An early postseason exit was not in anyone’s plans for the 2024 Philadelphia Phillies.
After earning the title of National League East Champions for the first time since 2011, the Phillies only managed one Red October win before being eliminated by the rival New York Mets.
While the Phillies’ players have traded in swinging their bats for their golf clubs and their bullpen chairs for the comfy couch, the front office’s job to improve the team heading into 2025 has only just begun. Looking at the four teams remaining in the postseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, New York Yankees, and Cleveland Guardians, there might be a few players the Phillies should keep tabs on as their offseason slowly approaches.
Dodgers
Leading the way in hits in the NLDS for the Dodgers was none other than Teoscar Hernandez. In the regular season, Hernandez posted a .272 average and an .840 OPS, hitting 33 home runs and an unfortunate 99 RBI. Coming off a one-year contract with the Dodgers for $23.5 million, Hernandez is entering free agency for the second time in his career.
While not an amazing defensive asset, Hernandez’ bat could fix a hole in left field as the Phillies relied on a multi-player platoon to fill left and center field in 2024. Hernandez would also serve as a much-needed additional bat. His .272 average would be the fourth-highest among qualifying players on the Phillies.
There is another position that the Dodgers will find themselves in a surplus in that the Phillies may look to pursue: starting pitchers. As it stands, the Phillies’ starting rotation in 2025 will consist of Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sanchez, Ranger Suarez, and a hopefully healthy Andrew Painter. Given, however, the second-half performance from Suarez and the fact that Painter, who has yet to make his MLB debut, is recovering from Tommy John surgery, the Phillies might elect to bring in some new blood to the rotation rather than opting for another year of Taijuan Walker in the rotation.
Dealing with more injuries than just about any team this season, the Dodgers have, by my count, nine potential starting pitchers on their current roster looking into 2025. As of now, their rotation will be highlighted by Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and the return of Ohtani. Clayton Kershaw is likely to enter a much-deserved retirement. The combination of Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, and Gavin Stone will likely fill the four and five spots for the Dodgers as they watch Jack Flaherty and Walker Buehler enter free agency.
Both Flaherty and Buehler are among the top pitchers in baseball. Flaherty posted a 3.1.7 ERA in 28 starts for the Dodgers this year while Buehler, who returned from Tommy John surgery at the beginning of the season and faced issues with his hip as well this season, posted a weaker 5.38 ERA in 16 starts. Given his injury history and lesser performance, Buehler will likely come in cheaper for the Phillies while Flaherty will garner more attention this offseason.
Mets
There’s one player in particular entering free agency from the Mets that the Phillies should look to pursue: the man who started the lone game the Phillies won against the Mets in the NLDS. Luis Severino. After catching the subway from the Bronx to Queens with a one-year contract this past offseason, Severino hits free agency again after posting a 3.91 ERA in 31 starts, his first full-season workload since 2018. In what is shaping up to be a strong free agent class for starting pitchers, Severino might just be a solid target for the Phillies to pursue to fill the middle to rear of their rotation.
Oh, Pete Alonso is a free agent too if the Phillies really want to upset the Mets. But making Alonso fit into the existing player pool of the Phillies would be a challenge.
Yankees
Speaking of big-name position players, the Yankees have the highest-profile free agent of the offseason in Juan Soto. Gaining Soto would give the Phillies an additional outfielder and immediately add one of the best bats in the game to the ball club. While the Phillies should definitely pursue Soto this offseason, I do not see them making the highest offer. In all likelihood, Soto will remain a Yankee in 2025 and beyond.
Alex Verdugo, meanwhile, maybe the cheaper option to fill an outfield spot out of the Yankees. Having earned $8.7 million in 2024, Verdugo enters free agency for the first time in his career. He is also one of the weaker options on this list, having posted only a .233 average and .647 OPS with the Yankees. His prior seasons with the Red Sox and Dodgers indicated that Verdugo may have more to bring to the table, but he surely didn’t impress anyone in 2024.
Guardians
Rewind the clock a few months and Emmanuel Clase was on everyone’s wishlist. With a very pro-team contract built out until 2028, he was one of the more valuable trade chips not to be deployed at the Trade Deadline. And for good reason, as the Guardians stand four wins away from making it to the World Series.
With 40+ saves in each of the past three seasons, Clase is a bona fide closer, there can be no argument otherwise. If the Phillies were to trade for him this offseason, it would give immediate structure to a Phillies bullpen that is used to playing the mix-and-match game these past few years. Will the Guardians trade their closer after reaching, at minimum, the ALCS? Hard to tell, but if they do decide to sell, the Phillies have to be willing to make the move.
Rewind the clock a few years and Bieber fever hit the nation (no, we are not talking about the formerly bowl-cutted pop star). The AL Cy Young Award winner and Triple Crown champion of the shortened 2020 season, Shane Bieber has been among the best starting pitchers in the game, when healthy. With a past of shoulder issues and elbow problems, Bieber is currently recovering from a Tommy John surgery that took place on April 6.
Likely to need some rehabilitation time early into the 2025 season, Bieber’s value is lower than it would otherwise be. If the Phillies could grab and stash Bieber, he may come in handy in the eventuality that one of the Phillies’ starting pitchers goes down with an injury or otherwise has issues in 2025.
Regardless of how the postseason shakes out at this point, there are several players of note for the Phillies to keep an eye on from the four teams that outlasted them in 2024. Perhaps one of them holds the key to finally regaining John Middleton’s trophy.
Photo Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
