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Has the Phillies' 2018-19 Offseason Spending Spree Paid Off?

Three seasons after the Phillies went on a signing spree, has it paid off?

Author:
Declan Harris
Feb 15, 2022 1:00 PM EST

Three years ago, the Philadelphia Phillies front office decided to make some big moves with the goal of turning their below .500 team into serious playoff contenders.

Their way of doing this was through acquiring All Star-caliber players like right fielder and former MVP Bryce Harper, left fielder and another former MVP Andrew McCutchen, and catcher J.T. Realmuto.

Looking back, was Philadelphia's 2018-19 offseason spending spree worth it?

Harper, signed by Philadelphia to a 13-year, $330 million contract on Feb. 28, 2019 after months of speculation, has had the most significant impact on the Phillies during his first three seasons. He's batted .281/.402/.556 with 83 home runs, 231 RBI, as well as being the first Phillie to win the NL MVP since Jimmy Rollins did back in 2007, in 2021.

Realmuto, similar to Harper, has been a golden touch since arriving in South Philadelphia on Feb. 7, 2019. Realmuto's offensive contributions include slashing .269/.337/.471 with 53 homers and 188 RBI over three seasons. Additionally, Realmuto has also played a key role in calling games from behind the plate, playing stellar defense, and working with new pitchers to make sure things are squared away. He's been named to two All-Star Games, and collected both a Gold Glove Award and Silver Slugger Award during his tenure in Philadelphia so far, with the catcher signed through the 2026 season.

McCutchen signed with Philadelphia as a free agent on Dec. 12, 2018, and is the only one of the three whose time in Philadelphia has come to a close, having batted .238/.343/.444. over his three seasons in red pinstripes. His time with the Phillies won't be remembered for what it was, but what it could've been, as McCutchen unfortunately battled injuries throughout his time with the team, including a torn ACL in June 2019, severely limiting his potential.

The "big three" were brought in with the hopes of bringing back playoff baseball, and initially, the vision looked great, but reality quickly slapped Philadelphia in the face. Following their first full season together, albeit with McCutchen out for a considerable chunk of time with the ACL tear, Philadelphia finished fourth in the NL East with a record of 81-81.

However, in the following offseason, the Phillies kept building around the "big three," by firing manager Gabe Kapler and bringing in former New York Yankees skipper Joe Girardi, and signing free agent shortstop Didi Gregorius and pitcher Zack Wheeler. With these moves made, Philadelphia started to look more and more like a threat in the East.

But the world had different plans for baseball in 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic drastically shortening the MLB season to only 60 games. Even with an expanded playoff format, Philadelphia would once again fail to play October baseball, but did improve to third place in the division.

2021 was yet another year without playoff baseball in South Philadelphia, marking ten years since the Phillies appeared in the postseason. However, the Phillies finished the season over .500 (82-80) for the first time since 2011, and in second place in the East behind the eventual World Champion Atlanta Braves.

The Phillies still have Harper and Realmuto as part of their core, as well as Wheeler who finished as runner-up for the NL Cy Young Award. Dave Dombrowski and the Philadelphia front office need to continue building around these guys and make the right additions once the lockout concludes to be true contenders and bring October baseball back to Citizens Bank Park.

If there's one thing that Philadelphians should be used to its trusting the process. We will see Phillies postseason baseball, and two of the acquisitions during the 2018-19 offseason will have to play a large role in that for the moves to have truly paid off.