Philadelphia Phillies' Boss Reveals Outfield Plans Ahead of Season

It seems like the Philadelphia Phillies have their plan on how they want their outfield to look before the start of the 2024 season.

After the 2023 season ended, Philadelphia Phillies' president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, made some waves when he said Johan Rojas would have to earn his spot in center field next year.

The rookie was a revelation for their outfield, bringing elite defense to a unit that was one of the worst in baseball before he arrived in the summer.

Despite his struggles hitting during the postseason, it seemed like the Phillies had their center fielder of the future.

Until Dombrowski made those comments.

The idea Rojas could start the year at Triple-A presented some curious thoughts about how their outfield could look.

No way Kyle Schwarber would be moved back into left at this age, right? Would Cristian Pache or Jake Cave really be getting full-time work in the field and lineup?

All of that would seemingly be on the table if Rojas was in the minors.

But while Dombrowski said the young outfielder would have to earn his spot, he also added they don't want to "block his path to the big leagues."

Todd Zolecki of MLB.com gave an update on how this unit might look in 2024.

"That thinking has not changed, Dombrowski reiterated this week ... The plan is to have Nick Castellanos in right field, Brandon Marsh in left and Rojas in center, an alignment that worked well late in the 2023 regular season," he reported.

This scenario is one that manager Rob Thomson is rooting for to happen.

He understands the value that Rojas provides their defense and would like to see that continue to start 2024.

The only thing that would prevent this from happening is if the 23-year-old has a poor showing during Spring Training with his bat.

That might prompt Dombrowski to look for another outfielder on the market with one former MLB executive linking them to a three-time All-Star.

But as it stands right now, the plan is to have Rojas start in center field with Brandon Marsh and Nick Castellanos at the corners.