MLB Trade Rumors confirmed Saturday that the Phillies have released outfielder Dylan Carlson, closing the book on a stint in Philadelphia that never got him anywhere near a big league at-bat.
MLB Trade Rumors broke the news that Carlson's time with the Phillies organization is over.
Carlson signed a minor league deal with Philadelphia back in May after getting released by the Cubs, hoping a fresh org would help him rediscover the form that once made him a top prospect. It didn't happen. He hit .181 with 4 homers and a .614 OPS in 153 plate appearances for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, numbers that made this release less a surprise and more a formality.
It's a stunning slide for a guy who not that long ago looked like a franchise cornerstone. Carlson was a first-round pick by the Cardinals back in 2016, debuted in 2020, and by 2021 was St. Louis's starting right fielder and a finalist for NL Rookie of the Year. That version of Carlson felt like a building block. This version can't stick in Triple-A.
The wheels came off fast once his production dipped in St. Louis. The Cardinals shipped him to Tampa Bay in July 2024 for reliever Shawn Armstrong, and from there it's been a tour of the league's fringes: the Rays, the Orioles on a one-year deal worth $975,000, then the Cubs, and now the Phillies. Four organizations in about two years is not the trajectory anyone drew up for a former top-100 prospect.
At 27, Carlson is still young enough that a team could take a flier on the tools and pedigree, especially in a market always hunting for post-hype outfield depth. But the on-field results are trending the wrong way, and he's now a free agent with a Triple-A batting line that isn't going to get phones ringing off the hook.
For the Phillies, this is roster-management housekeeping more than anything, freeing up a Triple-A spot at Lehigh Valley. For Carlson, it's another gut check on a career that once had NL Rookie of the Year buzz attached to it and now needs a sixth org just to keep playing affiliated ball.