With no baseball to watch, at least not for the Philadelphia Phillies fans, the city has begun to turn its eyes to the offseason in preparation for what will hopefully be a big offseason for the hometown team.
A quick exit from the MLB playoffs left the team yearning for more, which puts even more pressure on the front office, including president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. His philosophy of turning and burning the roster into a championship contender quickly has not gotten the Phillies over the hump and to the ultimate goal, a World Series championship.
An obvious position of need down the stretch and in the Phillies' short postseason stay was the third outfielder position. Whether it was Brandon Marsh, Johan Rojas, Austin Hays, Weston Wilson, or Kody Clemens, none of them could consistently have quality at-bats against pitchers from either side of the rubber. This would lead to stretches of terrible play, leaving left field to be no-man's land at points.
An upgrade in the outfield would be an intelligent move and this free agent class has many options including Tyler O'Neill, Teoscar Hernández and Anthony Santander, but one player reigns above all.
Jon Heyman calls Phillies 'longshots' to land Juan Soto this offseason
Juan Soto, 25, is the cream of the crop for any MLB organization. Across seven seasons, the Dominican Republic native has crushed 201 home runs while keeping a .285 average with an on-base percentage of .412, the active career leader. He will be well-desired, and the biggest question mark will be his landing spot and the price tag.
Insider Jon Heyman recently gave a rundown of the teams that have a chance at signing Soto this winter. After listing off a handful of clubs that he thinks have a higher chance, including the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, he included the Phillies as "longshots."
"In the next group, I'll put the Red Sox, the Cubs, and the Phillies," Heyman said. "I mean, at this point I would call them all longshots, giving them all a chance on Soto, but I think the Yankees are a pretty clear favorite."
Potential landing spots for Juan Soto 👀
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) October 10, 2024
(w/ @JonHeyman) pic.twitter.com/L4KER8lksL
Spotrac has Soto's next contract estimated at $36.7 million per year over 14 seasons, leading to an overall total of $513 million. Unfathomable.
Managing partner John Middleton has not been one to shy away from spending, with major contracts just recently inked for stars like Trea Turner, Aaron Nola, and Zack Wheeler. There is also an opportunity for more spending as more deals begin to expire for the team.
Value | Signed Through | |
|---|---|---|
J.T. Realmuto | $23.88 million | 2025 |
Kyle Schwarber | $20 million | 2025 |
Taijuan Walker | $18 million | 2026 |
Nick Castellanos | $20 million | 2026 |
Phillies' prior relationships with Juan Soto could help
As Heyman says, other teams make more sense to land Soto than the Phillies. The Yankees have the best shot with the familiarity and success that the partnership has already found, but the deep pockets and proximity of the cross-town rival Mets could attract the young phenom to wear the brighter blue pinstripes.
The main selling point for Soto to come to Philly, besides the recent success of the team, is the connections between players on the Phillies' roster and the former Washington National.
Three of the Phillies' biggest stars, Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and Turner, all spent time in Washington with Soto, along with one of the best hitting coaches in baseball, Kevin Long.
The combination of a friendly environment and an owner who is willing to throw around "stupid money" will keep the Phillies in the running for the generational talent this offseason. With the Phillies on the fringe of the hunt, it will be exciting to see how the race turns out.