Dave Dombrowski's flimsy reason for recalling Phillies catcher can't be whole truth

When Major League Baseball rosters expanded on Monday, the Philadelphia Philliesdecided to use one of their two September roster call-ups on a position that is not much of a need. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski announced on Sunday that they were planning to promote catcher Garrett Stubbs (subscription required), per Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer, when rosters expanded on Sept. 1, which they did when the official announcement was made.

The Phillies could have promoted one of several other players who would provide more value than Stubbs, such as top prospect Justin Crawford, Johan Rojas or Otto Kemp. Instead, Stubbs will rejoin the team, and they will have three catchers on their roster until October, which is unnecessary with two healthy players at the position.

Dave Dombrowski's reason for promoting Garrett Stubbs to Phillies roster is baffling

Dombrowski, who spoke to the media on Sunday, gave this puzzling explanation for the decision.

"As it stands right now, we're having a hard time finding playing time for everybody on our roster as it currently is. We thought Stubby would be a nice addition,” Dombrowski said. “What it really gives us is the ability to have a third catcher if [manager Rob Thomson] wants to on the days [Rafael] Marchán catches, if he wants to give [J.T.] Realmuto off from catching, he could use him as a pinch-hitter, insert Stubbsy at that point.

“So that's the kind of thought process of mine. Of course, he can play different positions. He's been a winner. He's done a great job for us at Triple-A, not only on the field but in the clubhouse. So, we thought it was a very well-deserved promotion, too."

Dombrowski could have used the Realmuto pinch-hit reasoning for another starting position player if they had promoted an outfielder or infielder. The decision to have Stubbs rejoin the Phillies is due to the team sending him to Triple-A at the start of the regular season. He had an option remaining to be sent down to the minors, while Marchán did not. The club did not want to risk losing Marchán to another team on waivers if they had chosen to send him down to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.

The Phillies front office wants to reward Stubbs for spending his season in the minors. He has not provided much consistent offense during his previous years as the backup catcher. Last season, he had a slash line of .207/.296/.252 and a .558 OPS in 56 contests.

Simply promoting someone because they provide good vibes in the clubhouse is not a good enough reason to justify Stubbs' promotion, even if it is the real reason why the Phillies are promoting him. How often is Thomson going to use Realmuto as a pinch-hitter for the team in the final month of the season? He is more likely to use him as a designated hitter if he wants to give him a day off from catching but still have his bat in the lineup.

Stubbs has played in some games in the outfield during his career. Regarding Dombrowski's comments about how Stubbs can play different positions, how often is Thomson going to play him in an already crowded outfield or use him as a pitcher out of the bullpen if the Phillies are losing by a significant margin? Not at all or very little. There are more talented players with the IronPigs than Stubbs who either deserve to make their debut in the majors, as in Crawford's case, or who deserve to be called back up to the Phillies, as they could have done with Rojas or Kemp.