It was reported last month that the Phillies are looking for a righty-swinging platoon bat to add to their outfield mix. Today, Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic report that Randal Grichuk is one specific name they are showing interest in.
The Phillies are likely to have a regular outfield of Adolis García in right, Justin Crawford in center and Brandon Marsh in left. Nick Castellanos is still on the roster but reporting throughout the winter has indicated the Phils are planning to move on from him before the season starts. That could be via a trade but he won’t have a ton of value due to his declining performance and $20MM left on the final year of his contract. If they can’t work out a trade in the coming weeks, he may just be released.
With the García/Crawford/Marsh trio, adding a righty-swinging complement makes a lot of sense, as Marsh and Crawford both swing from the left side. Marsh has a career .213/.278/.303 line and 61 wRC+ against southpaws, so it’s logical to shield him from those matchups as much as possible.
Crawford hasn’t even made his major league debut yet, but the Phils seem determined to give him a shot at taking the center field job this year. In the minors, his exposure to lefties has been limited. He only stepped to the plate 61 times against them in 2024 and just 91 times last year. His 2024 line was a fairly lackluster .263/.295/.439. He shot that up to .376/.411/.518 in 2025 but with a big spike in batting average on balls in play.
It’s hard to read much into the data with Crawford, since we’re talking about a small number of minor league events with no big league experience. Generally speaking, he’s a low-power contact-based hitter. He’s never hit more than nine home runs in a minor league season, as his production generally comes from putting the ball in play and using his speed. Time will tell how that approach translates against major league pitchers. Having a righty bat on hand to platoon with Marsh makes plenty of sense and perhaps Crawford as well, depending on how the latter fares in his first exposure to big league arms.
Grichuk fits the profile, as he swings from the right side and has been utilized as a lefty masher in recent years. He signed a $2MM deal with the Diamondbacks going into 2024 and provided excellent return on that modest investment. He was sent to the plate 279 times and slashed .291/.348/.528 for a 139 wRC+. That included a .319/.386/.528 line and 152 wRC+ against lefties.
Despite that solid season, Grichuk’s earning power didn’t improve greatly. He returned to the Snakes for 2025 with a $5MM guarantee. He wasn’t able to produce in quite the same way, as he slashed .228/.273/.401 for the year, getting flipped to the Royals at the deadline. His numbers were better against lefties last year but still not great, as he hit .227/.273/.430 for an 89 wRC+ in the split.
Obviously, the Phillies would be hoping for more of the 2024 version of Grichuk if they were to sign him. As an interesting sidenote, Grichuk and Castellanos actually have somewhat comparable profiles right now. Castellanos also didn’t have a great 2025 season but hit .269/.324/.506 against lefties in 2024, production that translated to a 124 wRC+. Each player is going into his age-34 season.
Perhaps it speaks to the poor relationship between Castellanos and manager Rob Thomson, who have publicly clashed a few times, that the Phils are seemingly plotting to get rid of Castellanos and replace him with a comparable player while potentially eating millions of dollars in the process. Castellanos was benched in June for some kind of inappropriate comment made to the skipper, per ESPN. Castellanos also publicly criticized Thomson for his communication skills. The Phils signed Thomson to an extension last month.
Grichuk is clearly superior in the field, however. Castellanos has never been a great defender. From 2018 to the present, he has been credited with minus-82 Defensive Runs Saved and minus-75 Outs Above Average. Those are the worst figures of any player in the majors for that span, regardless of position.
Grichuk, meanwhile, has been a strong defender in his career. His numbers have slipped to below average as he has pushed into his mid-30s but not by too much. Grichuk only has two center field innings since the start of 2024, which may work against him providing cover for Crawford in center. But Marsh is still arguably a viable center fielder, so it could still be possible to make the fit work.
Even if the Phillies don’t line up with Grichuk specifically, they will have other options to consider. Miguel Andujar, Austin Hays, Tommy Pham and Austin Slater are some other righty-swinging free agents who are available, none of whom should break the bank. Old friend Harrison Bader is out there but he might have enough juice to get a full-time job, as opposed to a short-side platoon role.
The Phils are one of the top-spending teams in the league but there have been some indications things are getting tight after their big deal to re-sign Kyle Schwarber. In addition to a platoon outfielder, they need to bring back J.T. Realmuto or do something else to replace him behind the plate.
The Phils opened last year with a payroll of $284MM, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts. They are projected for $265MM next year, according to RosterResource. At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Realmuto for a $30MM deal over two years. Between Realmuto and a platoon outfielder, the Phils would likely end up in the same range, though it’s still possible the offseason goes in some different directions. The Phils have reportedly explored the catching trade market, indicating a reunion with Realmuto isn’t guaranteed. They were also connected to Bo Bichette a few days ago, so perhaps there’s some chance of a big plot twist in the final weeks of the offseason.
Photo courtesy of Jay Biggerstaff, Imagn Images
