely playing in 2025 due to injury. He’s a 27-year-old with only 21 MLB plate appearances, however. Sosa crushed lefties last year, but the Phils only put him in the outfield for a total of 11 innings. He’s primarily an infielder. Kemp popped four homers in 74 plate appearances versus lefties but also fanned at a 35.1% clip in those matchups. Like Sosa, he spent the bulk of his time in the infield, too.
The Phillies could look to address that platoon bat for Marsh with any number of those in-house options, but despite Dombrowski’s statement today, it also wouldn’t be a huge shock to see them keep an eye on the periphery of the free agent market for righty-swinging outfielders. There aren’t a ton of options out there, but names like Randal Grichuk, Austin Slater and Chas McCormick could all potentially help out. The trade and waiver markets will be worth monitoring as well.
That’ll all take a backseat to one other critical area, however. Dombrowski noted today that catching is “really our main focus” (also via Lauber) and reiterated a desire to re-sign J.T. Realmuto. The Phillies reportedly have an offer out to Realmuto’s camp. A reunion is generally expected, but if he signs elsewhere the Phils would be left looking, with Rafael Marchan and Garrett Stubbs atop the depth chart. Danny Jansen is already off the board on a two-year deal with Texas, leaving Victor Caratini as the top non-Realmuto option in free agency.
Phillies Sign Adolis Garcia To One-Year Deal
December 16th: The Phils officially announced the signing today.
December 15th: The Phillies have agreed to a one-year deal with free agent outfielder Adolis Garcia, reports Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com. It’s still pending a physical. He’ll earn a guaranteed $10MM on the contract, per the report. Garcia is represented by Octagon.
Garcia was non-tendered by the Rangers last month. He’d been projected for a $12.1MM salary in 2026, his final year of arbitration, per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. Texas, looking to cut payroll and reshape an offense that had become to free-swinging and prone to low on-base percentages, moved on from Garcia rather than bring him back at that price.
Back in 2023, Garcia was a focal point in the offense that fueled the Rangers’ first-ever World Series title. He bashed 39 homers while hitting .245/.328/.508 with plus defense in right field. That alone made him one of the shrewdest DFA pickups in recent memory, but it didn’t set the stage for him to emerge as a core piece like many expected at the time. His 2024 numbers took a major step back (.224/.284/.400), and in 2025 he slashed just .227/.271/.394. Increasingly, Garcia became emblematic of the boom-or-bust approach the Rangers were trying to escape.
Garcia, 33 in March, still makes thunderous contact when he connects with the ball, averaging 92.1 mph off the bat and logging a stout 46.7% hard-hit rate. However, his chase rate on pitches off the plate has spiked from 29.5% in 2023 to 35.1% in 2025. His overall contact rate in ’25 sat about five percentage points shy of league-average, and his 79.5% contact rate on pitches within the zone is six percentage points shy of average. Swinging through a bit more than one of every five offerings within the strike zone is nothing new for Garcia, but that flaw has been compounded expanding the percentage of pitches at which he’s willing to swing.
The Phillies will hope for a return to that 2023 form — or at least something closer to that production than Garcia’s 2024-25 numbers. Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports that he’ll slot in as the Phillies’ new primary right fielder. That’s a role previously held by Nick Castellanos, whom the Phils have been hoping to trade throughout the offseason.
One way or another, Castellanos’ time in Philadelphia appears all but finished. He’s expected to be released if no trade comes together. The 33-year-old (34 in March) is owed $20MM next season in the final year of a five-year, $100MM contract that hasn’t at all gone as the Phillies hoped. That was never truer than in 2025, when Castellanos slashed a career-worst .250/.294/.400 and was valued below replacement level per both FanGraphs and Baseball-Reference due to those light rate stats and his poor defense in the outfield.
If nothing else, Garcia represents a massive defensive upgrade over Castellanos, who has long been viewed as a player best suited for DH-only work. Garcia has posted strong defensive grades in every season except 2024. His poor defensive grades that season could be tied to a knee injury suffered late in 2023, when Garcia hit the injured list with a strained patellar tendon. He returned from that injury and was a force at the plate in the postseason, but Garcia’s sprint speed (per Statcast) was a career-low in 2024. It bounced back a bit in 2025, albeit not all the way to its previous levels.
