File this one in the “too soon to tell” column, but the Philadelphia Phillies seem like they may already have maneuvered themselves into good shape in the outfield for 2026. There are several factors at play here before we can declare mission accomplished, but a few developments over the course of the year have brought us to this point as we assess the near-term future of the team’s outfield.

Assuming that Max Kepler will not return after his one-year contract runs its course and no other internal options emerge, the Phillies still find themselves with several viable paths forward in the outfield for 2026 that they can mix and match to form a seemingly solid group. Here’s how it breaks down.

Phillies could already have pieces in place for next year’s outfield

Last call for Casty

The 2026 season is shaping up to be Nick Castellanos’ final year in Phillies pinstripes after he signed a five-year, $100 million contract before the 2022 campaign. The contract has been, in a word, “fine,” although Castellanos has taken more than his fair share of criticism during his tenure. The sand seems to be running out of the hourglass now, but he figures to be able to give the Phillies one more productive year in 2026.

Eerily enough, the closest comp to his contract and performance is Jayson Werth. Werth of course left the Phillies after the 2010 season on a seven-year pact with the Nationals, who gave him a boatload of money to bring his veteran influence and winning pedigree to a young team. Werth played out the whole contract, was fairly solid throughout, and then retired when it ended, two years before the Nationals won it all.

The expectations for Castellanos were much higher, of course, and he’ll be several years younger than Werth was once his contract runs out. Ultimately, the value of his signing will be judged on whether he can be a part of a World Series winner in Philadelphia.

Drinking the Bader-ade?

Trade deadline acquisition Harrison Bader is still acclimating to his new surroundings, and he’s just 3-for-20 in a Phils uniform so far, though he does have a home run, four runs and three RBIs. Part of the appeal of trading for him was the potential to keep him beyond this year, as the Phillies can either agree to his $10 million mutual option for 2026 or tell him to hit the bricks for $1.5 million.

It’s too soon to tell, but Bader’s Gold Glove-caliber defense could be very likely to stick around, provided he does enough with the bat that the Phillies are motivated to see him for a full year.

Calling up Crawford

Somewhat surprisingly, the Phillies still haven’t pulled the trigger on calling up top prospect Justin Crawford, but you figure they absolutely have to at some point down the stretch if for no other reason than to give him a taste of the big leagues before he is expected to play a regular role in 2026.

If he plays as advertised, especially with that blazing speed of his, he will be a real asset for the Phillies next year and much further beyond. He’s the wild card in all of this, and Crawford could turn the Phillies’ outfield from “solid” into one of the best in the league if he hits.

Bounceback Brandon

Make no mistake, literally everyone was ready to run Brandon Marsh out of town earlier this season after a disastrous start that preceded an IL stint. But since his return, he’s batted .313 with an .850 OPS in 76 games while playing his usual solid defense in mostly center and some occasional left field.

He’ll never put up eye-popping numbers in the batter’s box, and he’s not running nearly as much as last year, but he has made a strong case to stay in the lineup every day against right-handed pitching. With Marsh slated for arbitration this offseason, the Phillies will keep this in mind for next year.

Otto Kemp seems O.K.

Small sample size and all that, but Otto Kemp seems to be holding his own as the Phillies have deployed him in left field and at both corner infield spots. He seems like a younger, better version of Weston Wilson who could aid the team as a part-time starter at multiple spots and a valuable bench bat. At the very least, he’s on the verge of some important, Otto-centric Phillies history.

Relinquishing Rojas?

So, if all the aforementioned Phillies play a recurring outfield role on the 2026 squad, where does that leave our man Johan Rojas? Well, he’s in the minors right now after the Bader addition, and the Phillies could choose to extend that trend into next season. Or they could outright cut bait on Rojas and move him to a team that might be more patient with him.

The truth is, Rojas has accumulated about a full season’s worth of plate appearances at this point in the majors, and he’s probably always going to be somewhat of a drag in the batting order. But as some have said all along, you should be able to keep him in for his defense and rely on the your bats to get it done.

Rojas is paying for his shortcomings now, and he’s quite possibly seen his last regular playing time as a Phil. For a team in win-now mode, he just may not be the right kind of player to trot out every night. Good luck to him elsewhere if we’ve hit the end of the road for him with the Phillies.

Despite all of these suppositions for next year, you can never rule out the Phillies making a bigger move to bolster their outfield, as president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and company are always looking to acquire talent. But it’s a nice fallback to know that they would be ok in the outfield in 2026 if they largely stood pat, with the caveat that they must re-sign Kyle Schwarber for next year. If that fails to materialize, it may push Castellanos and Bryce Harper into some sort of DH platoon and set off a domino effect where the team needs to bring in another corner outfielder/corner infielder type.

That would be a disaster, and it would blow up any “the outfield is ok” narratives. But if the Phillies can retain what they have while also looking to add talent to offset their aging core, the outfield is one area that should be good enough in 2026 with room for long-term improvement after that.