The Nick Castellanos rumors around the Phillies are continuing to heat up. With the pending lockout set to hit on December 1st, all of the big-name free agents seem to be looking to find their new team before Thursday. Just this morning, Jon Morosi dropped another update on the Nick Castellanos saga. 

Nick Castellanos is coming off the best season of his career, being the backbone of the Cincinnati Reds team throughout his 138 games played. Castellanos slashed .309/.362/.576, with 34 HRs, 100 RBIs, 38 doubles, and an OPS of .939. He finished the season with a 3.2 WAR and played 135 games in left field for the Reds last season. He obviously will get moved to left field if signed with the Phillies, with Bryce Harper already being in right field. 

We all know the needs that this Phillies team, and Dave Dombrowski has. The team needs a left fielder, a centerfielder, a closer, and some relievers after losing Hector Neris to the Astros. Don’t forget about the shortstop position either, where Trevor Story, Carlos Correa, Trea Turner, and Javier Baez are all still out on the market. There are still other teams that are in on Nick Castellanos as well, including the very active Miami Marlins.

The Phillies have been very quiet since the big moves have started. They’ve missed out on Starling Marte, who went to the Marlins. Although they were never really interested in the star, all signs are pointing to Max Scherzer signing with the New York Mets, probably today. Castellanos would bolster the Phillies lineup immensely and would take a little pressure off of Hoskins and Realmuto, having another big bat behind them in the lineup to drive in runs.

Chris Taylor is also another name that the Phillies have reported interest in as of now. Jon Heyman has reported that the Phillies, Nationals, Marlins are all in on Taylor, setting up for an NL East money battle. Taylor hit 20 HRs and 73 RBIs in 148 games in the 2021 season and can play just about every position on the field. Chris Taylor tallied games in all outfield positions, second base, shortstop, and third base.

These next few days are going to be nuts around Major League Baseball. The Castellanos deal isn’t anywhere near final, but it seems like Dombrowski has his guy, and wants to go get him. Stick around here at The Liberty Line for all things Phillies, and hopefully, by the next time I’m writing, Nick Castellanos will be a member of the Philadelphia Phillies. 

Mandatory Credit: Imagn Credit