Over the last five-plus years, the Phillies have become one of baseball’s top-spending teams. The franchise hasn’t shied away from going after, and signing, top-tier players in free agency. It all started when they inked Bryce Harper to a $330-million contract before the 2019 season. The spending never stopped. It’s only continued.
Nobody knew it at the time, but Harper’s signing was the beginning of a streak by the Phillies’ front office. It was the first of six straight offseasons in which the club signed a player to a nine-figure contract.
After Harper’s deal, the Phillies signed Zack Wheeler to a $118-million deal during the 2019-2020 offseason.