The Major League Baseball trade deadline is far gone, and the Philadelphia Phillies made a couple of big splashes that appear to have made their overall roster better. They acquired closer Jhoan Duran and outfielder Harrison Bader.
However, that does not mean that the front office hasn’t grown frustrated with some of the players currently on the roster, and there could be pivotal deals made this offseason when the trade rules open back up.
Phillies Reportedly Want to Trade Away Nick Castellanos
Philadelphia are reportedly open to moving on from Nick Castellanos this offseason.
The report comes from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, who indicates that the Phillies tried to ship Castellanos away last offseason but were unable to do so, and will try harder this offseason to find a suitor for the 33-year-old outfielder.
Castellanos is in the midst of a five-year, $100 million contract that will end following the 2026 season. Nightengale indicates that the team is willing to eat a portion of the contract if another team is willing to trade for him.
Bleacher Report was also on the news, and gave some reasoning behind Philadelphia wanting to move on from Castellanos:
“He’s been a solid source of production for Philadelphia over the past few years and is hitting .252 with 16 home runs and 62 RBI this season, but he hasn’t been very effective lately. Castellanos hit just .180 in the month of August. He saw his playing time gradually decrease due to his struggles both at the plate and in the outfield.”
“The 33-year-old could be a contributor in the right situation, but perhaps it would be best for both sides to cut ties this offseason. The Phillies (83-60) will open a four-game set against the NL East rival New York Mets (76-67) on Monday.”
There is no indication other than the struggles as to why Philadelphia may want to move on from him. Age likely plays a factor, and he isn’t the best defender in the world either. What is shocking, however, is that this report is coming in the middle of September in the heat of a Phillies’ pennant chase.
Who Could be a Potential Suitor?
Finding a suitor for Castellanos is where the idea of him being traded gets sticky. His bWAR is -0.9 for this season, which is really bad, and that might be an indication that he’s far past his prime years.
Last year, he played all 162 games for the Phillies and hit 23 home runs with an OPS+ of 104.
His OPS+ is 90 this season, so it’s a tick down, but his August struggles likely have a large factor in that dip. This will be a very interesting story to follow as the 2025 season winds down, and it will also have a large part to do with how the Phillies finish the season. Castellanos could be a postseason hero, and that may be enough reason for Philadelphia to hold onto him, or he struggles mightily down the stretch and in the postseason, which makes the front office more apt to move off from him and the remainder of his contract.
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