The bulk of any minor league system ranking like this is going to be made up of players with a major league upside, but with a low probability of achieving that outcome. It could be because they are so young and far away that they do not yet have the skills, and while the hints are there, there is no definitive proof that they will grow into them. There are also players who project for lower end roles (bench bats, backup catchers, non-high leverage relievers) where the difference between a major league career and AAAA journeyman is razor thin and they don’t have the results or consistency to have pushed over that knife’s edge. It is also a place of passage as previously well thought of players fade as they don’t develop in a way that was previously projected, and other players rise up as they ascend towards a major league role. For the Phillies system, this area is vast, starting at a ranking where you would ideally want prospects with a bit more safety and upside, and stretching down to possibly encompass the 41-50 group already posted and down below that. If the Phillies are to make changes to the trajectory of the system, this is the group where they are going to need to start showing some results in getting contributors from players that are unexpected.
23. Ethan Wilson, OF
Age: 11/7/99 (23)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 2nd Round of the 2021 Draft
B/T: L/L
H/W: 6’1” 210lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | PA | HR | SB | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| JS (A+) | 112 | 458 | 7 | 25 | 6.1% | 20.3% | .238 | .290 | .344 |
| REA (AA) | 18 | 78 | 1 | 1 | 6.4% | 26.9% | .214 | .286 | .286 |
Role: Second Division Left Fielder
Risk: Extreme – The Ethan Wilson that played in 2022 was widely considered not a prospect. He is a corner outfielder who did not hit for any impact, and did not show any inclination that he was changing that trajectory. He was highly regarded out of college, so maybe an offseason is enough to help him get back on track.
Summary: Wilson was one of the best hitters in college baseball in 2021, showing huge growths in contact and approach, though at the expense of the power that put him on the map in 2019. The word out of the complex to end last season was that Wilson’s poor results with the Threshers were due to exhaustion and working to marry the power stroke of 2019 and the contact and approach of 2021.
The 2022 season was a disaster for Wilson. His swing decisions were poor, with only a decent feel for getting the bat on the ball, keeping the strikeout rate at a reasonable level. Otherwise, his walk rate cratered and his contact quality collapsed as he made contact on bad pitches. He hit the ball on the ground or weakly in the air as his bat path just was not conducive to driving the ball. The general consensus from those that saw him was that he did not look like a prospect at all. His offensive struggles are exacerbated by his defensive limitations. Wilson moves pretty well, but not well enough for center field, and his arm is really not a good fit in right. That means he is left field only and a passable, but not plus, defender out there. That leaves all of his value dependent on his offensive output.
Given his college track record, and the Phillies hitting development struggles, it is probably too early to permanently bury Wilson. However, his prospect stature is not a measure of what he looked like in 2022, it is more of a reflection on the past talent and that a new set of development eyes may be able to unlock that again.
2023 Outlook: The Phillies pushed Wilson to AA to end the season, so that is probably where he starts the 2023 season. There are not any outfield prospects really pushing Wilson from below, so he should have time to try and get back on track.
ETA: 2025
Previous Rank: 8
24. Jhailyn Ortiz, OF
Age: 11/18/98 (24)
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent by the Phillies in July 2015
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’3” 215lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | PA | HR | SB | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| REA (AA) | 19 | 505 | 17 | 9 | 8.5% | 32.7% | .237 | .319 | .415 |
| SUR (AFL) | 14 | 53 | 3 | 0 | 15.1% | 28.3% | .163 | .321 | .372 |
Role: Power Oriented 4th Outfielder
Risk: High – Ortiz still does not make enough contact to bring confidence that he can hit major league pitching. He isn’t that far off from being a platoon bat and can bring power off the bench, especially if he can at least stand in center in an emergency, but the contact improvement step is a big one.
Summary: Ortiz has had a slow growth through the Phillies system, making incremental improvement at each level as he ascended. Reading, in 2022, did represent a bit of a stumble in that regard. He struck out a bit more than his usually high rate and walked a little less than he did in 2021. He still has tremendous raw power, and he gets the ball in the air to the pull side at a high rate. It does come with a decent amount of poor contact, particularly in weak fly balls. The good news is that he hit about the same at home and on the road, so there is no Reading bump to account for. He continues to be a good right fielder, who can stand in center better than you expect, and he has a strong arm. He can be a bit too aggressive in both his outfield routes and in his throws, which contributed to some high error numbers.
