💥 BREAKING NEWS: Phillies cling to a razor-thin path as the surprising “best fit” for a former Mets slugger with major upside ⚡

Technically this is possible, but it certainly doesn’t feel like it.

Philadelphia Phillies fans are all still waiting for the team’s first big move of the offseason. While it feels like both Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto will re-sign in free agency, nothing is guaranteed. As such, we can still explore other possible options for the Phillies to upgrade the lineup.

The biggest loss for the Phillies this winter would be Kyle Schwarber’s booming bat at the top of the lineup if he chooses to sign somewhere besides Philadelphia.

Jorge Castillo of ESPN recently listed the Phillies as one of Pete Alonso’s best fits in free agency. Obviously his former team, the New York Mets, tops the list which also includes the Boston Red Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles, and Toronto Blue Jays. So, like a quarter of the league.

The Phillies signing Alonso only seems realistic if they somehow whiff on Schwarber. The beloved designated hitter is projected to get a contract that could see him paid more than $30 million per season for five years. As he heads into his age-33 season, there’s a possibility the Phillies might blink at that commitment and lose him.

“With Bryce Harper at first base, Alonso probably would only make sense for the Phillies if they do not re-sign Schwarber — the best designated hitter in the majors this side of Shohei Ohtani,” Castillo correctly notes.

So that feels like a tiny window of possibility, considering everyone in the industry assumes the Phillies are the favorites to land Schwarber.

Phillies signing both Kyle Schwarber and Pete Alonso feels highly improbable

This is where Castillo goes off the rails a bit.

“But Phillies owner John Middleton isn’t afraid to spend money, and the team could make both Alonso and Schwarber work by moving Harper back to the outfield,” Castillo writes.

That would certainly be a lot of cash to spend. Alonso could sign a deal this winter for anywhere from three to six years with a $25-35 million AAV. But aside from the financials, there’s another more pertinent reason signing both Schwarber and Alonso feels far-fetched.

The Phillies, more specifically president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, have repeatedly said that moving Bryce Harper back to the outfield from first base isn’t going to happen. Dombrowski has said the same thing last offseason, during this season, and already this offseason. While signing both Schwarber and a right-handed slugger like Alonso would be phenomenal, it feels extremely unlikely. Simply put, the Phillies consider Harper their first baseman.

Plus, shifting him back to the outfield doesn’t make much sense if they’re finally going to be moving off Nick Castellanos in right. Much has been made about Castellanos’ poor defensive metrics, and it’s highly improbable that Harper would be an upgrade.

Harper was a well-below-average fielder in his final full season playing right field in 2021. In 1,174 innings in that MVP campaign, Harper finished with -6 defensive runs saved, -6 outs above average, and -3 fielding run value. And that was as a 28-year-old, right in his prime. Heading into 2026 as a 33-year-old, he definitely won’t have gotten better as an outfielder.

So, realistically, the only shot that Phillies fans have of seeing Alonso mashing home runs in red pinstripes next year would be if Schwarber doesn’t return. We’ll take Schwarber, thank you very much.