The Philadelphia Phillies approach the trade deadline with two clear needs: relief pitching and an outfield bat. The recent signing of David Robertson certainly helps the bullpen, but Dave Dombrowski needs to be aggressive in pursuit of at least one more high-leverage arm. As for the outfield, the most likely resolution is probably a right-handed platoon bat to offset Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh.
Chicago White Sox centerfielder Luis Robert Jr. has been on the Phillies' radar since last season. There was genuine belief that the former All-Star might end up in Philadelphia 12 months ago. Now his value has plummeted even further and the White Sox are finally ready to bite the bullet.
Robert is slashing .206/.292/.344 with 10 home runs and 40 RBI in 282 at-bats. He's trending broadly in the right direction, but things couldn't be much worse for the 27-year-old. There was a time not long ago when Robert was viewed as a foundational piece on the South Side, a burgeoning superstar. Now he just needs a change of scenery and, in all likelihood, a reduced role.
Philly is a great landing spot for him, but it sounds like the Phillies might actually be won over by a different right-handed outfield bat...
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 during the MLB season.
Adolis García joins Luis Robert Jr. in Phillies trade deadline conversations
ESPN's Jeff Passan recently wrote about Philadelphia's biggest trade deadline needs. He cites Cleveland's Emmanuel Clasé as the "best fit," which is fair enough. The Phils need a dominant closer in lieu of José Alvarado. But he also reports on their need for a right-handed outfielder bat with power.
"If they can also add a right-handed-hitting outfielder with power -- Adolis Garcia is in the mix, and Luis Robert Jr. would play, too -- it will be a successful deadline for a team whose starting pitching is good enough to carry it deep into October," Passan writes.
Texas Rangers outfielder Adolis García is a new and exciting name for a lot of Phillies fans. The 32-year-old is still under arbitration next season, which means Philadelphia can plan on keeping him around for a couple postseason runs at least. This has been García's worst season by a healthy margin, but his .675 OPS and 14 home runs is still a significant upgrade over Luis Robert Jr.'s on paper.
Is Adolis García actually a better target than Luis Robert Jr.?
Well, this depends. Are the Phillies looking for an everyday outfielder to replace Max Kepler? Or is the goal to add more of a platoon bat? A situational upgrade.
If it's the former, García's success is far more evenly split between right and left-handed pitching. In fact, he's actually hitting righties (.240) better than he's hitting lefties (.200) this season. The sample size against lefties is much smaller, of course. But that's notable.
Robert, meanwhile, is actually great — like, borderline sensational — against lefties. He's batting .299 with five home runs in only 84 plate appearances against left-handed pitchers in 2025. By comparison, he's hitting an abysmal .177 with five home runs in 239 plate appearances against right-handed pitchers.
Robert is younger, but his contract includes $20 million club options for 2026 and 2027. It's hard to imagine the Phillies picking up that option unless his production improves dramatically upon his relocation. And he's definitely not getting paid $20 million to platoon against lefties.
So really, there's an argument both ways here. Robert has more upside, and the mashing against southpaws would be helpful, but García is playable in more matchups. The "upside" argument is a bit feeble, too, as Philadelphia probably doesn't keep Robert around next season and this trade deadline will be focused on winning right now.