Philly Front Office

The Phillies didn’t land Garrett Grochet. They also didn’t get Juan Soto or an outfielder. Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez are unsigned. Alec Bohm and Ranger Suarez are still on the team. Aiden Miller and Justin Crawford are still in the system. In short, very little has happened.

The word from yesterday, according to Matt Gelb, was that at the 2024 trade deadline the Phillies were offering Aiden Miller and Justin Crawford for Crochet but the White Sox wanted Andrew Painter. No deal. Since then, Miller has jumped significantly as a prospect and Painter is back to making people lose their minds. This time around, the Phillies refused to add Miller which caused Crochet to change his sock color. Outside of a cheesy reliever, we are right where we were.

Fear not angsty citizens of Philadelphia, the winter has not even technically begun even though the Winter Meetings (which occur in the fall) are over. A couple of the big free agents are off the board, but not many of them. Very few trades have been made, and we still have all of our chips. Ownership wants to win, they just don’t want to go all in at the expense of the future. What I am trying to say is that there are still moves to be made and they WILL be made.

Starters – Getting Garrett Crochet would have been a very nice luxury. He would have joined the rotation with Wheeler, Nola, Sanchez, and Painter for years to come. You make that move for the future, not for the present. We do not NEED starting pitching. It is not like we are worried about who will start a playoff game. HOWEVER, this does seem like the team’s top priority. Why is that? With large contracts everywhere, they do not want to have another one in the rotation. Crochet would have been 2 more years of reasonably cheap high performance. Ranger Suarez is going to make $25m+ next year. They don’t want that. It is his last year of control and ripe to move. The whole off-season seems to hinge on finding his replacement.

Outfield – There is no chance that the Phillies go into this year with Brandon Marsh and Johan Rojas making up 2/3 of their everyday outfield. Between them, they are half of a good hitter. The Phillies know this. Is it possible they go double platoon in left and center by adding a righty specialist (even if it is Austin Hayes), yes. That would still be much better than the quad-A mess they threw out there last year. That’s probably the worst-case scenario and it would be an upgrade! There have been no outfield trades yet and only Juan Soto and Tyler O’Neill have signed (btw, to anyone clamoring for O’Neill, he is strictly a platoon guy who will be paid like an everyday player). What is most likely though is a trade for a controllable everyday average corner outfielder. Once they get their pitcher, expect Ranger to move for an outfielder.

Bullpen – Adding Jordan Romano was a good low cost, high reward move. We are still a little tight in the pen though and probably need another high-end guy. We are one injury away from being thin. It is not looking like that guy will be Jeff Hoffman. Again though, no relievers have been traded yet and no one has been signed. Devin Williams, Ryan Pressly, Ryan Helsley, Tanner Scott, and even Jeff Hoffman are all still out there. They will add one more guy. Even if it is not one of those guys, traditionally bargains can be found in this spot to those who wait.

Third Base – Everyone lost their mind yesterday when it “leaked” that Rob Thompson called Alec Bohm to tell him they weren’t shopping him. This was pure theater. The Phillies want everyone to know that they do not HAVE to trade Bohm and they actually value him. That’s not wrong, but if they can find decent value in him from somewhere he is gone. Miller looks like the heir apparent at 3rd. A Bohm move without a corresponding bigger Miller trade means likely signing a lefty utility infielder to platoon with Sosa at 3rd until Miller is the guy either halfway through this season or to start next year.

Prediction – We are still right where we were in the beginning of the off season. This is not a bad thing. We are not behind because the Mets signed Soto and Crochet isn’t in red pinstripes. The Phillies are still sitting on a pivot point of starting pitching. They went after Crochet and the controlled starters from Seattle. If they find that controllable starter, that will kick off a series of moves that includes trading Ranger and finding their outfielder. Just because it did not happen at the Winter Meetings does not mean it is not going to happen.

It sure seems like the Phillies are at their max for big contracts ($20m+) this season. This makes trades, rather than free agency, their likely avenue for improvement. Kyle Schwarber and JT Realmuto come off the books after the coming season, but they do not have replacements on hand. The front office is trying to win now and win in the future. Some moves (and non-moves) might not seem right on their own, but they are all made with the future in mind as well as the present. This is why we are looking at starters. This is why Aiden Miller is still in the system. This team does not want to have another ten years of dark ages like last time. Just be patient. They are not done.