Matt Bishop | February 10th, 2019
The Philadelphia Phillies Farm System is the 8th best minor league system in all of baseball. Headlined by (2) Tier 1 and (2) Tier 2 prospects along with one of the strongest off-seasons in recent memory, the future is bright in Philly and their fan base has hope again. (PS – I started writing this before the JT Realmuto trade and Sixto Sanchez was the Phillies top prospect at that time. If you would like to read about Sixto Sanchez, and you should, he is the last prospect on this list).
ALEC BOHM, 3B 6’5” 225 LBS Age 22
ETA 2021
Scouting grades:
Hit: 55 | Power: 55 | Run: 35 | Arm: 50 | Field: 45 | Overall: 55
Alec Bohm was selected 3rd overall in the 2018 MLB Amateur Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies out of Wichita State University. He shot up draft boards after being named an All American his Junior year, hitting .339/.436/.625 (1.061 OPS) with 16 home runs, 57 runs, and 55 RBI.
Bohm would make his debut with the Class A Short-Season Williamsport, where he only saw 10 plate appearances in 4 games, going .222/.200/.222 (.422 OPS). He was later promoted to the Gulf Coast League, where he would find his groove, slashing .391/.481/.522 (1.003 OPS) .475 wOBA 187 wRC+, but was only in 27 plate appearances.
Bohm makes consistent hard contact and knows how to take a walk. His above-average hit tool projects as plus in the bigs and his excellent bat speed should help him develop more power when he gets to the majors. He is not strong defensively and a move to first base could be in his future. The Phillies love him long term and think he could be their 3rd baseman for the time being.
ADONIS MEDINA, RHP 6’1” 185 lbs. Age 22
ETA: 2019
Scouting grades:
Fastball: 60 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 55
Adonis Medina was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies as an International Free Agent in 2014. He would debut in the Dominican Summer League and remain there for the entire season, finishing 2-3 with a 1.37 ERA 0.99 WHIP 7.52 K/9 1.37 BB/9 in 11 games (2 starts) over 26.1 innings.
He was promoted to the Gulf Coast League in 2016, where he would continue his impressive play, compiling a 3-2 record in 10 games (8 starts) with a 2.98 ERA 1.19 WHIP 6.95 K/9 2.38 BB/9 across 45.1 innings. He started 2016 in A ball in the New York Penn League, going 5-3 with a 2.92 ERA 1.10 WHIP 4.73 K/9 3.34 BB/9 in 13 starts over 64.2 innings. While his strikeouts continued to trend downward, his control remained on point and he was selected to the New York Penn League All-Star Team.
Coming into the 2017 season, Medina was ranked as the #91 overall prospect in baseball by Baseball Prospectus. He would see a promotion to the South Atlantic League with the Lakewood BlueClaws, where he would continue his stellar play, finishing the season 4-9 to a 3.01 ERA 1.19 WHIP 10.00 K/9 2.93 BB/9 in 22 starts over 119.2 innings pitched. His strikeout totals were good for 4th in the league and bumped his prospect rating up to #46 by Baseball Prospectus coming into 2018.
Medina was promoted to A+ in the Florida State League in 2018, compiling a 10-4 record with a 4.12 ERA 1.25 WHIP 9.94 K/9 2.91 BB/9 in 21 starts across 111.1 innings pitched. His 123 strikeouts were good for 3rd in the Florida State League and his 10 wins tied for 4th. He would play in the All-Star Futures game that summer.
Adonis Medina’s fastball is featured prominently in his arsenal, projecting as a plus offering and sitting in the low 90s. His heater has touched 96 mph, which he commands well and tends to give up a lot of ground balls due to late break and sink. His slider is only an average pitch, but has developed sharper break and could be a plus offering with more refining. His changeup is above average and could project as plus at the major league level. He throws all his pitches for strikes and his command is solid. His arsenal has improved at every level, causing an impressive increase in his strikeout rate. He is only 22 and should start his 2019 campaign at Double-A, but with a strong start to the season, we may see Medina as a summer call up.
