Earlier this offseason, reporting out of Philadelphia indicated that Phillies brass are considering reducing the workload of veteran catcher J.T. Realmuto as he enters the final season of his deal with the club, after the first season of Realmuto’s career where he played less than 100 games due to injury. In that same report, there was a suggestion that the club could look to broach the topic of a contract extension with Realmuto ahead of his final year of team control, whether that would ultimately come later in the offseason or once camp opened up for Spring Training.
As January comes to a close, there have been no further reports regarding the state of talks between the sides. That could change quickly, however, given that camp will open in just two weeks. After all, last winter saw plenty of rumors about the possibility of an extension between the Phillies and right-hander Zack Wheeler, but talks did not begin until Spring Training was underway and eventually resolved in early March. Should the Phillies be interested in following a similar timeline with Realmuto, it’s easy to imagine talks starting up in the near future.
Realmuto, 34 in March, was dealt to the Phillies by the division rival Marlins prior to the 2019 season and has been a key cog in the Philadelphia lineup ever since. In 699 games for the club, the veteran has slashed an excellent .266/.331/.463 with a 112 wRC+. That puts Realmuto alongside Salvador Perez and Sean Murphy has one of the better offensive catchers in the past decade, though he falls outside the top tier occupied by Adley Rutschman, William Contreras, Willson Contreras, and Will Smith. Realmuto was at his best during the 2022 season, when he finished seventh in NL MVP voting, won the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards for the catcher position, and became the second catcher in MLB history to post 20 homers and 20 steals in a single season.
The past two seasons have seen Realmuto’s age and heavy workloads begin to catch up with him, however. He’s hit just .258/.315/.442 (105 wRC+) since the start of the 2023 campaign. His 25.2% strikeout rate during that time is higher than ever, and his walk rate has dipped to just 6.5%. Perhaps more importantly, Realmuto has fallen from the upper echelon of defensive catchers in the sport to become below average in terms of both blocking and framing, though he still remains elite when it comes to controlling the running game. While Realmuto has remained productive even amid this recent decline in skills, it’s fair to wonder if the veteran’s downturn in production the past two years could worsen as he enters his mid-30s given the harsh aging curve associated with the catcher position.
On the other hand, Philadelphia’s options without Realmuto in the fold are uninspiring. After a strong year as Realmuto’s backup in 2022, Garrett Stubbs has been one of the worst hitters in the sport the past two seasons with a paltry .206/.287/.271 slash line in 95 games. Youngster Rafael Marchan hit a far more robust .294/.345/.549 (146 wRC+) last year while filling in for Realmuto during his trip to the injured list, but that came in a sample of just 17 games and 56 plate appearances. If Realmuto were to head to free agency after the coming season, the Phillies would need to find an external addition at catcher to fortify that group anyway.
None of those options figure to be a clear upgrade even over the diminished form Realmuto has shown the past two seasons. Danny Jansen, Jose Trevino, and Victor Caratini are among the best catchers expected to be available next winter, but Realmuto’s 105 wRC+ is tied with Caratini for the lead among that group over the past two years and his 4.2 fWAR easily clears the production that trio has put up in timeshare roles. While a big season from Jansen and/or an additional step back from Realmuto could change things, a healthy season from Realmuto with a reduction in his day-to-day workload could improve his numbers and make him more difficult to bring back should he make it to the open market.
How do MLBTR readers feel president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski should handle Realmuto ahead of his final season under contract? Have your say in the poll below:
Absolutely
Extending a catcher at his age is typically not a great financial idea. That’s not even taking into account his declining numbers.
Plenty of other guys available
Austin Barnes (36)
Tucker Barnhart (35)
Christian Bethancourt (34)
Victor Caratini (32)
Curt Casali (37)
Elias Diaz (35)
Austin Hedges (33)
Danny Jansen (31) – mutual option
Martin Maldonado (39)
Tom Murphy (35) – $4MM club option with a $250K buyout
Omar Narvaez (34)
Tomas Nido (32)
Salvador Perez (36) – $13.5MM club option with a $2MM buyout
J.T. Realmuto (35)
Gary Sanchez (33)
Jacob Stallings (36) – $2MM mutual option with a $500K buyout
Max Stassi (35)
Jose Trevino (33)
Christian Vazquez (35)
All of those guys are either washed or never good at batting in the first place except salvy and JT
JT had a down year and is old now so at most he should return to Philly on a 1 year deal next offseason
So JT is by far the best available option? But he should take a 1 year deal? Looking like 3 years double digit aav to me easy.
Yes, extend him.
No way. Let the guy go to the Dodgers so he can experience playing in a WS a few more times before he retires.
Whoa whoa what’s with this Phillies stuff? I think we need an article on if the Padres will trade Cease. 🙂
It’s been a few hours since I heard anything about Alonso
Need a trade article for Suarez. Can’t have Cease and King hogging all Padres trades rumors!
At least Padres fans can sleep well knowing Machado Boegarts ain’t going nowhere!!!
How about a Profar rumor?
