Offseason report: Philadelphia Phillies

*Photo from Sports Illustrated*

   Heading south to Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Philles offseason is examined.

2019 recap

After bringing in new stars Bryce Harper, JT Realmuto, Andrew McCutchen, and David Robertson over the winter, the Phillies were only able to improve by one measly win, finishing at exactly .500 on the season with an 81-81 record, missing the playoffs by a landslide.

What you need to know

The Phillies went into the winter wanting to make sure another failure wouldn't take place. They started off by hiring Joe Girardi as their new manager. After they brought in a new skipper, they went to get some starting pitching reinforcements in Zack Wheeler. 4 days later they picked up some infield depth in Didi Gregorius to replace Maikel Franco. Later they brought in an extra outfielder in Mikie Mahtook on a minors deal. In January, fringe pitching depth in Francisco Liriano, Bud Norris, and Drew Storen were brought in on minors deals. That was all the Philles did this offseason. Unfortunately, now I'm getting to the teams that didn't do a whole lot. 

Moves I like

Wheeler is a quality starter who should fit in nicely beside Aaron Nola at the top of the rotation. Gregorius is a good get, and as long as he's healthy, he's a very good player. Plus, Gregorius always did great under Girardi when Girardi managed him with the Yankees, so it should be a good fit in Philly.

Moves I don't like

Building up the pitching is something the Phillies didn't do properly this winter. It was their biggest weakness last year, and Wheeler was the only notable add.

2020 outlook

The hitting core is still elite, and the lineup will continue to produce in bunches in 2020. However, the team pitching is still looking pretty bad. The starting pitching has only two reliable pitchers, Nola and Wheeler. The bullpen looks god awful, and Hector Neris, who isn't a quality reliever, was their best reliever last year. Just like the last few years, the lack of quality pitching will kill the Phillies, and they'll miss the playoffs again because of it.