Philadelphia Phillies head honcho Dave Dombrowski has a lot of work to do. The future Hall of Fame executive’s club has delivered diminishing returns over the past five seasons, and the current roster clearly needs reinforcements if they ever hope to win it all. The upcoming lockout will put a long pause on whatever Dombrowski’s reimagining looks like, but he can get an early start on checking at least a few boxes at this week’s general managers’ meetings.
The GM meetings are where the top executives of all 30 clubs gather to talk business after the World Series ends. They usually aren’t as action-packed as the more well-attended Winter Meetings, but this offseason could prove to be different.
It’s a virtual certainty that MLB’s owners will lock out the players at midnight on December 2nd, kicking off what looks to be an ugly work stoppage. With both sides publicly digging in their heels, there's real concern as to whether or not the 2027 season will start on time, if at all. If the labor unrest drags out long enough, it’ll wipe out months traditionally used by teams to make free-agent acquisitions and construct trades to upgrade their rosters.
The GM meetings provide the perfect opportunity for Dave Dombrowski to start making moves
That’s what makes the GM meetings so important this year, as they’ll take place prior to the lockout. Dombrowski and his 29 counterparts will be free to make swaps and sign players all week long. He’ll need to do plenty of that this offseason, since his team could improve in practically every area except starting pitching (though they could still use some more depth).
A backup catcher, new third baseman, multiple outfielders, and a revamped bullpen are all on the docket for the Phillies this winter. Not all of those holes will be filled at the GM meetings, or perhaps at all, but one or two noteworthy additions would give the club a head start for however long the sport ends up being shut down.
Creativity is the name of the game when it comes to fixing this Phillies team, and Dave Dombrowski will need to employ plenty of it. It may not be the norm to make a boatload of moves less than a month after the season ended, but this is far from a normal offseason, and the Phillies will need anything but their normal approach if they want to make it to the top.
Add us as a preferred source on Google