Aug 14, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber (12) celebrates with catcher J.T. Realmuto (10) after hitting a four RBI grand slam during the fourth inning against the Miami Marlins at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports Bill Streicher
Every week, On Pattison's Tim Kelly and Anthony SanFilippo will answer your Phillies questions from social media. Let's get to it.
@ThirtyBallparks on Threads: This isn’t Phillies question, but what team do you think could surprise everyone this season? I think the Nationals could be a spoiler come the playoffs.
Tim Kelly: I think the Nationals are a year — and probably an ownership change — away from being a playoff team again, but do agree that they are trending in the right direction with their core.
As far as teams that could potentially compete with the Phillies for a playoff spot or be a team they see in October, I'm intrigued by the Cincinnati Reds. I was last year too, and they underachieved by going 77-85, which led to the dismissal of former Phillie David Bell as manager. He was replaced by future Hall of Famer and former Phillies manager Terry Francona. If there's anyone capable of getting the most out of a talented team, it's Tito.
The Reds have some players that could go either way, such as Jemier Candelario, who is coming off of a down year but is a doubles machine when healthy. Cincinnati also signed Austin Hays after the Phillies non-tendered him.
But their high-end talent is special. Hunter Greene looked all the part of an ace when he was healthy last year. Elly De La Cruz needs to improve as a defender, but is one of the most electric offensive players in the sport. Matt McLain missed all of last year recovering from shoulder surgery, but the former first-round pick looked like a budding superstar two years ago.
It would not surprise me if the Reds win the wide-open NL Central and are a team the Phillies see in the postseason.
Anthony SanFilippo: There are disadvantages to letting Tim answer these questions first every week. One of them is Tim usually takes my answer, forcing me to get creative and come up with something else for you, the reader, to think about. But, I guess that's why I'm the savvy veteran here at On Pattison.
Yes, the Reds are most intriguing to me — and for all the reasons Tim said. I also think the Pirates have great pitching and if they stay healthy, they can hang around the race for the wide open Central long enough to force their hand to add a bat or two at the deadline to make them dangerous.
But the team I'll give you as under the radar in the NL is the Giants. They finally landed a top-end free agent in Willy Adames after striking out on so many superstars in recent seasons. They were also able to sign Justin Verlander, who admittedly isn't the pitcher he was in his heyday, but he's still got enough to be a No. 2 and serve as a great mentor to some younger and up and coming pitchers. Buster Posey is off to a good start running the show there. With Adames, a rejuvenated Matt Chapman, a blossoming Patrick Bailey, a full season out of Jung Hoo Lee, the return to health of former AL Cy Young winner Robbie Ray, an underrated ace in Logan Webb and a strong back end of the bullpen anchored by Ryan Walker — I, for one, won't be surprised if they are better than both the Padres and Diamondbacks and earn a Wild Card berth behind the Dodgers in the NL West.
And here's a bonus pick for you in the AL — keep an eye on the vagabond Athletics this season. They had the fourth-best record in the AL after July 1 last season and they went out and spent some money this winter on Luis Severino, traded for Jeffrey Springs and brought in vets like Gio Urshella and José Leclerc to support a cast that features the offensively-gifted Brent Rooker and young talents like Lawrence Butler, Jacob Wilson, Zach Gelof and Shea Langeliers. Texas probably wins the division, with Houston and Seattle in Wild Card contention, but the A's may sneak up on them all if things break right for them.
Phillies Stoplight 3/17 with @TimKellySports and @AntSanPhilly 🚦☘️
🚥: Zack Wheeler gets the nod on Opening Day
🚥: How will the Phillies approach lefty MacKenzie Gore on Opening Day?
🚥: Injury updates pic.twitter.com/CtoVxOcRAZ
@Jabo1331 on X: Will Schwarber have an extension in place before the season at this point? He always seemed like the more likely candidate to get the extension.
Tim Kelly: The Phillies signed Zack Wheeler to his three-year/$126 million extension last spring on March 4. They announced publicly that they had halted contract talks with Aaron Nola two springs ago on March 25, five days before Opening Day.
Neither Kyle Schwarber or J.T. Realmuto has set any sort of deadline for a new deal, so it's always possible the Phillies could sign either to an extension during the season, like they did with Brad Lidge in July of 2008. But my inclination is to think that if a new deal isn't reached before Opening Day, there's a real chance they'll reach free agency.
Of the two, Schwarber is coming off of a better season, and is still at his peak. At the same time, a DH is more replaceable than a catcher. Even a slightly diminished version of Realmuto — who is actually celebrating his 34th birthday today — would be harder to replace than Schwarber because of the scarcity of quality catchers. Both, though, are integral to the fabric of this era of the Phillies.
The question will be if the Phillies disappoint in 2025 — whether that means an early playoff exit or altogether missing the postseason — where do they go? If Realmuto and Schwarber are both signed to extensions, the Phillies won't have much flexibility next offseason, kind of like this past winter. But if both are free agents, $43.875 million in salary will be coming off the books. And perhaps the Phillies can use a chunk of that to shake up the core around the fixed costs of Wheeler, Nola, Bryce Harper and Trea Turner.
