Why the Phillies and Dave Dombrowski have plenty of questions and no clear answers this winter

The Dodgers, up 3-0 over the Brewers heading into Game 4 of the NLCS Friday night, are on the verge of winning their second straight pennant. Whether it’s the Mariners or the Blue Jays waiting for them, Los Angeles will be favored to repeat as World Series champions – something no team has done since the 2000 Yankees.

The Dodgers remain the model franchise. One who not only acquires talent but achieves results. The club that not only creates hype, but also delivers on it.

The Phillies, meanwhile, are still trying to figure out why they haven’t delivered much.

Despite the third-highest payroll and a star-filled roster, the Phillies once again found themselves in a familiar situation: trying to piece together what went wrong in October and how to move forward. The Phillies won the NL pennant in 2022. They were up 2-0 against the Diamondbacks in the 2023 NLCS. Since then, they have lost 10 of their 13 playoff games.

President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski didn’t provide many answers Thursday during an end-of-season news conference. How could you do it when baseball is still being played and the team that dismantled you in four games in the NLDS is about to repeat baseball history for the first time in 25 years?

Or when your stars underperformed or were unavailable due to injury?

“There needs to be more change,” Dombrowski told reporters Thursday. “We’ve won 96 games, and again, you’re always looking to improve. So we will. We’ll be open-minded to that. I think it’s a little different. And then there are some inherent situations for us that are going to have to be addressed. So where you go as a club is largely dictated by some of these moves that end up happening.”

Some of these predefined situations are based on prospects that arise and have an immediate impact. Names such as pitcher Andrew Painter and outfielder Justin Crawford have had some impact on the big league roster.

This requires the club to move on from Nick Castellanos, according to a report from The Athletic. The outfielder turned sullenly to manager Rob Thomson once his on-field play declined, leading to less time on the diamond at the end of the season. Castellanos posted a minus-1 WAR (per Baseball Reference), compiling a .250/.294/.400 slash line with 17 home runs in 2025. His defense, which has never been elite, has been abysmal this year. He will be 34 at the start of next season.

The Phillies signed Castellanos to a five-year contract ahead of the 2022 season. At the same time, they gave Kyle Schwarber a four-year contract worth $80 million. To keep him, they will have to agree to a more expensive pact after Schwarber’s 56 homers in 2025.

“Oh, we’d love to bring back Kyle Schwaber,” Dombrowski added. “It’s a priority for us. He knows it. But I also know he’s a free agent, so that’s what ends up happening when guys hit free agency. You never know what happens. But it’s a real priority for us to try to get him back. And he knows it, and his reps know it.”

Receiver JT Realmuto is also a free agent they want to keep on the roster.

Additionally, it is important for the Phillies to get their highest-paid player, Bryce Harper, back to his usual self. Harper missed time due to injury and finished with a .261/.357/.487 slash line, an .844 OPS and 27 home runs. A very good season – but that’s by anyone’s standards other than Harper, a generational player bound for Cooperstown.

Unexpectedly, his boss wondered if he could reach that level again. Dombrowski, an old-school straight shooter, may have done this intentionally, hoping to get the most out of Harper next year, his age-33 season.

“In Bryce’s case, of course, he’s still a quality player,” Dombrowski said. “He’s still an All-Star caliber player. He hasn’t had an elite season like he’s had in the past. And I guess we’re just finding out if he becomes elite or if he continues to be good. I look around the league. Think about Freddie Freeman. He’s still a good player. Is he elite like he was before? Probably not to the same extent. And so it’s nothing negative. Freddie is a tremendous player. And it’s for me, Can Bryce reach the next level? Again? I don’t really know this answer. »

Cristopher Sanchez looks every bit like a future Cy Young Award winner. Without Paul Skenes, this could have been Sánchez’s prize this season. Jesus Luzardo took a big step forward during the playoffs and bounced back from what looked like a dip before the All-Star break. Ranger Suarez is a free agent. Zack Wheeler’s future is a question mark after he required thoracic outlet surgery. Aaron Nola needs to get back to his usual numbers for this team to be successful.

There’s a bunch of “I don’t know” around the Phillies as the Dodgers continue to thrive.

“The Dodgers, they didn’t make a lot of mistakes [against us in the postseason]”Dombrowski noted.

The Phillies didn’t make many mistakes either. And that’s part of the problem. There’s no clear answer on how this team can be the one still standing at the end of October.