This Week’s Schedule
- Lehigh Valley (27-12) @ Syracuse (18-21)
- Reading (9-21) vs New Hampshire (14-18)
- Jersey Shore (12-19) @ Wilmington (10-23)
- Clearwater (19-14) vs Lakeland (17-15)
- FCL Phillies (1-5)
Hitter Spotlight
7-17 1 2B 1 HR 6 BB 2 K 4 SB .412/.583/.647
The Phillies selected Owusu-Asiedu in the 9th round of the 2023 draft as a junior in college, but he still is only 22. Last year he posted a 36.1% strikeout rate thanks to very low contact rate (just a 72.6% zone contact %). He didn’t expand the zone at a large rate, but this year he is swinging even less, and his whiff rates are down and his contact rates are up (even if still some of the worst in the FSL). If he can make contact, Owusu-Asiedu has plenty of power, posting a above average 90th percentile EV last year, and above 80th percentile in 90th percentile and max EV this year. He will need to make much more contact to be a viable prospect, but he is a plus defensive outfielder so if he can make the offensive adjustments he has major league upside.
Pitcher Spotlight
RHP Jean Cabrera
6 IP 4 H 0 R 2 BB 8 K
Outside of this week and his start on April 16 (also against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies), there has been a legitimate question about whether Jean Cabrera could miss bats in AA. He didn’t last year, and so far this year he wasn’t getting misses and he was walking batters as they didn’t chase his stuff. This week, Cabrera was the version than looked dynamic at Jersey Shore last year, throwing his sweeper on the plate to his armside and as a chase glove side, and then throwing his changeup to righties and lefties down and out of the zone. His fastballs lived around the zone, but were more trying to not get hit and land for strikes. What was different this time was his new cutter. It was hard to always see (the third strikeout in the below video looks to be the cutter though the announcers call it a changeup) vs his other pitches, but it looks like he was mostly work it in the zone to right handed hitters down and low to the gloveside. There was no velocity on the broadcast, but it looked like the mid to high 80s offering he threw this spring. That location to righties is about where they work Aaron Nola’s cutter to right handed batters and gives him a way to threaten a pitch in the zone away so he can then get chases with his sweeper away or down below the zone with his changeup. With poor fastballs, much of Cabrera’s game is going to be bridging the gap from his fastball in the zone to a chase with the changeup or sweeper, and if he can really work the cutter that can get him from point A to B.
Notes and Thoughts
- Andrew Painter made his first start in AAA, and it wasn’t all great as his command went away towards the end of the 3rd inning. Right now Painter feels more like a collection of pitches than an actual pitcher yet. He is too good for him to end up as a 1 trick arm, but he is going to have to find some signature spots to locate specific pitches so that he can better set up hitters. None of this is anything he can’t do, but it feels like he still needs to figure out who he is.
- On the other side of things, Mick Abel seems to be figuring out who he is. This week was another very good start (7 IP 3 H 1 ER 2 BB 9 K) and he while he slightly tired, he was able to battle and strike out the 3 batters he faced in his last inning. Abel has deemphasized his slider over the last bit, and it looks like Worcester was hunting his offspeed, because he was able to get misses in and out of the zone as well as called strikes with his four seam fastball. His other pitches struggled in the zone, but his slider and sinker limit damage even on contact. It was a good adaptation when they didn’t chase the curveball this week.
- The first truly bad week of the season for Otto Kemp. He went 4-20 on the week with no extra base hits and 11 strikeouts to 4 walks.
- Gabriel Rincones Jr. continues to not hit lefties and not hit for as much power as you would like. He is walking more in May.
- Strikeout rate is slightly ticking down for Justin Crawford, but he is just not hitting for any power and there is no indication in his batted ball data that he is getting unlucky.
- Alirio Ferrebus is one of the only bright spots for the FCL Phillies. He has 4 walks and 4 strikeouts on the season with 3 doubles over 6 games.
