Jul 20, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Angels outfielder Jo Adell (7) mixes it up with the Phillie Phanatic before game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images Eric Hartline
While appearing on "Phillies Weekly" Sunday evening, something dawned on me — one of the challenges facing president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski this offseason may be trying to find a cleanup hitter that isn't yet being compensated like a cleanup hitter.
PHILLIES WEEKLY - Where do we go from here? https://t.co/mF7DEUufop
— Oscar Budejen (@OscarBudejen) October 27, 2025
This doesn't mean that the Phillies shouldn't re-sign Kyle Schwarber. They should. If for whatever reason Schwarber isn't back, the Phillies will need to pivot to another established hitter on the market like Alex Bregman or Pete Alonso.
But will the Phillies re-sign Schwarber, re-sign J.T. Realmuto and add another high-priced free-agent bat like Bregman or Alonso? Likely not. This isn't to cry poor for the Phillies — who Spotrac says finished with the fourth-highest payroll in baseball in 2025 at just over $290 million — but there is a budget that Dombrowski has to operate under. He said in his year-end press conference earlier this month that he doesn't anticipate the Phillies having a $400 million payroll in 2026.
At the same time, it's clear that the Phillies need a cleanup hitter. As Bryce Harper's agent, Scott Boras, pointed out in a conversation with MLB.com's Todd Zolecki last week, the two-time NL MVP didn't see nearly enough pitches to hit in 2025. One way to fix that could be to have Harper hit second, and then shift Schwarber (assuming he is back) to third to protect him. However, you would then run into a similar situation with Schwarber, as teams would be inclined to pitch around the likely NL MVP runner up and face whoever is hitting fourth.
This chart that Oscar Budejen shared during the aforementioned edition of "Phillies Weekly" was pretty damning in terms of what the Phillies got out of the No. 4 spot in the lineup this past season:
This chart probably speaks the worst about how Nick Castellanos' contract has played out. Castellanos posted a .651 OPS in 200 at-bats out of the cleanup spot this past season. He has a .732 OPS overall in four seasons with the Phillies, as opposed to a .939 OPS during his 2021 campaign with the Cincinnati Reds, which earned him a five-year/$100 million free-agent deal with the Phillies. There have been some great moments during Castellanos' time with the Phillies, but his overall production has been very disappointing for a player that, in theory, should have been your top option to protect Harper in the lineup.
Oh well, after tumultuous 2025, there appears to be a real shot that Castellanos has played his final game with the Phillies. Even in the unlikely event he returns to the Phillies in 2026, they can't rely on him to be their cleanup hitter, despite him being paid like one.
The same goes for Alec Bohm, who hit .216 with a .571 OPS in 97 cleanup at-bats this season. Bohm has generally been excellent hitting with runners in scoring position, as he's a .307 hitter in those circumstances in his career. But he hasn't developed into a cleanup hitter like it once appeared he could. In parts of six MLB seasons, Bohm has 70 home runs and a .743 OPS. There's a place for a player like that in the league, but it's more as a No. 6 or No. 7 hitter on a great team. And like Castellanos, it's unclear if Bohm will be back in 2026. MLB Trade Rumors projects he'll make $10.3 million in his final year of arbitration eligibility. He's too good to non-tender, but that's a hefty price for the player he was in 2025. Bohm seems like an obvious trade candidate.
Even though he's the only of the three not under contract for next season, Realmuto probably has a better shot to return to the Phillies in 2026 than Castellanos or Bohm. Once upon a time, it wasn't unreasonable to have him hit cleanup. But he's going to turn 35 next February and has hit .257 with a .736 OPS since the start of the 2023 season. At this stage, he's more like a No. 7 or No. 8 hitter than a cleanup option.
The need for a No. 4 hitter this offseason is clear, and it's probably not going to come in the form of another major free-agent signing in addition to Schwarber or a replacement for Schwarber. They could gamble on a rebound candidate like Luis Robert Jr. in free agency to fill that role, but there would seem to be a better chance of an option like that flopping than proving to be a shrewd signing.
Dombrowski and company might need to get creative on the trade market, realistically.
Taylor Ward's 100th career HR ties the game! pic.twitter.com/ygCOjhEG5t
The Los Angeles Angels are an interesting team to consider.
Taylor Ward has a year remaining until free agency and is coming off of a career-year where he hit 36 home runs and drove in 103 runs. He's a right-handed hitting corner outfielder. You could trade for Ward, put him in one of the two corner outfield spots and then potentially flip Brandon Marsh to address another area of need on the roster.
Perhaps even more intriguing is Jo Adell, who has three remaining years of arbitration eligibility. After posting a .648 OPS between 2020 and 2024, Adell finished 2025 with a .778 OPS, 37 home runs and 98 RBIs. He's better as a corner outfielder, but also did spend his largest chunk of time in center field this past year. Adell could co-exist with Justin Crawford, regardless of where the Phillies envision their top prospect playing defensively next season and beyond. The former first-round pick is also a player that you feel like has only scratched the surface of his potential. Would it shock anyone if Adell — still only 26 — develops into a guy that has multiple 40+ home run seasons?
The biggest hurdle in making a deal for either Ward or Adell is that the Angels, starting with owner Arte Moreno, are delusional. They just went 72-90 with a minus-164 run differential. That's a team that should be open to trading just about anyone, particularly Ward, who will turn 32 in December. But general manager Perry Minasian is entering the final year of his contract, and new manager Kurt Suzuki was inexplicably given just a one-year deal. Even if the best move for their long-term future would be trading either Ward or Adell, the Angels might not be inclined to do that as they try — probably unsuccessfully — to avoid an 11th consecutive losing season in 2026.
Wilyer Abreu of the Boston Red Sox is another interesting name. He may be more like a No. 5 hitter, but he hit 22 home runs and posted 15 defensive runs saved in right field this past season. The only reason that the Red Sox would even potentially listen on the 26-year-old is that they are overflowing with talented outfielders. Abreu, who won't become eligible for arbitration until 2027, would be a great get, but would likely require parting with Aidan Miller or Crawford to acquire.
Alternatively, the Phillies could consider trading for another top-of-the-order hitter and sliding Schwarber or Harper down to cleanup. Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians and Jarren Duran of the Red Sox were two who were out there this summer — the former was connected to the Phillies, in particular — that will likely be available again this winter. Both, however, are left-handed hitters, which would probably be suboptimal if the Phillies re-sign Schwarber. Additionally, Kwan can't become a free agent until after 2027, while Duran is after 2028, so each of them would cost quite a bit to acquire.
The reality is, there's not a perfect answer. Either the Phillies are going to have to spend more money than they want to, or they're going to have to trade for an imperfect player that they're banking on some level of improvement from. Clearly, they're in need of an upgrade at the cleanup spot.
