Entering the offseason with roughly $50M to spend without threatening the luxury tax, the typically-affluent Phillies weren’t flexing their financial prowess like they were last year. Although they reportedly had interest in the elite tier of free agents this winter- Gerrit Cole, Anthony Rendon, and Madison Bumgarner, namely- nothing ever actually materialized. Unlike last winter when the Phillies had the financial freedom to handpick the free agents of their choosing, the team has been rendered essentially powerless this time around. Gone are the days of spending “stupid money.” Gone is the bravado in the voice of the front office.
Lackluster farm system continues to plague the Phillies
