The Philadelphia Phillies might have scored themselves a steal in the 2025 MLB Draft with their selection of Gage Wood. Teams always need more pitching; that's an undeniable truth in baseball. Still, the pick was a slight curveball, as many mock drafts had the Phillies focusing on a different need, one much less immediate: catching.
The player linked most prominently to Philadelphia was Luke Stevenson, a 21-year-old sophomore backstop out of the University of North Carolina. In his two seasons catching for the Tar Heels, Stevenson smacked his way to 33 homers and a .960 OPS. This year, playing in 61 games, Stevenson accumulated 59 walks, the eighth-best total in all of Division I.
Instead of Stevenson, however, the Phillies went with Wood. While certainly a great pick in its own right, as Wood dropped slightly from where his prospect ranking sat, and definitely done as a win-soon move, the step away from Stevenson should have fans questioning how much faith the Phillies have in star catcher J.T. Realmuto over the next few years. Assuming he returns to Philadelphia.
Is that faith too high? Or are the Phillies banking on being able to re-sign Realmuto in free agency and him lasting long enough that they can find another valuable catching prospect in future drafts?
J.T. Realmuto is still a premier MLB catcher
Realmuto has been a fixture in the lineup for the Phillies since 2019, when he was brought in alongside Bryce Harper as a part of the next generation of Philadelphia's star power. Over the past seven years, Realmuto has been nothing short of amazing for the Phillies, providing solid offense and elite defense and game management day-in and day-out.
Since coming to Philadelphia, he's put up a .267/.330/.455 triple slash, an above-average 111 OPS+, and is the ninth-best qualified catcher in wRC+ over that stretch. Behind the dish, Realmuto leads all catchers in runners caught stealing with 145, having 30 more than the second-best mark, Will Smith's 115 for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
He has been nothing short of elite during his time with the Phillies, a model of consistency at both ends. Playing a position whose offensive numbers have declined mightily in the past few seasons, that's nothing to scoff at.
The problem with Realmuto has nothing to do with performance. It's all about age.
At 34, Realmuto is the oldest everyday catcher in the league. Two are older, Salvador Perez and Martín Maldonado, but both have split their duties with other backstops. Realmuto is behind the dish on a nightly basis; not only that, he's still contributing on both sides of the ball.
After some early-season struggles, particularly against lefties, J.T. has looked like, well, J.T. His pop has taken a hit — he has only a .395 slugging percentage with seven homers through 88 games — but he's consistently getting hits and creating opportunities for other players. Always a quick catcher, Realmuto creates a lot of additional value with his legs compared to a slower catcher with similar numbers. His OPS+ has dipped below average for the first time since his 2015 rookie season, but it's undeniable that he's still managing to contribute offensively.
Defensively, there's really only one stat that needs to be shared: Realmuto is tied for the league-best average pop time, at 1.86 seconds. The player he's tied with, Endy Rodríguez, the backup for the Pittsburgh Pirates, has only attempted five throws compared to Realmuto's 39 and is almost a decade younger.
If that's not an indicator that he still has it, then this acrobatic tag against the New York Yankees might seal the deal:
MUST SEE: This on-field look of J.T. Realmuto's incredible tag 😳 pic.twitter.com/u2EktaGhzU
— MLB (@MLB) July 27, 2025
As the age-old adage goes, however, Father Time is undefeated. Realmuto's decline is inevitable. This season's difficult start and the dips in power are clear indicators. A replacement will need to come, and will need to be ready once the rest of his game begins to slip.
For fans, many thought Stevenson might have been the answer. Draft analysts agreed. With the Phillies passing on him, the question looms large: If not Stevenson, then who?
Phillies will come to regret passing on Luke Stevenson as Realmuto's replacement
There's not much to dislike about Stevenson's game. While a powerful hitter with a great eye, he's also a high-value prospect defensively. His pop time from home to second hovers around 1.9-1.95 seconds; even at the bottom end of those averages, that's good enough to be starter material in the majors. The upper end? That's entering top-10 best in the league territory.
It was clear with that kind of talent that if the Phillies didn't pick him, someone else would. It wound up being the Seattle Mariners, who selected Stevenson 35th overall on draft night.
So, without Stevenson, arguably one of the most well-rounded and developed prospects in the draft, the Phillies have to look elsewhere. Their No. 4 prospect in-house, Eduardo Tait, is an 18-year-old catcher from Panama. He seems to be who the club is placing some of their hopes on, but Tait, according to MLB.com's prospect analysis, is a defensive "work in progress" with solid offensive traits.
There's nothing inherently wrong about that. With Tait, however, the plan rests on long-term development. He's currently playing for the Phillies' High-A affiliate, the Jersey Shore BlueClaws, and would have a long way to go before suiting up in the majors.
Should Realmuto's decline exacerbate in any way, or they are unable to re-sign him this winter, Tait's development simply isn't in line with any upcoming timeline.
Stevenson would have been the ideal solution to that problem. Realmuto should finish out this season on a similar trend, and the Phillies would almost certainly give him a full season next year, giving Stevenson until 2027 to get big-league-ready. Now, the Phillies have to rely on Realmuto returning and declining slowly, Tait progressing well, or a catcher becoming available via trade or the draft. That's a lot of contingencies that could have potentially been solved through one draft pick.
If even one of those dominoes falls incorrectly, the Phillies will be flailing to find a solution. If, or when, that time comes, they'll regret having passed on Stevenson, plain and simple.