4 Contracts holding the Phillies back this offseason

Which player contracts are holding the Phillies back from spending big this offseason?

The Philadelphia Phillies are expected to be very active this offseason, especially now that their division-rival Atlanta Braves have won the World Series.

However, unless they plan to exceed the luxury tax threshold for the first time in franchise history, some bad contracts will be holding them back.

Here are four money pits currently trapping the Phillies:

Scott Kingery’s contract is holding the Phillies back

Giving Scott Kingery a massive extension before he’d even made his big-league debut remains one of the most absurd and costly mistakes in Phillies franchise history. It almost doesn’t sound real.

Nevertheless, he’s signed through 2023 to a $24M deal that will pay him $6 million in 2022. The team also has options on him through 2026. That’s a lot of Kingery.

Kingery has played in a grand total of 51 games over the last two seasons and hit .144/.204/.250 with a .454 OPS. He was then designated for assignment, almost placed on waivers, and then outrighted to Triple-A. He had season-ending surgery soon after, and his future with the team is murky, at best.

Between Kingery and Alec Bohm, new hitting coach Kevin Long is going to have his hands full.