On Wednesday night, the Philadelphia Phillies finally made the big move that officially sent them into rebuilding mode. The Phillies sent ace Cole Hamels to the Texas Rangers in return for six players, five of which are currently in the minors. This deal comes off of the heels of the one that transpired on Tuesday, where the Phillies sent closer Jonathan Papelbon to the Washington Nationals in exchange for RHP Nick Pivetta, a AA prospect.
The deal between the Rangers and Phillies is as follows:
Rangers Receive:
LHP Cole Hamels
LHP Jake Diekman (MLB)
Phillies Receive:
LHP Matt Harrison (MLB)
C Jorge Alfaro (AA)
RHP Alec Asher (AAA)
RHP Jerad Eickhoff (AAA)
RHP Jake Thompson (AA)
OF Nick Williams (AA)
Over the course of two days, the Phillies have managed to add six new pitchers and two very good bats to their organization. Matt Harrison, who is recently coming off of a back injury, will most likely be thrown into the starting rotation immediately, joining the likes of Jerome Williams and Aaron Harang, two pitchers who are of similar caliber. However, there are still the six prospects the Phillies acquired that can find a way to mold into their future roster.
The two big names from the Hamels deal are C Jorge Alfaro and RHP Jake Thompson.
Highly rated prospects
Alfaro is currently Double-A with, well was with, the Frisco RoughRiders and is ranked as the second best catching prospect in the minors, according to MLB.com. What made Alfaro such a coveted prospect was his power and his arm strength. Alfaro can drive a ball out of any ballpark, but his biggest problem is aggressiveness. He bats too aggressively at the plate, shown in his .253 batting average, and will not take many pitches, which sounds very much like a certain Phillies first baseman. Behind the plate, Alfaro can gun anybody out with his arm but his skills still needs to be refined to become a star in the majors. At 22 years old, there is still plenty of time for this to happen, and very well can.
Thompson is the piece that a lot of people are excited about. He is also in Double-A with Alfaro and is ranked 60th overall in the top 100 prospects in the minors, nine spots ahead of Alfaro. Thompson has a very good fastball that will be in the range of 90-93 mph, and has peaked around 95 mph. However, Thompson’s best weapon is his slider, which he has very good command over and can hit around 87 mph. Thompson also has a decent curveball and changeup in his arsenal of pitches. Thompson has the potential to become a very good number two starter, but could also be a number three starter. Either way, at 21 years old, Thompson has shown the stuff to come possibly this season in the 40 man roster, and will most likely find himself in the starting rotation full time next season alongside Aaron Nola and Adam Morgan.
Another big potential prospect in this deal is OF Nick Williams. Williams, another guy with the RoughRiders in Double-A can do a lot of things. Williams, the 64th best prospect according to MLB.com, has developed very good plate discipline this season, which turned him into a .300 hitter. Williams also has a high bat speed and power, which allows him to smash any ball he can make contact with. Though his batting is his strong suit, Williams is also quick on his feet, mainly in the field but not so much on the basepaths. In the field, Williams plays well in all three outfield positions, but prefers left field the most. He can throw the ball well, not like Yasiel Puig but still pretty well, and is still only 21 years old. Williams seems like a Ben Revere type player, except Williams can hit the ball out of the park more than three times. He can very easily find himself in the majors next year as a core part of the Phillies outfield.
Loads of potential
Looking at the other three prospects, each of them have similar potentials. Nick Pivetta has the stuff to turn into a back end of the rotation starter, but it’ll be some time before he finds himself in the majors (2017 or 2018). His fastball is his strongest pitch, but the rest of his game still needs to be fine-tuned. Jerad Eickhoff is the most Major League ready pitching prospect. Currently in AAA, Eickhoff has an amazing fastball that can hit 97 mph and he also has great control over it. Eickhoff can develop one of two ways. One, he can stick with being a starter and be a third or fourth starter for the team come September this season or the start of next season. Or, two, he can convert to be a middle reliever if he has trouble with control of his other pitcher. Either way, Eickhoff gives the Phillies another reason to be excited, despite already being 25 years old. As for Alec Asher, he is a very consistent pitcher, so you know what you are going to get out of him. Asher has very good control over his pitcher, but does not have that one pitch as a quality go-to pitch. Asher can be a very good innings eater, whether it be as a starter or a reliever, most likely the latter.
Not to mention, the Phillies still have some pretty good prospects of their own who can find their way to majors soon.
It’s kind of hard not to mention SS J.P. Crawford when talking about Phillies’ prospect. Crawford ranks 6th overall in top prospects and 2nd best at shortstop. Crawford is an all-around star in the making. His fielding is impeccable and he has a cannon for an arm. He might not have a pop in his swing, but he can make contact with the ball and get on base. Crawford is also speedy and can swipe bases. Crawford might have been drafted in 2013, but he can very well find himself in Philadelphia very soon.
Aaron Nola is still technically a prospect, but he is in the majors already and has been commanding in his first two starts. His fastball and changeup are both very good and his command and control of the ball are also very good for someone at his age. His three pitch arsenal is unique, with his slider becoming another strong pitch. Nola’s three quarter’s delivery adds movement on all of his pitches, something setting him apart from other pitchers. Nola spent only a short time in the minors and it is hard to see him going back down.
One player that has very high potential but hasn’t been mentioned is Roman Quinn. Quinn has had two injures since entering the Phillies system, most recently his torn hip flexor. When Quinn was healthy back in June, he was becoming a very good prospect. Quinn has speed that could not be matched by anybody, helping him out in the outfield and on the basepaths. Quinn also has a very strong arm and can field the ball very well. He doesn’t have too much power but can still make contact and get on base. Quinn is a more accurate comparison to Ben Revere than Nick Williams, but having two Ben Reveres isn’t a bad thing.
How could they line up down the line?
Looking down the road, the Phillies are set at most of the positions for the future. After this trade, they have a starting rotation that could have Nola, Morgan, Thompson, and Eickhoff by mid-2016. In the infield, they have Maikel Franco at third, J.P. Crawford at short (sorry Freddy Galvis), Cesar Hernandez at second (sorry again Galvis), and no one at first who can be a set piece for years to come. Looking to the outfield, they now have Williams for left field, Odubel Herrera in center (hopefully who can make more plays like this), and possibly Roman Quinn in right, even though he is mainly a center fielder, if he can return fully healthy. And behind the plate, they can now turn to Alfaro to call the game for most of the young guns.
Assuming everybody pans out the way they plan to, the Phillies can be back in winning form come 2017. The future for the Phillies is looking very bright. While it might be hard to part with the 2008 World Series team, they can look forward to a potential 2018 World Series team.