They certainly could - and perhaps, all things considered, should - spend more money; sadly, if the organization would have performed better in talent acquisition and development over the last six or so years, venturing over the CBT threshold likely wouldn't be a point of discussion for want of a 90-win team.
The Phillies entered this season 6th in payroll dollars, are currently pacing ~83 wins, and rank 15th in win %. In 2008 they were 12th in payroll, won 92 games, and finished for 4th in the league in regular season wins. Back then the team was built around a strong core of players drafted and developed by the organization, this in turn augmented with some savvy low-cost signings, and finally some higher-cost pieces brought in to put them over the top competitively.
In terms of a developed core with the current club, it's basically just Hoskins, Bohm, and Nola. And neither Hoskins nor Bohm (the latter admittedly still very young in his ML career) are yielding the production of an Utley, Rollins, or Howard. Herrera at first seemed this era's Victorino, but of course that has turned. The rest of the lineup has been filled with higher-priced veteran players - and while Harper and Realmuto are obviously filling roles as elite talents, the Segura, Gregorious, and McCutchens are bringing mostly average production with a higher price tag.
The inability to develop younger players to fill at least average roles has made this an expensive .500 team. Hopefully we'll see some pleasant surprises from the pharm over the next few months, but right now that well seems relatively dry, especially regarding anything this season - whether in direct production or value as trading pieces. But with the clock on the prime years of Harper and Realmuto continuing to tick in the background, some decisions will have to eventually be made.
