3 offseason moves the Phillies will regret not making this season
While the Phillies already have a championship-contending squad, making a few other signings this offseason could have given them a deeper roster.
The Philadelphia Phillies have gradually put the core of their team together over the past five seasons. They have had two deep playoff runs the last two seasons, reaching the 2022 World Series and the National League Championship Series last year.
This past offseason, the club had few openings besides finding a No. 2 starting pitcher. Starter Aaron Nola elected free agency but came back on a seven-year, $172 million deal.
The front office believes the current roster can win a World Series. Accomplishing the goal of winning a championship this year or in 2025 would be ideal, considering the core players have been in the prime of their careers for quite some time.
Could the team have improved more than it did during the offseason? Other than the starting infield, Philadelphia entered the 2024 season with some depth questions at its other position groups. The backend of their starting rotation, the lack of a proven closer, and the outfield depth are areas the front office could have found better solutions for in the winter.
Will Cristopher Sánchez continue to develop into a solid option at the back of their rotation? Does he have the potential to match the consistency of a No. 3 starter if Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez, or Nola miss time with an injury this year?
Can Spencer Turnbull continue to fulfill the duties of a No. 4 or No. 5 starter in the absence of Taijuan Walker? Speaking of Walker, what will his role be with the team once he returns from the IL and all five starters are healthy?
Considering Walker's salary of $18 million per year through the 2026 season, it would appear he will be used as the fifth starter once he returns from his right shoulder impingement. Despite having the second-highest payroll on Opening Day, should the Phillies have signed another free-agent starting pitcher as a better option than who is currently on the roster?
Whit Merrifield's one-year, $8 million deal and Alec Bohm's $4 million he received in arbitration means the Phillies will have to pay a tax of 62 percent, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer's Alex Coffey.
Considering the Phillies would incur a draft penalty with another significant signing, it's understandable why the president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and the front office didn't make any other major additions.
Should the organization have signed another player, or two, even if it meant crossing the $277 million payroll tax threshold?
Let's take a look at three offseason moves the Phillies will regret not making this season.
Phillies will regret not signing more outfield depth
Brandon Marsh represents the Phillies' best option in the outfield currently. He has been productive both offensively and defensively despite being third on the club with 14 strikeouts in 11 games.
Johan Rojas has shown promise defensively but needs to become more consistent as a hitter. He had his best game offensively this season to date on April 8, going 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI, but he is still slashing .161/.235/.194 in 11 contests.
Nick Castellanos is not off to a good start, hitting .160 with a .410 OPS through 14 games. After getting a hit in each of the first three contests of the season, the 32-year-old has since gone 5-for-40. He doesn't defend as well in the outfield as Marsh or Rojas, either.
The signing of Merrifield could still be a solid move this season despite his bad start at the plate. He was one of the Phillies' best hitters in spring training and made the All-Star game last year with the Toronto Blue Jays. Is it just a slow start he will work through? Is playing in a bench role with a new team affecting him after being a starter for so many years?
The utility player has collected a hit in three of the eight games he has appeared in, with an underwhelming slash line of .120/.185/.120 is underwhelming. Hopefully, he will begin to turn it around and resemble the offensive player he was last year for Toronto.
Free agent Tommy Pham would have been a decent upgrade for the Phillies to consider in addition to signing Merrifield. The 36-year-old outfielder did well for the Arizona Diamondbacks during their postseason run to the World Series last year. He finished with a .279/.297/.475 line with an OPS of .772.
The Las Vegas, Nevada native finished with 10 runs scored, three doubles, three home runs, and four RBI during last year's playoffs. If the Phillies encounter any injuries to their outfielders, they should consider adding Pham if he's still available.
Signing Cody Bellinger may have been an interesting move, considering he signed a three-year, $80 million deal to return to the Chicago Cubs. He had a resurgence in 2023, hitting .307 with an .881 OPS.
However, the Phillies would have likely needed to decide what to do with one of their outfielders, particularly Rojas, considering Bellinger has played mostly at center field recently. The Scottsdale, AZ native has not played in right field since 2021 and the last time he played in left was during the 2018 regular season.
Signing Bellinger would have contradicted what Dombrowski said about the organization on Feb. 7 as a guest on the SportsRadio 94 WIP Morning Show, saying he preferred to give the young Rojas a chance to blossom at the major league level.
