The Philadelphia Phillies announced their roster for Thursday’s Opening Day matchup against the Texas Rangers, with very few surprises in it. Despite the front office’s claims otherwise, this team is largely the same as last season, fulfilling the fanbase’s worst nightmare of “running it back.” With that being said, there are a few interesting decisions to take a look at. Let’s dive into three Phillies roster inclusions that could turn out to be mistakes.
3 Phillies Opening Day decisions they might regret by May
Dylan Moore
Longtime Seattle Mariners utilityman Dylan Moore signed a minor league pact with the Phils earlier this winter, hoping to fill the same Swiss Army knife role here. The 33-year-old is a lifetime .206/.310/.383 hitter across 1,922 plate appearances, with only 63 home runs. Moore does bring a bit of speed to the table, having racked up double-digit stolen bases in all but one of his seven big league seasons (including a 32-swipe campaign in 2024).
His best asset is defensive versatility, as the Californian has lined up at every position aside from catcher throughout his career, and took home a Gold Glove Award in the utility category in 2024. Unfortunately, Moore’s already-pedestrian bat fell off a cliff last season, as he posted an ugly .642 OPS over 106 games with the Mariners and Texas Rangers. Moore has fared even worse in spring training recently, working to an unpalatable .194 batting average and .525 OPS in 17 games.
Ultimately, Dylan Moore’s inclusion as the last man on the bench will not make or break the Phillies’ season, but it does show a lack of creativity in the front office. Moore’s speed and versatility could be useful, but are somewhat redundant behind Edmundo Sosa, who can do the same things with a better offensive profile. Instead of giving that opportunity to a youngster with at least a smidge of upside like Liover Peguero or Christian Cairo, or a right-handed power bat like Bryan De La Cruz, the Phillies chose to go with a light-hitting glove-first guy who won’t help their streaky offense.
Zach Pop
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski left a few heads scratching when he signed journeyman reliever Zach Pop to a major league deal back in December. The 29-year-old has bounced around the majors over the past five years, never finding much success.
Pop has ridden the shuttle between Triple-A and the majors for four separate franchises, appearing in 163 total games since debuting in 2021, and posted a 4.88 career ERA in the process. That middling mark is accompanied by only 126 strikeouts in 162 ⅓ innings pitched, driving home the fact that the Canadian has a hard time missing bats. 2025 was a disaster for Pop, as he only appeared in five contests for the Seattle Mariners and New York Mets, surrendering a whopping 11 earned runs in only 6 ⅔ innings of work.
In light of that poor track record, it was surprising to see Dombrowski offer a guaranteed salary to Pop, as well as lock up a precious roster spot on a roll of the dice. In fairness, there is some reason to be optimistic, as he’s worked to a solid 3.86 ERA in 9 ⅓ spring training innings, punching out nine batters along the way.
Still, backend relievers are a dime a dozen, and the Phillies easily could’ve plugged another one of their depth arms like Chase Shugart or Seth Johnson into the last bullpen spot and gotten similar production, but without the headache of a major league deal. It won’t be shocking if Dombrowski has to eat crow and move on from Zach Pop early on this season if he isn’t producing.
Rafael Marchán
It’s easy to forget that the Phillies even need a backup catcher, seeing as incumbent J.T. Realmuto soaks up so many innings behind the dish. For years, the second catcher role has rotated between light-hitting vibes captain Garrett Stubbs and interesting, but oft-injured switch-hitter Rafael Marchán. Stubbs got most of the work from 2022-2024, but Marchán muscled his way into the picture last season and the Phillies have decided to continue moving in that direction this year.
There’s nothing wrong with Rafael Marchán as a backup catcher, as the 27-year-old has received decent marks for his glovework and has shown a bit of upside at the plate. Over 82 career big league games, the Venezuelan has slashed .245/.308/.394. Nothing to write home about, but second-string catchers are far from an offensively-gifted bunch.
Marchán’s cromulent work with the bat is a significant upgrade over his primary competition, Garrett Stubbs, who’s posted a brutal .215/.293/.310 line in 521 career trips to the plate. However, Stubby does have the edge in a few important aspects. The 32-year-old is perhaps the most beloved member of the Phillies’ locker room, leading the charge of “Dancing On My Own” madness back in 2022 and serving as an extension of the coaching staff with young pitchers.
On the field Stubbs offers some extra versatility, having appeared in the outfield sporadically during his big league tenure, as well as taking reps at second and third base this spring. He’s also an above-average runner, not just as catchers go, but for the league as a whole, placing in the 60th and 70th percentiles in sprint speed in prior seasons. Additionally, Stubby has had a few big moments in his career, most notably driving in the winning run for Team Israel against Nicaragua back in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
A back up catcher is a back up catcher, and considering the Phillies employ a workhorse like Realmuto, his backup won’t get much run either way. However, the front office had a choice between a plodding, defensively-limited option with a bit more bat, or a fleet-footed, versatile fan favorite who leaves a bit to be desired at the plate. Neither option is incredibly appealing, but considering the fact the Phillies may lose Garrett Stubbs in order to keep Rafael Marchán, they may come to regret that decision in a few weeks.