Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto has been one of the pillars of the team since joining the organization in 2019. His career 36.2 bWAR makes him the active leader among all catchers.
He’s also a 34-year-old catcher in the final year of his contract. Things can change over the next year, but Realmuto is the highest-profile catcher that could hit the open market next offseason. In other words, as things stand today the team couldn’t upgrade the position via free agency.
The Phillies top catching prospect, Eduardo Tait, is only 18 years old and not expected to be ready for The Show for several years.
That leaves Philadelphia in a future predicament at a foundational position. Here’s a few options they can consider over the next 12 months.
Re-Sign Realmuto, Hope Tait Develops Quickly
The best in-house option the Phillies have is to bring back Realmuto while hoping Tait is ready sooner than anticipated. Even if Tait crushes it over the next few years, a 2027 debut would be earlier than expected. That means the team would need another option in the organization to gradually cut into Realmuto’s playing time over the next few years.
Veteran Garrett Stubbs would need a transformative 2025 campaign to turn into an every day catcher next season.
Rafael Marchan is still only 26 years old and he had an intriguing 51 at-bats in 2024, slashing .294/.345/.549 with three homers. It’s hard to take too much away from a small sample like 51 at-bats, but if Marchan can match last year’s production in 2025, pairing him with Realmuto while the team waits for Tait to develop is the organization’s best in-house solution.
Caleb Ricketts is the organization’s 28th-ranked prospect, so it would be ambitious to project him as anything other than a role player, but he’s worth monitoring.
Trade for Baltimore Orioles Prospect Samuel Basallo
There are a few catchers among the top 100 prospects that are both close to starting their Big League career while being blocked by an All-Star caliber option at the Major League level.
The best of that group is Orioles‘ top prospect Basallo, who is ranked No. 13 overall in the league. He projects as a middle-of-the-order hitter that can also play first base, making him a player that could pair well with Realmuto if the Phillies bring back their veteran backstop.
That positional versality also makes Basallo more viable for Baltimore to keep, but their second-ranked prospect, Coby Mayo, also has a path as their future every day first baseman.
Not only is Basallo blocked by Adley Rutschman behind the plate, but the Orioles need to upgrade their rotation to take the next step. A package built around Ranger Saurez might not be enough to land Basallo, but it’s at least a starting point.
Trade for Milwaukee Brewers Prospect Jeferson Quero
Quero is the Brewers top prospect and the No. 47 overall in the league. He’s also blocked by headliner William Contreras, who is arguably the top catcher in baseball.
Contreras is only 27 years old, but he’s a strong enough hitter where the team could elect to start taking some miles off him behind the plate. If that’s the long-term plan, that gives Quero a clearer path to a meaningful role within the organization.
If it’s not, Quero becomes a top asset the Brewers could move to try and upgrade elsewhere. Milwaukee is an NL Central contender, which means they could realistically make a prospect like Quero available this year for a playoff-push upgrade.
Trade for Adley Rutschman
This probably isn’t going to happen, but the existence of Basallo creates a scenario where Baltimore considers moving Rutschman to transform their pitching staff, but it probably requires a disappointing first half in 2025.
In that scenario where the Orioles are sub .500 by the trade deadline, a package built around the Phillies top prospect and the No. 8 overall in the league, pitcher Andrew Painter, along with Saurez or maybe Jesus Luzardo, possibly with Tait thrown in is the type of proposal Baltimore would at least have to consider.
Philadelphia may consider Painter untouchable, and it would not be a surprise if Luzardo is viewed similarly by mid-season, but to have any shot of landing a premium player like Rutschman, the cost would be extremely high.