While Bellinger may not have fit with the Phillies, considering the other outfielders on the roster, the club could still benefit from adding another experienced veteran, such as Pham, to the position group during the season.
Phillies will regret not signing a legitimate closer
A closer-by-committee approach, as the Phillies seem to prefer, has its advantages and disadvantages. José Alvarado, Jeff Hoffman, Gregory Soto, Matt Strahm, and Ricardo Pinto have all had save opportunities this year for the club. The benefit is it gives plenty of relievers opportunities in save situations. Over the offseason, Dombrowski said that he feels comfortable having multiple relievers who can close games.
However, the downside of having multiple relievers close games is it seems overly reliant on matchups. Manager Rob Thomson might overthink having more than one reliever in the role rather than having an assigned closer with the setup man serving as a backup. Perhaps the Phillies will lean more on Alvarado in save situations than the other pitchers out of the bullpen as the season progresses.
Signing Josh Hader would have been costly once his contract desires were known. However, the addition would have given the Phillies a bona fide closer who would have been their unquestioned ninth-inning man. Dombrowski and the front office didn't want to pay him the kind of money that he was seeking.
The Millersville, Maryland native is off to a rocky start. In seven appearances, Hader has an 0-2 record, a whopping 5.14 ERA, a blown save, and four earned runs allowed in seven innings. Based on his start, the Phillies made a smart decision in the early going of the year by not pursuing him in free agency. However, it's only two weeks into the season, and the left-hander still has plenty of time to turn it around.
Other options the Phillies may come to regret not signing are Héctor Neris, who signed a one-year deal with the Chicago Cubs, and Liam Hendriks, who agreed to a two-year contract with the Boston Red Sox. Both relievers have previous experience closing games, which could have benefitted the Phillies.
Neris is a former Phillie who had mixed results with the club but did well with the Houston Astros, despite not being used as often in the ninth-inning role. While Hendriks is still rehabbing from Tommy John surgery and will not be available until perhaps the trade deadline, his recent experience as a closer could have been valuable for the Phillies late in the season.
Phillies will regret not signing Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery
After agreeing to the contract with Aaron Nola, the Phillies felt their starting rotation was primarily set with him, Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez, Cristopher Sánchez, and Taijuan Walker. With Walker starting the season on the IL, Spencer Turnbull, who signed with the club in February, has already been forced into rotation duty.
While it takes mutual interest for a deal to get done, the Phillies will regret not landing one of the big-name free agent starters who sat around on the market much longer than anyone had originally expected.
Blake Snell remained available well into spring training. The 2023 NL Cy Young Award winner agreed to a two-year, $62 million deal with the San Francisco Giants on March 19. The contract includes a player opt-out following the 2024 season.
According to Melanie Martinez-Lopez and Brent Maguire of MLB.com, the Seattle, Washington native will earn $15 million this year with a $17 million signing bonus due in January 2026. Half the $30 million he will earn will be deferred and paid in July 2027. He previously spent time with the Padres before signing with the Giants and remains on the same coast as his hometown.
Jordan Montgomery and the Diamondbacks are in agreement on a one-year, $25M deal, sources confirm. @JeffPassan had it first. With 10 starts, he will trigger another $20M guarantee for 2025 that can increase to $25M with more starts, but Montgomery can opt out.
— Nick Piecoro (@nickpiecoro) March 27, 2024
Jordan Montgomery also remained unsigned until the end of spring training. He agreed to a one-year, $25 million deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks on March 29. If he makes 10 regular season starts this year, he will gain a $20 million player option for 2025. The left-hander's salary will increase to $22.5 million if he makes 18 starts and to $25 million with 23 starts, according to Mike Axisa of CBS Sports.
Marcus Stroman was another free agent starter who signed a short-term deal. He agreed to a two-year, $37 million deal with the New York Yankees back in January. According to Brian Murphy and Bill Ladson of MLB.com, the contract vests $18 million for 2026 if Stroman throws 140 innings next season. It seems that the right-hander had a strong preference to play for the club, considering he is from a town not far from the Bronx.
The Phillies are off to an average 7-7 start through the first two weeks of the regular season. While it's too late for the team to add players such as Hader, Snell, or Montgomery, Pham is still available to add more depth to their outfield. Philadelphia could also make a big addition at the trade deadline, depending on their roster needs and which players may be available.
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