Breaking News: Phillies Tap New Outfielder With $100 Million Slugger On Way Out Go In The Comment For More Details
The Philadelphia Phillies have some significant roster decisions to make after another disappointing playoff exit.
The team has proven that it can succeed in the regular season with two straight National League East division titles. But it has fallen well short of its World Series championship aspirations in consecutive years and change will be coming.
First and foremost, the Phillies will have to determine whether or not they can welcome back designated hitter Kyle Schwarber and catcher JT Realmuto. Depending on how negotiations with those free agents go, the team could be slotting the long-time stars back into their respective spots or looking for replacements.
But even with those final decisions pending, the Phillies have seemingly determined that they will be adding top prospect Justin Crawford as a starting outfielder on the big-league club and cutting ties with slugger Nick Castellanos in the final year of his $100 million contract.
The team’s president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, indicated that Crawford had earned a promotion during Major League Baseball’s general managers meetings in Las Vegas on Tuesday.
“Dombrowski has all but decided the prospect will be on the club’s Opening Day roster,” Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported. “It will not include Nick Castellanos, whom the Phillies are actively shopping at this week’s meetings, multiple major-league sources told The Athletic.”
Even if the Phillies cannot find a suitable trade partner for Castellanos, the team seems headed toward releasing him rather than bringing him back for next season.
But it’s still unclear how the Phillies will arrange their outfield pieces, with Crawford potentially slotted in as a center fielder or in a corner spot.
“Internally, the Phillies have debated whether Crawford is best suited to play center field or left,” The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber wrote. “Ultimately it would depend on how the Phillies fill out the rest of the outfield.”
But with Crawford in and Castellanos out for next year, it looks like the Phillies will still have a need to add at least one more outfielder this winter. The alignment could be determined by what’s available among free agents and on the trade market. If the team finds a center fielder, they can move Crawford to a corner. If they can find a right field replacement for Castellanos, the team can slot Crawford in at center and hope for the best.
“Are we better off signing somebody as a corner guy?” Dombrowski asked, per Gelb. “Are we better off signing somebody who is a center fielder? What makes us the best? But I think we feel comfortable with (Crawford) either way.”
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