Phillies Post-2016 Top Prospect Rankings: 26-30
By John Town
No. 30: Second Baseman Jesmuel Valentin
The Phillies acquired Jesmuel Valentin in the 2014 Roberto Hernandez trade from the Dodgers. His high school teammate was Astros shortstop Carlos Correa, so Valentin manned second from the get-go.
2015 was a lost year for Valentin due to a suspension related to a domestic violence incident. While the charges were dropped, Valentin still served his suspension and expressed regret over the incident. Valentin told Jay Floyd of Phillies Nation:
"“That process was a hard time, definitely. All I was thinking about was just my career. All I was thinking was my career- definitely, everything is just over with…but definitely it has not only helped me with my out-of-baseball life but definitely in baseball too. Just one of those things that I don’t wish nobody has to go through that…but definitely I just– sometimes I cannot control stuff like that, but I just take it– I might– my suspension I already served it so just treat it like a learning situation for my life.” More from Phillies Prospects Prospect Andrew Baker could help Phillies bullpen in 2023 Phillies manager suggests Andrew Painter could make Opening Day roster Phillies No. 1-ranked prospect Andrew Painter receives national accolade Phillies top prospect Andrew Painter continues to dominate Philadelphia Phillies prospects thriving is a positive sign for the future"
Off-the-field issues aside, Valentin finished the 2015 season strong with a .775 OPS in 31 games for Double-A Reading. He started 2016 back in Reading, getting on base at an above-average clip with a .346 OBP, but his power lacked with a .399 slugging percentage.
Valentin’s performance took a dive after a late-July promotion to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
His batting average dropped to .248 with a .706 OPS in 36 Triple-A games. While his walk rate remained the same at 9.8%, his strikeout rate climbed to 19.5%. While that strikeout rate is by no means bad, Valentin can’t afford that number worsening.
If Valentin reaches the majors, it will be because of his hit tool. It is already solid-average, and there is the slim hope Valentin can tap into his fringey raw powers to hit ten or so home runs a year.
Defensively, Valentin often gets the label as a utility infielder. The problem is he isn’t a particularly good defender at shortstop, which could prevent him from being a full-fledged utility man. Unless Valentin makes major strides defensively, his defense will really have to carry his defense.