Pittsburgh Pirates: Looking at Carlos Santana’s Career So Far

Philadelphia Phillies 2018

The Philadelphia Phillies were looking to deepen their lineup during the 2017-2018 offseason.  The team signed former Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen to a contract.  They also would negotiate a large contract with Carlos Santana.

Santana would sign with the Phillies on a 3-year deal worth 20 million per season.  There was also a team option for the 2021 season, which would be eventually declined. So the overall contract was a 3-year deal worth 60 million and a 4-year team option. A relatively big contract for an aging player.  The deal did not look good at the time and he did not live up to that deal in his time in Philly.

The Philadelphia Phillies were able to immediately give up that contract and traded Santana after just 1 season. For the Phillies to get out of his contract was important for their payroll.  They simply could not spend 20 million a year and not get better production from the player.

Overall, Santana had an odd year with the Phillies, he hit just .229 but had an OBP of over .350, hit 24 home runs, and had over 80 runs batted in.  So why did the Phillies get rid of him after just 1 season? The home run numbers were there and while his average was down, many others were seeing similar results.  Of course, this can be traced back to the use of Spider Tack by pitchers, and the shift becoming a normal part of the game. So what did the Phillies acquire by trading away the veteran slugger?