The Philadelphia Phillies' roster appears to be set with two weeks until pitchers and catchers report to Clearwater, Florida, for the start of spring training. The same core of veteran players remains intact to make another run at the World Series. However, the Phillies still intend not to have one veteran on their roster before the start of the regular season: Nick Castellanos.
Despite having one year remaining on his contract, Castellanos' time with the Phillies has run out after a tumultuous 2025 season. He publicly expressed his displeasure with manager Rob Thomson removing him from a game and eventually demoting him to a platoon role. The team signed outfielder Adolis García earlier this offseason to replace Castellanos.
At this point, Castellanos' departure is more a question of when than if.
Phillies having to pay anything less than $20 million for Nick Castellanos would be a win
ESPN's Jesse Rogers recently made a bold prediction that the Phillies will trade Castellanos to the Pittsburgh Pirates and save more money than we thought.
"The Pirates still need hitting, right? And Castellanos still needs a new home," Rogers notes. "How about an in-state swap with the big-spending Phillies picking up most of the contract -- say $15 million of the $20 million owed to Castellanos in 2026. The Pirates don't even have to send anyone back in the deal. Just give them his money and watch Castellanos light up PNC Park, proving all the naysayers wrong."
The Phillies have been expected to absorb most, if not all, of Castellanos' salary in the final season of his five-year, $100 million contract, no matter if they trade or release him. Rogers' prediction that they would have to pay only $15 million after dealing him to the Pirates feels like it would be a best-case scenario.
The 33-year-old Castellanos slashed .250/.294/.400, with a .694 OPS, 17 home runs, and 72 RBIs in 147 games last year.
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said on Jan. 20 that the club still intends to move on from Castellanos before the start of the regular season. Not that there was any doubt, but the García addition all but confirmed that Castellanos will be with another club.
However, trading Castellanos isn't a certainty, as he received no interest from other organizations at the MLB Winter Meetings in December. It's still possible the Phillies end up releasing him, and pay the full $20 million, if they're unable to make a trade.
Trade interest in Castellanos may pick up during spring training and closer to the start of the regular season as injuries happen. At this point, the Phillies will be satisfied if they can find one franchise interested in acquiring the right fielder and willing to pay even a little of his 2026 salary. If not, they'll release him before Opening Day at the end of March.