Nick Castellanos’ mother hints that he’s headed to the Phillies
After 99 days of MLB lockout, the best part of the baseball offseason is back: the hot stove and the juicy rumors and hints that come with it.
In this case, free-agent slugger Nick Castellanos’ mom has Philadelphia Phillies fans in a lather, because she keeps liking tweets that really make it seem like he’s destined to wear the red pinstripes.
She wouldn’t be the first free agent’s family member to leave a trail of breadcrumbs for the starving fans this week; Freddie Freeman’s wife Chelsea not-so-subtly hinted that the Los Angeles Dodgers would be her husband’s destination on Instagram.
Nick Castellanos’ mother liked this tweet: pic.twitter.com/WNSGdOtJ7n
— m (@matttadelphia) March 17, 2022
In fact, Mama Drive Into Deep Left Field liked and replied to several pro-Phillies tweets. Here’s a small sampling:
@michcast05 Philadelphia is the perfect fit for Nick Castellanos. An amazing hitters ballpark, great fans, and amazing players. We need you Nick
— Overflowing Mind-X (@Zuberthegoat) March 18, 2022
@michcast05 if Nick comes to Philly he will never feel more love then here. Him Harper schwarber realmuto and Hoskins would be a force!! If he doesn’t like the money they’re offering tell him I’ll give him my entire bank account
— seth (@Phillyseth5) March 17, 2022
https://twitter.com/justin_pincus/status/1504599148229713921?s=20&t=jYvH1rbxldhqHh7cnZ4wtw
@michcast05 tell Nick to let’s goooooooo. We @Phillies fans want him!
— Paul Frame (@pframe19) March 17, 2022
@michcast05 Philly will love you and your son more than you can imagine. He’s built for Philly. Us fans care so much and so does he. BRING HIM TO PHILLY AND LETS GET A RING !
— Purdy szn 🎆 (@BryceInHisVeins) March 17, 2022
I love it there!!
— Michelle Castellanos (@michcast05) March 13, 2022
Is Nick Castellanos going to sign with the Philadelphia Phillies?
The Phillies were reportedly interested in Castellanos before the lockout with rumors swirling that President of Baseball Operations, Dave Dombrowski, was looking to reunite with his former top draft pick.
As General Manager of the Detroit Tigers in 2010, Dombrowski drafted Castellanos 44th overall, as their compensatory pick after the first round, which saw none other than Bryce Harper get drafted first overall.
The longtime MLB exec has been high on Castellanos for over a decade now:
"“He had a lot of stuff going on, a lot of expectations attached to him for a youngster. A lot of people focused on him, but this guy can hit.Some people think the guy’s going to be an impact bat almost immediately. Those were their words: ‘impact bat.'”Dombrowski on Castellanos, December 2012"
Dombrowski also has a long-documented habit of bringing talented players with him as he moves from one organization to the next. He brought David Price to the Tigers, and then to the Red Sox, and did the same with JD Martinez.
However, the Phillies’ division-rival Miami Marlins are also reportedly in the mix for Castellanos, and that would be a homecoming for him. The slugger grew up in Davie, a town in the Miami area.
There’s also the issue of money – a self-imposed issue – for the Phillies, who seem set on never exceeding the luxury tax, ever. Maybe if they invent an anti-aging potion that brings back 1980s Mike Schmidt; otherwise, apparently never. The Phillies just gave Kyle Schwarber a four-year, $79M contract, which, combined with their other offseason spending, puts them only approximately $10M under the threshold, not even close to what they’d need to sign Castellanos.
Of course, the team has plenty of money and could easily throw it at Castellanos, John Middleton just doesn’t want to.
But there’s a reason Mama Castellanos is on this Twitter spree. She’s either trying to throw fans off the scent, or something is really afoot.
A lineup with Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber, Rhys Hoskins, and Castellanos would be dominant beyond belief.
Do it for mom, Dombrowski.

Phillies rumors: Dave Dombrowski plotting reunion with former top draft pick
As Tigers GM, Dave Dombrowski drafted Nick Castellanos. Now, he's running the Phillies and reportedly in talks with Castellanos' agent, Scott Boras.