Still, Statcast painted the reason for Garcia’s 2024 downturn in defense as a major loss of range — his arm was still plus — which bounced back considerably in ’25. It’s reasonable to expect the former Gold Glove winner to provide above-average, if not plus defense. Compared to Castellanos, who was dinged for -11 Defensive Runs Saved last year, Garcia’s mark of +16 in that same category is a mammoth improvement.
There’s also still some hope that a change in scenery could bring about a rebound in the batter’s box. Garcia will work with renowned hitting coach Kevin Long in Philadelphia and be surrounded by a slew of veteran hitters, including Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Trea Turner. He’ll also be playing in a home park that’s friendlier to hitters than the Rangers’ Globe Life Field and have a stronger supporting cast around him in Philadelphia than he had in Arlington.
Adding Garcia to the mix bumps Philadelphia’s payroll north of $266MM, per RosterResource, while pushing the team’s projected luxury tax obligations to more than $297MM. The Phillies were already in the third luxury tier and are now within a few million of hitting the fourth and final bracket. They’ll pay a 95% tax on Garcia’s annual value, meaning he’ll actually cost the Phillies $19.5MM overall. That figure could change if the Phils are able to shed some of the Castellanos contract in a trade or if they move other pieces, but the Phillies also probably aren’t done adding. They’ll likely end up in that top luxury tier — or at the very least in the third tier, where they currently sit.
The Phils will likely have Garcia in right field and Brandon Marsh in left field on most days. They’ve looked into potential center field additions but also have top prospect Justin Crawford on the verge of an MLB look. Johan Rojas could get some time in center if Crawford doesn’t prove ready; Rojas is a light hitter but plus defender who still has a minor league option remaining. He’s a viable fourth outfielder or Triple-A depth, depending on the remaining slate of offseason additions and on how Crawford looks this spring.
Regardless of how center field pans out, this should be a much better defensive unit in 2026, and Garcia’s batted-ball metrics and track record create some hope that he could be a meaningful upgrade in the lineup, too. It’s a relatively pricey one-year gamble when factoring in the associated luxury hit, but Garcia comes with a nice defensive floor and more upside than most players available at this price point.
Phillies Have Offer Out To J.T. Realmuto
The Phillies secured a reunion with one of their key veteran free agents Tuesday morning when they signed Kyle Schwarber to a five-year deal, and now it appears their attention will return to their other veteran hitter who reached free agency last month. Philadelphia has an offer on the table for veteran catcher J.T. Realmuto, according to a report from Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. The details of that offer aren’t presently known, though The Athletic’s Matt Gelb adds that Realmuto is “expected” to ultimately return to Philadelphia in 2026 and suggests that he may do so on a two-year deal. Even so, Gelb makes clear that Realmuto is continuing to survey the free agent market.
The veteran backstop will play next season at the age of 35 and is coming off his worst season since his rookie campaign back in 2015. Realmuto slashed just .257/.315/.384 with a 94 wRC+ in 134 games this year. It’s the third-lowest on-base percentage and the lowest slugging percentage of his career, ignoring an 11-game cup of coffee during the 2014 season. Between Realmuto’s age and down season at the plate, it might seem likely that he would be poised to find a soft market in free agency this winter.
That’s not how things have played out, however. Realmuto has established a solid floor as a two-win regular behind the plate, and that’s allowed him to remain a valuable commodity due to a dearth of catching talent around the league. Danny Jansen and Victor Caratini are the next best options available in free agency behind Realmuto, but Jansen’s 72-game 2022 season is the only campaign in either player’s career where they’ve reached the 2.0 fWAR benchmark that Realmuto has established as a floor over the past three seasons.
Additionally, teams might be less concerned about Realmuto’s near-term future behind the plate given the fact that ABS is coming to the majors in 2026 by way of the challenge system; Realmuto has been a slightly below-average blocker and well above-average at controlling the running game behind the plate in recent years, but lackluster framing numbers have held back his overall defensive value. With the challenge system likely to reduce the impact of catcher framing, perhaps teams are a little more comfortable with using a catcher with a lackluster recent track record when it comes to pitch framing than they otherwise would have been.
