Last Call

For Dave Dombrowski, Monday is one last chance to redeem himself after a disastrous stretch.

Tarik Skubal went off the board, walking into the Dodger Stadium conveniently as Sunday Night Baseball got underway.

By the fifth inning, Kevin Gausman came off the board and ended up with the Chicago Cubs.

All the while, the Braves have been tweaking and doing different moves along the way with guys like Lane Thomas. The Yankees pulled a shocking move for controllable young power hitter Luis Garcia Jr. from the Nationals. And a bunch of other moves were being made around Major League Baseball that ranged from tweaks to curious.

Meanwhile, the Phillies were still quiet as they pulled back into Citizens Bank Park after a shaky 2-4 road trip that teetered on disaster. The team that has seemed super comfortable standing pat over the past three off-seasons entered the final day before baseball’s roster closing time with lots of smoke, but very little fire taking place.

For the sake of the 2026 Phils, however, there better be a pretty seismic event before 6 p.m. to try and keep some level of interest in this team alive.

Nobody in that sense may have more on the line than Dave Dombrowski. Even if Dombrowski is in line for a contract extension as Matt Gelb has said a few times in The Athletic over the past few weeks, reputations in this town for executives are made in big moments. And Dombrowski’s Philly rep is hanging by a thread.

That may stun people in the rest of America with four straight playoffs, two division titles and a NL title in the last four years. But for Dombrowski, a missed deadline in 2026 likely means a missed playoff run. And a missed playoff run in what could be the sport’s last year before labor turmoil with an aging roster could mean nothing less than a disaster. And this team really is in its last realistic dance to do something in this era.

The Phillies may be the most fascinating team in the MLB mix on Monday. They aren’t going to break it all down, but that doesn’t mean that some players on the current roster may not be packaged to change the dynamic around here. Namely, the bullpen and the non long-term contracts in the infield (Alec Bohm, Bryson Stott) could be in danger of being benched or moved if the Phils are really in the market for Luis Arraez as rumored on Sunday.

They can go for a bat. They absolutely need to get pieces for the bullpen. They can also go for a back end starter who could slide into the bullpen in October if needed.

The problem is that they probably can’t fill all three of them with a minor league system that is as shallow as a plastic baby pool. Gage Wood will likely be sought after and maybe Andrew Painter’s stronger start on Friday night in Baltimore renews some of the interest in him. But Aiden Miller’s back likely takes his value off the table and and the rest of the current position player lineup at the higher levels is uninspiring.

Dombrowski did do a really good job at last year’s deadline in nabbing Jhoan Duran and Harrison Bader. But that team didn’t feel nearly as incomplete as this team does. And so, there’s more work to do with less of an arsenal to do it.

That’s why it wouldn’t surprise me if a few people off the major league roster are in mixes to move in order to get a new dynamic in play. Bohm may be the biggest target since he will be a free agent in the off-season and could be a good rental for another contender in the American League. Justin Crawford could be packaged in a move for a more established receiver. And Orion Kerkering could be a reclamation project for some teams who won’t make the playoffs this year, but could want a controllable reliever moving forward.

The point of this is simple: Dombrowski has to find a way to get creative to make this work. Even if he makes some of the best trades of his career, this could be a fruitless battle. But doing nothing is not an option. And if he does stand pat, or goes small nibbles, his already-damaged reputation in this town will be totally obliterated with a fan base that has already started to revolt.

No pressure.

Other Deadline Day thoughts

• We mentioned Skubal’s trade to the Dodgers for a really light return of prospects earlier. But the only thing to remember is that nothing is guaranteed by the trade except for the fact that there will be a shortened 2027 season because of moves like that.
  The Dodgers didn’t buy Skubal. But the idea that they now are in position to get a head start and sign him in the off-season is going to dig the hardliners in deeper. And while it isn’t bad to have a superteam in any sport, it is bad if the deck financially is stacked to the point where it appears it is stacked.

• I don’t get the Garcia trade one bit by the Nats, who have been one of the best power threats who is controllable. Washington may not make the playoffs this year, but to move Garcia now just felt strange when they have him under control for another year.

• Gausman’s move to the Cubs may actually benefit the Phillies in this sense- he’s struggled against Philadelphia with a 1-5 record and a 4.53 ERA and 1.529 WHIP in his career. The two could meet in the wild-card round and one of the biggest concerns would be in the Phils had to face lefties Matthew Boyd and Shota Imanaga. The Gausman trade may actually change that dynamic.

• There will be a column on Monday night with all the trade deadline thoughts.