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Nick Castellanos

Phillies’ Outfield Largely Set; Justin Crawford To Get Opportunity In Center

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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

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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

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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

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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…

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?

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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:

Phillies Expected To Trade Or Release Nick Castellanos

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The Phillies are likely to trade or release Nick Castellanos this offseason, reports Matt Gelb of The Athletic. The veteran outfielder is owed $20MM for the final season of a five-year, $100MM free agent deal.

It has been apparent for the past few months that Castellanos’ time with the organization would probably come to an end this winter. He hasn’t performed up to expectations for most of his time in Philly. He’s coming off a career-worst .250/.294/.400 batting line and lost playing time in the second half.

Castellanos has also had a couple public spats with manager Rob Thomson. The skipper benched Castellanos for a game in June after the player made what Thomson considered “an inappropriate comment” when being lifted for a defensive replacement (ESPN link). Late in the season, Castellanos publicly criticized Thomson for what he called “questionable” communication on players’ roles.

The Phillies have not announced any decisions. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski was asked about the situation at this morning’s end-of-season press conference. “I don’t know. I’m not going to get into specific players that are on our roster under contract. The [incidents] that you talked about are accurate, but we’ll see what happens,” he replied (link via Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer).

Obviously, the Phillies would prefer to find a trade partner than to simply release Castellanos. That won’t be easy. Other teams will be aware of the soured relationship. Even if things hadn’t gone south off the field, he’s coming off a season in which both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference felt he was below replacement level. Castellanos ranked among the bottom 20 hitters (minimum 500 plate appearances) in on-base percentage. He tied with Jo Adell and Juan Soto for an MLB-worst 12 outs below average among outfielders. He probably would have been a primary designated hitter if he weren’t teammates with Kyle Schwarber.

Castellanos did connect on 17 homers while driving in 72 runs. He’d topped 20 homers in each of the previous two seasons. He has not gone on the injured list in three seasons and has hit .282/.329/.463 against left-handed pitching over the past four years. He’d still be an offensive upgrade for some teams as a part-time outfielder/DH.

Teams aren’t going to assume a notable portion of a $20MM salary for that kind of role. The Phils will hope to find a club willing to take $3-5MM off their hands for a nominal return. Failing that, it seems they’d simply eat the contract and release him. Castellanos could then sign anywhere for the league minimum with the Phillies on the hook for the rest of the money. The Guardians, Royals, Rangers and Padres are among the teams that need more production out of the outfield and/or designated hitter.

Moving on from Castellanos will be one of multiple changes to the Phils’ outfield. Harrison Bader and Max Kepler are headed to free agency. (Bader will decline his end of a mutual option and sign a multi-year deal.) That leaves Brandon Marsh as the only returning regular. Kepler had a poor season after signing a $10MM free agent deal. Dombrowski acknowledged that he’s unlikely to be re-signed.

The Phils will presumably make an effort to bring Bader back, but they’re also facing the impending free agencies of Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto and Ranger Suárez. While Dombrowski said the Phillies have interest in re-signing each of those players individually, he called it “probably impractical” to get all four of them done. Schwarber and Realmuto feel like the bigger priorities.

That points to a potential Opening Day roster spot for former first-round pick Justin Crawford. The Phillies were mulling a midseason call-up for the 21-year-old outfielder. Crawford probably would’ve debuted had they not managed to acquire Bader from Minnesota at the deadline. He instead spent the season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he hit .334/.411/.452 and stole 46 bases in 112 games.

Crawford remains a somewhat divisive prospect. He has excellent bat-to-ball skills, but his power is limited by a swing designed to hit the ball on the ground. While he has the pure speed for center field, his arm and defensive routes lead many evaluators to project him as a left fielder. That could push Marsh back to center field, perhaps in another platoon with righty-swinging Johan Rojas.

Nick Castellanos Criticizes “Questionable” Communication With Rob Thomson

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Nick Castellanos has gone from being the Phillies’ everyday right fielder into a platoon with Max Kepler, in a reflection of how both players have delivered underwhelming numbers in 2025.  The change has been a little more jarring for Castellanos given his longer history with the team and longer track record as a lineup regular, and it is clear that the veteran isn’t pleased with how things have played out.

