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Whether it’s Luis Robert or a series of more modest moves, Philadelphia Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski is going to be active before the July 30 trade deadline. And that means that multiple spots on the 26-man roster will have to be cleared for new additions, and that’s on top of those that will lose their spots when the trio of Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto return.
When Realmuto returns — which manager Rob Thomson suggested Sunday won’t be after a rehab stint, but will most likely be after the All-Star Break — it’s a pretty simple decision. Either Rafael Marchán or Garrett Stubbs will be optioned to Triple-A. Stubbs does still have an option, and Marchán has been excellent. Still, the guess here is that the Phillies aren’t going to option Stubbs, an instrumental piece in their clubhouse who has also played well in Realmuto’s absence.
Other decisions will be more complicated, though.
Johan Rojas and Kody Clemens can still be optioned to Triple-A, and by virtue of that they might get the short end of the stick when Harper and Schwarber return. At least in Schwarber’s case, that sounds likely to be before the All-Star Break.
But make no mistake, whether it’s when Harper and Schwarber come back or after the Phillies add around the trade deadline, a reckoning is coming on the bench. With so many starters missing currently, Whit Merrifield, Cristian Pache and David Dahl all will continue to get more extended looks on this upcoming roadtrip. It may be their final audition to the front office.
Merrifield is a three-time All-Star that the Phillies signed to a one-year/$7 million deal in February. His pact includes an $8 million club option for 2025, that has a $1 million buyout if not exercised. At the time, there was definitely logic in signing Merrifield — throughout his career he’s been a hits machine that’s capable of playing all over the diamond.
The problem is, Merrifield has given the Phillies almost nothing offensively this season. In 138 at-bats, Merrifield is hitting .188 with a .560 OPS. He’s homered three times and stolen seven bases, but the overall offensive impact has been minimal, at best. Additionally, his ability to play multiple positions hasn’t been as valuable to the Phillies as expected, because Clemens and Edmundo Sosa can do that, and they’ve each produced much more at the plate.
Obviously, the Phillies would be elated if Merrifield gets hot right now. But short of that, it’s fair to wonder if they’ll continue to carry the 35-year-old for the rest of the season. The last two seasons, the Phillies have designated Didi Gregorius and Josh Harrison — two accomplished players on guaranteed MLB deals — for assignment around the trade deadline. If there aren’t more signs of life out of Merrifield’s bat, you wonder if he’s headed for a similar fate.
Meanwhile, both Pache and Dahl are out of minor-league options, but have to show more in the coming days and weeks to make the Phillies hesitant to lose either.
Pache has three defensive runs saved and three outs above average this season in the outfield, so he certainly provides value on that side of the ball. But he’s hitting just .195 with zero home runs and eight RBIs in 82 at-bats. He’s also redundant on a roster that includes Rojas. The Phillies may want to get through the trade deadline and know that Rojas hasn’t been part of a trade before DFA’ing Pache. But if multiple additions are made, his roster spot is going to be in jeopardy.
Because Pache has less than three years of service time, the Phillies could outright him to Triple-A Lehigh Valley if he clears waivers. It’s difficult to know right now whether he would be claimed. Either way, if Pache is DFA’d, that probably means he won’t be part of the Phillies for the remainder of 2024, at a minimum.
Dahl has over four years of service time accumulated. If the Phillies DFA’d him, he would probably be claimed. If not, he could (and probably would) elect free agency after clearing waivers. He’s hitting .250 with three home runs and a .768 OPS in 48 at-bats for the Phillies.
To keep Dahl for the remainder of the year, the Phillies would have to feel strongly about his ability to change the course of the season with one swing in October, because he has limitations defensively and may prevent Clemens from being on the MLB roster after the trade deadline.
So much time is dedicated during baseball seasons to trying to predict what player will be able to hold onto the 26th spot on an MLB roster. It may be that come July 31, only one — or perhaps none — of the trio of Merrifield, Pache and Dahl is still on the 26-man roster for the Phillies.
