The Philadelphia Phillies are making it no secret that they want to trade Nick Castellanos, as president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski made clear their trade plans regarding the veteran.
The Phillies have been looking to trade Castellanos for months, according to reports dating back to when Dombrowski said that “change of sceneries can be beneficial.“
However, he remains on the roster despite the team’s willingness to discuss a deal, though Dombrowski reaffirmed the team’s intentions on Monday, hoping to have him dealt by the end of the week.
“We continue to talk to clubs about [a trade],” Dombrowski said. “We’re doing everything we can to make a move by that time period. I’ll leave it at that right now.”
The Phillies are set to pay Castellanos $20 million in salary this season, a big amount of money for a player who is on the decline in terms of performance.
His salary is not the point of contention for the Phillies, as they will likely be forced to eat some or all of it in a trade at this point; rather, it is his tense relationship with manager Rob Thomson.
Castellanos had an incident with Thomson last season that marked a dissconnect from the player and the coach. This incident, on top of other factors, led to the Phillies making the decision to move on, notably signings ree-agent outfielder Adolis García to a one-year, $10 million contract
Additionally, in terms of the lineup, Castellanos does not have a place on the team for the most part.
Who will trade for Nick Castellanos?
Castellanos has been linked to a handful of teams, most notably the Pittsburgh Pirates, who would be willing to add a veteran to the lineup.
Other candidates include the San Diego Padres, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Guardians, and Miami Marlins.
He is limited defensively at this point in his career, so he will need to play either DH or first base. Considering the Phillies’ position, any team could add Castellanos without giving up anything of note and without adding to the payroll.
There will certainly be multiple interested parties, but the Phillies are holding out for a team willing to either pay more of the salary or offer something of value in return.