Six Phillies prospects make Baseball America's Top 100
The Phillies farm system is the richest it has been in quite some time, and that was evident on Friday morning when six of the team's prospects were named to Baseball America's Midseason Top 100 list.
Here is a look at the Phillies prospects who made the cut:
3. J.P. Crawford, shortstop. Crawford entered Friday batting .352 with a .398 on-base percentage in 91 at-bats since June 15. He is starting to look comfortable at triple A and could join the Phillies as early as next month. The Phillies named him their minor-league defender of the month for June. Baseball Prospectus ranked Crawford earlier this week as the sport's No. 1 prospect. Preseason Baseball America rank: 6.
40. Nick Williams, outfielder. Williams singled Thursday night and now has a hit in 20 of his last 21 games. He is batting .300 with a .333 on-base percentage over that 90 at-bat stretch at triple A. Williams seems to have put last month's benching episode behind him. He also could join the Phillies before the end of the season. Preseason Baseball America rank: 27.
62. Jake Thompson, righthanded pitcher. Thompson has been dominant after a rough start to his first season in triple A. He has 0.73 ERA in his last seven starts with 27 strikeouts and 12 walks in 49.1 innings. Thompson has limited hitters to a .206 batting average and allowed just one homer during that stretch. He will likely be the next pitcher to join the rotation once a vacancy opens. Preseason Baseball America rank: 75.
67. Jorge Alfaro, catcher. Alfaro has cooled off a bit after his scorching start to the season, which was slowed by an oblique strain. He is batting .237 with a .308 on-base percentage over his last 29 games. Alfaro batted .336 with a .346 on-base percentage in his first 29 games. His power numbers have stayed consistent as Alfaro has hit seven of his 11 homers since June 1 and is slugging .475 in his last 29 games. He has also made great strides with both his game calling and defense. Preseason Baseball America rank: Unranked.
80. Andrew Knapp, catcher. Knapp is starting to come around after a slow start to his first triple-A season. He is batting .298 since June 1 with a .360 on-base percentage. The switch hitter entered Friday with a hit in five of his last six games. Preseason Baseball America rank: 96.
96. Franklyn Kilome, righthanded pitcher. Kilome continues to intrigue during a key developmental season. The 21-year-old is going through his first full minor-league season as he pitches for single-A Lakewood. He has a 4.97 ERA in 14 starts, but his numbers are inflated by three awful starts to begin the season. Kilome has a 3.14 ERA in his last 11 starts and has allowed two runs or fewer in seven of them. He is also racking up strikeouts with 31 in his last 25 innings. Preseason Baseball America rank: Unranked.