Speaking with the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber and other media after yesterday’s 8-2 win over the Diamondbacks, Castellanos stressed that he is “here to do whatever I can to make sure that Philadelphia wins a World Series ring,” and that any talk that he is unhappy “would be creating a narrative.”  However, he also indicated some hard feelings towards manager Rob Thomson, rhetorically asking “who says that?” when a reporter noted that Thomson has been praised for his directness by several players.

“Communication over the years has been questionable, at least in my experience…. There’s just been times where things have been said, and then, over the course of years, I’ll have expectations because I’ll latch on to what’s being said and then actions would be different,” Castellanos said.  “And then I’m kind of left just thinking and whatnot.  But again, like it is what it is.  Adapt, do what I can.  At the end of the day we’re here to win a World Series.”

While Castellanos’ comments indicate a longer-lasting issue, the relationship between player and manager drew public attention on June 17, when Castellanos was benched for the Phillies’ 8-3 loss to the Marlins.  The previous night, Thomson said Castellanos made an “inappropriate” comment after being removed from the game for defensive purposes, and the outfielder was sat out a game as punishment.  Missing that June 17 contest snapped a personal streak of 236 consecutive games played for Castellanos.

As to how the two are communicating lately, Castellanos (perhaps tellingly) referenced playing time, saying “I don’t really talk to Rob all that often.  I play whenever he tells me to play, and then sit whenever he tells me to sit.”

Disputes between players and managers are as old as baseball itself, so while Castellanos’ candor about the situation is newsworthy, it may not create any short-term issues within the Phillies’ clubhouse.  Despite Castellanos’ displeasure, the numbers also suggest that the platoon is working — since the start of September, Kepler is hitting .263/.373/.500 over 51 plate appearances, and Castellanos is batting .323/.353/.548 in 34 PA.

Even with this recent hot streak, Castellanos has still managed only a 94 wRC+, and an overall slash line of .255/.299/.411 (with 17 homers) over 566 PA.  Between his subpar offense and lackluster defense, Castellanos has been worth -0.4 fWAR this season — the second time in his four years in Philadelphia that the veteran has posted a sub-replacement performance.

All in all, Castellanos has generated 1.0 fWAR and an exactly average 100 wRC+ over his four seasons with the Phillies.  It wasn’t what the team expected when signing the slugger to a five-year, $100MM free agent deal, and the final $20MM of that contract is still owed to Castellanos for the 2026 season.  While that isn’t an insignificant sum for a team to just eat, it is fair to wonder if the Phillies might consider simply releasing Castellanos this winter, unless a trade can be worked out that would still very likely require the Phils to cover the bulk of the remaining salary.

For now, Castellanos is simply focused on the playoffs, and refused to consider his future with the Phillies.  “Why would I do that in front of what we have ahead of us?  That would be really selfish and take away from what we’re trying to do as a group….I’m here to win.  [Owner] John Middleton is paying me money so that I can help the Philadelphia Phillies win a World Series,” he said.

Nick Castellanos Losing Playing Time In Phillies’ Outfield

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The Phillies started Max Kepler in right field tonight against Marlins righty Valente Bellozo. That left Nick Castellanos on the bench for the third time in the past four games, all of which came with a right-hander on the mound.

Manager Rob Thomson said Thursday that Kepler would pick up increased playing time against righties (link via Charlotte Varnes of The Athletic). “At this point in the year, I’m going to put out what I think is the best lineup on any given day to win a ballgame,” Thomson said. “There’s still a bit of a rotation, if you want to call it that. If you want to call it a platoon, doesn’t matter to me.”

That won’t leave much playing time for the righty-hitting Castellanos. That’s less about handedness and more a reflection of his numbers in the second half. Castellanos carries a .199/.253/.309 batting line since the All-Star Break. He had a sub-.600 OPS in both July and August. Kepler’s season numbers are poor, but he’s been the much better hitter in recent weeks. The lefty batter owns a .267/.318/.483 slash with a dramatically reduced 12.1% strikeout rate since the beginning of August. That doesn’t include tonight’s performance, in which he chipped in another two knocks and a home run.

The Phils haven’t wanted to give Kepler playing time against left-handed pitching all season. He’s hitting .196/.258/.304 without the platoon advantage. Castellanos will continue to get at-bats against southpaws. The outfield against righty pitching will run Brandon Marsh, Harrison Bader and Kepler from left to right. Castellanos obviously isn’t going to take more than a scattered start at DH or first base from Kyle Schwarber or Bryce Harper. He’ll be relegated to a short-side platoon role barring an injury.

