Kyle Schwarber's reunion with the Philadelphia Phillies marks the first big signing of the 2025 Winter Meetings. The Boston Red Sox have missed their chance to reunite with a former fan-favorite slugger.
Schwarber and the Phillies have agreed to a five-year, $150 million contract, first reported by Jeff Passan of ESPN. The full-time designated hitter played the last four years of his career in Philadelphia and will very likely finish it there — Schwarber will be 33 by Opening Day.
The Phillies weren't afraid to commit to Schwarber long-term, despite his age creeping up. He's seemingly only improved as he's gotten older, as he posted a full 162 games for the first time in his 11-year career in 2025, and he mashed a National League-leading 56 home runs.
Schwarber would've been a good fit for the Red Sox's power hitting needs, but it would've been hard to accommodate him on their roster. Boston prefers to keep its DH spot more flexible in the days after David Ortiz and J. D. Martinez's retirement, and Schwarber isn't defensively sound enough to take an outfield spot away from Wilyer Abreu or Jarren Duran.
Phillies re-sign Kyle Schwarber to kill potential Red Sox reunion, $30 million AAV could drive contract prices up around the league
The Sox may have been more focused on adding Pete Alonso as their free agent slugger, anyway. The longtime New York Met is younger, fills a position of need at first base, and he's right-handed, which Schwarber is not.
The $30 million average annual value (AAV) on Schwarber's contract could spell trouble for Boston's pursuit of Alonso, or any other offensive player. Schwarber being as old as he is and limited to one position that doesn't take the field and still making $30 million per year may have raised many other offensive targets' prices, including Alonso's. He profiles similarly to Schwarber in the long-term — as a slugger and eventual full-time DH, but Alonso has been amore durable, everyday-type player throughout his career. This is not to say that Schwarber doesn't deserve the contract he signed, as he's grown into a reliable 30-40 homer player later in his career, a ceiling he smashed in 2025.
Now that Schwarber is off the board, the Red Sox will have to seriously increase their pursuit of Alonso if they hope to land him. He now stands as the top slugger on the free agent market, and Alex Bregman isn't far behind as one of the best all-around players available. The Red Sox have seen the price it could take to land a top free agent, and now's the time to meet it.