Phillies didn’t have done deal, but thought they were ‘very close’ to signing Bo Bichette: ‘It’s a gut punch’
A deal is never done until there’s a signature on the dotted line. Just ask Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.
Speaking to reporters via Zoom on Tuesday morning, Dombrowski admitted that, in the team’s estimation, the Phillies were “very close” to an agreement with two-time All-Star infielder Bo Bichette last week and thought they’d end up signing him to a long-term free-agent contract. Ultimately, Bichette reached a deal with the New York Mets, one of Philadelphia’s National League East rivals, that could pay him $126 million over three seasons. The Phillies felt their deal “fell through at the last minute.”
“I can’t say that we ever thought it was done,” Dombrowski explained, “because there’s a difference between — we thought we were very close to having a deal done. We thought it was going to happen, but it wasn’t done. … Until you sign a memo of understanding you don’t have a deal done.
“And we did not sign one of those. And it wasn’t that we weren’t moving towards that direction. I think that we were going to get there based upon our conversations, but we did not get to that point. So I can’t say that I ever thought we had it done. I did think we were going to get a deal done.”
The Phillies were ready to make a serious commitment to Bichette, a move that would have required them to shake up their roster but also provided a significant boost to the lineup. Dombrowski felt like Bichette was earnestly interested in potentially coming to Philadelphia, but the Mets swooped in with a short-term, big-dollar offer. The Phillies were not open to that kind of contract structure, leaving them without the player.
“This is not the first time this has ever happened to me,” the veteran executive Dombrowski said. “It actually happens more than you would think, through free agency and trades. I’ve been to many times where I thought we were going to make a trade and then all of a sudden they go in a different direction.
“It’s a gut punch. I mean, you feel it. That day, you are very upset, I guess is the way to say it. But you have to pick yourself up and shake it off, because you can’t just wallow in what took place. So after a day of feeling that way or a time period, you need to move forward. And so that’s how you handle it.”
After learning that Bichette had a deal with New York, Dombrowski updated Phillies owner John Middleton and contacted J.T. Realmuto’s camp within an hour. The club had been in touch with Realmuto’s agent, Matt Ricatto of Creative Artists Agency Sports, throughout the offseason about a potential reunion, but put things on hold as negotiations with Bichette got deeper.
Realmuto, who has spent the past seven years with the Phillies, said that there was a period when he thought he might not be back in Philadelphia, as the team would not have signed both him and Bichette. He wanted to remain with the Phillies, but the two sides couldn’t agree on the compensation. Realmuto spent some time with his wife “mourning” the possible end of his relationships with those in the organization. But once the Bichette ship sailed, the Phillies reached back out and upped their offer to Realmuto. The two sides officially completed a three-year, $45 million contract on Tuesday.
“At the end, it got a little stressful where we thought there was an opportunity or a chance that we weren’t going to be back,” Realmuto said, “which obviously wasn’t ideal for us. We made it pretty clear that we want to be with the Phillies from the start. So luckily, that didn’t last too long, and we’re able to come together and get a deal.”
Heading into his age-35 season, Realmuto will probably not bring the same level of production as Bichette. His .700 OPS in 2025 was his lowest since 2015, and he does not grade out well as a pitch receiver at this point in his career. But Realmuto was still the best catcher available, with outlier durability, respected pitch-calling ability and a knack for gunning down runners. The Phillies will bet that Realmuto’s elite athleticism will help him beat the aging curve.
The Realmuto deal will likely be the end of the heavy lifting for the Phillies, as Dombrowski said the team is “content” with the state of the roster. The club could look to add some starting pitching depth, but it has a strong rotation when healthy. Realmuto and star slugger Kyle Schwarber are returning. The bullpen looks deeper, and Nick Castellanos will be replaced by Adolis García in right field. Prospects Justin Crawford and Andrew Painter should play roles.
“I think overall, over the wintertime, I like our club,” Dombrowski said. “We have a good club. People forget we re-signed Schwarbs. If we hadn’t re-signed him, I don’t know how I would be feeling about the wintertime.”
Of course, everyone remembers that the Phillies re-signed Schwarber, which the team deserves credit for finalizing after his NL MVP runner-up season. But if there’s a feeling that the team does not seem much different than last year or that this offseason has been underwhelming, it’s because the roster resembles the one that just lost in the NL Division Series pretty closely. The Phillies are talented and are set up to win regular-season games, but they’ll need to prove they can advance deep into the playoffs after two years of early exits with many of the same players.
The idea of Bichette offered a chance to change the mix and add an impact bat in his prime years. The Phillies couldn’t get pen to paper, and it hurt them. Time will tell if the rest of the roster can make up for that.
“Still, when you look at where we are at this point,” Dombrowski said, “I feel great about our club going into spring training. I think we have a very good chance.”