The Philadelphia Phillies are counting on Adolis García to rebound offensively from his last two seasons with the Texas Rangers. The Phillies signed him to a one-year, $10 million contract for him to be their new starting right fielder in 2026.
García has regressed from his two excellent years in 2022 and 2023. In 154 games in 2024, he compiled 25 home runs and 85 RBIs, with a .224/.284/.400 slash line and a .684 OPS. This season, he had a .227/.271/.394 line with a .665 OPS, 19 homers and 75 RBIs in 135 games.
While he will be a better defensive player than Nick Castellanos in right field, can he be a more dependable hitter? What does García need to work on with hitting coach Kevin Long this offseason to improve as a batter next year?
Phillies, Adolis García believe he needs to be more under control with his swing to have success
According to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki, García needs to work on not chasing too many pitches out of the strike zone. According to Statcast, the right fielder's 35.7 percent chase rate ranked in the 10th percentile, and his 30.3 percent whiff rate was in the 15th percentile in 2025. The Phillies finished with the same whiff rate as a club.
However, García finished with an exit velocity of 92.1 mph, which was good enough for the 89th percentile. The 32-year-old's 11.6 percent barrel rate and 46.7 percent hard-hit rate were above average as well.
"[The Phillies] and I are on the same page," García said through an interpreter, per Zolecki. "The focus is not to be a hero -- to have good at-bats, the concentration, the focus level, the approach of things, being within myself.”
Adolis García got all of this pitch for his first home run of 2025 💣 pic.twitter.com/l4N3nNaGGf
— MLB (@MLB) March 30, 2025
García had 135 strikeouts in 135 games in 2025, his fewest in the last five seasons, but it is still a lot. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski explained what the native Cuba needs to do to improve in 2026.
"Even though some of the stuff may be slightly down, it’s still positive in many directions. He needs to be more under control with his swing,” Dombrowski said, per Zolecki. “We don’t need him to hit the ball out of the ballpark on every swing or every at-bat. We think he can do that. And our hitting coaches … that’s one of the things that they do very well working with individuals.”
García's 2025 home run and RBI totals were the fewest in the last five years. The Phillies need him to be a more reliable hitter whom manager Rob Thomson can put fourth in the lineup behind Bryce Harper.
By comparison, Castellanos finished with a 40.9 percent chase rate and a whiff rate of 29.9 percent. García needs to prove he can be an upgrade offensively over the Phillies' previous starting right fielder.
"For me, it’s a matter of … not trying to do too much,” Dombrowski added in his evaluation of García, per Zolecki. “The tools are there. The ball jumps off his bat. The bat speed’s still there. The exit velocity’s still very good. So those are things that we feel encouraged about.”
Adolis García delivers for the @Rangers 😤 pic.twitter.com/FhreIuJcIb
— MLB (@MLB) April 19, 2025
Zolecki believes if the Phillies' new right fielder can make the necessary adjustments, the club should have much-needed pop in its lineup. If García still struggles with putting together good at-bats regularly, the club's outfield may rank in the bottom half in OPS again in 2026. They finished with a .710 OPS this past season, which was 19th in the majors.
García should be an upgrade defensively over Castellanos. He ranked in the 92nd percentile in arm strength at 91.9 mph, compared to Castellanos' 81.6 mph. García also had +16 defensive runs saved (DRS) and +1 outs above average (OAA) compared to Castellanos’ -11 DRS and -12 OAA.
Thomson expressed optimism about the Phillies’ addition of García.
"This guy’s a talented guy,” Thomson said, per Zolecki. “Last year, maybe for him it’s a down year. But it’s still a lot of production, and you’ve got that really good defense. So we’re going to get to work here pretty quick.”
García certainly can be a productive hitter. He compiled 27 home runs and 101 RBIs in 2022, followed by a career-best 39 homers and 107 RBIs the following year. He was also the 2023 ALCS MVP, finishing with five homers, 15 RBIs, and a .357/.400/.893 slash line along with a 1.293 OPS in seven games.
While it's unlikely that he will post the statistics he had in 2022 and 2023, if García makes the necessary adjustments, he can still be a reliable hitter that the Phillies can feel confident putting the middle of the lineup.