The Phillies staunch stand to carry three catchers – two of which saw little playing time – is apparently coming to an end. Scott Lauber of The Inquirer is reporting that the Phillies will designate Garrett Stubbs for assignment. Lauber reported that the Phillies informed Stubbs on Thursday that they would be designating him for assignment, but the move has not yet been made official.
Once the move has been made official, the Phillies will have a week to trade him or put him through waivers. The Phillies have passed him through waivers in the past and also attempted to trade him without having success in finding a trade partner.
Stubbs was a decorated catcher at USC before the Houston Astros selected him in the eighth round of the 2015 draft. Undersized for the position at roughly 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds, he made up for it with athleticism and versatility, playing the outfield in addition to catching. Stubbs made his big league debut with Houston on May 28, 2019, and bounced between the Astros and Triple-A over three seasons before Houston traded him to Philadelphia in November 2021.
Stubbs made his mark with the Phillies right away. In 2022 he hit .264 with an .812 OPS as J.T. Realmuto‘s backup and became a fan and clubhouse favorite during the team’s surprise run to the World Series, earning a reputation as the club’s “Chief Vibes Officer.” His bat cooled considerably over the next two years, as he hit just .206 combined in 2023 and 2024, though he remained Realmuto’s backup for three straight seasons.
In spring 2025, Rafael Marchán won the reserve job, and Stubbs spent most of the year with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, hitting .265 with eight home runs in 71 games before a September call-up. After clearing waivers in March 2026, he again accepted an assignment to Lehigh Valley, then returned in April when Realmuto went on the injured list with a back injury. Stubbs stuck around as a utility man, even starting in left field and making mop-up pitching appearances. However, he hit only .153 with no extra-base hits in 35 games.
Lauber pointed out that if he clears waivers, Stubbs will not return to the team and will instead become a free agent.
The tag-team of Stubbs and Marchan played in 69 games with the Phillies last season getting 150 at-bats and hit a combined .120 with two home runs (both from Stubbs) and nine RBI to go with 16 runs scored.
Stubbs, 33, is known for working with pitchers and being able to throw out baserunners. Aaron Nola has produced better stats over the past couple of seasons with Stubbs behind the plate than with starter J.T. Realmuto. Last season Stubbs threw out eight of 22 baserunners attempting to steal for a 36.4-percent success rate well above the MLB average of 23.3. In his career he has thrown out 26.6-percent of baserunners compared to the MLB average of 21.1 over the time he has been in the majors.
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