Insider Provides Trade Proposal for Phillies to Land Adley Rutschman

With the growing need at the catcher position for the Philadelphia Phillies if the team doesn't re-sign J.T. Realmuto, there aren't a lot of perfect options out there for Philadelphia to pursue.

While there are some players who could fit into what the Phillies are looking to do on both sides of the baseball, most teams are rather hesitant to give up on very good catchers. On the free agency market, I'd still go out on a limb and say that Realmuto is by far the best catcher option available.

Perhaps somebody has a great year next season, and that is the case, but Realmuto has been around this game for a very long time, especially in Philadelphia.

If the Phillies were to make a trade, it's tough to say who could be available, but Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com believes there's a scenario where Adley Rutschman could be in play. He proposed a three-team trade that would send him to Philadelphia.

Orioles get: LHP MacKenzie Gore, C Keibert Ruiz

Phillies get: C Adley Rutschman

Nats get: DH/OF Nick Castellanos, SS Aidan Miller (Phillies’ No. 2 prospect), 3B Carson DeMartini (Phillies’ No. 13 prospect), C Caden Bodine (Orioles’ No. 10 prospect)

“The Orioles need front-line pitching, and there’s been some buzz this winter about them possibly dealing cornerstone catcher Rutschman after inking his understudy, Samuel Basallo, to a long-term extension....

“The Phillies, meanwhile, get younger in the lineup and find a strong replacement for 34-year-old free agent J.T. Realmuto. Again, Rutschman is coming off an uninspiring year, but he certainly has the potential to boost the Phillies’ lineup and has some demonstrated upside. In exchange for shoring up the catching spot and getting out from any personality issues and the $20 million owed to Castellanos in 2026 (money that can be applied to re-signing Kyle Schwarber or whatever the Phils wish to do with it), Philadelphia has to fork over a very valuable infield prospect,” he wrote.

There are a lot of positives in this trade, although Rutschman has struggled to hit in the past year and a half. Giving up on Aidan Miller isn’t ideal, but finding a way to remove Castellanos' contract would be a positive. Rutschman also doesn't hit free agency until 2028, so he has multiple years of control left at a low price.