The Philadelphia Phillies may be forced to shake things up this offseason, as they have a handful of key players hitting free agency, and president Dave Dombrowski has already said that he won't be re-signing all of them.

Perhaps the most notable area of need for the Phillies right now is in the outfield. Both Harrison Bader and Max Kepler are headed toward the open market, and Nick Castellanos appears to be a sure-fire goner.

Philadelphia is expected to be in on Kyle Tucker in the coming weeks and months (or however long it takes for Tucker to sign), but if the Phillies are unable to land the gem of the offseason, they will have to explore more affordable options.

However, just because a player is cheap does not necessarily mean he is a bargain, which is why it's hard to get on board with The Athletic naming outfielder Cedric Mullins as a potential fit in the City of Brotherly Love.

Mullins split the 2025 campaign with the Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets, slashing .216/.299/.391 with 17 home runs and 59 RBI over 498 plate appearances while playing the worst defense of his big-league career.

The 31-year-old is rapidly declining as both a hitter and a fielder. Yes, he managed an .878 OPS and made the All-Star team back in 2021, but since then, he has posted OPSes of .721, .721, .710 and .690, respectively. He hasn't hit 20 homers once during that span, and his strikeout rate hit an all-time high of 24.1 percent in 2025.

There really isn't much to like about Mullins unless you are signing him as a fourth outfielder, and at this stage of his career, he may have to settle for that.

But is it even really worth signing Mullins even on a one-year deal considering how terrible he was this past season?

The Phillies need guys who are going to push them over the hump after losing in the NLDS back-to-back campaigns. Mullins absolutely will not do that for them.

There will be much better outfield options available for Philadelphia, even if the Phillies decide to go the bargain route. Heck, they would probably be better off bringing back Bader at that rate.

Philadelphia shouldn't even consider Mullins this winter.