Phillies’ Dave Dombrowski hints at potential major moves to appease Bryce Harper, Trea Turner

Phillies’ Dave Dombrowski hints at potential major moves to appease Bryce Harper, Trea Turner originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Philadelphia Phillies are off to a slow start in the first month of the 2026 regular season. While this is not how the players envisioned beginning the year, there is still plenty of time to turn things around. The Phillies are hoping to spark a turnaround under new manager Don Mattingly.

Advertisement

“There’s a major shakeup in Philadelphia. The Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson on Tuesday morning. Don Mattingly is the interim skipper, with the team’s press release saying he’ll hold that position for the remainder of the 2026 season,” MLB Trade Rumors’ Anthony Franco wrote.

The Phillies started the season reasonably well through their first 10 games, but then went nearly two weeks without a win.

“Thomson is out after a 9-19 start in which the Phillies fell 10 games below .500 for the first time since 2017. After a 1-3 start, the Phillies won five of their next six games to push their record to 6-4. Then, the losing started, including four of six before a 10-game losing streak that left them duking it out for last place in the NL East with the similarly struggling New York Mets,” CBS Sports’ Matt Snyder wrote.

The season is far from lost, but players like Bryce Harper and Trea Turner know that changes may need to come soon. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has already hinted that he is working toward making a significant move.

Advertisement

“I’ve had trade conversations earlier than I ever have . . . Other clubs haven’t been doing very well, either. Clubs have called around,” Dombrowski said.

What specific move Dombrowski is referring to remains unclear, but the Phillies do appear to need another bat to complement Kyle Schwarber, Harper, and Turner in the lineup. Philadelphia understands that urgency is beginning to build.

While most teams are not panicking at this point in the season, the pressure in Philadelphia is clearly increasing. Whatever move Dombrowski is hinting at, it appears to be significant and could have a major impact on the roster.

More MLB news: