Phillies finally admit defeat on Dave Dombrowski's biggest whiff from last season

On Friday, the Philadelphia Phillies officially admitted defeat on Dave Dombrowski's signature trade deadline acquisition of the 2024 season.

Austin Hays arrived in Philadelphia with high expectations, viewed as the right-handed platoon the Phillies lacked opposite Brandon Marsh in left field. Now he's a free agent, having been non-tendered by the Phillies mere months after his arrival.

Such a short-lived tenure speaks to the failures of last season. Hays was a fine addition, but he should not have been Philadelphia's only offensive upgrade at the trade deadline. The Phils were raking out of the gate last season, but the offense began to slump around the midway point of the campaign. Rather than aggressively tackle the Phillies' shortcomings in the outfield or a second base, Dombrowski went for a cheap, unspectacular specialist.

Hays was immediately propped up as a full-time left field option, but a kidney infection held him to just 22 regular season appearances. His numbers in that limited stint — .256/.275/.397 with two home runs in 78 at-bats — weren't exactly what the Phillies envisioned. He was, after all, a Marsh platoon, if that. Nothing more.

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Phillies can't repeat the same mistake that led to Austin Hays disappointment

Better days lie ahead for the 29-year-old, but the Phillies ought to feel a certain type of way about how the Hays era unfolded. Dombrowski, traditionally very aggressive, took an unusually muted approach to the 2024 trade deadline. He spoke about depth and hoarding prospects, rather than gunning for star talent. An NLDS stinker against the New York Mets was the ultimate result.

Dombrowski essentially tried to take a shortcut, hoping that Hays would outperform expectations and deliver star-level value at a fraction of the price. Unfortunately, the Phillies weren't aggressive enough. More ambitious targets, such as Luis Robert Jr. or Cody Bellinger, existed in the marketplace. They still do. Rather than trying to do the most with the least, Dombrowski should just accept the inherently expensive nature of building a contender in the MLB and go all out.

The Phillies are up against star-laden teams, such as the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves. The Mets want to drop $600 million-plus on Juan Soto's doorstep. The San Diego Padres are loaded with major bats. This is the way of the National League right now, and the Phillies understand that trend as well as any team. We have seen Dombrowski pay full price for stars time and time again, and he reaps the rewards of that aggression on a regular basis.

That has to be the mindset going into the 2025 campaign. Hays was on the outskirts of Baltimore's lineup last season; the Phillies need to be looking for full-time, long-term solutions to their outfield shortcomings. Not a platoon for Marsh or Johan Rojas — a replacement. Even if the Phillies need to dip into the next tier of the luxury tax to achieve it.

All signs point to Philadelphia pursuing All-Star talent, potentially even Juan Soto. The Phillies are saying all the right things, no doubt spurred by the sting of another premature postseason exit. This window with Bryce Harper and Trea Turner won't stay open forever. It's past time for the Phillies to act with reckless abandon on the financial front.