A Critical Look at the Phillies Organization and Minor League Baseball
Matt Winkelman 
I am going to start by saying that this subject deserves more space than I about to give it, because it is meaningful, but this better than saying anything at all. Andrew Knapp is the middle of just destroying the Eastern League (he probably got another hit somewhere while you read this sentence). After … Read more
In 2014 the GCL Phillies had a nice pitching staff and some interesting players, but the lack of HS players limited the prospect power of the team. This season has been much different. The lineup has a premium prospect at every position and while the rotation isn’t full of household names, it has carried the … Read more
I made the statement on Monday that the Phillies might have the deepest farm system in baseball. Two days later I stand by that statement. A lot of focus has been put on the premium trade returns and players like Crawford, Nola, and Franco, but that is really not the legacy of the last few … Read more
I was asked a couple of times after the trades who was Rule 5 eligible of the prospects the Phillies got back in trades. I will talk about the full 40 man and who needs spots and who could be gone when we get closer to September, but for now here is just who they … Read more
The minor leagues are not a static thing and there is little more challenging than writing anything definitive about prospects while games are going on. Players are constantly changing and adjusting, and the key is to try and stay current during the constantly changing evaluations. This list is just a snapshot in time, and frankly … Read more
Ben Revere has been much maligned over his time in Philadelphia, from his lack of power to his questionable route running. But overall he gave the Phillies good value in center field (and later left field) for two pitchers that have been really up and down over the years. The Phillies have been motivated to … Read more
So it appears a deal sending Cole Hamels and Jake Diekman to the Texas Rangers is coming together quickly. Right now the critical pieces are OF Nick Williams, C Jorge Alfaro, RHP Alec Asher, RHP Jake Thompson and RHP Jerad Eikoff along with the contract of Matt Harrison. It appears there are more pieces involved … Read more
The Phillies just traded arguably the best reliever in their history for a AA pitcher, in what is another good solid deal for the Phillies. The reliever is Jonathan Papelbon and right now we don’t know how much they are paying of his contract going forward but indication doesn’t seem to be much if any … Read more
Buried on the Clearwater transaction list was the fact that second baseman Jesmuel Valentin has been reinstated from the restricted list and activated for the Williamsport Crosscutters. Valentin was arrested this April on misdemeanor domestic violence charges, there is no news on any legal outcome. He has been at the complex in Clearwater for the … Read more
I try not to make light of other people’s work on this site, I leave that to Twitter. But I feel obligated to be outraged at the newest MLB Pipeline rankings because they are prominent and highly quoted. I don’t think sites should do deep rankings if they don’t know systems, and it is very clear whoever … Read more