Optioned to AAA Lehigh Valley at the trade deadline to make room for Harrison Bader on the 26-man roster, Johan Rojas hasn’t been seen in Philadelphia in months. It’s
2025 stats:
172 PA, .224/.280/.289,
1 HR, 18 RBI, 23.2 K%, 7.6 BB%, 58 wRC+, 0.4 fWAR
What went right:
This one is a double edged sword because…
What went wrong:
Rojas found much more consistency with the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs this year than he did with the Phillies.
2025 stats in AAA: 161 PA, .279/.338/.361, 1 HR, 13 RBI, 19.9 K%, 8.1 BB%, 88 wRC+
This is a double edged sword because obviously it’s good that he improved at the plate, but he had to be demoted to do so. And even his “improved” performance wasn’t anything special. Maybe if he returned to Lehigh Valley and crushed the remainder of the season this would be a different conversation, but there was nothing in his performance that truly inspires confidence that could be a regular Major League player.
At 25 years old and in his seventh season since joining the organization, it’s become incredibly frustrating to see the same issues year after year with little to no progress being made. And despite being a talented defender, he struggled with mental errors in the field. After winning a Gold Glove and Rookie of the Year award in the Dominican Winter League in January, failing with what is considerably his strongest asset was like pouring salt in a wound.
The future with the Phillies:
His struggles against Major League pitching aren’t new, and it’s starting to become difficult to see a future for him in a Phillies — or even Iron Pigs — uniform. It’s very telling that, in desperate need of another outfielder at the deadline, the Phillies chose to trade for Harrison Bader over continuing to use Rojas.
It feels like the writing is on the wall for him and if he’s not already out of chances, he’s likely on his last one. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him traded in the off season to a team that thinks they can develop him into something more.
Even if he isn’t moved, the future is not looking great for Rojas. Between Castellanos, Marsh, Bader, and Kepler the Phillies could bring back any or all of their primary outfielders from 2025. And with plenty of free agents available, the options to improve on one of the 2025 Phillies’ biggest weaknesses are endless. With the team already seemingly at their wits end with him, it will be a tough battle for Rojas to find his way back on the Phillies roster in 2026.
