Every team has a player that everyone loves because of their personality. That player may not always be as talented as others, but the fans still gravitate toward them anyway.

Garrett Stubbs has been the fan favorite for the Philadelphia Phillies since he arrived in 2022. He didn’t get many opportunities as J.T. Realmuto’s backup over the last three years, and his offensive production was almost nonexistent when he did get chances.

The Phillies decided to send Stubbs to Triple-A to begin the 2025 Major League Baseball season, meaning Rafael Marchán will be Realmuto’s backup. This was the likely outcome since Marchán is out of minor league options and albeit with limited opportunities, he’s shown to be a much more effective backup catcher than Stubbs.

The Phillies were able to demote Stubbs because he still had one option remaining. Catching depth is extremely important, so the Phillies had to make this move to keep capable major league players at the position in the organization.

“Obviously, I knew it was a possibility coming into Spring Training, just knowing the circumstances with options and the business side of baseball, which can get crappy at times,” Stubbs said following his demotion to Triple-A, per MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. “But it wasn’t going to stop me from playing my best.”

Stubbs batted .264 with 10 extra-base hits, 16 RBI and a .812 OPS in 106 at-bats during his first year with the Phillies in 2022. He hit .206 with 12 extra-base hits, 23 RBI and a .558 OPS in 277 at-bats across the previous two seasons.

Stubbs was an asset in the way he helped prepare the pitchers. His vibrant personality won over his teammates, coaching staff and fans, and he took his clubhouse DJ duties very seriously. He’s the kind of person a team wants in its clubhouse, but on-field production trumps all else.

Marchán signed with the Phillies in 2015 and made his major league debut in 2020. He was a former top prospect in the organization and has shown why when healthy. His main issue has been just that, he’s dealt with injuries throughout his career.

Marchán has a career .279 batting average with 11 extra-base hits, 13 RBI and a .810 OPS in 111 at-bats at the big league level. When Realmuto missed some time during the 2024 season with a knee injury, Marchán slashed .294/.345/.549 with a .894 OPS, seven extra-base hits and six RBI in a catching platoon with Stubbs. The 26-year-old proved to be more effective, prompting fans to support in favor of Marchán as the backup catcher instead of Stubbs.

“I thought I had a really good spring, so I don’t think there were any minds to change,” Stubbs said, per Zolecki. “But like I said, Marchán is a great player, so that had nothing to do with this. I hope he goes up there and wins baseball games for the Phils because that’s what I want to see.”