The Phillies were eliminated from the NLDS on Wednesday night against New York, falling 3-1 in the best-of-five series. what happened? Well, they basically had no hits in those three losses, but that’s the same thing that happened in last season’s NLCS loss. Sometimes such spells can happen. It’s incredibly frustrating when those things happen in the playoffs. The fact that the Phillies’ bullpen allowed 17 runs in 12 2/3 innings didn’t hurt either.
Although the Phillies had their best regular season in a while, they took another step back in the postseason and will have to endure an entire offseason and long regular season before they have another chance at their first World Series title since 2008. It turns out.
The success of 2024 was clear. Before suffering multiple serious injuries, the Braves entered the season as overwhelming favorites to win the NL East again, but the Phillies won the division by six games. This was the team’s first division title since 2011, and the 95 wins were their highest since that season. The 3-game 3-1 loss in the NLDS vs. the Mets wasn’t as entertaining as the regular season, but it shouldn’t change their path in the offseason. Overreacting to baseball with a small sample size rarely goes well.
Still, we lost, so where do we go from here?
When predicting what the Phillies will look like next season, realize that they have a huge starting advantage over many teams…
great ownership
As I’ve covered several times on CBS Sports, John Middleton is a truly great owner. By his own admission, he believes he has a duty to put a good team on the field and that “we have a responsibility to the fans and the city.”
beautiful.
Considering the Phillies won the 2022 National League pennant, won the 2023 National League championship and won 95 games in 2024, they haven’t won the World Series since 2008. means doing everything in their power to look like the best team in the National League. Baseball towards 2025.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at the roster and where things could potentially head this offseason.
core comes back
In most cases, the Phillies can and should return a very similar roster next season. In many ways, they don’t have much of a choice. They are locked into a ton of big contracts.
The Phillies had the best first half this season, when their starting pitching was great. Zack Wheeler is under contract through 2027, Aaron Nola through 2030, and Christopher Sanchez through at least 2028. Ranger Suarez is under the team’s control for one more season.
The core of the offense is also under control: Bryce Harper (free agent in 2032), Torii Turner (2034), JT Realmuto (2026), Nick Castellanos (2027), Kyle Schwarber ( (2026), Alec Bohm (2027), Edmundo Sosa (2027), Bryson Stott (2028), Brandon Marsh (2028).
In the bullpen, Carlos Estevez and Jeff Hoffman are set to become free agents, but the remaining members, Matt Stram, Jose Alvarado, and the top of the list, Orion Kirkeling, return. It is very important for Alvarado to have a better season. If so, this trio could form one of the best bullpen back ends in the majors. Yes, the bullpen took a hit in the playoffs, but the relievers are shaky.
Swingman Spencer Turnbull, who was a starter early in the season, will also be a free agent.
Even if they lose Turnbull, Estevez, and Hoffman, they will likely be one of the best pitching staffs in baseball in 2025.
What will salaries be like in 2025?
It’s a good thing the Phillies have a great owner. Because right now, if the front office makes zero reinforcements by next season and leaves all free agents alone, they’re looking at estimated amounts (I don’t know where the arbitration numbers are) for the fall. ) Salary is over $280 million. According to Cotto’s contract, the Phillies were worth about $247 million this year.
Middleton is probably good at this kind of jump. If not, the Phillies will need to make some payroll cuts before strengthening in other areas.
Taijuan Walker will be paid $36 million over the next two seasons. Could the Phillies find someone willing to eat some of that salary and take him on? If so, they’ll probably bring back Spencer Turnbull.
If the front office wants to get creative, it could try to let Castellanos go, who is set to be paid $40 million over the next two years. Again, you’ll have to eat some of your money to make it happen, but this is a way to save cash. Schwarber is only under contract until next season and is owed $20 million, but he feels more integral to the lineup, right? I feel like I need to keep him around.
Personally, I think they should probably find a buyer for Walker, and if not, they should keep everyone. They can try to win it all for one more year before more serious problems confront the franchise.
If they do make a deal, maybe they’ll try to get Brent Rooker? He is in control until 2027 and is coming off a 39 home run, 112 RBI season with the Athletics. Marsh and Austin Hayes are currently guarding left field, but finding a way to deal with Castellanos and replacing him with Rooker could be a good idea.
Juan Soto would be the top player on the market, and the Phillies could make room for him in the outfield like any other team. The Phillies are not favorites to acquire Soto, given his already high salary. However, they have a track record of signing former Washington Nationals to huge contracts.
Will the prospects come?
Obviously, things change every year for every team, and if the Phillies don’t want to make significant additions from outside the organization, perhaps new help could come to the big league roster from within.
The top name would be 6-foot-7 right-handed pitcher Andrew Painter. He was scheduled to be vaccinated in 2023, but tore his UCL and underwent Tommy John surgery. He is currently pitching in the Arizona Fall League and could join the rotation next year. He has an ace’s upside, or at least he did last time he pitched.
Several other pitchers could also provide help in the bullpen.
When it comes to position players, major league rosters are pretty solid. Third baseman Aidan Miller, 20, finished the season in Double-A and will need more time in the minors.
The takeaway here is that, as boring as it may sound, the 2025 Phillies are very similar to the 2024 Phillies, both in terms of personnel and perhaps in terms of wins and losses. The only question is whether the postseason will yield better results for them.