In the end, we can talk about solid defense and incremental improvement, but it continues to be a question if Ortiz will make enough contact. His pitch recognition is still not great and his mighty hacks are not conducive to making midswing adjustments. If he makes just a below average amount of contact, he might produce enough power to be a fringe bench outfielder, but he will need to improve where he is now to reach that.
2023 Outlook: There is an obvious AAA outfield spot available for him as the Phillies have not really been able to backfill the depth side. His pathway to the majors is to offer the most amount of impact if the Phillies suffer an injury to Nick Castellanos and find themselves in need of right-handed power.
ETA: 2023
Previous Rank: 17
25. Noah Skirrow, RHP
Age: 7/21/98 (24)
Acquired: Signed as an Undrafted Free Agent with the Phillies in 2020
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’3” 215lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| REA (AA) | 21 | 21 | 5-8 | 98.2 | 4.65 | 9.8 | 0.9 | 7.4% | 26.6% |
| LHV (AAA) | 4 | 4 | 0-1 | 21.0 | 3.00 | 6.0 | 1.3 | 11.0% | 22.0% |
Role: #5 Starting Pitcher/Multi-Inning Middle Reliever
Risk: Medium – Despite the inflated ERA in AA, Skirrow has had success against upper minors batters. His struggles vs opposite handed hitters is a real worry in a rotation, and there has not been an extended look at what the bullpen version looks like.
Summary: A college starter at Liberty, Skirrow joined the Phillies as an undrafted free agent after his junior year for $20,000. He was limited in how much he pitched in 2021, but was one of the organization leaders in innings pitched in 2022. Skirrow has a starter’s build and features a solid fastball that sits 90-95, reaching up to 96. He primarily relies on a pair of breaking balls with a slower curveball in the 75-80 range and a harder slider at 85-89. He has thrown a changeup, but it is more rarely used. He throws a good amount of strikes, but he is not a command artist and can go fishing with the breaking balls as opposed to attacking batters. As you would expect with an arsenal like his, Skirrow has struggled with opposite handed batters, and lefties hit him around. Right now, he is more of a depth starter without an additional weapon against lefties. Given the pair of breaking balls and success against right-handed hitters, he may have better success as a multi inning reliever, especially if his velocity makes some improvements in short stints.
2023 Outlook: Skirrow ended the year in AAA, but depending on who is the 5th starter on the big league roster and what kind of role the Phillies deploy some other high minors pitchers in, there is a chance Skirrow returns to AA briefly. He is Rule 5 eligible after this season, so it would behoove the Phillies to maybe make a bullpen move if they feel comfortable with their starting pitching depth.
ETA: 2024
Previous Rank: UR
26. Marcus Lee Sang, OF
Age: 1/2/01 (22)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 11th Round of the 2019 Draft
B/T: L/L
H/W: 6’0” 200lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | PA | HR | SB | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| CLW (A-) | 84 | 334 | 8 | 15 | 9.9% | 29.9% | .259 | .339 | .389 |
| JS (A+) | 18 | 79 | 3 | 1 | 6.3% | 26.6% | .254 | .329 | .437 |
Role: Second Division Starter/Platoon Outfielder
Risk: High – Lee Sang still has a lot of development in front of him, but he has major league tools. His weaknesses against left-handed pitching could definitely be hidden in a reserve role, and if he can be a viable emergency center fielder he has a path to playing time on a big league roster.
Summary: The Phillies took two projectable high school bats overslot on Day 3 of the 2019 draft, one they sent to the Angels for Noah Syndergaard (Jadiel Sanchez), the other was Lee Sang. Lee Sang was always going to be a bit of a project, and the missed 2020 season certainly did not help. He has however, made some large strides in his time on the field. He still has too much swing and miss, and struggles against left-handed pitching. Of the hitters to spend a significant amount of time in Clearwater, he led the team in average exit velocity (87.5mph) and 90th percentile exit velocity (104.9mph). Early in the season, much of that contact was on the ground, but he began to elevate more as the season went on. He still will need to lift the ball more to fully tap into his raw power, but it was a good step forward. He is a good runner who has played some center field, but is likely more of a corner bat who can play center than a full time center fielder. He has a strong arm that has translated from throwing in the 90s off the mound in high school. There are still some developmental hurdles as Lee Sang’s contact abilities are still behind where they need to be, but there is a path to contribution with incremental improvement.
