Phillies Should Consider Moving All-Star Back to Outfield

The Philadelphia Phillies should consider moving All-Star first baseman Bryce Harper back to the outfield. With Juan Soto signing with the New York Mets and Kyle Tucker being traded to the Chicago Cubs, top-tier outfield options are becoming limited as the offseason continues. The outfield is one of the team’s biggest offseason needs. Phillies outfielders had a 97 wRC+ and a .708 OPS in 2024. That wRC+ ranked 18th for outfield groups in the majors, and the OPS ranked 16th. Regardless of how they go about it, the Phillies need more offensive production from their outfielders.

While Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported that Harper will not move back to the outfield, it needs to be considered. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has not done much this offseason. Signing relief pitcher Jordan Romano to a one-year deal has been the Phillies lone significant move so far. This roster needs a shakeup and Dombrowski has failed to deliver so far. Dombrowski has given Phillies fans no reason to believe that he will add a high impact outfield bat to this lineup. Effectively running it back is not the way to go. Dombrowski needs to makes moves and do so soon. The Phillies 2025 lineup must be noticeably different than the 2024 lineup. It is hard to have patience with this front office right now because they seem to be asleep at the wheel.

Phillies Need To Consider Moving Bryce Harper Back To The Outfield

Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Scott Lauber floated the idea of moving Harper back to the outfield a few weeks ago. That was before Soto signed and Tucker was traded. Now, after missing out on Soto and Tucker, it is clear that the idea warrants consideration. Ideally, the Phillies would sign Jurickson Profar to play left field, but it is hard to see that happening right now. MLB.com reporter Todd Zolecki signaled that Dombrowski will primarily make moves in the trade department as opposed to free agency. If this is the route Dombrowski prefers to use to upgrade the team, trading for Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki should be a priority. Do not expect this to happen though with the way the offseason has gone so far. If they refuse to directly address the outfield, Harper should move back there.

 

St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado is one trade candidate the Phillies have an interest in. Arenado joining the Phillies could see the team move Alec Bohm to first base putting Harper back in the outfield. Bohm has come up in trade conversations this offseason. However, based on a report from Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times and another from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Phillies have a high asking price for Bohm. It looks less likely now that Bohm will be traded than it did heading into the Winter Meetings. Pete Alonso and Christian Walker remain free agents who could take over first base for the Phillies. Harper would move to right field in this scenario, leading to Nick Castellanos being moved to left field. Of these options, the Arenado trade scenario is the most likely.