ADAM HASELEY, OF 6’1” 195 lbs. Age 22
ETA: 2020
Scouting grades:
Hit: 55 | Power: 45 | Run: 55 | Arm: 50 | Field: 55 | Overall: 55
Adam Haseley was selected 8th overall by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2017 MLB Amateur Draft. He was a two-way standout at the University of Virginia and would receive 3rd Team All-American Honors his sophomore season with a 9-3 record and a 1.73 ERA. He would also hit .304 and was a finalist for the John Olerud Award, which recognizes the College’s best two-way athletes. He received First Team All-American Honors his junior season, hitting .390 with 14 home runs and 56 runs and was again a finalist for the John Olerud Award.
Haseley would debut in the Gulf Coast League in 2017, mashing .583/.643/.833 (1.476 OPS) in only 14 plate appearances. This small sample size would earn him promotions to the New York Penn League and the South Atlantic League, finishing his first season in professional baseball .284/.357/.405 (.761) with an 8.9% walk rate and a 17.8% strikeout rate.
He would really begin to set himself apart in 2018 after promotions to Class-A in the Florida State League and Double-A in the Eastern League. He would finish the season hitting .305/.361/.433 (.795 OPS) with 11 HR 77 R 55 RBI in 513 plate appearances.
While Haseley doesn’t have a ton of power, he has an above average hit tool and could project as plus when he gets to the majors. He makes a lot of quality contact to all fields and doesn’t strike out a lot, which is evident with his 15.4% strikeout rate in his minor league career. His power is below average, but he should add some when he is getting everyday at-bats in the bigs. He should start the year off in Double-A but could push the Phillies’ hand with strong play from the start.
JOJO ROMERO, LHP 6’0” 190 lbs. Age 22
ETA: 2019
Scouting Grades:
Fastball: 60 | Slider: 50 | Curveball: 50 | Cutter: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 55 | Overall: 50
JoJo Romero was drafted by the Phillies in the 4th round of the 2016 MLB Amateur Draft out of Yavapai Junior College. He would make his professional baseball debut in the New Penn League, going 2-2 in 10 starts, finishing the season with a 2,56 ERA 1.20 WHIP 6.11 K/9 2.17 BB/9 across 45.2 innings pitched.
He would start 2017 in Class-A with the South Atlantic League and later be promoted to Class-A+ in the Florida State League. He would continue his dominance, with a 10-3 record over 23 starts finishing with a stellar 2.16 ERA 8.93 K/9 2.51 BB/9 across 129.0 innings. This performance would earn him Phillies Minor League Pitcher of the Year Honors. He would start 2018 off in Double-A, where he would finish out the year 7-6 over 18 starts with a 3.80 ERA 8.47 K/9 3.47 BB/9 across 106.2 innings pitched.
Romero appeared to be a pure pitcher when coming up through the ranks, but as his stuff continued to get better at each stop paired with his impeccable command, he turned out to be a better prospect than the Phillies first thought. His four-seam fastball is a plus offering and touched 95 mph at times last season, while his two-seamer has late sink and can induce a lot of weak contact and ground ball outs. He has as many as 4 secondary offerings, but his breaking stuff (Slider, Curveball) only project as average pitches. Both his cutter and changeup are above average pitches that could project to be plus offerings when he gets to the majors. He can throw all of his pitches for strikes and commands the zone well with each. While Romero projects as a back end starter, he has the potential to crack the front end of the rotation with a little development.
MICKEY MONIAK, OF 6’2” 185 LBS. Age 20
ETA: 2020
Scouting grades:
Hit: 50 | Power: 40 | Run: 60 | Arm: 50 | Field: 55 | Overall: 50
Mickey Moniak was drafted as the #1 overall pick in the 2016 MLB Amateur Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies. He would skyrocket up drafts boards after hitting .476 his senior year, with 7 HR 40 R 46 RBI and 12 triples in 29 games. He also finished with an insane .961 slugging percentage and was later named Baseball America High School Player of the Year, California Gatorade Player of the Year and San Diego Section Player of the Year. He would commit to playing baseball at UCLA but was lured away from his commitment by the Phillies after signing a $6.1 million signing bonus.
