One inappropriate comment by outfielder Nick Castellanos might wind up costing the Philadelphia Phillies this offseason. Back in June, the right fielder was benched for a game after making an inappropriate comment that crossed the line with manager Rob Thomson. Now, a recent revelation about that incident will only serve to hurt his trade value.
According to The Athletic's Matt Gelb, whatever Castellanos said to Thomson after being removed late in the preceding game for defensive reasons left coaches and teammates "disgusted" (subscription required).
"The dugout incident, numerous team sources said, left players and coaches alike disgusted," per Gelb.
While it is understandable for Castellanos to be upset with his removal for defense, he verbalized his emotions inappropriately at the wrong time and place. He should have met with Thomson behind closed doors to discuss his frustrations with the manager's decision.
Nick Castellanos' low trade value is not ideal for the Phillies
This wasn't the only time the right fielder has made the wrong decision in expressing himself during his four years with the Phillies. Thomson ended up making him part of a platoon in right field late in the regular season, which did not sit well with Castellanos despite a decline in his overall play.
The outfielder expressed his disapproval with the manager's decision and an apparent lack of communication from Thomson to the media, which he shouldn't have done.
It does not appear that it will be a simple process for the Phillies to cut ties with Castellanos this winter. The 34-year-old has one year remaining on his five-year, $100 million contract he signed before the 2022 season. At this point, they will need to absorb some of the $20 million he is owed to facilitate a trade.
At the Phillies' end-of-season press conference, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski's tone of voice about Castellanos' return was ambiguous, as expected. Dombrowski was not going to divulge any information about the outfielder's future with the franchise, despite many assuming his time with the team has all but come to an end.
"Well, we’ll see what happens,” Dombrowski said about Castellanos’ future with the team, per MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. “I mean, I’m not going to get into specific players that are on our roster, under contract, but the things that you talked about are accurate, but we'll see what happens.”
The Phillies may be forced to release Castellanos if a trade can't be worked out. That is less than an ideal scenario financially for them since they will be on the hook for his entire 2026 salary. However, it may be the only solution for the club to move on from the disgruntled outfielder.
Other teams are aware of the current relationship between Castellanos and the Phillies. They can't be too eager to trade for an unhappy player whose career is on the downswing. However, it's best for Philadelphia to part with him this winter. His demeanor has become too toxic for the organization to keep him on the roster for one more year.