Cardinals
~BITA
Depends on the details, particularly the length of any extension. He’s caught a lot. Time is not kind to all athletes, but especially catchers.
No brainer. Who would the replacement be?
Eventually they’ll have to get younger at the position, especially if jt’s numbers keep declining. Is Rafael not worth a shot to see what he can do for the future? His limited mlb action has been pretty good, but do his minor league numbers leave something to be desired? How is his defense?
No they shouldn’t…but they will
This isn’t a no-brainer. He’s still very good, but declining fast.
The only “brainer” portion is price and term; otherwise the answer is apparent. They don’t have anyone of quality that is major league ready and even a declining JTR is Top 5 last season with injury issues.
Folks undervalue catchers, and generally don’t clearly understand what they bring to a team if they can do it all. He brings the game management; the pitcher-whisperer and the quiet leadership along with the control of the running game, defensive skills and a bat that is still above par for a catcher. Plus, he keeps himself in great shape.
He probably will not have a large decline defensively in the next 2-3 years (esp. with a reduced workload), and the bat can still be at least average even if he heads downhill at the plate. The art form will be the deal terms
I would extend him with the idea of moving him to a full time DH within a couple of seasons, especially with Schwarber set to hit free agency next winter and Castellanos in 2 seasons they’ll need to keep some bats around
Not really a dh bat now. Years from now might be ugly. Such a good catcher he should be able to catch until retiring. Obviously he can dh to keep healthy but majority of his value is in being able to catch.
.275-.300, 20-25 Home Runs without the riggers of Catching is still a decent contribution for a DH
His bat is only good for a catcher, not a DH.
The mlb landscape is bare.
Phillies options: catcher of the future Tait hasn’t turned 19 yet, Marchan has a staying healthy issue and well Stubbs.
And that c they got w/ Luzardo…..
Looking at a 3yr deal @54 million.
I would sign that tomorrow…prefer two with an option but your proposal would be very fair and probably under his market by a decent amount.
Like starting pitchers’ arms, catchers knees only have so many innings in them.
At what price and length of contract are we supposed to consider? The terms make all the difference in yes or no.
They will need him, yes. Give him 3 additional years, probably not. 2 and a team option at market rate – sure.
@Long this. If it’s 2 years at market rate, or maybe 10% above, extend him. If it’s 4/100 heck no!
Yep. There are 3 older catchers this year that got 2 year contract at about 12 total. One of those was Kelly at only 30. None at the level that JT has on his resume but catchers getting old and declining are not a good investment even if they started the decline from a higher ceiling!
If he’ll accept 2 and 30 w a 15 option, then certainly extend him. Depending on what kind of year he has, he may be a candidate for a QO.
I guarantee you he won’t receive a qualifying offer
And I would doubt a 2 and 30 is offered but it isn’t my money. 2025 old catchers getting 2/12.
Might get 3 and over 30. Heck 2 and over 30. Might take 3 though. Had knee surgery or something so will have to see.
Probably not but I wouldn’t guarantee anything. If Realmuto has a productive season – say .770+ OPS – a QO will certainly be a consideration. I am actually downplaying the likelihood of an extension. 2 and 30 is hardly a high AAV for a catcher who can still hit a little. I am not even sure I would want Realmuto for 2 more years, but at 2 and 30, that’s a relatively easy decision. Realmuto will only turn 34 in a few months.
As a Mets fan…heck yes they should extend him.
There is no chance Stubbs is the catcher of the future in Philly. He’s lucky if he’s even on the roster after spring training.
As a Phillies fan who loves JT I think they bide their time and keep all of their options open. …. If Schwarber doesn’t have a drop-off this year, that’s a bat you must extend. I think/hope the plan this year is that Marchan will be healthy and can make about 50 starts, and then you see (1) if Marchan is anything, (2) how JT produces with a reduce workload. ….. Definitely not opposed to bringing him back at the right price and I can see a scenario where he and Marchan continue to share time for a couple seasons. ….. If he has a great season and there’s a good market for him, then the Phillies can still absolutely stay competitive in the bidding to keep him, but there’s no need to sign him now IMO.
The contract will be underwater before it’s even done being printed up, much less signed
I’d love to see what Marchan could do with 300 plate appearances. If he could stay healthy.
Maybe for a year or two at a lower rate, but I would like to see the team give Marchan a more extended chance. Stubbs shouldn’t have a roster spot in my opinion; offer him a coaching role.
I looked up what muto means. It means dumb [adjective] without the power of speech. dumb [adjective] silent. mute [adjective] unable to speak; dumb. So does his name mean “Real Dumb?”
Move Harper back to RF/ and make Realmuto the 1B.
If Harper goes back to right ………Sign Alonso, let JT walk
At 34? No way. Test the market and sign him at market value + $whatever and makes contract length. You can’t continue to pay him as a good hitting, running, defensive Catcher. He’s too old to wear that label. He’ll soon be a DH or DH/1B, etc. Pay him accordingly.
shame bregman can’t catch
Definitely let him get to free agency then decide what to do, based on performance and asking price. Best to wait on a player in decline. The price would go down most of the time.