3 Landing spots for Didi Gregorius after Phillies release
1. St. Louis Cardinals
One of the teams an MLB Network panel recently suggested where Gregorius could head is the St. Louis Cardinals — who are competing neck-and-neck with the Phillies for the third and final National League Wild Card spot.
The Cardinals could look to add to their mix of veterans with postseason experience, among them notably being catcher Yadier Molina and first baseman/designated hitter Albert Pujols.
Gregorius has an RBI double in three at-bats when used as a pinch-hitter this season, so the Cardinals could view him as a valuable bench asset for a potential deep postseason run.
2. Tampa Bay Rays
With second-year phenom shortstop Wander Franco sidelined since early July, there is some uncertainty at the position for the American League East’s Tampa Bay Rays.
Franco underwent successful surgery last month to repair a fractured hamate bone in his right wrist. The Rays have made things work with Taylor Walls and Yu Chang since then, but both are hitting only .171 and .209 respectively this season.
While Gregorius is not hitting much better than either, he just might best stop-gap option the Rays could turn to until Franco hopefully returns healthy. Another plus is that the free-agent shortstop has plenty of experience playing at Tropicana Field from his days with the New York Yankees.
Currently, the Rays have a two-game lead over the Cleveland Guardians and Baltimore Orioles for the third American League Wild Card spot. Again, a veteran like Gregorius with postseason experience — even if used off the bench come October — is someone teams should not glance over.
3. New York Yankees
The most obvious guess as to where former Phillies shortstop Didi Gregorius could play next is the New York Yankees.
Gregorius thrived with the Yankees from 2015-19, slugging 120 doubles, 11 triples, 97 home runs and 360 RBI across 660 games. During the 2017 American League Championship Series, Gregorius produced seven hits, two of which went for extra bases.
In the American League Division Series two years later opposite the Minnesota Twins, Gregorius’ six RBI and .400/.500/.700 slash line would have been MVP-worthy if an award were to exist for the early postseason round.
When recently asked on WFAN if he would have interest in bringing back Gregorius to the Yankees, general manager Brian Cashman said the organization will “evaluate anything that is available at all times.” Cashman continued: “Ultimately, as [releases] keep happening, that is your only access to talent moving forward.”
The Yankees currently have Isiah Kiner-Falefa and utility player Marwin Gonzalez as their top-two options at shortstop. Kiner-Falefa has gone homerless in 327 at-bats this season, so even Gregorius is outperforming him in that category. Gonzalez, meanwhile, has three home runs but is slashing just .222/.287/.646.
If Gregorius were to return to the Yankees, there is always that chance where comfort allows him to return to some of his pre-2021 power numbers. The Yankees lineup already features sluggers such as Aaron Judge, so the World Series contenders would not even necessarily need to ask for much out of Gregorius power-wise.
Whether Gregorius remains a free agent or joins a postseason contender in the coming weeks remains to be seen.
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