Phillies ‘doing everything we can’ to move Nick Castellanos before start of spring training

Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski hasn’t been shy about wanting to facilitate a “change of scenery” for Nick Castellanos this offseason. So as the club prepares for the sunsets and palm trees of Clearwater, Florida, it still expects to do so without the presence of the veteran outfielder.

“We continue to talk to clubs about that,” Dombrowski said Monday via Zoom, “and that’s our focus prior to the start of spring training. So that’s something that we’ll continue to work on this week.”

Pitchers and catchers will report to the Phillies’ Carpenter Complex on Wednesday, and Philadelphia’s first full-squad workout will take place next Monday, Feb. 16. As of now, Castellanos remains on the roster. Could he participate in camp with the Phillies if he’s not traded or released in the next week?

“At this point, we’re doing everything we can to make a move by that time period,” Dombrowski said. “I’ll leave it at that right now.”

Unsurprisingly, it continues to sound like Castellanos has already suited up for the Phillies, whether it’s for a spring workout or an actual game, for the final time. He had a career-worst year in 2025 as he struggled both offensively and defensively, clashed with manager Rob Thomson and lost playing time down the stretch as the Phillies ran platoons in both outfield corners. Philadelphia then signed Adolis García this winter to play right field in Castellanos’ place.

The 33-year-old Castellanos had a disappointing first season in Philadelphia in 2022, then turned in an All-Star campaign in 2023. He had a .742 OPS in 2024 while playing all 162 games. His streak of consecutive games ended this past June when Thomson benched Castellanos for a remark the outfielder made after being replaced on defense the day prior; later in the season, Castellanos questioned Thomson’s communication.

Overall, Castellanos batted .250 with a .694 OPS and 17 home runs in 147 games last season. He hit .133 with two clutch doubles in four games during Philadelphia’s National League Division Series loss to the Dodgers.

The Phillies are likely holding out hope that they can find a team to provide some salary relief in a trade for Castellanos. He’s due to make $20 million in 2026 in the last season of his five-year, $100 million contract with Philadelphia, and the Phillies would have to eat that entire remaining cost if they release him.

However, Dombrowski’s latest comments indicated that the Phillies want to part ways with Castellanos before the team reconvenes for spring training. And if rival teams know the Phillies would just end up releasing him with no return over bringing him back, they’ll probably just wait until he’s a free agent instead of trading for him. Perhaps a club that likes Castellanos could offer to take on a small chunk of his salary for this year in a trade to avoid other competitors on the free-agent market. But the Phillies are not in a position of leverage as they look to deal a player who posted -0.8 WAR last year.

Maybe Dombrowski manages to find that trade partner. Maybe the Phillies have to simply release the hitter they expected to be a feared middle-of-the-order contributor for five years when they signed him. In any case, just don’t count on seeing Castellanos with the Phillies when the mitts start popping and the bats start cracking in Clearwater.