Earlier this week, it was reported by Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic that the Phillies were interested in former Royals outfielder Randal Grichuk in free agency. Rosenthal specifically mentioned in his notes
piece that Grichuk could be a right-handed platoon partner for Brandon Marsh.
“Elsewhere, the Phillies could use a right-handed bat to platoon in left field with Brandon Marsh, and Randal Grichuk is among those in whom they are showing interest.” – Ken Rosenthal in the Athletic
Then later in the week, the Athletic’s Matt Gelb echoed the sentiment about Grichuk, noting how he could raise the floor of the Phillies bench as well as highlighting Grichuk’s struggles in 2025.
“They have interest in Randal Grichuk, according to league sources, and he would fit as Brandon Marsh’s platoon partner in left field. Grichuk posted only a .703 OPS against lefties in 2025, his lowest mark since 2017. His performance dropped significantly following a midseason trade to Kansas City. But the underlying trends did not indicate a huge decline.”- Matt Gelb in the Athletic
As Gelb mentions, Grichuk struggled against left-handed pitching in 2025 as part of a season that saw him hit .228 with a .674 OPS overall in 113 games split between the Diamondbacks and Royals. His numbers did indeed turn for the worse once traded to the Royals, as Grichuk hit .206 with a .566 OPS in 43 games following the trade.
Grichuk, now 34, has typically been strong at the plate against lefties in his career. The outfielder owns a career .268/.318/.500 batting line against southpaws across 12 MLB seasons. He was uncharacteristically poor against lefties in 2025, but he excelled in 2024 and 2023, posting an OPS over .900 against LHP in both seasons.
Grichuk parlayed that good 2024 season where he was worth 2.2 WAR into a one year, $5M contract with the Diamondbacks in 2025. But as said above, he performed well under expectations, so a pay cut for 2026 seems likely. Fellow platoon righty Rob Refsnyder signed a $6.25M deal with the Mariners in December after posting an .838 OPS in a similar role. It’s logical to believe that Grichuk will be looking for something in that neighborhood, albeit at a lower number due to his poor numbers in 2025. Keep in mind that due to the Phillies current luxury tax status, they will essentially be paying almost double whatever the actual value of any new salary is.
So, are you interested in Randal Grichuk in a platoon role? What contract would you offer the outfielder? Or would you rather roll with Otto Kemp and/or Weston Wilson as Brandon Marsh’s platoon partner?
