Phillies re-sign Bryan De La Cruz to MLB contract

The Phillies have one of the deepest and most talented bullpens in all of baseball, so it was always going to be tough for Shugart to crack the Opening Day roster. De La Cruz’s chances of earning a spot took a big hit when the Phillies announced that Justin Crawford had made the team. Both players will start out the year as extra depth at the Triple-A level.

Crawford is the favorite to start in center field for the Phillies on Opening Day. He’ll need a strong performance in Grapefruit League action to lock up the spot but he doesn’t have a ton of competition. The 22-year-old former first-round pick batted .334/.411/.452 with seven homers and 46 steals in 112 games at Triple-A Lehigh Valley this past season. He’ll make a fantasy impact in the stolen base department, but counting on anything beyond that in his first taste of the majors might be too optimistic, especially since he’s likely to bat at the bottom of the order. Here is the full lineup: Crawford (CF), Adolis García (RF), Edmundo Sosa (SS), Otto Kemp (LF), Bryan De La Cruz (DH), Rafael Marchán (C), Dylan Moore (2B), Christian Cairo (3B) and Keaton Anthony (1B).

The 28-year-old slugger saw just 50 plate appearances at the big league level in 2025, slashing .191/.240/.213 with zero RBI and an 18/3 K/BB ratio for the Braves. He delivered a much more palatable .263/.331/.431 slash line with 15 homers and eight steals in 102 games this season at the Triple-A level. He’ll add solid outfield depth for the Phillies.

De La Cruz wound up spending the rest of the season toiling away at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after being claimed off waivers from Atlanta in early May. The 28-year-old outfielder hit .191/.240/.213 during a 16-game stint with Atlanta, but hit an encouraging .263/.331/.431 with 15 homers and eight steals in 102 games this season at the Triple-A level.

The 28-year-old outfielder now has to choose whether or not to accept that outright assignment or explore the open market. De La Cruz struggled in his limited big league action with the Braves this season, slashing .191/.240/.213 with zero homers, zero RBI and an 18/3 K/BB ratio over 50 plate appearances.

Bryan De La Cruz has joined the Yankees and will be activated if Grisham goes on the IL, but it looks like the club will hold off for now. The Yankees have Cody Bellinger in center and Jasson Domínguez in left field today.

De La Cruz will add to the Yankees’ depth in the outfield. The 28-year-old struggled mightily in his time with Atlanta as seen in a slash of .191/.240/.213, but he has had some success — in limited spurts — at the highest level. It’s hard to see him being a fantasy relevant player in 2025, however.

De La Cruz scuffled and then some in his 50 plate appearances before the demotion with a slash of .191/.240/.213. He’ll head to Triple-A with Alex Verdugo “ready” for a call-up to the Atlanta outfield. De La Cruz will probably be back at some point over the late spring.

It’s merely an extra off day for Ozuna, who is dealing with a minor leg issue, according to manager Brian Snitker. Fantasy managers should keep a close eye on his status over the remainder of the week, but Snitker downplayed concern about the issue prior to Monday’s contest in Toronto. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. It’ll be Bryan De La Cruz taking a turn at DH on Monday night.

Atlanta’s nightmarish start to the 2025 campaign continues. Profar put together an unexpected late-career breakthrough campaign last year with the Padres, which now has some additional context, before signing a three-year, $42 million in the offseason to take over as the Braves’ everyday left fielder. His absence also creates a void in the leadoff spot. The club’s recent outfield additions, most notably Alex Verdugo and Stuart Fairchild, make a lot more sense with Profar set to miss the entire first half of the season. He’s also ineligible for postseason play, if the Braves make it that far. It’ll be some combination of Jarred Kelenic and Bryan De La Cruz getting the first shot at replacing him in Atlanta’s lineup. It remains to be seen whether the Braves will finally commit to putting Michael Harris II in the leadoff spot. We’ll see.