Phillies sign Nick Castellanos to five-year, $100 million deal, per report

The Phillies are in agreement on a deal with free agent slugger Nick Castellanos, per a report Friday night from ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, it’s a five-year, $100 million deal.

Castellanos, 30, was a first-time All-Star and Silver Slugger last season, posting a career-best 136 OPS+ (.309/.362/.576) with 34 homers and 100 RBI for the Reds. He’s a .278/.329/.486 career hitter and is another massive addition to a Phillies lineup that now looks like one of the most powerful in the league, with Kyle Schwarber (32 homers in 2021) also signing with Philadelphia earlier this week.

Castellanos, who had -7 defensive runs saved in right field with Cincinnati last year, figures to be the primary DH in Philadelphia, with Schwarber set to play left field and Bryce Harper in right.

The Phillies clearly are going all in on power as a winning strategy, as Castellanos will join Schwarber (-5 defensive runs saved), Harper (-6 DRS), Rhys Hoskins (-7 DRS), Alec Bohm (-13 DRS at third), and Didi Gregorius (-10 DRS) in Philadelphia’s lineup, with J.T. Realmuto, Jean Segura, and Odubel Herrera looking like their only above-average defenders at the moment. They’re not an exceptionally fast group either.

With long-term investments in Harper (10 years remaining), Schwarber (four years), and now Castellanos, it should be interesting to see how Philadelphia handles the newfound DH position long-term. While all three players are passable at corner outfield spots right now, it may not be the way over the length of their respective deals.