Phillies' Opening Day roster will be filled with plenty of new faces

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Believe it or not, there are plenty of new faces on the Phillies’ 2026 Opening Day roster.

In fact, there are 11 players who weren’t on the 2025 season-opening roster, including six new relievers, one starter, two outfielders and two bench bats.

Here is the roster:

Catcher (2): J.T. Realmuto, Rafael Marchán

The Phillies chose Marchán over Garrett Stubbs, whose future with the organization is in doubt.

The team has until Wednesday to officially set its 26-man roster, so it will try to trade Stubbs until then. If the Phils cannot, they will designate him for assignment. At that point, Stubbs will be removed from the 40-man roster. The Phils will have seven days to trade him or place him on outright waivers. If Stubbs clears waivers, he can accept an outright assignment to Triple-A or elect free agency.

If Stubbs elects free agency, however, he will forfeit the current contract that guarantees a relatively significant $575,000 Minor League salary.

If the Phillies lose Stubbs, René Pinto becomes the organization’s No. 3 catcher.

“[Stubbs] knows what's going on,” Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said. “He's going to stay down here. He's going to keep in shape.”

First baseman (1): Bryce Harper

The only question is where he hits in the lineup.

Second baseman (1): Bryson Stott

He hopes to carry a strong second half in 2025 into his first All-Star season.

Shortstop (1): Trea Turner

The projected leadoff hitter again.

Third baseman (1): Alec Bohm

He will be a free agent after the season, so he has plenty of motivation to have a big year.

Outfielders (4): Justin Crawford, Adolis García, Brandon Marsh, Otto Kemp

Crawford earned his spot this spring, even though he was a lock. Marsh and Kemp will platoon in left. The Phillies hope García can recapture the form that made him a Rangers legend in 2023.

Crawford, Kemp and García weren’t on last year’s Opening Day roster.

“Crawford has done very well for himself,” Dombrowski said. “He's played well in center field. Guys have been happy with him in that regard. So we feel that he's very comfortable out there. He has contributed from an offensive perspective. He's going to be ninth in the lineup most of the time. You have to suffer the ups and downs, which happens with young guys. But we like him a lot. He's meshed well. I think he brings a youthful enthusiasm, which is always great for a team.”

DH (1): Kyle Schwarber

The only question is where he hits in the lineup.

Bench/Utility (2): Dylan Moore, Edmundo Sosa

Manager Rob Thomson said this spring that his ideal fourth bench guy is a true utility player, so it’s no surprise that Moore, who signed a Minor League deal in the offseason, made the team.

“We like the versatility,” Dombrowski said. “We talked a great deal with the coaches and the staff members. Probably came down to him, Stubbs, [outfielder Bryan] De La Cruz. De La Cruz really had a good camp, we liked what he did. We just looked at the 26th spot right now, [it] was not going to get a lot of playing time, so we thought he'd be better off to go and keep playing. Be in a spot in case he's needed from injury perspective or performance perspective.

“I try to work very closely with the manager on that last spot and how he likes to use guys. In his spot, he can use [Moore] in a bunch of different places. Help him if he wants to get guys off their feet. But there's no guaranteed playing time. I think he'll get enough, especially early in the season, getting people off their feet. But that was the reason behind it.”

Starting Pitchers (5): Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker, Andrew Painter

Painter, the club's top pitching prospect, will make his MLB debut on March 31.

“He has thrown the ball very well this spring,” Dombrowski said. “He's done a good job for us. He just keeps building on what he has. His velocity has been very good. But more impressive has been his breaking stuff that he's been able to handle. He continues to build on that. So even though he's a young guy coming up that can throw upper 90s, he can also throw a sweeper, slider and changeup. He's earned it.”

Zack Wheeler could rejoin the rotation in April.

Relief Pitchers (8): Jhoan Duran, Brad Keller, José Alvarado, Tanner Banks, Jonathan Bowlan, Kyle Backhus, Zach Pop and Tim Mayza

Right-hander Orion Kerkering (Grade 1 right hamstring strain) will open the season on the injured list.

“He’s just not ready to go completely,” Dombrowski said. “Close, but that'll give him the chance to get ready properly.”

Duran, Keller, Bowlan, Backhus, Pop and Mayza weren’t on last year’s Opening Day roster, meaning there’s a 75 percent turnover in the bullpen.

“We just think Pop's been throwing great,” Dombrowski said. “He's always had good stuff. He’s got great sink. He's been up to 98 here. He has been throwing strikes on a more consistent basis than he has in the past. Tribute to him and the pitching people. Hopefully it keeps up. We'll see. But we think he earned the spot.”

Rule 5 pick Zach McCambley has been returned to Miami.