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Phillies Seemingly Content With Mediocrity

Originally posted on Last Word On Sports | By Ben Rosen | Last updated Jan 16, 2026 1:08 PM ET

The Philadelphia Phillies seem to be content with mediocrities after failing to finish a major free agent signing. Heading into the day the Phillies were viewed as the favorites to sign Bo Bichette after meeting with him on January 12. Bichette has since signed with the New York Mets as reported by multiple MLB insiders. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic proclaimed on “Foul Territory” after Kyle Tucker reportedly signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers that the Phillies were going to sign Bichette. In addition to that fellow insider Bob Nightengale of USA Today called the Phillies “overwhelming favorites” to sign Bichette on X. That post came after the Tucker deal was reported. Rosenthal and Nightengale could not have been more wrong. Bichette is now a Met.

Nightengale reported on X after the Bichette signing was first reported the Phillies offered a 7-year, $200 million dollar deal. Furthermore Nightengale addeed the Phillies believed Bichette would sign with them but then the Mets made their offer. This is a complete and total failure on the part of the Phillies front office. However the Mets offering an AAV around 1 1/2 times as much as the Phillies may have made the difference. Bichette and the Mets also agreed on opt-outs which the Phillies front office avoids for some reason. Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski and General Manager Preston Mattingly have consciously made decisions that have hurt the Phillies. Signing big time free agents requires compromising on these beliefs.

The Phillies had agreed to Bo Bichette’s request for a 7-year, $200 million deal last night and believed they would sign him until the Mets swooped in with their 3-year, $126 million offer after losing out in in the Kyle Tucker sweepstakes.

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) January 16, 2026

Phillies Content With Mediocrity By Running It Back Again

What Happens Next Regarding The Remainder Of The Offseason

This all but seals that J.T. Realmuto will re-sign with the Phillies. Additionally Alec Bohm will likely remain on the Phillies for the 2026 season. Bohm is scheduled to be a free agent after the 2026 season. When Realmuto re-signs that will officially signal they are running it back again which is a disgrace. This team has refused to make significant alterations to its lineup to take it from a club able to make the postseason to a club that can genuinely win the World Series. Signing Bichette would have given the Phillies the cleanup hitting right-handed bat they have needed since 2022. Bohm will protect Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber for another year now. The Phillies are doing the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result. What a joke.

The State Of The Club As Spring Training Nears

Phillies pitchers and catchers report to Clearwater, Florida for the start of Spring Training in less than a month. Once the full team arrives it will largely be the same group of players as the last few seasons. The coaching staff, outside of the addition of a new bench coach in Don Mattingly, is the same. Mattingly was also supposed to help the Phillies sign Bichette. So much for that. This team as currently constructed is not good enough to win a World Series title. The front office has also shown no appetite to actually make meaningful improvements to the roster. When all is said and done this era of the Phillies baseball will be remembered for its postseason meltdowns and failure to win a ring with Harper and Zack Wheeler on the roster.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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