2023 Outlook: The Phillies bumped Lee Sang to Jersey Shore late, and he almost certainly dons a BlueClaws jersey to open 2023. Given where he is developmentally, it is likely he spends the majority of the season in A-ball. He is Rule 5 eligible after the season, but unless he has a breakout he won’t be a viable selection, which should allow the Phillies to give him time as opposed to rushing to a decision point.
ETA: 2025
Previous Rank: 42
27. Micah Ottenbreit, RHP
Age: 5/7/03 (19)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 4th Round of the 2021 Draft
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’4” 190lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| CLW (A-) | 2 | 2 | 0-1 | 5.2 | 7.94 | 9.5 | 1.6 | 17.9% | 14.3% |
Role: #3/#4 Starter
Risk: Extreme – This is exactly where Ottenbreit was last year, and now he has an arm injury and a year of missed development, so it is a bit more extreme, extreme. Until we see how he looks back healthy it will be difficult to adjust the outcome projections.
Summary: Micah Ottenbreit looked to be poised for a breakout season. He was a cold weather high school arm showing a mid 90s fastball and high spin curveball in his brief cameo in the FCL in 2021. Things looked off quickly for Ottenbreit in 2022. He showed poor control in his first start, as well as a fastball sitting 90-91 for much of his first two innings before showing some 93 late. His second start was 87 to 89 to open, with his offspeed pitches showing similar velocity drops, a slight spike into the low 90s late was not a point of optimism, as he quickly went onto the IL after the start eventually needing Tommy John surgery. Theoretically, Ottenbreit should be throwing by spring with an expected return by mid to late summer.
Before the injury, Ottenbreit looked like he could be a mid rotation starter with the potential for 3 above average to plus pitches if he filled out his frame. The first thing will be to see if he can come back with his velocity intact or improved, as it will likely be another year before he can necessarily see if he has made the control gains he needs to stay in a rotation.
2023 Outlook: Ottenbreit had surgery early in the season, so it would be expected he would start throwing in Extended Spring Training with a probable return to game action over the summer. His results will matter less than if he can throw healthy and at least achieve where he was before the injury.
ETA: 2026
Previous Rank: 15
28. Gunner Mayer, RHP
Age: 7/27/00 (22)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 5th Round of the 2019 Draft
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’6” 190lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| FCL (CPX) | 3 | 0 | 0-0 | 5.1 | 0.00 | 1.7 | 0.0 | 18.2% | 27.3% |
| CLW (A-) | 14 | 12 | 1-6 | 48.2 | 5.18 | 7.2 | 1.9 | 12.5% | 32.2% |
Role: #4 Starter
Risk: Extreme – Mayer is still a 22 year old pitcher who has yet to get past low-A and has yet to throw a full season of innings. The improvements he made this year do look like they should help him in the long term, he just is further away than you would want.
Summary: The Phillies took Mayer as an 18 year old recent pitching convert out of junior college in 2019. The now 22 year old, tall righty has struggled to stay on the mound and log innings the last two seasons, as an injury cost him most of May and June this season. Statistical success has been fleeting for Mayer as well, as he has struggled to economically work deep into games. If you just looked at fastball velocity, it might look like Mayer is the same pitcher he was in 2021, but if you look at video or pitch tracking data, there are some subtle changes that the Phillies made. Mayer is more over the top with his delivery, and the result has been a straighter and flatter fastball and a more vertical curveball. He also threw his changeup more this season and spent a couple of starts mixing in a slider. Mayer’s fastball still averages right around 92 mph, but he can get up to 96. It is a high spin pitch that plays well up in the zone, but he struggles to locate it consistently. His curveball is a big dropping bender that has been bleeding spin a bit over the years. Mayer’s control issues coupled with strong flyball tendencies have led to high home run rates as well. Overall it was a step forward year for Mayer, but after 4 years in the system, he is still a project and, like many, the missed season has definitely stunted some growth.
2023 Outlook: Now healthy, Mayer should move up to Jersey Shore where it will be important for him to log a full season of innings and show some consistency on the mound. At 22, and many years into his time in the Phillies org, this also is likely the big season to look for him to actually make a jump in stuff and outlook.
