A pair of National League East rivals made additions to their rosters on Monday, as the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies both added outfielders in free agency.
The Phillies agreed reportedly agreed to a one-year, $10 million deal with former Texas Rangers outfielder Adolis Garcia, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports.
Garcia, 32, was non-tendered by the Rangers earlier in the off-season after spending the past six seasons with the club. He was a prime contributor in their 2023 World Series title run, as he hit eight home runs - including a dramatic walk-off blast in extra innings in Game 1 of the World Series.
Garcia finished 14th in AL MVP voting in 2023, was named an All-Star and took home a Gold Glove award in right field. But the native of Ciego de Avila, Cuba has failed to produce at that level in the two years since.
Garcia hit .227 with 19 home runs in 135 games in 2025, leading to the team cutting ties with the seven-year veteran. The Phillies will hope for a bounce back out of a once-dangerous bat.
As USA Today’s Bob Nightengale notes, this move all but assures Nick Castellanos will not be in Philadelphia in 2026. The 13-year right fielder, who spent the past four seasons with the Phillies, hit .250 with 17 home runs a season ago in a difficult campaign.
He is owed $20 million in the final year of his deal in 2026, but given that Garcia fulfills almost the exact same role and rumours of a disconnect between the club and player, the Phillies are likely to examine a trade or release, The New York Post’s Jon Heyman notes.
The Mets reportedly agreed to a deal with centrefielder Cristian Pache on Monday. Likely to be used in a depth role, Pache hit just .200 with one home run in 88 games split between three teams (the Phillies, Baltimore Orioles and Miami Marlins) in his last stint in the majors in 2024.
Per Heyman, Pache’s deal is a minor-league deal with an invite to Spring Training.