- Aaron Combs came back from a suspension to get the two start week. He is only pitching 3 innings at a time, so this week he totaled 6 innings with 2 hits, 2 runs, 2 walks, and 9 strikeouts. He has been very good vs RHB, which is unsurprising given his arsenal, but LHBs have a 1.150 OPS vs him. That is one of the reasons that a reliever projection.
- It has not been a perfect year for Dante Nori, but he now has an ISO of .231 in May thanks in part to this week which include a double, two triples, and his first pro home run. Nori is struggling vs left handed pitching, but he is showing good contact and approach (though a bit passive at times). It would be good to see him run on the bases a bit more.
- Aroon Escobar has now reached the point where has a 2 homer week, but some poor BABIP luck, and it still ends up as a .762 OPS because he is keeping his strikeouts down and drawing walks.
- An injury in the second game of the season caused Keaton Anthony to miss two games, so he only played 3 games, but went 6 for 12 in those games with 3 doubles and a home run. On the season he is hitting .308/.369/.517 and is holding his own on the road and vs RHPs.
- It was another good statistical start for Moises Chace (3.2 IP 2 H 0 R 2 BB 4 K), but not a step forward in stuff.
- I have been a noted non-believer in Robert Moore who struggled dramatically vs LHPs from the right side and hit for no power away from Reading last year. This year, he is getting some home run boost from Reading (1 2B 4 HR @ home, 4 2B 1 HR on the road), but he has not been bad from the right side and this week hit .389/.476/.778 (with all of those previously mentioned road extra base hits). He plays all over the infield and maybe there is a useable utility player in here.
- Last three starts for Alex McFarlane – 12.1 IP 5 H 2 R 0 ER 4 BB 15 K – and his velocity was apparently a little better this time. He also was allowed to work into the 5th inning.
- Michael Mercado is currently running a 9.72 ERA on the season with 6 walks to 10 strikeouts in 8.1 innings or 47 batters faced. This week he had one poor outing, and one dancing out of danger outing. Other than his curveball, all of his pitches are performing well below where they were in 2024, despite little change in movement profile.
Injuries and Transactions
- Danyony Pulido assigned to Clearwater on Rehab
- Victor Cardoza (FCL->CLW->FCL), Carter Mathison (CLW), Yhoan Escalona (LHV), Elio Prado (JS), Josh Hjeka (REA), Wesley Moore (JS), John McMillon (REA), Cesar Mujica (FCL), Andrew Painter (LHV), Nolan Beltran (FCL), Nikau Pouaka-Grego (CLW), Adilson Peralta (CLW), Cole Robert (REA), Cade Fergus (LHV), and Josh Breaux (REA) all assigned to a different level
- 1B/OF Seth Beer signed and assigned to Reading
- 1B/OF Matt Higgins signed and assigned to Jersey Shore
- John Spikerman assigned on rehab to Clearwater, then had rehab returned a day later
- Erubiel Armenta, Payton Henry, and Paul McIntosh activated from IL
- Eli Trop, Nolan Beltran, and Devin Saltiban added to 7-day IL
- Erik Ritchie activated from Development List
Links and Things
Around the Web
- At Triple A, Phillies’ Andrew Painter enters new stage: ‘Think like a big-league pitcher’ – The Athletic – Matt Gelb
- 10 MLB Prospects With Standout Contact, Chase & Exit Velocity Data Early In 2025 – Baseball America – Geoff Pontes
- 5 MLB Prospects Who Just Missed The May 2025 Top 100 Update – Baseball America – Josh Norris
- Phillies’ Aroon Escobar Shows Newfound Power In Low-A – Baseball America – Lochlahn March
- Aroon Escobar once was ‘afraid of playing.’ A ‘Mamba Mentality’ helped him become a rising Phillies prospect. – Inquirer – Alex Coffey
- Phillies minors notes: Justin Crawford’s drive, Otto Kemp’s dream, Moisés Chace’s velo drop – The Athletic – Matt Gelb
Videos and Posts