ETA: 2025
Previous Rank: 37
29. Jean Cabrera, RHP
Age: 10/21/01 (21)
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent by the Phillies in July 2019
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’0” 145lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| CLW (A-) | 12 | 12 | 2-4 | 46.1 | 5.24 | 1.6 | 10.5 | 13.1% | 23.9% |
Role: #4 Starter
Risk: Extreme – We learned more about Cabrera this year, but it was not the step forward that might have been expected given the reports from 2021. His stuff is still fairly ordinary, and while it flashes potential, the longer he goes from actualizing it the more doubt there is that it will happen.
Summary: It was always going to be a rough transition going directly from the DSL to full season ball for Cabrera, but it would have been better for it to not have been this rough. He struggled to work deep into games as his control went backwards, he struggled to miss bats, and was fairly hittable. Cabrera’s arsenal was not overwhelming either with his fastball sitting 91 to 95, though with high spin that can miss bats up in the zone. His changeup got hit around, and his two breaking balls had a tendency to blend. While not the youngest player, he is still fairly projectable and this was only his second year of pitching in pro ball. If he can treat the 2022 season as more of a learning and growing experience, he still has the base to be a #4 type starting pitcher with some small chance at more than that. After attempting to accelerate his development in 2022, the Phillies are likely going to need to take things a little slow with Cabrera going forward.
2023 Outlook: Given his struggles in Clearwater, it would not be surprising if Cabrera starts back there to begin. Results are going to matter more in 2023, but it will be important for his secondary pitches to show some growth as well.
ETA: 2026
Previous Rank: 33
30. Mavis Graves, LHP
Age: 11/20/03 (19)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 6th Round of the 2022 Draft
B/T: L/L
H/W: 6’6” 205lbs
2022 Stats:
Did not pitch in a game in 2022
Role: #3/#4 Starter
Risk: Extreme – The role above might as well read “Starting Pitcher” because we don’t really know what Graves will look like in a few years. He is all projection, and even if he had appeared in an FCL game, it probably would not have told us very much.
Summary: The Phillies took high school pitchers at the top of the 2020 and 2021 draft, but only in that shortened 2020 draft have both Brian Barber and his predecessor Johnny Almaraz refrained from taking an 18 year old arm in the middle of day 2 of the draft. Graves is last year’s entry, a tall (most draft writeups have him at 6’4”, while his current milb page lists him at 6’6”) projectable lefty who did not make it into an FCL game last summer. He supposedly is into the low 90s with a good curveball and has at least thrown a changeup. It is likely to be a few years before we start to really see what the Phillies have in Graves as he fills out and they work on getting his pitches where they want them
2023 Outlook: The Phillies have sent their top HS arms directly to Clearwater, but Graves’ draft pedigree probably falls below that line, so it probably will depend on how he does this spring whether we see him with the Threshers to start, he gets there later in the year, or they wait until the FCL season. Graves is expected to take time, so 2023 will most likely be about seeing positive traits and paths forward.
ETA: 2027
Previous Rank: N/A
31. Starlyn Castillo, RHP
Age: 2/24/02 (20)
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent by the Phillies in July 2018
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’0” 210lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| FCL (CPX) | 4 | 3 | 0-1 | 12.1 | 5.68 | 13.5 | 0.0 | 1.7% | 25.0% |
| CLW (A-) | 10 | 8 | 0-7 | 27.0 | 11.67 | 12.7 | 2.3 | 10.2% | 21.2% |
Role: #4 Starter/7th Inning Reliever
Risk: Extreme – Castillo came back from Tommy John surgery looking mostly like the player he was pre-surgery. He does not have a starting pitcher’s arsenal right now, and his fastball is not good enough to be an elite reliever.
Summary: The Phillies made Castillo their big international acquisition in 2018. A physically mature 16 year old, he was already into the mid 90s when the Phillies signed him. Injuries limited Castillo to 9.1 innings in 2019, and then 6 games into his 2021 season he blew out his elbow, needing Tommy John surgery. He made his return in June of 2022, and it was a mostly down season, but he did complete 39.2 healthy innings. The Phillies then pushed him by sending him to the Australian Baseball League where he pitched 10 games with good results. There is a chance he is somewhat innings limited in 2023, but with 77 innings between his two stops, the Phillies managed to recover a mostly lost year of development.
