With Bo Bichette, the Phillies could reload without rebuilding
The 27-year-old infielder may be the key to sustained success for the franchise
Let’s talk about the 2028 Phillies lineup for a moment.
The only position players under contract for ‘28 are Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Trea Turner. Each of those guys will be 35 years old. If the Phils sign J.T. Realmuto to the new three-year contract that the club reportedly offered, he’ll be playing in his age-37 season.
Assuming all goes well, the 2028 lineup will also feature Justin Crawford (in his age-24 season), and Aidan Miller (in his age-23 season).
That’s six of nine starting position players, without a single guy between the ages of 25 and 34. Hitters are generally expected to peak between ages 27 and 29.
Not ideal for the future Fightins.
Every individual is different, of course. Maybe Harper can pull a Mike Schmidt and win an MVP at age 36. Maybe Justin Crawford will adjust quickly to the major leagues. And maybe Schwarber, from the relative comfort of the DH role, will crush home runs balls well into the twilight of his career.
But that’s a lot of maybes. The more likely scenario is that the core of the Phils’ lineup declines in a few seasons and starts to get sold for parts.
If only a 27-year-old superstar were available in free agency… A guy who could help the team now and still be in his prime in 2028… Someone to bridge the gap between the old guard and the young guns.
Oh. Well hello there, Bo Bichette!
I don’t need to convince you that the Phillies should sign Bichette. We’re close to unanimous on that as a fan base.
But lost in the excitement of Bichette’s potential effect on this year’s team are the longer-term ramifications for the franchise. Instead of a “window of opportunity” that many believe will slam shut in a year or two, Bichette could provide the Phils with the start of a new core. Harper, Schwarber, and Turner could acclimate to new, complementary roles while Crawford and Miller are afforded time to develop.
We’ve been conditioned to believe that good times for the Phillies are inevitably followed by years wandering in the wilderness. That 2012-2021, for example, was an unfortunate but necessary result of 2007-2011.
But for a team with financial resources, that’s absolutely not the case. With some smart planning—and admittedly, some luck—your Philadelphia baseballers could compete year in and year out.
It starts with Bo.
Members of the Phillies lineup, with age and contract status
DH - Kyle Schwarber - 2026 (age 33 season) through 2030 (age 37 season)
C - JT Realmuto????? - 2026 (age 35 season) through 2028 (age 38 season)
1B - Bryce Harper - 2026 (age 33 season) through 2031 (age 38 season)
2B - Bryson Stott - 2026 (age 27 season) through 2027 (age 28 season)
3B - Alec Bohm - 2026 (age 29 season)
SS - Trea Turner - 2026 (age 33 season) through 2033 (age 40 season)
LF - Brandon Marsh - 2026 (age 28 season) through 2027 (age 29 season)
CF - Justin Crawford - 2026 (age 22 season) through 2031 (age 27 season)
RF - Adolis Garcia - 2026 (age 33 season)
Tweets and skeets of the week
Man I’m gonna miss Ranger Suarez.
Meanwhile, the rich get richer as the Dodgers sign Kyle Tucker:
Brian Coulter@PhilaBCoulterTucker to the Dodgers, every single joke aside, has to be the thing that forces the Phillies to get Bo. You were close to beating them. You have the arms. It can be done.3:02 AM · Jan 16, 2026 · 399 Views1 Reply · 3 LikesIn happier news:
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Cre8tor Club Spotlight
Enjoy real Philly sports talk coming from real Philly sports fans? Then you have to check out the Montgomery brothers. Jim and Kyle Montgomery are lifelong Philadelphia sports guys who have been through it all. From the highs of Super Bowl victories to the lows of lost Phillies seasons and everything in between.
The brothers were talking about Philly sports the moment they first learned to speak, and developed that passion into The Brotherly Birds Breakdown, a weekly podcast that debuted this year. Jim and Kyle break down the previous week’s game, discuss the biggest Birds story lines, and preview the upcoming game.
Jim also hosts This Day in Philly Sports History, a daily podcast that dives into both the current state of Philly sports and takes a trip down memory lane, reliving the iconic moments—good and bad—in Philly sports.
Kyle, meanwhile, can be found on the Clashing Conferences Sports Fan Network (on their all-sports podcast), as well as the State of Kentucky Report, a podcast dedicated to all things Kentucky sports.
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Thank you for reading and go Phils!
Awesome to see Jim and Kyle get their shout out! Jim puts in work being dedicated to his craft and Kyle has been an incredible asset to our sports fan network.
John, where do the Phils go from here?