I could actually see that signing Bichette and trading Turner

Also this came out so who knows lol

The gelb article

As the Phillies reach a possible inflection point in their offseason, they have scheduled a meeting with free-agent infielder Bo Bichette and done extensive work on the various roster ripple effects of signing him, multiple league sources told The Athletic.

Bichette is expected to meet with Phillies officials on a video conference call in the coming days, those sources said. The club’s interest in Bichette is legitimate, and if it results in a deal, it would likely require the team to move on from roster mainstays J.T. Realmuto and Alec Bohm.

The Phillies are entering what looks to be a competitive market; Bichette has numerous big-market teams interested. Both the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox want to add an infielder — whether it’s Bichette or Alex Bregman. The Los Angeles Dodgers loom as a possible destination for Bichette, viewing him as an option at second base if he is amenable to a lower-term, higher-salary contract structure. The New York Yankees, if they fail to re-sign Cody Bellinger, could emerge as a suitor.

All of those clubs might be more motivated to strike a deal with Bichette than the Phillies, who would have to rearrange their roster to accommodate such an addition. In November and December, team officials believed they would not be involved in Bichette’s market. While they liked the player, they expected him to command a deal beyond their reach, especially since the Phillies had internal free agents to retain.

But as a standoff with Realmuto has lingered, the Phillies began debating different paths. Bichette’s market has not collapsed; the combination of money allocated for Realmuto being unspent and Bichette’s willingness to move off shortstop has opened the door. The Phillies have one of the five highest payrolls in MLB, and while they had a straightforward plan entering this offseason, they were going to keep tabs on the bigger-name free agents.

The New York Post reported last week that the Phillies were interested in Bichette.

Any Bichette deal with the Phillies will be heavily taxed; the Phillies are up against a threshold that triggers a 110 percent luxury tax on every dollar above it. The Phillies would have to clear 2026 money, but know that some payroll relief comes in 2027 with $38 million invested in Nick Castellanos and Taijuan Walker off the books. Tax penalties could reset with a new collective bargaining agreement. (The current CBA expires in December.)

Still, it’s difficult to imagine any scenario where the Phillies sign both Bichette and Realmuto. Making this hypothetical fit is messy but not impossible. If the Phillies were budgeting somewhere around $13 million to $15 million for Realmuto’s annual salary, that alone would not be enough to secure Bichette. They would have to move money while opening an infield spot. The obvious option: Bohm, who agreed Thursday to a $10.2 million contract for 2026. The Phillies explored trades for Bohm earlier in the offseason; for now, they haven’t felt the need to settle, feeling he has more value on their roster.

Finding a trade partner willing to absorb all of Bohm’s money might be a challenge, given how unsettled the corner-infield landscape is across the sport.

On top of that, the Phillies would still need money to throw at a patchwork catching solution. They would not go into 2026 with only Rafael Marchán and Garrett Stubbs. Victor Caratini has yet to sign with a team, and league sources said he’ll delay his decision until there is clarity on Realmuto. Caratini is, at best, a part-time catcher, but he could pair with Marchán or Stubbs. Ryan Jeffers has never started more than 81 games behind the plate in a season, but the Phillies have had interest in the Minnesota Twins’ catcher. Assume that, at the very least, the Phillies need to set aside $6 million to secure Realmuto’s replacement, should they not retain him.

This would represent a significant change in course, one with ramifications in the clubhouse and in how the Phillies handle their pitchers. Realmuto is often cited as the backbone of everything the Phillies have built with their effective pitching program. Pitchers praise his conviction in calling games. There is a specific familiarity with the veteran that has benefited many of them.

Realmuto will be 35 in March, and the Phillies are aware there will eventually be life without him. His relationship with Zack Wheeler is particularly important; Wheeler prefers throwing to Realmuto above all else. It always made sense to commit to Realmuto for the same term as Wheeler, who is signed through 2027.

That is the path of least resistance, a path the club has often followed under president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. The Phillies have their targets, they tend to land them, and they fill holes without much disruption. This would represent a significant shift in those tactics.

