Getting $100 million man Nick Castellanos right for 2023 is a priority for the Phillies

Once it was finally over, perspective mattered. So, Rob Thomson stood in a quiet Phillies clubhouse last Saturday night and told his players to be proud of their pennant-winning accomplishment, even though they were two wins short of achieving the ultimate goal.

But the end of an unexpected World Series run also brought a swift return to reality. That’s how Nick Castellanos reconciled being “excited for spring training,” which will be here before he knows it, with a candid admission about his first season with the Phillies.

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“Personally,” the right fielder said after fittingly fouling out for the final out, “this was one of the hardest baseball years that I’ve had.”

Also the worst. And as the Phillies dive into the offseason, understanding why Castellanos struggled so profoundly — and figuring out how to avoid a repeat in 2023 — will rank among their highest priorities.

Because, lest anyone forget, the opportunity to acquire Castellanos in March was what compelled owner John Middleton to push the payroll past the $230 million luxury-tax threshold. A few days after signing Kyle Schwarber, the Phillies agreed to a five-year, $100 million contract with Castellanos, the cherry on top of a lineup that was built to shatter the franchise’s single-season home-run record.

Instead, Castellanos was outslugged by Elvis Andrus.

Castellanos, 30, was the opening-day cleanup hitter and primary protection for Bryce Harper. He bashed his first homer in the second game of the season. Through April, he batted .300 with an .849 on-base-plus-slugging percentage.

But he never felt comfortable at the plate. His power drained. He confided in friends that he felt like he was letting down his new organization, especially Middleton and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. He began hearing boos at Citizens Bank Park. The more he pressed, the worse things got.

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As Dombrowski put it, Castellanos is “very self-conscious of trying to produce for us and disappointing people.”

“If someone is sinking in quicksand and slowly going down, we kind of fight, fight, fight, and we make the situation worse,” Matt Martin, Castellanos’ longtime hitting coach, said in August. “Well, if your swing’s a little bit off, you start searching a little bit, and then the next thing you know, it gets further away, further away. Now, getting back to what’s natural or what it really is becomes more difficult.”

From 2017 through 2021, Castellanos ranked second in the majors with 334 extra-base hits, trailing only Cleveland’s José Ramírez (338). This season, he had fewer extra-base hits (40) than middle infielders such as Andrus (49), Brendan Rodgers (46), Jorge Mateo (45), and Luis Rengifo (43).

Castellanos finished with 27 doubles and 13 homers in 558 plate appearances. For context: He hit 14 homers in 242 plate appearances in the short 2020 season. Of the 130 players who qualified for the batting title, he tied for 103rd in slugging percentage (.389). He had a 95 OPS+, meaning he was 5% worse than the average hitter, and was valued at 0.7 wins below the level of a replacement player, according to Fangraphs.

“There’s no one more aware of that than me,” Castellanos said. “I’m really excited just to get to the offseason and get to the drawing board and really analyze this year on just myself, where I feel that I fell short.”

Castellanos said he struggled to adjust to a new team and city. It surely didn’t help that he signed late because of MLB’s three-month lockout. He reached an agreement with the Phillies on March 18, reported to spring training five days later, and had two weeks to get ready for the season.

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Everything felt new to Castellanos. And then his second child was born on May 4.

Castellanos compared it to 2020, his first year with the Cincinnati Reds, when spring training was interrupted by the pandemic as he was becoming familiar with a new organization. Once the season started, he batted .225/.298/.486 with a .784 OPS that was his lowest since 2015.

But he bounced back in 2021 and batted .309/.362/.576 with a career-high 34 homers and a .939 OPS. He believes he’s capable of a similar revival with the Phillies next season.

“I would say it’s just balancing everything,” Castellanos said. “Now having two kids at home and then also just being able to navigate, being able to understand everybody’s personality, who they are, how they work, I can get back to being what makes me great and understand how to use [those resources] to benefit me.”

If the Phillies were inclined to trade Castellanos, his contract — $80 million remaining through 2026 — would make it challenging. Dombrowski does have experience with moving big money. After the 2013 season, he dealt Prince Fielder, who had seven years and $168 million left on his contract with the Detroit Tigers, for Ian Kinsler. The Tigers picked up $30 million of Fielder’s deal.

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It’s more likely the Phillies will try to better support Castellanos and make him feel more at ease. In July, they hired Martin as a special assistant to farm director Preston Mattingly. Dombrowski worked with Martin in Detroit and speaks highly of him as an instructor. But it can only help Castellanos to have Martin in the organization.

Martin sensed in August that Castellanos may be finally putting less pressure on himself. After hitting a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning Aug. 3 in Atlanta, Castellanos said he was “gradually letting go [of] expectations and getting back to letting the game come” to him.

Beginning with that game, he batted .293/.327/.495 with five homers and an .822 OPS in 104 plate appearances through Sept. 2.

But Castellanos strained a muscle in his right side and missed the next three weeks. He never regained his timing at the plate. He went 6-for-25 (.240) in the final eight regular-season games and 12-for-65 (.185) with four doubles in a postseason that will be remembered for three sliding catches in right field and a lot of first-pitch swings.

Including the playoffs, Castellanos went 104 plate appearances to end the season without hitting a home run.

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Recharging Castellanos’ power will be as critical to the Phillies as any offseason addition. And as he stood at his locker amid the disappointment of losing the World Series, Castellanos seemed ready to put a long season behind him.

“Now I can come in a little bit stronger knowing how to navigate this organization, this city, the media, everything,” he said. “I can stand here today and say that I’m excited for spring training.

“It’s only the beginning, right?”

Of a contract the Phillies hope they won’t regret.

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