It’s that time of year again, where we review all of the players that donned the red pinstripes during the 2025 season. For a team as veteran laden as the Phillies are, there were a lot more random players that played a part in the team’s NL East division title than I initially thought. One would probably think that there wouldn’t be much room for younger players, but the team did churn through some as the season wore on.

So, to kick off the series, let’s begin with a player that is a free agent and will be one of the topics of discussion this offseason as the team decides on how to craft a World Series winning roster next season.

550 PA, .257/.315/.384, 12 HR, 52 RBI, 23.5 K%, 6.4 BB%, 94 wRC+, 2.1 fWAR

There really is no getting around the fact that J.T. Realmuto is in decline. It happens to all players and for catchers, it seems to happen rapidly. Innings behind the plate, squatting with regularity and subjecting your body to the tortures of the position means that Father Time catches up a bit quicker with those that don the tools of ignorance than with those that do not.

However, there were signs of life from Realmuto. From June 9 to August 28, he had 241 plate appearances in which he looked like he had regained a bit of the offensive slide he was on. During that span, he hit .313/.358/.460 with six home runs and 25 RBI, good for a 128 wRC+. He looked like a different hitter during that time, driving the ball with power and looking just overall fresher.

The pitching staff is clearly better with him on the mound. While I’m not a huge fan of ideas like “catcher’s ERA” since that heavy lifting is done by the pitcher, I have a theory that the game calling ability of the catcher will help this stat due to his being able to call the right pitch in the right moment. Quantifiable? Maybe, maybe not, but the pitchers, and the manager, seem to prefer him behind the plate.

That decline I just talked about? You can see it in the offense.

2025 was the first season since his rookie season in which Realmuto posted a wRC+ that was less than 100. It’s the first time in a decade that you would call him “below average” at the plate, something that definitely hurt the team at times in the season. With the Phillies, that production was particularly painful when they really had no right handed hitter doing much damage behind the top three in the order outside of a spurt in the season where he did hit.

Where the decline really started to show was behind the plate. Once one of the best framers in the game, Realmuto’s framing ability was well below average yet again, good for -9 framing runs according to Baseball Savant. That’s the third worst amount among qualified catchers in the game. Particularly rough was Realmuto’s ability to present pitches on the bottom of the zone. He was, again according to Baseball Savant, the worst in the game in that part of the “zone”. It’s fair to wonder if the value Realmuto has given away at framing will return with the implementation of the ABS system in 2026. Does that help his overall profile defensively, perhaps causing his value to increase as well?

The future with the Phillies

This question is one of two big questions facing the team in terms of impending free agents this offseason: do they bring back Realmuto, a player in decline?

By now, we all know about the lack of catching available on the free agent market. Even a player that just had his first subpar offensive season is going to have a lot of teams calling his agent. We know why, too. That little spurt midseason shows that there is still a bit of life in the bat. The impending introduction of the ABS system in 2026 may render his framing deficiencies irrelevant. Take away that part of his game and suddenly the defensive profile improves. He’s a good blocker of baseballs and one of the top throwing catchers in the game. If we combine that with at least a tic below average bat, suddenly, maybe his value is higher than we might anticipate it to be. Teams that are looking for improvement from what they currently have behind the plate will look at Realmuto and likely hope he is willing to take on a one- or two-year deal with a lot of money involved instead of a lot of years.

Shouldn’t the Phillies be interested in retaining that?

That’s obviously the biggest roadblock to Realmuto finishing his career with the Phillies. The money he desires is not going to be an issue; it’s the years he wants to play. The team would prefer something short, Realmuto countering with something longer in terms of years. If there is mutual interest, a middle ground will be found.

Or the team could go in a different direction.

It’s what makes this offseason so interesting. Does the team desire to have its core remain intact or is letting someone like Realmuto go in the cards, even if there isn’t a viable option in the minor leagues? We’ll have to see.