Dave Dombrowski Talks Nick Castellanos Release, Trade Market, Miami Incident

Nick Castellanos has been tied to Dave Dombrowski for nine of 16 years since graduating high school. Dombrowski led the Detroit Tigers front office that drafted Castellanos in 2010 and was at the helm with the Phillies when they signed Castellanos to a five-year, $100 million contract in March 2022.

More than half of Castellanos' pro career has come in a Dombrowski-led organization, but both sides knew as soon as last season ended that there would be no reunion in 2026.

Castellanos was owed $20 million for one more year, a contract other teams had little incentive to trade for, but the Phillies were still committed to moving on. The production was no longer there offensively or defensively, and while a highly publicized dugout incident between Castellanos and manager Rob Thomson last June was the most glaring example of chemistry gone awry, it wasn't the only.

Here is some of what Dombrowski told reporters in Clearwater on Thursday:

On the release

"Nick's been a very good player, he's had a nice career and he probably will continue to. But a lot of times, when a player has their role change with a club, it can cause some friction. His role changed last year from where it was. He played every single day for a lot of years in a row. Sometimes that can contribute to it."

On the trade market for Castellanos

"We kept trying to move his contract and there were clubs that would show some interest in the wintertime, really starting back in November. There were times I thought we might make a trade. We were looking for more dollars at that particular time.

"If we ended up moving his contract even if it was for a minimal amount, it helps us from a (Competitive Balance Tax) perspective, so that's really why we kept trying to get this done."

On the Miami dugout incident

Castellanos revealed Thursday that he brought a beer into the dugout during the game and sat next to Thomson after being removed for a defensive replacement.

"I was there at the game, I watched everything from where I was sitting and I was surprised that a lot of people didn't see what was taking place at the time," Dombrowski told reporters. "That contributed by all means to why he was suspended for that game, taken out of the lineup for the game, benched for the game. But that wasn't the final or determining factor. If it was, we would have done it at that particular time."

On the relationship ending the way it did

"I've known him for a long time, he's been a very good player, he's had a nice career. He's done a lot of good things and probably will continue to do so. Things happen, things change over a 15-year period. I still have a good relationship with Nick and his family members, I've known them all.

"You always wish things end up on a good point, a la Ranger Suarez when he's leaving and pitching very well, but it doesn't always happen. That's just the way life is, not only here but life in general."