Phillies decline Scott Kingery’s $13 million option

The Scott Kingery era is all but over.

Six seasons after the Phillies signed Kingery for $24 million, 17 months after he last appeared in a major league game, 901 days since his last big league at-bat, the team made the fully expected move of declining its $13 million option on his contract for 2024. Kingery received a $1 million buyout.

And so, a Phillies contract that began amid bold headlines and a festive news conference ended with a 12-word tweet at 5:50 p.m. on a Friday.

Kingery, 29, actually remains under control to the Phillies because his contract reverts to the seven-year deal that he signed after getting drafted in 2015. But one of the most hyped prospects in modern Phillies history, with a catchy nickname (remember “Scotty Jetpax?”) and opposing scouts who compared him to Dustin Pedroia, Kingery wound up being one of the biggest busts.

In 325 major league games, Kingery batted .229/.280/.387 with 62 doubles, 30 homers, 96 RBIs, 25 stolen bases, and 320 strikeouts in 1,127 plate appearances.

» READ MORE: From spring training: Scott Kingery was poised to be the Phillies’ next star. Now he hopes to make the most of one more chance.

Kingery came up as a second baseman, but the Phillies tried to capitalize on his versatility. As a rookie in 2018, he made starts at five positions and saw time at six. There were times when the organization viewed him as a future second baseman, shortstop, and even center fielder.

In 2019, Kingery was batting .292/.344/.545 with 11 homers at the All-Star break. But he slumped badly down the stretch, the product of shoulder injuries that required surgery and an uppercut swing that led to soaring strikeout rates. It was the beginning of a two-year cliff-dive that ended with Kingery getting demoted to triple A in the spring of 2021 and eventually designated for assignment.

Kingery made a push for a spot on the Phillies’ bench before this season but was at a disadvantage because he was no longer on the 40-man roster. He spent the season in triple A, batting .244/.325/.400 with 13 doubles and 24 stolen bases in 117 games.

(Correction: An earlier version of this story said the declining of Kingery’s option makes him a free agent. He remains under team control on a minor league contract.)