More Free-Agent Pitchers Not In Play For Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies may have their starting rotation barring a collapse of the starting pitching market, per The Athletic.

On Friday, the site reported that Major League sources said the Phillies were not interested in pursuing either Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery “barring an unforeseen market collapse.”

Snell is the reigning NL Cy Young winner and has won two Cy Young awards. He’s the top pitcher on the free-agent market and the New York Yankees recently made him an offer. But their agreement with Marcus Stroman on Thursday may have eliminated the Yankees as a potential suitor.

The Yankees reportedly offered Snell $150 million over five years, which is an average annual value of $30 million. Snell is apparently looking for more, or at least one more year on the deal.

The Phillies have already shelled out a big contract in free agency, as they signed their own free-agent, Aaron Nola, to a seven-year, $172 million deal. That contract has an average annual value of $24.5 million per year.

As for Montgomery, he just won his first World Series ring with the Texas Rangers and was one of the stars of their rotation in the season’s final month and the postseason.

But Montgomery has found a soft market as well, even though he’s coming off the best season of his career. The momentum around Montgomery is a return to the Rangers, but it’s unclear exactly how much he can get from the World Series champs, who are waiting for their local television situation to settle for 2024 as it connects to their offseason spending.

It’s unclear what a “collapse” of the pitching market might mean.

If the season started today, Nola and Zack Wheeler — whom the Phillies have prioritized for an extension — would lead the way, along with Ranger Suárez, Cristopher Sánchez and Taijuan Walker.