We’ve reached the point of the Phillies offseason where fans are gripped to their Twitter or Bluesky feeds, desperately inhaling every rumor, nugget, and/or stray morsel of information regarding trades or free-agent signings.
It’s hard to believe this franchise hasn’t won a World Series in the last half-decade. Consider that Bryce Harper, whom they signed as a 26-year-old superstar prior to the 2019 season, has played six seasons in Philadelphia, won an MVP award, and not won the World Series.
Consider that since 2018, the Phillies have had two of the game’s very best pitchers in Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola, at least in terms of Wins Above Replacement, and have not won a World Series.
They have had J.T. Realmuto since 2019. They had Zach Eflin, one of the game’s better young pitchers, from 2019 to ‘22. Kyle Schwarber has hit 131 HRs in three seasons with the Phils after totaling 153 over seven seasons with three other clubs. They’ve developed Cristopher Sanchez and Ranger Suarez into solid starting pitchers and had electric bullpens going back to 2022.
How has this team not won a World Series yet?
While Dave Dombrowski has wisely insisted they are balancing sustainability as well as winning a championship now, it should not be lost on anyone that there is perhaps no team in baseball for whom the stakes are higher in 2025. That is why the fanbase pants breathlessly at every Juan Soto rumor, speculation over trading for a young star pitcher like the White Sox’s Garrett Crochet, and why the big-spending Phils are seemingly “in” on every free agent not nailed down.
Rumors with a purpose
Of course, so much of what we see and hear at this time of year should be taken with a grain of salt. Player agents use national writers to further their own ends, leaking little bits of information to the media in the hopes of moving the market one way or the other. On Monday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported the Phillies have not even spoken with agent Scott Boras about his client, megastar outfielder Juan Soto.
Is it true? Perhaps. But these stories don’t get out there without some ulterior motive. And make no mistake, lots of teams play this game, too.
That being said, the Phils are usually pretty tight-lipped about their plans, which is why offseason Hot Stove rumors are fun, but not necessarily informative. What they do, however, is get us to speculate, to analyze, and to dream big on how certain players would look if they came to Philadelphia.
Here’s what we know for sure heading into Thanksgiving this week:
- The Phillies are not going to reduce their payroll. They are going to spend.
- They have needs in the outfield and at the back of the bullpen.
- They want to change the makeup of their lineup and bring in players with more plate discipline.
- They believe in starting pitching depth.
- They appear willing to move players from their big league roster to facilitate creativity.
That’s it.
Yeah, it sounds like third baseman Alec Bohm is being dangled out there, with Suarez and Nick Castellanos seemingly available, too. But until something actually goes down, all we’re left with are rumors, speculation and innuendo.
Which is why you should listen to and subscribe to our Phillies podcast Hittin’ Season, where Justin Klugh, Liz Roscher and I are following every little nugget hidden under every rock in the Hot Stove wilderness, including our latest episode in which we discuss the Soto rumor, a potential trade for Crochet, and many other offseason items of interest!
