Free agency is approaching the 2025 MLB Winter Meetings next week, in which moves are expected to take place. There’s no absolute as to exactly how many moves or how large those moves will be, but it’s a tentative date to point to with how free agency will drag on.
The Philadelphia Phillies are expected to be active this winter, although primarily with their own players in designated hitter Kyle Schwarber and catcher J.T. Realmuto. Left-handed starter Ranger Suárez is also on the market, but his expected landing spot continues to change.
Unsurprisingly, the Phillies will have a lot of competition to bring back the 2025 NL MVP runner-up Schwarber. However, most experts wouldn’t have assumed it would include the Pittsburgh Pirates. Although the Pirates haven’t been competitive in free agency in almost a decade, their sudden willingness to spend (subscription required) should give the Phillies pause.
Pittsburgh has already made their interest in Schwarber apparent. The Phillies now also should feel justifiably worried with the Pirates’ reported growing interest in Realmuto (subscription required), according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Pirates a threat to poach either Kyle Schwarber or J.T. Realmuto from Phillies
The 12-year veteran Realmuto is continuing to gain interest around the league (subscription required). Now that includes the Pirates. Whatever the reason is for the Pirates’ sudden motivation, the Phillies should take it seriously.
“The Pirates are aiming even higher as they move seriously into free agent waters for the first time in a decade; they’re pursuing Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto, among others,” Heyman notes.
The threat of a potential payroll grievance could have lit a match in Pittsburgh, or it could be the urgency to build around Paul Skenes. Either way, the least the Pirates can do is inflate Realmuto’s price for the Phillies.
Realmuto has been one of the best catchers since he was traded from the Marlins to the Phillies heading into the 2019 season. He’s an elite catcher when it comes to pop time, leading all active MLB catchers with a 1.86-second pop time in 2025.
In his age-34 season, he also hit .257 with 12 home runs and 52 RBIs. Realmuto may not be in his prime anymore, but his name still holds weight as the best free agent catching option available. The Pirates see it as an opportunity to bring in veteran talent, and the Phillies would love to have their backstop rejoin the elite pitching staff.
This is uncharted territory for the Pirates, and perhaps they’re punching way above their weight class, but the Phillies can’t afford to lose. The Phillies are going into a franchise-altering offseason with Schwarber, Realmuto, and Suárez hitting free agency simultaneously. They just have to treat the Pirates just like any other team and hopefully fend them off to get their guys back and keep the winning culture alive in 2026.