Dave Dombrowski said a couple of times recently that the Phillies will not anoint Johan Rojas as their everyday center fielder in 2024.

Rojas will have to earn his job next spring.

He batted .093 (4-for-43) with one double, one triple, one walk, 15 strikeouts and a .277 OPS in the playoffs. It was the seventh-lowest OPS of any player in postseason history (minimum 35 plate appearances). Rojas stayed in Rob Thomson’s lineup because he is an elite defender. He collected 9 Outs Above Average, ranking seventh-best among center fielders, according to Statcast.

Despite the struggles of Rojas and rookie right-hander Orion Kerkering in the postseason, each made important contributions down the stretch. The Phillies hope for more from other prospects in 2024.

Here are updates on their top five, according to MLB Pipeline:

1. Andrew Painter, RHP. He will not pitch for the Phillies until 2025, following Tommy John surgery in July. Painter’s rehab is going well (i.e. he has not experienced any setbacks).

2. Mick Abel, RHP. He went 5-6 with a 4.13 ERA in 23 starts with Double-A Reading and Triple-A Lehigh Valley, striking out 132 and walking 65 in 113 1/3 innings. Abel’s command was an issue throughout the season, but he went 2-1 with a 1.63 ERA in his final five starts. He struck out 29 and walked 14 in 27 2/3 innings.

Phillies assistant general manager of player development Preston Mattingly said he was most encouraged by Abel’s durability. “He took the ball from wire to wire,” he said. “He held his stuff throughout. And, honestly, we saw an uptick in his stuff.”

Abel is home in Oregon, trying to add strength before Spring Training.

“Some of the strength should help him with the repeatability of his delivery,” Mattingly said. And that, the Phillies hope, should help Abel’s command improve.

3. Justin Crawford, OF. He slashed .332/.392/.467 between Single-A Clearwater and High-A Jersey Shore. He can run. He can play defense. He knows how to put the bat on the ball. The Phillies believe the power will come, too. (He hit three homers in 390 plate appearances.)

“He’s already showing exit velocities that show he has it in there,” Mattingly said. “It’s just doing it consistently. A few tweaks here and there and we’ll get him to where he needs to be.”

4. Aidan Miller, INF. He slashed .303/.425/.379 in 80 plate appearances between the Rookie-level Florida Complex League Phillies and Single-A Clearwater.

“The makeup is off the charts,” Mattingly said. “The work ethic, the drive to be great. He’s got that special drive to him. He’s not just excited about being a first-round pick. He’s a guy that wants to be a big league All-Star, a Hall of Famer. He’s driven in that way. The sheer physicality of him is impressive. I think he’s going to have real power potential.”

5. Griff McGarry, RHP. McGarry was 1-1 with a 3.13 ERA in 13 starts with Reading. He got promoted to Triple-A and then everything fell apart. McGarry had a 41.54 ERA in three starts with Lehigh Valley, allowing eight hits, 20 runs and 14 walks while striking out five in 4 1/3 innings. The Phillies shut him down.

“It just comes back to the command,” Mattingly said. “We’re working on some things with Griff’s body and how he moves. Some of the arm path stuff, we’ve addressed. We’re just trying to get him in a better spot to be more consistent and be consistently in the strike zone.”

Free-agent right-hander Aaron Nola has 31.7 WAR in his Major League career, according to Baseball Reference. It ranks 19th all-time among all Phillies players, sixth among their pitchers.

Who has the highest WAR for a Phillies pitcher?

A. Grover Cleveland Alexander
B. Steve Carlton
C. Cole Hamels
D. Robin Roberts

Nola will remain one of baseball’s most coveted free agents after he rejected the Phillies’ qualifying offer before Tuesday’s 4 p.m. ET deadline.

If Nola accepted the offer, he would have been signed to a one-year, $20.325 million contract for 2024. It would have been stunning if he accepted it because he is seeking a lucrative multiyear deal that could exceed $200 million. At least now, if Nola signs with another team, the Phillies will receive a compensatory pick following the fourth round of the 2024 Draft.

The Phillies hope to re-sign Nola, but it is unlikely to be them if the deal exceeds $200 million.

The Braves have been mentioned recently as a possibility for Nola, which has Phillies fans in a tizzy. Now, Atlanta needs starting pitching this year and beyond. Max Fried will be a free agent after next season and some think he won’t be back. So, ask yourself this question, if the Braves can’t re-sign one of their homegrown stars, why should they have a better chance to sign Nola?

Nola’s Southern roots and close relationship with Braves pitching coach Rick Kranitz have been mentioned as potential factors in a Nola-Atlanta union. (If I had a dollar for every minute that I saw Nola and Kranitz chatting on the field before a game over the years, I’d be rich.) But things like proximity to home and relationships with certain people always get hyped during free agency. In the end, almost always, money speaks the loudest.

(By the way, Nola and his wife have a home in St. Petersburg, Fla., which is a short drive from the Phillies’ Spring Training complex in Clearwater, Fla. That could be more of a factor than Nola’s Baton Rouge, La., roots.)

D. Robin Roberts

Roberts had a 72.0 WAR, followed by Carlton (69.4), Alexander (61.3) and Hamels (43.0).

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