Whether it’s Realmuto’s steady floor or the rule changes that will impact his job in 2026, he’s managed to garner some real interest around the league this winter. The Red Sox and Rangers are both known to have interest in Realmuto, though the fit in Texas has been downplayed by significant questions regarding the club’s ability to afford the expected price tag attached to the veteran. MLBTR predicted a two-year, $30MM guarantee for Realmuto, and as the Rangers look to cut payroll this winter it seems reasonable to expect that adding a $15MM salary to the books won’t be in the cards this winter barring a payroll-reducing trade elsewhere on the roster. The same is likely to go for other teams likely to pursue catching help this winter like the Rays and Padres.
That could make Realmuto’s market something of a two-horse race between Boston and Philadelphia, and with Carlos Narvaez locked in for the lion’s share of starts with the Red Sox next year it’s easy to see why the Phillies stand as the likely favorite. Should Philadelphia reunite with Realmuto this winter, however, both Zolecki and Gelb suggest that it might be difficult for the team to make other impact additions without first clearing salary elsewhere on the roster. Gelb notes that while Philadelphia is expected to carry a payroll north of $300MM in 2026, they’re already not too far off from that mark.
According to RosterResource, Philadelphia’s luxury tax payroll sits just under $289MM after the Schwarber deal. Assuming the Phillies plan on a payroll in the same vicinity as last year’s $314MM figure, that leaves the club with $25MM left to spend. Should Realmuto take up around $15MM of that money as the club projects, that would leave just $10MM for the team to use when revamping their outfield mix. That might not be enough to re-sign Harrison Bader, who the Phillies are known to have interest in, and could instead leave them looking at some of the lesser options available in a thin outfield market like Austin Hays, Mike Yastrzemski, Mike Tauchman, and Rob Refsnyder.
Of course, another option would be for the Phillies to look to shed payroll elsewhere on their roster in order to create financial flexibility. That the Phillies are planning to move on from Nick Castellanos this winter is one of the league’s worst-kept secrets. While they evidently plan to try and work out a trade involving the veteran in hopes of saving on at least some of his $20MM salary for next year, the club is lacking in leverage to get that sort of deal done and might wind up releasing him. Gelb suggests that a trade of someone like Alec Bohm or Matt Strahm could be a more likely way to save money, and either player would certainly have more value on the market than Castellanos.
Strahm is due $7.5MM in 2026 and has been a reliable setup man for the Phillies in each of the past three seasons, while Bohm has a 110 wRC+ at third base over the past two years and is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for $10.3MM in his final trip through arbitration this winter. Trading both players would free up nearly $18MM in the budget, which would be more than enough to re-up with Bader and Realmuto while still leaving some money left over to add someone like Willi Castro or Yoan Moncada to the mix who could help Edmundo Sosa handle the hot corner until top prospect Aidan Miller is ready to step into the big league lineup. Zolecki notes that Miller could be ready as soon as this coming summer, while fellow top prospects Andrew Painter and Justin Crawford figure to have every opportunity to break camp with the team on Opening Day.
MLBTR Podcast: The Phillies’ Outfield, Tarik Skubal, And Hiring College Coaches
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The Blue Jays making it to the World Series and how being a baseball writer can dull your fandom (1:20)
- The Phillies reportedly planning to move on from Nick Castellanos (7:10)
- The Tigers making an uninspiring extension offer to Tarik Skubal a year ago (15:30)
- The Giants potentially hiring Tony Vitello to be their new manager (27:50)
- The Brewers reportedly willing to listen to offers on Freddy Peralta (35:20)
Plus, we answer your questions, including…
- What positions do the Astros need to target to make it back to the postseason? (41:55)
- Do the Brewers need to change their contact-over-power approach? (45:20)
- Will Kyle Tucker‘s injuries significantly impact his payday? (47:10)
- Should the Padres try to sign J.T. Realmuto or stick with Freddy Fermin and Luis Campusano? (49:50)
Check out our past episodes!
- Murakami To Be Posted This Offseason, Managerial Vacancies, And More! – listen here
- Rockies’ Front Office Changes, Skip Schumaker, And ABS Talk – listen here
- Mike Elias On The State Of The Orioles – listen here
The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
Poll: Where Will Nick Castellanos Play Next Year?