Castellanos is in the fourth season of a five-year deal that pays him $20MM annually. The Phils signed Castellanos and Schwarber within days of one another coming out of the 2022 lockout. The Schwarber contract has been one of the best free agent pickups in recent memory. The Castellanos addition hasn’t worked out nearly as well. He’s been exceptionally durable and racked up counting stats (including a 29-homer season with 106 RBI in 2023). His rate metrics at the plate have been essentially league average, though, and he’s one of the league’s worst defensive outfielders. FanGraphs and Baseball Reference have each valued Castellanos around a cumulative one win above replacement over the past four seasons.

Schwarber, Bader and Kepler are each impending free agents. The Phils could turn left field to former first-round pick Justin Crawford in 2026. It’s tough to imagine they’ll roll with Castellanos as an everyday right fielder next season. They’re going to make an effort to bring Schwarber back at designated hitter. It stands to reason they’ll try to find a trade partner willing to assume a small portion of Castellanos’ salary, but his second-half numbers could leave them weighing an offseason release if they don’t find a taker.

Phillies Rumors: Crawford, Castellanos, Suárez

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If the Phillies are looking for improvements on the trade market this offseason, outfielder Justin Crawford could be one of their most valuable trade chips. The 20-year-old is widely considered one of the top five prospects in the organization, and he’s coming off a strong season in which he hit .313 with 42 stolen bases and a 130 wRC+ between High-A Jersey Shore and Double-A Reading. To that point, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports that the Phillies could indeed be persuaded to part with Crawford, although he implies they aren’t actively shopping the center fielder. In Gelb’s words, Philadelphia has “not excluded Crawford from trade talks” but would only be willing to trade him “for a big-league player with multiple years of club control.”

None of that is necessarily surprising. The Phillies aren’t facing any pressure to trade Crawford, and it’s possible (though unlikely) he could contribute to the big league team as early as this coming season. That being said, if top pitching prospect Andrew Painter and top position player prospect Aidan Miller are all but untouchable (which seems to be the case), the Phillies would almost certainly have to include Crawford in a trade for an impactful major leaguer with more than one year of team control. Philadelphia has not yet been formally linked to any trade candidates this offseason, but the first name that comes to mind as a potential target is White Sox ace Garrett Crochet. The Phillies were interested in Crochet at the trade deadline but balked when the White Sox demanded Painter as part of the return package. If Philadelphia is still unwilling to trade Painter, it’s hard to imagine they could land Crochet without including Crawford in the deal.

Gelb also mentioned that the Phillies are at least casually looking to trade Nick Castellanos this winter. Although it would be quite surprising if such a trade materialized, it’s not hard to see why the Phillies would make him available. Even by the most charitable of metrics, Castellanos has been a disappointment on the five-year, $100MM contract he signed prior to the 2022 season. With a 105 wRC+ in 2024, he was barely better than league average at the plate while offering no additional value with his glove or his legs. Yet, for those exact reasons, the Phillies will have a tough time trading him unless they eat the vast majority of the $40MM remaining on his contract for 2025 and ’26. Castellanos still offers value as a durable, contact-oriented hitter with good splits against left-handed pitching, not to mention as a well-liked presence in the clubhouse and within the fanbase. In other words, there’s little reason the Phillies should want to pay him to play for another team without getting anything meaningful back in return.

If the Phillies are planning to shake up their major league roster, a couple of more realistic trade candidates include third baseman Alec Bohm and left-handed starting pitcher Ranger Suárez. Gelb reports that Philadelphia has tried to “gauge other clubs’ interest” in both players. Bohm has been one of the more talked-about trade candidates of the offseason so far, but the fact that the Phillies are actively shopping Suárez, even if just to get a sense of his market, is newer information.

President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has repeatedly discussed a need to be “open-minded” this winter, telling reporters, including Todd Zolecki of MLB.com, that the Phillies might need to “trade good players for good players.” Naturally, that has led to no shortage of speculation about the “good players” to whom Dombrowski could be referring. Bohm, Suárez, second baseman Bryson Stott, and outfielder Brandon Marsh all seem like plausible trade candidates. Until today, however, Bohm was the only one whose name had come up in any credible trade rumors.