Anthony SanFilippo: My bet is no. But that's the simple answer to the question, because it's got a lot of caveats. I'm not saying Schwarber won't sign a deal with the Phillies — he very well may — but the reality is, if you are looking beyond this year and go to 2026 and beyond, the Phillies would like to make room for guys like Aidan Miller and Justin Crawford on their major league roster. To do that, they may need some flexibility.
I say may need, because its an important season for guys like Brandon Marsh and Alec Bohm. If they both continue their trends from a year ago, the Phillies will look to re-sign Schwarber and possibly look to move those younger guys. If they both have consistently good years, the Phillies will likely let Schwarber sign elsewhere and move other pieces around into a more flexible DH role for 2026 and beyond.
I think Realmuto is the more likely to sign a contract because the Phillies best catching prospect, Eduardo Tait, is still just 19 years old and is still a few years away. Unless you think you can find something better than what Realmuto is right now in free agency for 2-3 years, it's better to have Realmuto than Schwarber, assuming you had to pick one over the other.
@CrankThe Yank on BlueSky: If the Phillies cannot find a trade partner for Walker in the next 10 days does he head to the Bullpen?
Tim Kelly: At this point, I would be shocked if Walker isn't on the Opening Day roster, barring a trade.
It's less about the results he's gotten in Grapefruit League action, because you can outpitch peripherals over a short sample size in Spring Training. But frankly, I'm floored he's throwing 93 consistently after averaging 91.5 mph on his fastball during the regular season last year. Once the regular season comes around and it warms up, Walker could further improve that velocity. It's a testament to how hard he worked on his weighted ball program this offseason.
Now, Walker will have to stay healthy, and given that his body seemed like it was breaking down last year, it's fair to be skeptical of how he'll hold up over a six-month season. It also may not be practical to carry him as a reliever for the entire season, particularly once Andrew Painter is called up.
But in March and April — when starters aren't stretched out and Rob Thomson is careful about using relievers on back-to-back days — having Walker capable of throwing multiple innings out of the bullpen could be very valuable. I anticipate the Phillies will be particularly cautious with how many innings Ranger Suárez throws early in the season, which could mean Walker almost piggybacks him his first few starts in 2025.
Anthony SanFilippo: On Friday, Thomson told us that Walker should still be thinking about pitching as a starter. Why? They have five starters, right? And why is Ranger Suárez throwing an intersquad game on the same-day Wheeler is starting rather than starting his own game against a Major League team?
There's something fishy to me about how they're handling Suárez to start the season. I'm not suggesting Walker is going to replace him in the rotation once Opening Day rolls around, but I do think a piggyback scenario for a couple weeks might be a reality.
I asked Thomson if two off days in the first week would impact his rotation — meaning would they possibly even skip the fifth starter until they would need him — which technically they could do until the ninth game of the season with the way the calendar falls. He said not really, that he wants to give them all a start right away in the season. But that doesn't mean he's committed to length for all of them. We know Wheeler, Nola and Cristopher Sánchez can give you a lot of innings, we don't know about Jesús Luzardo and Suárez. Luzardo has looked good in camp (minus one rocky start), and seems to be building up as most pitchers would. Suárez, on the other hand, has had a weirder schedule.
Maybe they're just trying to avoid the collapse of last season and taking it uber-slow with him. But, I'm not 100% convinced everything is hunky dory there. So, Walker becomes more valuable than I — or anyone else, really — ever imagined he could be for the 2025 Phillies.
Phillies Opening Day lineup projection from @TimKellySports pic.twitter.com/9xxYDfoLzl
@PaulJCasey on Threads: What's your favorite food at the Bank?
Tim Kelly: I'm going to come off completely out of touch to fans, but almost all my meals at Citizens Bank Park since I started covering the team in 2020 have come in the media dining hall. And having been to enough parks around the sport, the Phillies really do have the best media dining hall.
I am partial to the chicken tenders, but they also make adult food that's really good too. One of my least favorite parts about the offseason is having to decide (and sometimes prepare) what's for dinner. So I'm definitely looking forward to getting back to the media dining hall in a couple weeks.
Anthony SanFilippo: I've never seen anyone who loves to talk about the media dining hall as much as Tim. Even when we are there, in the press box, Tim usually does an early browsing of the night's menu and starts talking it up to the rest of the writers. He also eats more fruit there than anyone. And I love that he calls it "adult food." That killed me. We need to find Tim a wife who can cook. Anyone have a lead? I have one of those and she's amazing, so all I eat is "adult food."
Like Tim, though, I don't get a chance to go to the concession stands much — it's just the nature of how our job operates, unfortunately. Although, I am intrigued by this S'mores Quesadilla they are rolling out this season. Phillies Director of Fun and Games John Brazer always seems to have to newest foods in the park at his disposal. I'm going to have to get on him to bring that one by the press box for a sampling.
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