And here are the remainder of my prospect rankings from the min point in the 2023 season.
MLB:
McKinley Moore^^
Cal Stevenson#
AAA:
Simón Muzziotti\/
Jakob Hernandez
Jeremy Walker
Jhailyn Ortiz^
Weston Wilson
Vito Friscia
Esteban Quiroz\/
Jordan Qsar
Will Toffey+
AA:
Andrew Painter+
Johan Rojas
Mick Abel
Orion Kerkering^^
Carlos De La Cruz
Ethan Wilson
Cristian Hernandez^
Oliver Dunn
Zach Haake#
Griff McGarry\/
Brett Schulze
Matt Kroon
Baron Radcliff^
Casey Martin
The Fightins struggled last season, finishing just 61-77 in the Eastern League, but as the season wore on more talent rose into the team's rotation and lineup. Let's break said players down.
Andrew Painter^
Mick Abel^
Carlos De La Cruz^
Johan Rojas
Albertus Barber^
Ethan Wilson^
Jhailyn Ortiz
Ethan Lindow
McKinley Moore
Josh Hendrickson
Braden Zarbnisky
Brett Schulze
Andrew Baker
Andrew Schultz
Painter, ranked amongst the top small handful of prospects in the game, is the obvious #1 here, but the talent continues on from there. Abel and De La Cruz had strong 2022 campaigns, boasting their stocks and putting both in position to potentially debut in 2023. From there, however, the talent drops off, in no small part due to names departing recently (Logan O'Hoppe, Billy Sullivan IV, and Ben Brown are just some names who would make this list if they weren't dealt). Plenty of RP talent still remains however. Barber had an up-and-down 2022, but his overall Minors numbers are nice. Moore (already promoted to the Majors since this list was compiled) has intriguing stuff and limits home runs well. Schulze was dominant again last season, and some others had down season but still have strong stuff.
Known for its legendary offensive environment, FirstEnergy Stadium kn Reading can help create some amazing offensive seasons that can springboard prospects to the Majors, while creating the first Major roadblock in a pitcher's development. Many prospects have found these things out this season, and it's part of why Reading has scuffled most of the season. But how about their top prospects? Here were the top 15 at the All-Star Break.
Logan O’Hoppe
Erik Miller
Billy Sullivan IV
Noah Skirrow
Griff McGarry
Johan Rojas
Braden Zarbnisky
Matt Seelinger
Jhailyn Ortiz
Trevor Bettencourt
Brian Marconi
Ethan Lindow
McKinley Moore
Blake Brown*
Josh Hendrickson
Logan O'Hoppe remains a standout at the levels at which he has played. He's pushed further into the game's top catching prospect charts with an excellent season at Reading. Miller has continued his strong production as a professional while being limited in his innings. Sullivan continues to impress out of the back of Reading's bullpen and could be due for AAA soon. Skirrow has shown better results at AA this season along with increased strikeout propensity. McGarry continues his rise, while Rojas's early success at the level helped him with an aggressive ranking here. Better AA numbers this season have helped Ortiz. Look out for Bettencourt, Brown, and Hendrickson as guys who can rise back up the rankings if they can stay healthy.
Many of the best prospects in the Phillies system started 2021 at the A+ level, such as Bryson Stott and Logan O'Hoppe. However, few ended there. the A+ list is one of the weakest lists in the Phillies system, but there are certainly some prospects worth noting. Here they are.
Erik Miller
Griff McGarry
Johan Rojas
Albertus Barber*
D.J. Stewart
J.P. Woodward
Manuel Silva
Gabriel Yanez
Victor Lopez
Nicolas Torres
Luis Garcia
Casey Martin
Carlos Francisco
McKinley Moore
Ben Brown
Dominic Pipkin
Bubby Rossman*
Yeah, that's the whole list. It certainly has a few surprises. Most would probably rank Johan Rojas and Luis Garcia higher. That said, I feel neither has really come into their own as hitters yet, so I remain a bit skeptical. Miller was probably ticketed for AA even just to start off 2021 if he was healthy, but he ultimately was not. He only managed 12.2 innings of work last season and only played one A+ game. That said, his numbers were still strong, as he lowered his career Minors ERA to 1.48 and finished the season with a 12.6 K/9 on the Farms. He may be a reliever going forward, but he certainly has upside. Barber missed all of 2021 with an injury, but he impressed as a UDFA in 2019 out of the bullpen. Rounding out the top five is Stewart, a former 39th round high school pick who came into his own last season as a potential infield power threat.
Beyond this group is a slew of mostly relievers, underpreforming starters, but also a few others Nicolas Torres, in the tenth spot, impressed at 21 after a promotion to A+. If we see more of the same in 2021 then he may get a boost in the rankings. Martin was the club's second pick in 2020, but fizzled after a promotion to Lakewood early in the season and failed to re-establish himself after being sent back down to Clearwater thereafter. This is a big season for him. Moore and Rossman, meanwhile, are newcomers. The former was just picked up in return for Adam Haseley, but has yet to really establish himself as a professional. The later, meanwhile, is that type of independent ball signing teams quite like - a high strikeout guy who they can hope they can mold into a dynamic reliever. Don't expect either to become a great player, but it's worth knowing these names just in case they do.