Suárez’s trade value is slightly complicated. On the one hand, he’s coming off what was almost certainly the best season of his career. Over 27 starts, the southpaw threw 150 2/3 innings with a 3.46 ERA and 3.61 SIERA, making the NL All-Star team and setting a new career high with 3.5 FanGraphs WAR. On the other hand, he spent time on the injured list for the third year in a row and didn’t look nearly as sharp upon his return. He put up a 5.74 ERA and 4.37 SIERA in his final seven regular season starts.

Therefore, it makes sense that the Phillies are trying to figure out how other teams might value his arm in a trade. Dombrowski has no good reason to sell low on Suárez. However, if he gets a strong enough offer, it’s not as if he doesn’t have ways to replace Suárez in the rotation. The aforementioned possibility of trading for Crochet is one route the Phillies could take. In addition, Painter is likely to pitch meaningful innings out of the rotation at some point in 2025. Moreover, while the Phillies have not yet been linked to any of the top starting pitchers on the free agent market, that would surely change if Suárez were out of the picture.

In a bit of additional Phillies news, the team has hired Blake Crosby to fll the role of assistant director, international scouting. He was formerly a special assignment scout for the Pirates.

Rays’ Edwin Uceta Suspended Two Games

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4:36pm: The suspension was reduced to two games, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 (X link). Uceta also received an undisclosed fine.

3:56pm: Uceta will not appeal the decision, Cash tells Topkin. The right-hander’s three-game suspension will begin tonight.

2:55pm: Major League Baseball announced this afternoon that Rays righty Edwin Uceta has received a three-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for throwing at Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos in last night’s game. Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash has received a one-game suspension. Uceta can appeal if he chooses and would still be eligible to take the field while the appeal process plays out. Cash is serving his suspension tonight, per the league’s announcement. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times first reported the details surrounding the suspensions.

Uceta entered last night’s game in the eighth inning with two men on base and one out in what was then a 4-4 tie. He promptly yielded a two-run double to outfielder Cal Stevenson, struck out catcher Garrett Stubbs, allowed an RBI single to infielder Buddy Kennedy and then served up a two-run homer to Trea Turner. Bryce Harper followed with a double. Uceta then hit Castellanos on the hip with a 96.2 mph sinker on the first pitch of the next plate appearance, prompting both benches to clear (video link). Castellanos and Harper, in particular, were animated with their anger and what they clearly believed to be intent behind the pitch.

Castellanos said after the game that he had “an overwhelming sense that I was about to get drilled,” before even stepping into the batter’s box (link via Todd Zolecki of MLB.com). Harper was also vocal in the aftermath, stating that throwing at a player with intent “is not something that you should accept as Major League Baseball” — particularly in an era where today’s pitchers can throw so hard. “We’re in a race right now,” Harper continued. “We’re doing our thing. We’re trying to get into the postseason. A guy wants to drill him. It’s not right.”

Uceta, naturally, maintained while speaking through an interpreter that he did not intend to plunk Castellanos — the first batter he’s hit all season in 36 1/3 innings (138 batters faced) and just the third batter he’s hit in his MLB career (314 plate appearances).

Even with that dismal outing, Uceta’s ERA on the season stands at 1.49. He’s quietly emerged as an important bullpen piece for Tampa Bay since signing a minor league deal in the winter and having his contract selected to the big league roster back in May. Part of Uceta’s success this season has been impeccable command. He’s walked just 4.3% of the opponents he’s faced (against a  massive 37% strikeout rate).

That alone doesn’t signal intent, of course; it was a pressure-filled situation wherein Uceta had missed spots badly on both the double to Stevenson and the home run to Turner. He’s also struggled with command in the past, entering the season with a career 11.9% walk rate. It’s certainly feasible that he was rattled by the moment in an outing where he’d already lacked command, but it’s simultaneously understandable that the Phillies took exception and believed there to be intent.

Regardless, Cash will be absent from tonight’s dugout, and Uceta could miss up to three games. Castellanos thankfully didn’t sustain any type of injury on the play. He remained in the game and is back in tonight’s lineup. Leadoff slugger Kyle Schwarber, who tweaked his elbow on a dive back into first base last night and was set for further evaluation today, was originally in the lineup but was scratched just minutes ago after informing the team of lingering soreness in his elbow (X link via Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer). Harper will serve as the designated hitter tonight, and Kody Clemens will get the nod at first base.

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