The problem with Castillo is that he is still largely the pitcher he was at 16, now at almost 21. His fastball is 91 to 95, touching 96 and lacks elite characteristics. He still has a high spin breaking ball, which Statcast labels a curveball so we will call it a curve, and it is this pitch that makes him interesting. He did throw more changeups in 2022, and the pitch showed more run (as did his fastball). Ultimately he is a short, right-handed pitcher with an injury history and a good breaking ball, and that reads more as a reliever than a starter. He still has barely over 100 innings in 4 seasons, so it might not be time to make that decision just yet, but that time is getting close.
2023 Outlook: Given his work in the ABL, the Phillies likely will be able to push Castillo to Jersey Shore. He should work out of the rotation all year, and the big things to watch are if he can find the changeup growth needed to be a starting pitcher.
ETA: 2026
Previous Rank: 36
32. Tommy McCollum, RHP
Age: 6/8/99 (23)
Acquired: Signed as an Undrafted Free Agent with the Phillies in 2021
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’5” 260lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| CLW (A-) | 23 | 0 | 1-0 | 31.0 | 1.45 | 3.2 | 0.9 | 13.6% | 44.1% |
Role: 7th Inning Reliever
Risk: High – How McCollum was throwing right before the injury puts him not far off of where he needs to be. However, it was still a small sample size and we have not seen him put the results up vs high level batters.
Summary: The Phillies have taken big college pitchers in both the draft and non-drafted free agency. McCollum, in his pro debut in 2021 after the Phillies signed him out of Wingate, was not impressive. His fastball averaged around 91, topping out at 94 and primarily throwing sliders and curveballs as his offspeed pitches. In 2022, McCollum was good to start, showing a revamped splitter and scrapping most of the curveballs and sliders in favor of a cutter. Things then ramped from there to the point where he was averaging 95.5 mph on his fastball in June and topping out at 98. Unfortunately, June was also the last month he pitched in as an ankle injury on a comebacker on June 30 ended his season. Prior to the injury, McCollum had been one of the most dominant pitchers in the minors with a 13.1 IP 6 H 2 R 1 ER 1 BB 26 K line over his last 10 appearances.
Without the injury, it is easy to see a scenario where McCollum would have ascended very quickly through the organization and would have ended the year in AA. If McCollum can get back on track now that he is healthy, he should rise quickly and could reach the majors fairly quickly. Unless there is another leap, he doesn’t look like an elite shutdown reliever, but more along the lines of a Connor Brogdon type.
2023 Outlook: The Phillies could jump McCollum up to AA, but it makes some sense that they send him to Jersey Shore to put up some success before pushing him. He could move quickly, but given the Phillies bullpen depth in the majors and minors, it is more likely he ends the year in the upper minors poised for a 2024 contribution.
ETA: 2024
Previous Rank: UR
33. Caleb Ricketts, C
Age: 5/10/00 (22)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 7th Round of the 2022 Draft
B/T: L/R
H/W: 6’4” 225lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | PA | HR | SB | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| CLW (A-) | 22 | 94 | 3 | 0 | 11.7% | 31.9% | .259 | .362 | .370 |
Role: Offense First Backup Catcher
Risk: High – The big question is whether Ricketts can catch, and if he can, the pressure on his bat to perform is much much lower. If he can’t, the level he would need to reach as a corner outfielder might be impossible.
Summary: The Phillies drafted some guys with big college numbers in 2022, and none may have had bigger numbers than Caleb Ricketts. As a catcher and outfielder for San Diego he hit .373/.423/.658 with 16 home runs in 56 games. It was an enormous outburst for the 4th year junior who had 2 home runs in his 3 previous seasons. He didn’t strike out much, but he didn’t walk much. The strikeouts did get concerningly high in Clearwater, but the walks came up as well. It also was only 22 games after a long college season. He did not hit for much power with the Threshers either, as he posted an average launch angle of just 2 degrees, but that did mean he hit a large number of hard line drives to the pull side. It is likely that line drive hitter is more of the hitter Ricketts is, than the power hitter he was last year in college. He played outfield in college and is a work in progress behind the plate. If he can be an average defender, his bat could be good enough to be offensive oriented second catcher. Unless the power suddenly comes roaring back, it is hard to see him having a future at any position other than catcher.
