After a rather disappointing end to their 2025 season, the Philadelphia Phillies will aim to turn things around with a productive offseason in retooling their roster for 2026. In doing so, the Phillies will be looking for key pieces in the free agent market that they can add to upgrade their roster.
What better way to help make the team better than to consider a potential reunion with former players who have done well since leaving the organization after their first stint with the franchise? Note that for this exercise we're not including the Phillies' free agents from this season, like Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, and Harrison Bader.
With that said, let's take a closer look at three former Phillies players who are now currently free agents and could be good fits for the club this winter.
3 former Phillies who would be good matches for a reunion
Hoby Milner, LHP
Selected by the Phillies in the seventh round of the 2012 MLB Draft, Hoby Milner's tenure didn’t last long when he was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays in 2018, his second season with the big league club. During his time with the Phillies, Milner actually sported a tidy 2.75 ERA, but inconsistencies led to a 1.53 WHIP and a high 11.6 percent walk rate.
Milner has since developed into a steady bullpen arm over the past four years with the Milwaukee Brewers and Texas Rangers. Not only has he tidied up his issues with free passes he has also evolved into an elite ground ball pitcher with ground ball rate over 50 percent in each of the past three seasons.
In 2025, the 34-year-old veteran compiled a 3-4 record with 18 holds, a 3.84 ERA, a 1.27 WHIP, and 58 strikeouts in 70 1/3 innings over 73 relief appearances. For a quality relief arm projected to have a salary just a little over $4 million for 2026, Milner could be a sneaky value add for the Phillies.
Austin Hays, OF
The first go-around for Austin Hays with the Phillies sure didn’t go the way either had planned. Acquired from the Baltimore Orioles at the 2024 trade deadline to solve the Phillies' outfield problem, Hays ended up being quite the disappointment.
Marred by health issues, including a hamstring strain and a kidney infection, the 30-year-old underperformed down the stretch, amassing just a .256 average and a .672 OPS, with eight runs scored, two home runs and six RBIs in 22 games. Moreover, Hays was negligible during the postseason, going hitless with three strikeouts in four at-bats.
However, Hays had a bounce-back 2025 with the Cincinnati Reds this season. He put up a solid .266 average and a .768 OPS, with 60 runs scored, 16 doubles, 15 home runs, and 64 RBIs, while going a perfect 7-for-7 in stolen bases in 103 games. Projected over full 162-game schedule, Hays would have had 94 runs scored, 25 doubles, 24 home runs, 101 RBIs and 11 stolen bases.
That production is exactly what the Phillies are looking for to improve their ongoing outfield situation. Assuming his health issues are fully behind him in 2026, Philadelphia should give Hays another chance to see what he can really do with a full runway.
Seranthony Domínguez, RHP
Finally, we have one of the Phillies' former bullpen stalwarts Seranthony Domínguez. He was an important piece of the bullpen puzzle during their resurgence back to relevance in the early 2020s. More notably, Domínguez played a key role during the Phillies' two deep postseason runs in 2022 and 2023. However, an uncharacteristic 2024 campaign in which he posted a career-high 4.75 ERA spelled the end of his six-year tenure and he was traded to the Orioles.
But since moving to the American League, Domínguez has found his game once again, especially this season after joining the Toronto Blue Jays at the trade deadline. With the Blue Jays, the 30-year-old right-hander went 2-1 with a solid 3.00 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP, with 25 strikeouts in 21 innings. Domínguez was also a key cog for the Toronto bullpen through their postseason run to the World Series.
With Domínguez getting his mojo back, it may be time for the Phillies to rekindle a relationship with their former bullpen standout.