The Philadelphia Phillies have a number of long-term deals on their payroll coming into 2025. The premium positions are still largely under contract, with some looking to expire soon. Catcher J.T. Realmuto is in the final year of his five-year, $115.5 million contract he signed in early 2021 and it's time to have a discussion about the future of the Phillies' catcher.
Realmuto has been a sensation for the Phillies since trading for him in 2019. The three-time All-Star and Gold Glove winner has been a true iron man behind the plate. In the six years with the Phillies, Realmuto has amassed 23.2 fWAR, has rightfully earned the title of best catcher in baseball (BCIB) and earned two top-15 NL MVP finishes.
Realmuto will be 34 heading into the 2025 season, and his future with the team is uncertain, with no discussions yet about an extension. With the state of the Phillies' options at catcher, what could a possible extension look like for the Phillies and Realmuto?
Projecting what a J.T. Realmuto extension will look like for the Phillies
Realmuto is heavily revered and well respected by the pitching staff on top of being the ultimate workhorse for the club. The downside is, he's in his mid-30s coming off possibly the worst offensive year of his career and had another knee surgery back in June. Even with that, he's worth a top catcher deal.
According to Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer, previous contracts given out to star catchers (subscription required) in their mid-30s were Yadier Molina (three years, $60 million), Carlos Ruiz (three years, $26 million), Jorge Posada (four years, $52.4 million) and Mike Matheny (three years, $10.5 million). Those contracts give clarity to what Realmuto's worth would be in 2025 and beyond. It's unlikely he'll match his current average annual salary of $23.1 million after he topped Joe Mauer by $100,000 as the highest ever by a catcher.
Over the last two seasons, FanGraphs calculated Realmuto's worth at $16.9 million in 2023 and $16.3 million in 2024. Given the battery of him and Wheeler, we could be looking at a deal of three years, $50 million to pair him alongside Wheeler for the next three seasons.
Realmuto will look to be in a reduced role going forward to manage injury risk and to get him off his feet more. He is second amongst all active catchers in innings caught, behind Kansas City Royals backstop Salvador Perez. The workload is the result of trading Logan O'Hoppe in 2022 and having a depletion in the farm system to offset Realmuto's slight decline.
The two best free-agent catchers this offseason each signed two-year contracts: Travis d'Arnaud ($12 million with Los Angeles Angels) and Kyle Higashioka ($13.5 million with Texas Rangers). Realmuto has had a bigger impact than those two, but coming off last year hitting .266/.322/.429 and a .751 OPS, he could be potentially looking at a hometown discount.
Realmuto is a crowd favorite at Citizens Bank Park, and fans want to see him retire as a Phillie. Realmuto isn't done yet, but the years are dwindling. Let's just hope that comes in the form of bringing him back.