2023 Outlook: The Phillies will likely send Ricketts to Jersey Shore where he should get a good amount of at bats behind the plate. It would be in the Phillies best interest to give him all of the chances they can to develop behind the plate.
ETA: 2026
Previous Rank: N/A
34. McKinley Moore, RHP
Age: 8/24/98 (24)
Acquired: Traded to the Phillies by the White Sox for Adam Haseley on March 29, 2022
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’6” 225lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| REA (AA) | 39 | 1 | 4-5 | 49.2 | 4.35 | 9.1 | 0.5 | 11.5% | 31.3% |
Role: 6th/7th Inning Reliever
Risk: High – Moore, despite good stuff, struggled against AA batters. He will need to throw better strikes, and if he does he can be the 5th or 6th best arm in a bullpen. If he doesn’t, he might end up being an up and down reliever that you always want a bit more from before you send him back up the Northeast Extension.
Summary: The Phillies did not get a chance to really look at Moore after acquiring him, before shipping him off to Reading. The rapid change of scenery didn’t seem to do him well either, as he walked 10 in his 9.2 April innings. After that he still walked a bit too many, 16 in 40 innings, but he offset that slightly with 63 strikeouts. Backing up a bit, Moore is a prototypical Phillies draft acquisition as a big college arm who could not throw strikes in college, they just got him later in his career. Moore’s fastball sits in the upper 90s, hitting 99 in most appearances (according to a Baseball America interview with pitching coach Matt Hockenberry he has been up to 101). His primary secondary pitch is a slider that sits 86-89 and will touch the low 90s with good sweep. He also will mix in a hard changeup as well. The control is still not great, but his velocity and slider give him a chance to be a prototype modern middle reliever with two plus pitches and not enough polish to trust late in games.
2023 Outlook: Given that the Phillies have devoted a large portion of their 40 man roster to relievers who can help the team in 2023, there may not be that much room in the Lehigh Valley bullpen. Moore will be in big league camp, so they think he may be a player that can help them sooner. Given that he will be Rule 5 eligible again after this season, he could definitely pass one of the waiver or low level trade arms, and force himself into that up and down 8th RP this season.
ETA: 2023
Previous Rank: N/A
35. Eiberson Castellano, RHP
Age: 5/9/01 (21)
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent by the Phillies in July 2018
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’3” 160lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| CLW (A-) | 17 | 8 | 1-3 | 51.1 | 3.51 | 6.5 | 0.7 | 8.7% | 29.5% |
Role: #4/5 Starter/Multi-Inning Reliever
Risk: Extreme – Castellano is almost 22 and has barely pitched, and has never handled a starting pitcher’s full workload. He does not have the high end stuff to make it low risk that he will hold up against upper level hitters.
Summary: The Phillies signed Castellano in 2018, but he didn’t pitch in his first pro season, meaning that he didn’t throw his first pitch for the org until over three years after he signed. As a 20 year old reliever in the DSL, Castellano was dominant, albeit with too many walks. The Phillies sent him straight to the Threshers in 2022 after a brief stop in Extended Spring Training. He worked from long man into starting for most of the summer, until they eased him back into the bullpen. What he showed was three different low 90s fastballs, a changeup, a couple of sliders, and a solid spin curveball with plenty of depth. He put up good numbers for most of the summer, throwing strikes and generating a large amount of weak contact. Eiberson will be entering his age 22 season, but he has the frame to maybe add a bit more strength. Given his usage over the summer it is interesting to see if the Phillies think he is a starter, but they should give him some innings to open the year to see if he can build into a back end arm.
2023 Outlook: Given his age, the Phillies should push Castellano to Jersey Shore. They do have a number of arms headed that way so he might have to start in Clearwater and move up when space opens up, or pitch in longer relief to still get innings.
