Notable Phillies Who Can't Be Optioned to Minor Leagues in 2026

The Phillies, like most teams, have shown in recent years that they value roster flexibility and the ability to keep a player who may be able to contribute in the organization whenever possible.

Minor-league options play a large role in that sort of roster-building and maintenance. A player who is out of minor-league options oftentimes has an advantage over a similarly skilled player who still has options left and can freely be sent to the minor leagues.

Think 2025 with Phillies backup catchers Rafael Marchan and Garrett Stubbs. Stubbs had an option left but Marchan did not, which made Marchan the heavy favorite to win the backup spot last spring unless he fell on his face. The thought process last year was why risk losing Marchan if there was no risk of losing Stubbs?

How options work

Here are the key points:

• An option allows a player to be sent to the minor leagues without first being subjected to waivers. This means that there is no risk of losing the player to another team when optioning him.

• Players who are optioned to the minors are removed from the active 26-man roster but remain on the 40-man roster.

• Players typically have three option years.

• Only one minor-league option is used per season. If a player was called up to the majors and then optioned back to the minors three times in 2025, for example, only one option was used.

• When optioned to the minors, a position player must remain there for at least 10 days before he is eligible to be called back up. For pitchers, the minimum is 15 days.

Here are the key Phillies out of options:

Marchan and Stubbs

This time around, both Marchan and Stubbs are out of options.

Stubbs signed a split-contract with the Phillies this offseason and could remain in the organization at Triple A even if Marchan wins the backup job again. Marchan is probably the more likely of the two to be claimed on waivers if he doesn't make the team out of camp.

Bowlan and Pop

Right-handed relievers Jonathan Bowlan and Zach Pop are out of options.

Bowlan was acquired from the Kansas City Royals for Matt Strahm and is a near lock to be in the Opening Day bullpen. He had a 3.86 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 44⅓ innings last season.

Pop has 163 games of big-league experience over five seasons with four different teams. He's one of about a dozen relievers in camp fighting for two bullpen jobs.

Fellow right-handed reliever Zach McCambley is not out of options but was the Phillies' Rule 5 pick in December, which comes with even more rigid stipulations. If the Phils don't carry McCambley on their roster to begin the season, they'd have to place him on waivers and if he clears, offer him back to the Miami Marlins for $50,000.

The Phils have talked up McCambley as a potential right-handed specialist so he seems to have a good shot at one of those final two relief spots.

Wilson and Davidson

Right-hander Bryse Wilson (28) and lefty Tucker Davidson (29) were non-roster invitees to spring training.

Wilson is one of the Phillies' few starting pitching depth options in camp behind their projected Opening Day five. He's not just pitching for a job with the Phillies this spring, he's auditioning for 29 other teams. If he pitches well but doesn't make the team out of camp, he can seek a better opportunity elsewhere. Or he could remain in the organization at Triple A for a team that, as previously mentioned, does not have much rotation depth.

Wilson spent half of last season at Triple A in the White Sox system. He has a 4.82 ERA in 163 big-league games, which included 57 starts.

Davidson made 22 starts in Korea last season but may be viewed more so a relief candidate. He has 56 career major-league appearances, just one since 2023.

Dylan Moore

The Phillies invited the veteran utilityman to spring training a week before camp opened. Moore is competing for the final spot on the Phillies' bench with the other three claimed by Edmundo Sosa, Otto Kemp and the backup catcher (barring injury).

Over seven seasons with the Seattle Mariners, the right-handed Moore played every position on the diamond except catcher. He has more than 1,300 major-league innings at second base with between 430 and 900 at shortstop, third base, left field and right field. He won a Gold Glove award as a utilityman in 2024.

Moore is out of options and has spent practically no time below the majors since 2019.

Phillies who do have options left

Key Phillies players who do have minor-league options remaining are Kemp and outfielders Johan Rojas, Bryan De La Cruz and Gabriel Rincones Jr.

Rojas, De La Cruz and Moore are the primary candidates for the Phillies' lone bench opening. Rojas would provide a pinch-runner and defensive replacement, De La Cruz would provide a right-handed option with pop off the bench and Moore has the most defensive versatility.

Rincones Jr. is dealing with knee soreness that will keep him out of Grapefruit League action until about the midpoint, manager Rob Thomson told reporters this week.

Moore's option status compared to the other three could prove to be a separator for the final bench spot.