By JON VANKIN is a journalist and writer. He is the author of five nonfiction books and nine graphic novels. His writing has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Salon, the L.A. Weekly and dozens of other publications and he has received numerous awards and honors including three New England Press Association awards. In connection with his work, Vankin has made numerous media appearances on such networks as CNN, CNBC, FOX, the BBC and the CBC as well as hundreds of radio stations and podcasts. Vankin in his wide-ranging career has also served as an editor of comic books and newspapers. He is the editor of the NEW YORK TIMES #1 BESTSELLING graphic novel GET JIRO! by the late, great Anthony Bourdain. He co-wrote the hit Off Broadway musical FOREVER DUSTY, and served as a sportswriter and editor at The Daily Yomiuri, the English-language edition of Japan's largest newspaper, the Yomiuri Shimbun, in Tokyo.
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The Philadelphia Phillies enter the season with a goal of winning back-to-back National League East pennants for the first time since they won five in a row from 2007 to 2011. More importantly, the Phillies are looking for a return to the World Series for what would be only the ninth time since the Fall Classic began in 1903. Philadelphia got there in 2022 only to lose to the Houston Astros.
It would not be unfair to say the organization has pushed all of its chips to the center of the table in pursuit of that goal. Philadelphia's projected payroll of $278.6 million ranks third in MLB, trailing only the perennially big-spending Los Angeles Dodgers ($322.6 million) and New York Mets ($312.1 million).
Even with the club's towering payroll commitments, Philadelphia president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski was able to assemble a respectable offseason that garnered a solid "B" grade from The Athletic, spending a total of $22.5 million on free agent relievers Jordan Romano and Joe Ross, and 10-year veteran former Minnesota Twins outfielder Max Kepler, who was the most expensive of the group at $10 million for one season.
Dombrowski also worked a trade with the Miami Marlins for starter Jesus Luzardo, who then avoided arbitration with a one-year, $6.2 million deal.
But according to a "bold" prediction issued Monday by CBS Sports baseball correspondent Mike Axisa, Dombrowksi — who has run baseball operations for five teams since 1988, taking four to the World Series and winning it with two of them (Florida Marlins in 1997 and Boston Red Sox in 2018) — is not done yet with additions to the 2025 Phillies.
According to Axisa, the Phillies' next major acquisition will come at the July 31 trade deadline, when Dombrowksi will land St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado.
The eight-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove winner was a near-constant subject of trade speculation in the offseason, mainly because Cardinals' president of baseball operations John Mozeliak was open about his desire to dump the remaining $75 million, over three years, on Arenado's eight-year, $260 million contract.
At one point, St. Louis reportedly had a deal for Arenado worked out with the Houston Astros, but the 33-year-old Arenado invoked his no-trade clause to block it.
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According to multiple media reports, Arenado had only five teams on his list for an approved trade, and the Phillies were not one of them. Why would he change his mind?
With the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees reportedly receiving Arenado's thumbs-up, it appears the 12-year veteran has no objection to an East Coast destination — and as Axisa says, the Phillies are an "all-in NL East team with a core that's starting to get older."
The attraction of joining an organization designed to win right away could provide a strong pull for Arenado, who has played postseason baseball in only four of his 12 seasons — and advanced beyond the Wild Card round only once, in 2018 with the Colorado Rockies, the team that made him a second-round draft pick back in 2009.
What the Phillies would send back to the Cardinals in exchange was not something Axisa speculated about, but with the main motivation to trade Arenado being his salary, the Cardinals' return would be less a question of players than of how much of a financial hit the Phillies would be willing to absorb.
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