Philadelphia Phillies Reportedly Make Stance Clear on Playoff Hero

Despite speculation this offseason, the Philadelphia Phillies reportedly have no interest in trading star outfielder Nick Castellanos.

Per Buster Olney of ESPN:

Phillies source: they aren’t interested in moving Nick Castellanos. They consider him an important part of the team and value his production, and have no intention of trading him.

Phillies source: they aren’t interested in moving Nick Castellanos. They consider him an important part of the team and value his production, and have no intention of trading him.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) November 10, 2023

It's unclear why the report surfaced in the first place but if the Phillies had been interested in moving him, it could have been a money thing. He still has three years left on his deal at $60 million and moving him could have created some more payroll flexibility.

Alas, Castellanos will stay with the Phillies after a season that saw him re-establish himself as a high-quality hitter. He hit .272 with 29 homers and 106 RBI. He also reached mythical status in the Phillies' playoff run to the NLCS, popping four home runs in the NLDS victory over the Atlanta Braves.

Lifetime, Castellanos is a .276 hitter. He's played 11 years in the big leagues with the Tigers, Reds, Cubs and Phillies. He's got 210 career home runs and has been named an All-Star twice.

The Phillies figure to be very strong again in 2024, although they are not without questions. Ace right-hander Aaron Nola is a free agent and several insiders expect him to leave this offseason. Perhaps the notion of trading Castellanos was designed around the idea of trying to free up money to sign Nola.

But since Olney says they are not trading him, they will need to look for that money somewhere else.

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