Phillies rumors: Dave Dombrowski plotting reunion with former top draft pick

The Phillies are rumored to be in contact with Nick Castellanos’ agents

Bringing Nick Castellanos to the Philadelphia Phillies would be a full-circle moment for Dave Dombrowski.

As GM in Detriot, Dombrowski drafted Castellanos as the Tigers’ top pick in 2010. That wouldn’t necessarily seem significant over a decade later, but it would fit Dombrowski’s career pattern; the longtime exec has made a habit of bringing talented players with him from franchise to franchise.

After trading to bring David Price to the Tigers in 2014, Dombrowski was hired by the Red Sox the following August. One of his first moves was to sign Price to the richest pitching contract in MLB history at the time. He signed JD Martinez to a minor league contract with the Tigers in 2014, which led to Martinez’s first All-Star appearance, Silver Slugger, and finishing in the top-15 in MVP voting twice. Dombrowski then brought the slugger to Boston, where they won a World Series together, and Martinez became the first player to win two Silver Slugger awards in the same season (DH and OF).

Nick Castellanos could fill the Phillies’ outfield and infield needs

Castellanos actually began his career at third base, before shifting to right field. As such, he could theoretically play games in both the outfield and infield, especially if the Universal DH is reimplemented, since current third baseman Alec Bohm isn’t a strong defender.

The slugger is repped by super-agent Scott Boras, someone Dombrowski has negotiated with before; Boras represents Martinez, who recently opted in to the final year of the Sox contract Dombrowski tendered. Boras also represents Bryce Harper and Rhys Hoskins, and former Phillies pitchers Ian Kennedy and Vince Velasquez. Boras is known for finagling some of the richest contracts in baseball history, so the fact that the Phillies are speaking to him at all shows they’re serious about paying, which is important, given how active their division rivals were over the weekend.

Castellanos is reportedly seeking a long-term deal in the ballpark of 7-8 years. With the numbers he put up this year, he won’t come cheap; he set new career-highs in batting average, on-base and slugging percentages, and OPS. His 34 home runs were also a new personal best, surpassing his previous single-season high of 27. It also only took him 138 games to hit those seven more home runs than he hit in 151 games.