Philadelphia Phillies Urged to Make Risky $140 Million Move

The Philadelphia Phillies are apparently pursuing Bo Bichette in MLB free agency, and they will be meeting with him soon.

We can sit here and debate whether or not Bichette would actually make sense for the Phillies all day, but ultimately, the decision rests in Dave Dombrowski's hands.

But so does the future of one of Dombrowski's most critical players already on the roster: pitcher Jesus Luzardo.

Philadelphia acquired Luzardo in a trade with the Miami Marlins last year, and it proved to be a great deal for the Phillies as Luzardo went 15-7 with a 3.92 ERA while racking up 216 strikeouts over 183.2 innings of work.

Yes, he hit a rough stretch between May and July, but he was brilliant to start the season and also ended the campaign on a positive note.

This week, Philadelphia avoided arbitration with Luzardo, agreeing to a salary of $11 million for 2026. That's the final year of club control for the left-hander.

So what now? Should the Phillies sign Luzardo to a contract extension? Or should they allow him to hit free agency?

Tim Kelly of OnPattison.com feels that Philadelphia should try and lock up Luzardo now before his prices increases even further, urging the club to sign him to a five-year, $140 million deal ... even if the pact would be a bit risky given his injury history.

"Surely, there would be risk in offering that to Luzardo, because he could get hurt in April, and that would obviously make the Phillies wish they had just let his contract year play out," Kelly wrote.

Luzardo made 32 starts this past season, but started just 12 games with the Marlins in 2024. He also made just 18 starts back in 2022. Still, when he is healthy, he is obviously effective.

"The flip side, though, is you have to offer a player a lucrative deal to get him to give up his right to test free agency, and this would be that," Kelly added. "If Luzardo plays out his contract year and is healthy, he's probably going to be targeting a much larger deal than five years and $140 million."

Kelly makes a good point. If Luzardo stays healthy through 2026 and has another impressive season, he could be setting himself up for a massive pay day next winter (assuming everything goes well with the CBA, of course).

Also, because of the looming lockout, Luzardo may be more amenable to accepting a five-year, $140 million contract now just so he can get paid and be done with it.

It's definitely something for Philadelphia to consider.