ETA: 2026
Previous Rank: UR
36. Andrew Schultz, RHP
Age: 7/31/97 (25)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 6th Round of the 2019 Draft
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’4” 195lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| JS (A+) | 31 | 0 | 0-3 | 30.0 | 4.80 | 6.9 | 0.9 | 14.6% | 35.0% |
| REA (AA) | 14 | 0 | 0-0 | 14.2 | 2.45 | 8.0 | 0.0 | 19.2% | 19.2% |
Role: 6th/7th Inning Reliever that frustrates with their flashes
Risk: High – Schultz has a history of injuries and not throwing strikes, and while he had a stretch of strike throwing in 2022, his delivery does not inspire confidence that his health or strike throwing will hold up.
Summary: The Phillies drafted Schultz as one of the hardest throwing relievers in the 2019 draft. During the missed 2020 season, he suffered an injury that led to Tommy John surgery that cost him the 2021 season. Unsurprisingly, he started off slow before then finding his stride in the late spring and early summer, before then struggling again in his time in AA. Schultz still has an ultra short throwing motion, from which he was sitting 97-99, touch 100 late in the season and matching that with a short hard slider in low 90s. Control continues to be a problem for Schultz, and he just loses the zone for periods at a time. Given his long history of not consistently throwing strikes, it is unlikely he ever has better than below average control. He also had issues with left-handed batters who do get a good look at the ball out of his hand. All of that means that the ceiling for Schultz is probably not an elite high leverage arm, and is more a 6th/7th inning arm that can look dominant at times, but ultimately is too unreliable for late innings.
2023 Outlook: Schultz got just a taste of AA, so a return to Reading is in the cards. There is a lot of reliever depth in front of him, so he will need to stand out or be buried by the continued waves of arms.
ETA: 2024
Previous Rank: 34
37. Alex Rao, RHP
Age: 10/25/99 (23)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 8th Round of the 2022 Draft
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’4” 230lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | GS | W-L | IP | ERA | H/9 | HR/9 | BB% | K% |
| FCL (CPX) | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 1.0 | 0.00 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 20.0% | 0.0% |
| CLW (A-) | 2 | 0 | 0-0 | 2.0 | 0.00 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0% | 16.7% |
Role: 6th/7th Inning Reliever
Risk: High – Rao struggled to throw strikes in college and has only 3 innings of pro-ball to go off of, so there is just very little track record.
Summary: The Phillies have not shied away from using top 10 round picks on college relievers, and Rao is exactly their model of pitcher. He is a big and tall pitcher with a big spin fastball that sits 94-96 (reportedly up to 98 in college). He throws a slider, but his plus splitter is his best secondary pitch. Rao had some control problems in college that he will need to correct, but otherwise he is the prototypical plus fastball, plus secondary middle reliever. Given that he is 23 and from a major school, it is likely the Phillies will aggressively push Rao to Jersey Shore like they did with Jason Ruffcorn last year.
2023 Outlook: Rao likely starts in the Threshers bullpen, and if he can throw strikes, he should move quickly into the upper minors.
ETA: 2025
Previous Rank: N/A
38. Yemal Flores, OF
Age: 11/22/03 (19)
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent by the Phillies in January 2021
B/T: R/R
H/W: 5’11” 206lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | PA | HR | SB | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| FCL (CPX) | 34 | 116 | 3 | 3 | 10.3% | 39.7% | .160 | .259 | .290 |
Role: Second Division Starting Outfielder
Risk: Extreme – Flores might not make enough contact to make it past A-ball. While his defensive profile has improved, it won’t carry him, so his bat will need to.
Summary: When the Phillies signed Flores as one of their two big signings in January 2021 there were massive worries about his contact abilities. If hitting .171 with a 35.7% strikeout rate in 2021 in the DSL made that more troubling, following it up by hitting .160 with a 39.7% K% in the FCL in 2022 certainly didn’t make it better. Flores still has huge raw power, and when he gets a hold of one it can go far. He also looks like a good defender, playing a solid centerfield with a good arm. He also does not have the worst approach at the plate as you can see him not just hacking away at the plate. It is a vicious hack however, and his pitch recognition does not appear to be advanced right now. He looks better than the stats, but it would be difficult to look worse than the stats. He just turned 19 in November, so he is not a lost cause yet, but he will certainly be a project for the player development staff.
2023 Outlook: The Phillies should have a full complement of outfielders in Clearwater, so Flores may start in Extended Spring Training while the player dev staff gets a chance to work with him, before then joining the Threshers later in the season.
