2017 Philadelphia Phillies Midseason Top 10 Prospects — College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects

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Phillies Midseason Top 10

1. Mickey Moniak, OF

2. Sixto Sanchez, RHP

3. Scott Kingery, 2B

4. Rhys Hoskins, 1B

5. Jorge Alfaro, C

6. J.P. Crawford, SS

7. Adam Haseley, OF

8. Nick Williams, OF

9. Adonis Medina, RHP

10. Franklyn Kilome, RHP

The Phillies didn’t look like a contender coming into the 2017 season, but ideally, the team would have shown promising signs of development at the major league level with an indication that the 2018 team could reach the postseason.

Instead, the Phillies are the worst team in baseball.

The good news for the Phillies, aside from another strong layer of talent they should be able to add to the farm system next year in the draft with possibly another No. 1 overall pick, is that most of their top position prospects are close to the majors. Shortstop J.P. Crawford, second baseman Scott Kingery and first baseman Rhys Hoskins are all in Triple-A and could be core pieces of Philadelphia’s next playoff team, while outfielder Nick Williams has performed well in the big leagues a small sample.

The best arms are further away, though the Phillies have the resources to bolster their rotation through free agency over the next few years and support righthander Aaron Nola, one of the few positive development stories on the 2017 major league club.

For the remainder of the season, the best thing for the Phillies would be to have young players like Williams and Hoskins come up to Philadelphia and continue their development at the major league level, though one of the best things the Phillies can do at this point is to continue losing to put themselves in better position to add talent in the 2018 draft.

1. Mickey Moniak, OF
Low Class A Lakewood
Age: 19

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft, Moniak has been solid but not great in his first full season. Moniak has a sweet lefthanded swing and good defensive instincts, but a .260/.314/.373 batting line isn’t what the Phillies were looking for with the top pick in the draft.

2. Sixto Sanchez, RHP
Low Class A Lakewood
Age: 18

Phillies scouts in Latin America have signed several under-the-radar pitching prospects, but none are as good as Sanchez. He can reach triple digits with his fastball, but he also repeats his delivery and commands his fastball exceptionally well. That fastball command should help him move quickly with the potential to develop into a frontline starter.

3. Scott Kingery, 2B
Triple-A Lehigh Valley
Age: 23

Kingery’s stock soared quickly this season. After batting .250/.273/.333 in 37 games in Double-A last year, Kingery demolished Eastern League pitching when he returned to the league this year, showing a short, repeatable swing and strong hands to generate good power for a second baseman.

4. Rhys Hoskins, 1B
Triple-A Lehigh Valley
Age: 24

The offensive bar for first base prospects is high, but Hoskins has cleared that bar at every level. The swing, bat speed, power, contact frequency and polished hitting approach should also translate to success at the next level.

5. Jorge Alfaro, C
Triple-A Lehigh Valley
Age: 24

Alfaro still has two loud tools in his raw power and arm strength that have stood out since he signed as a 16-year-old out of Colombia. But as a 24-year-old in Triple-A, the performance has to start to come through, with his plate discipline and swing-and-miss tendencies continuing to plague him.

6. J.P. Crawford, SS
Triple-A Lehigh Valley
Age: 22

The tools, strike-zone discipline and ability to play a premium position are all there for Crawford to develop into a centerpiece player. However, even with a recent hot streak, Crawford is batting just .230/.338/.372 this season, and in 751 plate appearances over 172 career games in Triple-A, he has hit .237/.333/.345.

7. Adam Haseley, OF
Short-season Williamsport
Age: 21

Signed for $5.1 million as the No. 8 overall pick in the 2017 draft, Haseley has shown the ability to do a bit of everything at the plate, with an advanced lefthanded bat, good strike-zone control and average raw power as well, to go with above-average speed in center field.

8. Nick Williams, OF
Phillies
Age: 23
Williams’ most glaring red flag—plate discipline—remains an issue. However, he has rebounded nicely from a sluggish 2016 season, translating his plus raw power into games with far more frequency this year, driving the ball with authority to all fields.

9. Adonis Medina, RHP
Low Class A Lakewood
Age: 20

Medina performed well at short-season Williamsport last year, but he did it mostly with his fastball, lacking the reliable secondary to miss bats with just 4.7 K/9. This year, Medina’s slider has been an out pitch, which has helped his strikeout rate jump to 10.4 K/9 this season.

10. Franklyn Kilome, RHP
High Class A Clearwater
Age: 22

Kilome has been effective this season, though fastball command remains an issue and will always be a focal point for him to keep the arms and legs on his 6-foot-6 in sync in his delivery. Getting ahead in the count more often should help him use his breaking ball more as a putaway pitch and help his strikeout rate rebound.

RISING

• Jhailyn Ortiz, of, short-season Williamsport: As an amateur, Ortiz showed monster power, but limited pitch recognition skills led to a lot of empty swings. The Phillies were convicted in Ortiz’s bat—they gave him $4.01 million—and he has shown well as an 18-year-old against older competition in the New York-Penn League, where he’s batting . 272/.410/.531 in 23 games.

• Jonathan Guzman, ss, Rookie-level Gulf Coast League: After a strong pro debut in the Dominican Summer League in 2016, Guzman entered 2017 as the Phillies’ No. 19 prospect. Though he’s still just 17, Guzman has carried over his success in the jump to the GCL, showing adept bat control and the tools for shortstop.

• Nick Fanti, lhp, low Class A Lakewood: Fanti doesn’t overpower hitters, but his command and savvy keep them off balance. A 31st-round pick in 2015, Fanti should continue to cruise through the lower levels, with Double-A presenting his next big test once he gets there.

FALLING

• RHP Mark Appel’s stock was already falling, but now at age 26, it’s sinking, with a 5.27 ERA and an unsightly 60-53 K-BB mark in 82 innings. A move to the bullpen is overdue, if that can do anything to help resurrect his career.

• The Phillies were big believers in OF Cornelius Randolph’s bat when they made him their first-round pick in 2015, but Randolph has yet to deliver on that offensive promise. His strikeout rate has jumped to 26 percent, while his power, although improved, remains questionable for a corner outfielder.

• The Phillies signed RHP Kevin Gowdy for $3.5 million last year, way beyond slot for the No. 42 overall pick. But Gowdy has yet to pitch this year due to arm problems.

HURTING

• RHP Kevin Gowdy pitched nine innings last year after signing out of high school, but he’s thrown zero pitches this year due to biceps tendinitis.

• RHP Seranthony Dominguez looked like a breakout prospect—he has a 2.84 ERA, 56 strikeouts and 21 walks in 44.1 innings this year with high Class A Clearwater—but a sore shoulder prompted the Phillies to shut him down in mid-May. He missed a month then returned on July 10 and has made three starts, though in those games he’s walked 8 and allowed six runs over 8.2 innings.

• There’s a skill element to staying healthy, and for all of OF Roman Quinn’s athleticism and on-field talents, he has struggled to stay on the field throughout his career. The latest is a sprained left UCL that has kept him sidelined since the end of May.

GRADUATING

• RHP Nick Pivetta has performed like a fifth starter, though he does have a strikeout per inning.

• C Andrew Knapp has shown a patient hitting approach, batting .263/.372/.380 in 164 plate appearances.

• LHP Joely Rodriguez took a big step forward in 2016, but he scuffled badly in the big league bullpen this year, going 1-2, 6.33 in 27 innings. The Phillies solid him to the Rangers on June 13, and he’s been even worse as a Ranger, going 1-0, 7.98 in 14 innings for Triple-A Round Rock with more walks (13) than strikeouts (12).