It appears the Nick Castellanos era in Philadelphia is coming to a close. Reporting yesterday indicated that the Phillies plan to either trade or release Castellanos this winter, ahead of the final season of his five-year contract with the club, following a year where he clashed with club manager Rob Thomson and struggled to produce at the plate or in the field. It remains to be seen whether Castellanos will be traded or released to sign somewhere else on the league minimum, but either way, it seems likely at this point that his next MLB game will come in a different uniform. Which team fits him best? A look at some of the most intriguing landing spots:
Cleveland Guardians
The Guardians are perhaps the most straightforward fit for Castellanos available. They’ve already made clear they hope to upgrade their outfield mix. As a club without much money to spend most years, the fact that Castellanos could be had for a fraction of his salary (or perhaps even the league minimum) has to be enticing. Lackluster as Castellanos’s production was this year, he could be a good fit for a club that produced a wRC+ of just 70 from right field this year between players like Nolan Jones and Jhonkensy Noel. Castellanos perhaps fits best as a DH given his poor defensive abilities, but that opportunity could be available to him as well with Kyle Manzardo likely to take over first base duties after being blocked by Josh Naylor and Carlos Santana in previous years.
Kansas City Royals
Sticking in the AL Central, Castellanos would be an interesting fit for the Royals as well. Kansas City has struggled to find any sort of production in the outfield for years now. This past year, they got a 69 wRC+ (30th in MLB) from right field with a 75 wRC+ (29th in MLB) from left field. Castellanos would surely provide a major upgrade to either of those spots and is capable of playing every day if needed, which would be a step in the right direction for a team that has too often needed to platoon all around the roster recently. One major flaw with Castellanos’s fit in Kansas City, however, is the presence of Salvador Perez. Perez is expected to remain with the Royals next year, whether via club option or a fresh deal, and started 66 games at either DH or first base this year. Any first base starts would push Vinnie Pasquantino to DH, meaning that Castellanos would have to play the field frequently to be a fit for Kansas City’s roster.
San Diego Padres
The Padres might seem like an odd fit for Castellanos’s services at first glance, but San Diego has frequently had to get creative with some of its additions in recent years to balance its budget while filling holes in the roster. That figures to be true once again this winter, with both Dylan Cease and Michael King leaving major holes in the rotation as they head into free agency. Starting pitching figures to be the focus for the Padres this winter, which leaves the club to replace Luis Arraez and Ryan O’Hearn in the lineup at DH on what might be a shoestring budget.
Enter Castellanos, who won’t cost much but could capably handle regular duties at DH while also potentially spelling Fernando Tatis Jr. and Ramon Laureano in the outfield corners. San Diego hasn’t been afraid to take risks on players in need of a rebound in the past. While not all of those shots have landed, they have found success with some, such as Gavin Sheets. If there’s a flaw with Castellanos’s fit in San Diego, it’s perhaps that Sheets played just 13 games at first base this year and the club might view him as their DH headed into the offseason.
Other Options
These teams aren’t the only ones for whom Castellanos would make sense, though they are perhaps the best fits. The Cubs are about to lose Kyle Tucker to free agency but they could slide Seiya Suzuki into the outfield more often, opening the DH spot for Moises Ballesteros. Guys like Owen Caissie and Kevin Alcantara are also around to bolster the outfield mix and are probably better than Castellanos at this point anyway. The Diamondbacks could use Castellanos as a right-handed complement to their heavily left-handed outfield and DH mix, but he might be able to do better than a pure bench role and Blaze Alexander might be better suited for that job anyway. Perhaps the Rangers could sign Castellanos to share time with Joc Pederson at DH and back up lefty outfielders like Evan Carter and Alejandro Osuna if they end up non-tendering Adolis Garcia, though even if that happens they might still prefer to try to reunite with him at a lower price point, given his superior defense. The Pirates got very little production from their offense last year but would be a better fit if Andrew McCutchen departs the club. The Giants got minimal production from right field this year but Rafael Devers is likely to be their everyday DH next year.
Where do MLBTR readers think Castellanos would fit best in 2026? Have your say in the poll below:
For Whom Will Nick Castellanos Play Next Year?
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Somewhere Else (Specify In Comments) 38% (2,203)
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Cleveland Guardians 24% (1,359)
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Kansas City Royals 21% (1,222)
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San Diego Padres 16% (942)
Total votes: 5,726