Moniak would debut in the Gulf Coast League in 2016, hitting .284/.340/.409 (.749 OPS) with 1 HR 27 R 28 RBI and 10 stolen bases in 194 plate appearances. This was good for .356 wOBA and 124 wRC+. He would see a promotion to Class-A in the South Atlantic League, where he began to struggle, hitting .236/.284/.341 (.625 OPS) with 5 HR 53 R 44 RBI and 11 stolen bases in 509 plate appearances. This was only good for a .286 wOBA and 80 wRC+. He started 2018 off in the Florida State League, hitting .270/.304/.383 (.687 OPS) with 5 HR 50 R 55 RBI in 46 plate appearances. This was a little better and good for a .314 wOBA and 95 wRC+.
Mickey Moniak was semi-productive in his first exposure to professional baseball in the Rookie League, but struggled immensely with his promotion to Class-A and was unable to find his groove in the lower ranks of the Phillies system. Even though his hit tool is only average, he showed signs of a player that can hit for average and be selective at the plate. His power is below average, but he makes consistent hard contact from the left side of the dish and should add some power with his development. He has plus speed and should be active on the base paths, possibly eclipsing 20 stolen bases a year. Moniak is a special talent, but one that the Phillies should bring up slow after his struggles in Low A. If they don’t, they could have another #1 overall bust on their hands (see Mark Appel).
SIXTO SANCHEZ, RHP 6’0” 185 LBS
ETA 2019
Scouting grades:
Fastball: 70 | Curve: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 60 | Overall: 60
Sixto Sanchez was discovered by the Phillies in 2014 when he was seen throwing batting practice to a Cuban catcher the Phillies were scouting. The team was so impressed with his skill set that they later signed him as an international free agent in 2015 for $35,000 which is an absolute steal for the caliber of prospect he has become.
Sanchez would make his debut in the Dominican Summer League in 2015. His performance would not inspire confidence, finishing the season 1-2 with a 4.56 ERA 1.48 WHIP 6.31 K/9 in 11 games over 25.2 innings pitched.
But it was not until his debut in the states did his star begin to shine. He would debut in the Gulf Coast League in Rookie Ball, finishing a stellar 5-0 with a 0.50 ERA 0.76 WHIP 7.33 K/9 1.33 BB/9 in 11 starts across 54.0 innings. He quickly rose to prominence, winning the ERA crown in the Gulf Coast League and being named to the Baseball America Rookie All-Star Team and the Gulf Coast League Post-Season All-Star Team. He was ranked the #80 prospect in baseball by Baseball America at 17 years old.
He would start 2017 in A-Ball and was later promoted to A+, where he was the youngest pitcher in the Florida State League. He would finish the season 5-7 with a 3.03 ERA 0.96 WHIP 7.96 K/9 1.70 BB/9 in 18 games over 95.0 innings. He was later named as the #25 best prospect in baseball by Baseball America.
He would start the 2018 season back in A+ in the Florida State League, going 4-3 with a 2.51 ERA 1.07 WHIP 8.68 K/9 2.12 BB/9 in 8 starts across 46.2 innings pitched. The Phillies would shut him down for the season in June after a bout with right elbow inflammation, but he was still selected to the Florida State League Mid-Season All-Star team and ranked as high as the 13th best prospect in baseball by Baseball America.
Sixto’s fastball projects as plus-plus, with his four-seamer sitting in the high 90s with the ability to touch 100mph. His two-seemer has a lot of late movement and sink and he is able to command it all over the strike zone. Both his curveball and changeup are above average offerings and could project as plus pitches in the bigs with further development. The Phillies will certainly take caution with their #1 prospect after a DL stint for elbow inflammation, but we could see him in late 2019 if the Phillies rotation doesn’t pan out.
Check out the rest of our Top-5 Prospect Series | Toronto Blue Jays | Colorado Rockies | Minnesota Twins | Chicago Cubs | Texas Rangers | Atlanta Braves | Tampa Bay Rays | Arizona Diamondbacks | Cincinnati Reds | Kansas City Royals | Seattle Mariners | Miami Marlins | New York Yankees | Los Angeles Dodgers | Detroit Tigers | New York Mets | San Diego Padres | Cleveland Indians | Boston Red Sox | St. Louis Cardinals
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