Bichette, who turns 28 in March, is one of the youngest free agents on the market. While the Phillies already have five players with contracts of at least $24.5 million annual average value, Bichette’s age makes another long-term commitment palatable. He is 19 months younger than Bohm and five months younger than infielder Bryson Stott.

The other layer to this: The Phillies would use Bichette at a position that he has never played in his career. Bichette played 32 innings at second base in last year’s World Series and has 30 minor-league games of experience there. But he has never played third base — in the majors or minors — which is where he fits with the Phillies.

They could move Stott to third, which is where he made his big-league debut, but his time there is limited, too. The Phillies like how Stott, one of the better defenders in the league at second base, has adapted to that position.

The possibility of Bichette, though, has the Phillies considering everything.

Bichette's mom is a smokeshow

It’s happening

You can't trade Turner if you sign him. That would be a lateral move. We need more offense if we want a chance at the Dodgers.

30 minutes ago, Khani1 said:

You can't trade Turner if you sign him. That would be a lateral move. We need more offense if we want a chance at the Dodgers.

I don’t see them trading Turner for a couple reasons. No one is taking enough of turner’s contract to make the move feasible. No one is taking on half that contract and giving you anything real good in return. His contract is too hard to move do to age and years left. Secondly if you could deal him then you still have the same lineup issue and a catcher issue. I don’t think they are banking on trade Turner to sign realmuto and bichette. Even if you got realmuto and bichette m, you have the same lineup construction problem. It only works if you have Turner, schwarber, bichette and Harper as your top 4.

If you sign bichette it means realmuto is not coming back and the money allocated to him goes to bichette. Still need to trade money away to make up the difference. But it creates a log jam in the infield so makes it easier to just dump off Bohm for potential starting pitching depth (could get a 4th or 5th starter that’s not expensive) or maybe someone who has catching depth that needs a 3B for a year. If sign Bichette it’s highly likely Bohm is traded and Stott is probably not in the long term plans with Miller a year a way or sooner. Good chance might see Stott dealt in the 2027 offseason for a position of need

Don;t be fools people, they are not signing Bichette, they are going to over pay for Realmuto

24 minutes ago, Joe Shades 73 said:

Don;t be fools people, they are not signing Bichette, they are going to over pay for Realmuto

Bichette is coming to say hi to Mattingly and walk away that is all

Salisbury on the Phillies show said that for this year, they could trade Bohm, put Stott at 3rd then Bichette at 2nd. Next year with Stott going into the final year of his contract, they trade him then bring up Aiden Miller to play 3rd. Interesting thought.

2 hours ago, vsptroops said:

Salisbury on the Phillies show said that for this year, they could trade Bohm, put Stott at 3rd then Bichette at 2nd. Next year with Stott going into the final year of his contract, they trade him then bring up Aiden Miller to play 3rd. Interesting thought.

Yeah, that’s what I said above.

4 hours ago, e-a-g-l-e-s eagles! said:

If you sign bichette it means realmuto is not coming back and the money allocated to him goes to bichette. Still need to trade money away to make up the difference. But it creates a log jam in the infield so makes it easier to just dump off Bohm for potential starting pitching depth (could get a 4th or 5th starter that’s not expensive) or maybe someone who has catching depth that needs a 3B for a year. If sign Bichette it’s highly likely Bohm is traded and Stott is probably not in the long term plans with Miller a year a way or sooner. Good chance might see Stott dealt in the 2027 offseason for a position of need

Imo I’d play Stott at 2B and Bichette at 3B. I think Stott is one of the best defensive 2B. Going to have mediocre 2B or 3B with Bichette. I rather keep the middle what it is. When miller gets called up in 2027 I’d move miller to third and Bichette over to 2B. Use Bryson Stott as a trade chip in the 2027 offseason to maybe address catcher or SP.

4 hours ago, RoadToHell said:

Bichette is coming to say hi to Mattingly and walk away that is all

Not even coming, it is a zoom call

6 hours ago, Joe Shades 73 said:

Not even coming, it is a zoom call

He’s on his honeymoon. He just got married.