Jun 20, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos (8) reacts before the game against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Could the Phillies pivot off Nick Castellanos before the July 31 trade deadline? "Multiple GMs" told The Athletic's Jim Bowden that they think it's possible:
"The Castellanos rumors just never go away, and for that reason alone, multiple GMs think there’s a chance he could get moved if Philadelphia can find a better right-field option."
Respectfully, Bowden is not batting .1000 on rumors/reports in his career, but he is the former general manager of both the Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals. So when he mentions Castellanos in an article about players that executives around the league think could be moved, it's worth discussing.
Castellanos was benched by manager Rob Thomson last month in Miami after he made an "inappropriate comment" when he was pulled late in a close game for a defensive replacement. Castellanos sat for a day, apologized to Thomson, and by all accounts, things have been fine since.
For his part, the two-time All-Star seemed to move past the disagreement relatively quickly when discussing it with Lochlahn March of The Philadelphia Inquirer:
“We’re two grown men that show up for work every day with the common goal of winning a World Series,” Castellanos said. “If everybody just agrees on everything and doesn’t speak their mind, there’s not going to be passion there. Emotions drive people, especially passionate people.
“So to think that there’s going to be eight months of consistently being together and not butting heads at all, that probably doesn’t happen.”
Castellanos did make the game-ending catch in Miami against the right-field wall the night after his benching, and since then, Thomson hasn't pulled him for a defensive replacement. This comes despite some other defensive miscues since then, and the fact that Castellanos has minus-12 defensive runs saved and minus-9 outs above average this season. It's possible that the Phillies have determined whatever edge they may gain by replacing Castellanos late in games isn't worth upsetting him.
Still, Castellanos' defense has graded out among the worst in baseball this season. His .776 OPS is fine, but not what you would expect from a player who is making $20 million. In theory, if a team would be willing to take on Castellanos' remaining money — which includes another $20 million next season — Dave Dombrowski and the Phillies would probably love to allocate that money elsewhere.
The problem is that while Castellanos has flaws, he's the best hitter that the Phillies have in the outfield. He's also on a team that already feels short in terms of impact right-handed hitters. Considering the Phillies' more pressing need in the outfield is probably upgrading left field, it's hard to see how you would move off of Castellanos during the season and get better.
That doesn't mean the Phillies couldn't consider a trade of Castellanos in the offseason. But they would probably have to be prepared to pay, say, 50% of the $20 million he's owed next year to facilitate a trade. That might be worth doing if the Phillies think Castellanos, 33, is declining and/or disgruntled, but it would be more about clearing some money than getting an impact return.
The most interesting wrinkle in all of this is that Castellanos moved on from Scott Boras last summer and now serves as his own agent. He acknowledged he even texted Dombrowski last offseason when his name surfaced in a rumor — from Bowden — about the Phillies potentially trying to acquire Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros. Perhaps in the coming days and weeks, he'll be making another inquiry to Dombrowski if his name continues to surface in these type of discussions.
Nick Castellanos explains why he chose to represent himself.
(Via @TimKellySports) pic.twitter.com/Mo6dbQisqI
