3 undeserving Phillies who will be back thanks to Dave Dombrowski

The 2024 Philadelphia Phillies had the best regular season that the franchise had seen in over a decade. For the first time since 2011, the Phillies won the NL East, topping the Mets, Braves, Nationals and Marlins to claim one of the best divisions in baseball. The Phillies had the most pitchers ever selected to the All-Star Game in a single season, and they also led MLB in total All-Star Game selections while boasting the NL's captain, Bryce Harper.

Philadelphia was loaded with talent, but for the second straight postseason, things fell apart. The Phillies fell to the Mets in the NLDS, losing 3-1 to end their season. All those wins, all that hardware, all the aggressiveness at the trade deadline to try and make sure this year would be different; it all seems like a waste now, as fans watch the hated Mets compete with the Dodgers for the NL Pennant.

After such a bitter end to the season, Dave Dombrowski has some tough decisions to make ahead of 2025. And while changes are sure to be coming over the winter, there are a few undeserving members of the team that figure to still be around for Opening Day.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.

3. RHP Taijuan Walker

The Phillies had one of the best rotations in all of baseball this year. The only thing that can hold them back from definitively grabbing that title is the Seattle Mariners loaded staff — and the Phillies' own fifth starter.

The top four of Cristopher Sanchez, Ranger Suarez, Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler is absolutely devastating. Any of these four guys could absolutely take over a game at any given moment. But their fifth starter, Walker, stuck out like a sore thumb. Walker tossed just over 80 innings last season and held an ERA of 7.10. His FIP was near 7.00 as well while his WHIP was a ridiculous 1.72. For almost the entire season, Walker was horrendous, yet the team continued to run him out there. And to make matters worse, Dave Dombrowski may just bring him back next season.

Walker is owed $18 million in 2025 and $18 million in 2026, so getting him off the roster would be complicated and expensive. Still, the Phillies need to find any way possible to not bring Walker back next season. It may be a $36 million decision to cut him, but the Phillies would be getting better by spending that money to prevent Walker from hurting them in 2025 and 2026.

Still, it doesn't sound like Dombrowski wants to cut ties with such an expensive player.

2. OF Johan Rojas

While the Phillies had one gaping hole in their rotation thanks to Walker, they also had a huge hole in their outfield, at least offensively.

The 23-year-old Rojas was playing every day in center field for the Phillies for a majority of the season. Defensively, there aren't many players, especially young players, that are as talented as he is. He's spectacular with the glove, and his plus speed allows him to get to more baseballs than the average center fielder.

But his bat simply isn't big league ready yet. In 120 games last year, Rojas slashed .243/.279/.322 with an OPS+ well below 100. He struggles to do any damage at all when he does make contact, and not even his speed and defensive value can make up for that lack of production at the plate. The Phillies will likely be aggressive in the market to acquire an impact outfielder, potentially Luis Robert Jr., which would give Rojas more time to develop his bat.

The best idea would be to begin Rojas in Triple-A to allow him to find his swing and his confidence. He's a very talented player and I don't want to take anything away from him. He has a very solid MLB career ahead of him, if he's given the time to develop correctly. If he sticks to his pledge not to make any big splashes this offseason, though, Dombrowski will likely decide to give Rojas everyday work at the big-league level rather than giving him more time to get comfortable and develop at the Minor League level.

1. Manager Rob Thomson

The Phillies have been pretty successful under sitting manager Rob Thomson. Thomson took over during the 2022 season and the team promptly marched to an NL Pennant and a World Series appearance in his first half-season. Philadelphia improved in 2023, winning 90 games in the regular season, but they were shocked in a seven-game loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NLCS.

2024 brought more of the same: Once again, Philly was a powerhouse over the course of 162 games. But once again, they would come up embarrassingly short in the postseason, this time falling to a division rival while most of their roster was healthy and at full strength.

Thomson routinely made questionable decisions all season long. He often pitched Walker in situations where he should have thrown any other pitcher while playing Rojas nearly every day for most of the season. Thomson was handed one of the best rosters in the league, so it's tough to really attribute most of the regular-season success to him, and at this point his playoff track record is damning.

There are some teams around the league that would fire a manager for such a horrible end to the season, but Dombrowski has already committed to bringing Thomson back. Only time will tell if this is the right decision or not.