By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor 
With the MLB offseason beginning Thursday, the Philadelphia Phillies had seven players file for free-agency.
Ryan Howard and Charlie Morton, who had their respective 2017 options declined earlier in the day, filed for free-agency. Howard's tenure with the team is over, while it remains possible that the Phillies will try to work out a deal to retain Morton, who missed nearly all of the 2016 season after tearing his hamstring.
Jeremy Hellickson, who posted a 3.71 ERA in 189 innings in 2016, filed for free-agency as well. The Phillies will have until 5 p.m. next Tuesday to decide whether to issue Hellickson a $17.2 million qualifying option. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reported last month that the Phillies would like to re-sign Hellickson before he hits free-agency, though from here that seems very unlikely.
Peter Bourjos and David Hernandez also filed for free-agency and are near locks not to return to the team in 2017. Bourjos, who is a great fielder at all three outfield positions, should catch on somewhere. Hernandez will likely have to make a team out of Spring Training after posting a 3.84 ERA, but figures to get a minor league deal with some team.
The Phillies like Andres Blanco's leadership quite a bit and he's been an effective bench piece the past few years, but the team is unlikely to retain the 32-year-old after he filed for free-agency because with Freddy Galvis, Cesar Hernandez and eventually J.P. Crawford, there doesn't seem to be a long-term fit for him.
A.J. Ellis was the final Phillie to file for free-agency. The Phillies catching position is rather crowded, but Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the Phillies are unlikely to pair Cameron Rupp alone with either Jorge Alfaro or Andrew Knapp. If the Phillies trade Rupp, Ellis is an unlikely fit with one of the two younger catches. But if the Phillies keep Rupp and have one of Alfaro or Knapp on the roster next year, it's possible they could re-sign Ellis, or sign someone similar, and open the season with three catchers.
MLB free-agency will begin on Nov. 8.
