The Phillies Won’t Trade Alec Bohm, Nor Will They Keep Him

Ever since the Philadelphia Phillies benched third baseman Alec Bohm for Game 2 of the National League Division Series in October, rumors that the 2024 All-Star would soon be traded have swirled. The speculation only intensified as the Phillies made it clear they were looking to shake up their roster this offseason after a third consecutive playoff elimination, leading to manager Rob Thomson attempting to quieten things down at the Winter Meetings.

“I just wanted to secure [Bohm’s] mind, to let him know we’re not shopping him,” Thomson told NBC Sports. “He’s a good player, but being a good player, you’re going to get a lot of interest from other teams… Anything can happen, but we aren’t out there shopping him.”

Not everyone was convinced by the skipper’s statement, and the fact that the Phillies aren’t actively “shopping” Bohm on the market doesn’t mean they won’t trade him if a suitable offer comes across their collective desks. Still, the comments make a lot of sense when looking at Philadelphia’s vision for the team beyond 2025.

Unless a team is looking to significantly overpay, the Phillies are not going to trade Bohm — yet.

The Phillies Are Looking To Shake Up the Roster

The Phillies exceeded all expectations when they stormed their way to the World Series in 2022, and while they ultimately lost to the Houston Astros in six games, a contention window had seemingly been slammed open. The following season, they advanced to the National League Championship Series as the defending champs, but the Arizona Diamondbacks bettered them in seven games to secure the NL pennant.

In 2024, the Phillies advanced to the playoffs for the third season in a row, but they didn’t even get past the NL Division Series, being eliminated by the New York Mets in four games.

To be clear, the Phillies’ 2024 season certainly wasn’t disappointing — they won the NL East with a 95-67 record — but after consecutive years of making it to the playoffs and being eliminated in an earlier round that they’d managed the season prior, the front office knows something’s got to change.

“I mean, the reality is, we have a lot of good players,” Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski told reporters after the team’s NLDS elimination in October. “I think we just have to be open-minded to exploring what’s out there for us, talk to some clubs and see what ends up happening. That process hasn’t started. Sometimes you trade good players for good players.”

“You’re never happy unless you win the whole thing,” he continued. “We didn’t win the whole thing. I think we have a real good core of players, but I think we’ll be open-minded to make our club better. That’s really our goal.”

On December 9, Philadelphia signed free agent reliever Jordan Romano to a one-year, $8.5 million contract deal, and 11 days later, they added outfielder Max Kepler on a one-year, $10 million deal. The Phillies then acquired left-handed starter Jesús Luzardo and minor-league catcher Paul McIntosh in a trade with the Miami Marlins on December 22, sending prospects Starlyn Caba and Emaarion Boyd in return. Most recently, the team signed right-hander Joe Ross to a one-year, $4 million contract out of free agency on December 23.

So far this winter, the Phillies’ moves have largely focused on bolstering their pitching staff, but the team is still looking to “alter the profile of their lineup,” according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. With Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, and Nick Castellanos all locked in on big deals, Bohm — who is still under club control for another two seasons — is the obvious trade candidate, even if the Phillies don’t have a clear replacement for him at third base.

Will Alec Bohm Be Traded This Winter?

In 606 plate appearances this season, Bohm posted a .280/.332/.448 line with 15 home runs, 97 RBI, a career-high 248 total bases, and a team-leading 44 doubles, earning the first All-Star selection of his career. While the 28-year-old’s 6.6% walk rate was below average across MLB, Bohm’s impressive 14.2% strikeout rate and 17.6% whiff rate ranked him in the 92nd and 86th percentile of all qualified batters, respectively.

Bohm’s strong season extended to his defense, too, which has progressively improved over the last two years. In 2024, he recorded 5 Outs Above Average (OAA) — the third-most on the Phillies after first baseman Harper (8) and outfielder Johan Rojas (8) — and a Fielding Run Value (FRV) of 4.

Unfortunately, Bohm’s bat went ice cold once the Phillies got to the playoffs, leading to him being left off the lineup for Game 2 of the NLDS. Rumors swirled that maturity issues played a role in his benching — former All-Star catcher A.J. Pierzynski publicly criticizing Bohm’s tendency to throw his bat or helmet when unhappy with results — but the third baseman’s offensive struggles were obvious. In 14 plate appearances during the playoffs, Bohm posted an abysmal .077/.143/.077 line, managing just one hit across four games.

After finishing second in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2020, it’s easy to argue that while undeniably talented, Bohm just hasn’t lived up to the hype. Rather than emerge as a superstar, Bohm has often fallen into a supportive cast role in the Phillies’ lineup, limited by his streakiness and inconsistency both on offense and defense. So, with two seasons left of club control, what happens now?

Predicting the third baseman’s future has seemingly become a new favorite pastime for MLB experts this winter, and even after Thomson’s insistence that the team isn’t shopping the 28-year-old, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal remained unconvinced.

“The Phillies clearly want to trade him, they clearly have not been successful in their attempts so far,” Rosenthal said in a December 17 appearance on Foul Territory. “I would expect he will not be on the Phillies by the start of the season.”

Philadelphia has been asking for a lot in return for Bohm, which explains why any and all trade discussions have been unsuccessful. On December 16, Rosenthal reported that “when the [Athletics] inquired about him, the Phillies asked for All-Star reliever Mason Miller,” which stopped the conversation in its tracks.

While you have to admire the Phillies’ ambition, it’s hard to imagine the front office would genuinely think Bohm would have an equivalent trade value to Miller when he very obviously does not — but that’s the point. The Phillies have no interest in moving Bohm this winter unless they’re getting an obnoxious overpay in return.

The Phillies Won’t Trade Alec Bohm — Yet

Unless a team offers a borderline-ridiculous overpay for Bohm this offseason, the third baseman isn’t going anywhere — for now. The Phillies are delaying the inevitable, using Bohm as a bridge until they have a better option to take his place. Next offseason, or as soon as Aidan Miller is ready to debut in the majors, Bohm as good as gone.

Miller — Just Baseball’s No. 2 prospect in the Phillies’ system — was promoted from Single-A to High-A to Double-A this season, making it to the second-top level of the minors within 14 months of being drafted out of high school. In 2024 across the three leagues, he posted a .261/.366/.446 slashline in 462 plate appearances, with 11 home runs, 60 RBI, and 23 stolen bases. Although he was drafted as a shortstop, Miller has started transitioning to playing third base, where scouts believe he will stay and continue developing.

At the Phillies’ end-of-season press conference in October, Dombrowski said he doesn’t anticipate Miller making it to the big leagues in 2025, but the 20-year-old is clearly on his way up. The team has been clear that they see the star as the future of the organization, and considering he’s been on the national radar since middle school, it’s hardly surprising.

Unfortunately for Bohm, that means his days in Philadelphia are likely numbered.

For now, the Phillies don’t have anyone else ready to slot into third base, so they may as well hold onto Bohm, especially since he won’t become a free agent until after the 2026 season and can be traded next year. Although shaky at times, Bohm is strong enough to contribute to a contending season in 2025, and there’s no real point in Philadelphia moving him for just any return when it’ll mean the team has to either rush Miller or pay to get a rental player to cover his position.

However, since the Phillies know they have a top prospect on his way up, they’ll part with Bohm earlier than next year if they can get an overpayment in return — like the A’s with Miller, for example. But they’ve not been able to pull that off, which is why the Phillies won’t trade Bohm.

Yet.