ETA: 2027
Previous Rank: 41
39. Yhoswar Garcia, OF
Age: 9/13/01 (21)
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent by the Phillies in March 2020
B/T: R/R
H/W: 6’0” 150lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | PA | HR | SB | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| FCL (CPX) | 2 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 14.3% | 14.3% | .333 | .429 | .333 |
| CLW (A-) | 35 | 146 | 1 | 29 | 9.6% | 24.0% | .206 | .303 | .310 |
Role: Glove First Center Fielder who bats 8th/9th
Risk: Extreme – Garcia has the tools and the frame, and has barely played any games in 2 years since signing. He doesn’t have the polish on defense yet, despite the “Drone” nickname, but he has the tools to be a very very good defender. It likely does not pan out for him, but he has some upside if it does.
Summary: The Phillies gave Garcia $2.5 million as the pandemic started to shut things down. His signing being delayed by 9 months due to an age discrepancy was sort of a harbinger of bad things to come. A missed 2020 season due to the minor league COVID shutdown and then two years of injuries means Garcia is now 21 and has played in 55 total games since signing. The speed is still intact as he ran wild last year and stole 3 bases in his two games before his season ended. Garcia has the tools to be an impact defender in center field, but is still more speed than route based out there. At the plate, things were better but still weren’t great. He struck out less and walked more, but he did not impact the ball, posting one of the lowest average exit velocities on the Threshers team, and sat towards the back of the middle in 90th and 80th percentile exit velocities. He hits a lot of balls on the ground, and at the lower levels those will turn into hits, but those will dry up some in the upper minors.
Garcia still has good athleticism and a good frame that could fill out enough to give him impact at the plate. It is also easy to see a path where he is an impact defender in center field. Those two things could make him a real prospect. He has just missed so much time and did not start as a polished prospect to begin with. He has enough intrigue he might not need to do the make side of a make or break season, but he has to not break. If he can go out and play 80-100 games and look like it belongs, it probably buys him another year of at bats.
2023 Outlook: Based on how much he has played, Garcia should start in Clearwater. But, if he has a good spring, we could see the Phillies push him aggressively to get him back on a more reasonable dev timeline.
ETA: 2026
Previous Rank: 18
40. Jamari Baylor, SS
Age: 8/25/00 (22)
Acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the 3rd Round of the 2019 Draft
B/T: R/R
H/W: 5’11” 190lbs
2022 Stats:
| Team (LVL) | G | PA | HR | SB | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| CLW (A-) | 89 | 306 | 6 | 22 | 17.0% | 32.7% | .178 | .353 | .315 |
Role: Multi-position Infield Bench Bat
Risk: Extreme – Baylor striking out at a high rate and moving down the defensive spectrum is a bad combination. There are interesting underlying tools, so Baylor cannot fully be buried, but the problems are bad.
Summary: The Phillies drafted Baylor as a raw high school hitter with a real ability to generate bat speed. He was hurt by the missed 2020 season, and looked good for 25 games in the FCL in 2021, followed by 15 disaster games in A-ball. His season line for the 2022 season looks like more of the disaster trend. He spent the first 3 months of the season hitting .112/.312/.224 with a 16.2% BB% and 34.0% K%. However, he spent the last 4 months hitting .262/.406/.430 with a 18.0% BB% and still ugly 30.8% K%. He also hit the ball hard all year, and he gets the ball in the air with line drives and fly balls, and does it to both fields. Baylor has a solid approach at the plate and he seemingly swings at the right location of pitches. However, when you see him swing the problems become evident, as he seemingly unleashes at full bore on each hack. This leaves him no room to adjust his swing mid flight if he has not pigeon holed the ball exactly. They are going to need to work with him on calming the swing down, particularly with two strikes.
The other concerning thing is that the rumors were that Baylor was looking better at shortstop, but after a bad performance there he did not play it after early May, moving to second as his primary position with a lot more first base than you want from a middle infield prospect (Clearwater did have a lot of middle infielders). If Baylor slides down the defensive spectrum too much it crushes what little hope he has of pulling this out.
2023 Outlook: Given his age, and his having spent the last two seasons in Clearwater the Phillies likely will need to move Baylor to Jersey Shore. He doesn’t need to get the strikeout rate under 20%, but under 30% would be a good start, especially if it came with a more in control swing at the plate.
ETA: 2026
Previous Rank: 19