February 03, 2026
The Phillies will be getting some sweet relief soon.
After the 2026 season, assuming MLB's impending labor issues don't completely upend the current league's financial system, the Phillies are going to have some cash to spend. Just around $82 million will be coming off the books as several expensive players see their contracts expire. The majority of these guys will probably walk.
But the Phillies are a team that notoriously has shown it likes running things back. Just this offseason, the front office broke the bank to keep Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto in red pinstripes. Are there any extension candidates whom the Phillies are hoping to avoid losing? Sometimes a smart team can make an early investment that pays dividends later on.
Three times over the last few seasons, the Phillies extended current players — Matt Strahm and Zack Wheeler (signed in March) and Cris Sánchez (signed in June). More often, however, they wait for the open market, as they did with Schwarber and Realmuto this offseason and Aaron Nola before that.
Here's a look at impending free agents and a few other players who are candidates for in-season extensions this spring:
Nick Castellanos, Taijuan Walker: Combined, these two players are going to make $38 million this season. Castellanos seems like he'll be traded or cut and the Phillies will swallow his $20 million salary, Walker slates to be a fifth or sixth starter swing arm. Neither will be with the team in 2027.
Jesús Luzardo, Jhoan Duran: Luzardo is in his final year of arbitration, making $11 million, and he's in a contract year at age 28. The better he pitches, the more he'll cost the Phillies to retain. Luzardo was very good most of the time in 2025, but he did have some blow-up games as well, and it's possible the team wants to see him on the field again before they negotiate for his return.
Duran is a different sort of case. He is under team control for one more season after this one, but if he does hit free agency — assuming his lockdown late-innings domination continues — he'll be wildly expensive (the Dodgers will pay closer Edwin Diaz $23 million a year after his signing a few months ago). As the Phils did with Sánchez, a preemptive extension makes perfect sense for Duran as his prime continues.
Edmundo Sosa: Sosa will have many suitors in free agency — he's one of the best utilitymen in the sport. Surely he'll want to start every day somewhere, as he's shown he has both the defense and hitting to do so. However, the Phillies are likely going to either open an infield spot for top prospect Aidan Miller or try and lure a big-name infielder to help them contend with the big boys. Sosa doesn't feel like he fits into that equation, unless he's willing to forgo his chance at starting and stay in his current role with the Phillies.
Alec Bohm, Adolis García, José Alvarado: For various reasons, the Phillies will probably elect to replace these guys with up and coming prospects or players on the open market. Bohm has been the subject of trade rumors for years now, and he seems unlikely to be in the team's future plans. García is a one-year trial balloon in the outfield and even if he is solid there, he's 33 and the Phils won't want him blocking the outfield from improving in 2027 when they have more payroll flexibility. And Alvarado, who has been a very solid lefty for most of his career, seems like he'll welcome the chance to make a few bucks in free agency.
Bryson Stott, Brandon Marsh: Both of these lefty position players are 28 and have one year left of arbitration ahead. Neither screams superstar future of the franchise, but each has made some terrific memories as a Phillie. They could likely be retained for cheap, but both are flawed players and it would seem to be a bit of a stretch for either to get extended at this point.
Andrew Painter, Aidan Miller, Justin Crawford: None of these three has played one game in the majors yet — but that didn't stop a recent (failed) experiment when the Phils extended Scott Kingery to a six-year, $24 million extension before he got called to the majors. Other teams have been more successful in extending young studs in their first couple years:
• Jackson Chourio: Signed an eight-year, $82 million deal with the Brewers before his MLB debut
• Colt Keith: Signed a six-year deal worth close to $29 million with the Tigers, also before he played an MLB game
• Michael Harris II: Signed an eight-year extension worth $72 million just months after his MLB debut
There are countless other examples of these sorts of gambles. And as you can see in the examples above, paying a player like Harris $10 million per year has a massive payoff to the financial future of a team — akin to an NFL team striking gold with a quarterback on a cheap rookie contract. Will the Phillies take a huge and bold swing with an extension for one of their three highly touted 20-somethings?
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