The Philadelphia Phillies had a good year this season, winning their division and losing in the NLDS to the future MLB champs in the Los Angeles Dodgers. Now, they’ll have some tough decisions this offseason regarding some superstars-turned-free agents.
One of those superstars they’ll need to think about is their MVP candidate, Kyle Schwarber. The Athletic’s Tim Britton projects that Schwarber will receive a five-year, $145 million contract.
“When Schwarber signed his last free-agent deal, a DH had never won the MVP nor earned more than $22 million per season. Shohei Ohtani helps things…One that feels more proper? The in-his-prime deal that J.D. Martínez signed with the Red Sox in 2018 for that aforementioned $22 million per year. Like Schwarber, Martínez was coming off the best stretch of his career — 29 homers in 62 games with the Diamondbacks. Updating that contract for 2026 pushes the money close to $29 million per season. Schwarber could surpass $30 million on a shorter-term deal, but I think he can get to five years at the Martínez money,” Britton wrote.
This season, Schwarber finished slashing.240/.365/.563/.928 with 23 doubles, 56 home runs, and 132 RBI over 162 games. He’s also in the conversation for NL MVP, neck and neck with Shohei Ohtani.
Now, will the Phillies keep him? Possibly, but it’s a decision between him and other superstars. They can only keep so many, and with Ranger Suarez projected to earn big as well this offseason, they might go with him instead.
Hopefully, the Phillies come to a decision soon, as Schwarber and Suarez will both be targets for other contenders.
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