Phillies: Top five MLB Draft classes since 1998

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CHICAGO, IL – JULY 25: Cole Hamels #35 of the Philadelphia Phillies throws his final pitch of his no hitter to Kris Bryant #17 of the Chicago Cubson July 25, 2015 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois. Hamels pitched a no hitter and the Phillies won 5-0. (Photo by David Banks/Getty Images) /

Few draft classes have stood out for the Phillies with the exception of these five

Phillies baseball hasn’t seen great days in recent years and much of that has to do with their draft classes. Dating back 20 years the franchise has only seen a handful of successful drafts with multiple major league players emerge out of 40 rounds.

5. 2002, Cole Hamels & Scott Mathieson

Cole Hamels headlines the 2002 draft class for obvious reasons for his efforts in 2008 and beyond. Drafted 17th overall Hamels has been more than the Phillies could have imagined from the lefty out of Rancho Bernadino High School.

Hamels earned his first of four All-Star appearances in his second season and capped the 2007 season by finishing sixth in the Cy Young race. The lefty went on to earn NLCS and World Series MVP honors in 2008, but received zero Cy Young votes.

In 2014 Hamels pitched six innings in a combined no-hitter against the Atlanta Braves and in his final start with the Phillies he no-hit the Cubs on the road.

He’s sixth in franchise history with 114 wins, second in strikeouts per nine innings, fourth in starts, third in strikeouts, and fourth in WAR among pitchers.

Mathieson’s career was much-less heralded as a 17th round pick out of Canada, appearing in just 15 major league games. Making eight starts in 2006 Mathieson was converted to the bullpen and made just six appearances from 2010-11 before the club released him. From 2012-17 Mathieson has pitched in Japan with tremendous success owning a 2.30 ERA in 359 relief appearances.

PHILADELPHIA, PA – SEPTEMBER 30: Ryan Howard /

4. 2001, Ryan Howard & Gavin Floyd

There’s little debate the Ryan Howard being selected with the 140th overall pick is one of the best picks in recent memory. With 382 home runs, second in franchise history, Howard was one of baseball’s most feared power hitters. From 2006-09 Howard’s 198 home runs were more than David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, Jim Thome, Alex Rodriguez, and Prince Fielder.

To put it simply, the Phillies run wouldn’t have happened without the Big Piece in the middle of the lineup. Howard’s achillies injury was the beginning of the end for the Phillies, proving his worth even more.

Floyd’s career wasn’t as decorated as Howards, but he still pitched for 13 seasons in the big leagues. After three years in Philadelphia Floyd was traded to the White Sox, where he’d play seven seasons, for Freddy Garcia. Floyd’s career would take him to Atlanta, Cleveland, and Toronto before his retirement after 2016.

PHILADELPHIA – APRIL 29: Chase Utley #26 of the Philadelphia Phillies gets ready infield in a game against the Florida Marlins on April 29, 2007 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Marlins 6 to 1. (Photo by Len Redkoles/Getty Images) /

3. 2000, Chase Utley & Taylor Buchholtz

What really needs to be said about Chase Utley’s career other than he’s been robbed of multiple Gold Gloves and he’s a borderline Hall of Famer. One of the toughest and most complete players in the last decade Utley arrived to the big leagues in grand fashion.

Doesn’t get much better than that for Mr. Utley, who went on to hit 259 home runs with over 1,000 RBIs and nearly 1,900 hits.

Buchholtz was traded to Houston for Billy Wagner in November 2003 and had a short career of five years going 20-22 in 158 games as a starter and reliever.

PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 27: Rhys Hoskins #17 of the Philadelphia Phillies fist bumps Aaron Nola #27 after the top of the seventh inning against the Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park on April 27, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Braves 7-3. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

2. 2014, Aaron Nola, Rhys Hoskins, Brandon Leibrandt & Damek Tomscha

Recent history has proven to be positive for the Phillies with at least two pieces of the future selected in the 2014 class. Aaron Nola has established himself as a young ace with Cy Young award potential early in his career. Winning 12 games last season Nola has already won seven in 2018 with a 2.18 ERA in 12 starts.

Hoskins looked like an MVP candidate from the end of last season to early 2018 before a month-long slump ended with a fractured jaw. If Hoskins returns to rookie form when he returns in a couple of weeks the Phillies will be both relieved and ecstatic. Even with the month-long slump, he’s averaging a home run every four games in his career.

CLEARWATER, FL – FEBRUARY 20: Brandon Leibrandt #69 of the Philadelphia Phillies poses for a portrait on February 20, 2018 at Spectrum Field in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images) /

Leibrandt and Tomscha are working their ways up through the system with Tomscha recently joining his classmate in Lehigh Valley. The lefty Leibrandt has bounced between the pen and rotation all season with a 1.09 ERA in 13 games, four being starts. He allowed zero runs in his first 27 innings of the season with 16 strikeouts for the IronPigs.

Tomscha hit .302 with nine home runs for Reading before being promoted to Lehigh Valley. The third baseman has two hits in his first three games and is a career .283 hitter since being drafted out of Auburn in the 17th round.

Pitcher Matt Imhof was the Phillies second-round pick, but a training accident resulted in the loss of his right eye.

SAN FRANCISCO – AUGUST 9: Pat Burrell #5 of the Philadelphia Phillies hits his second home run of the day against the San Francisco Giants during a game at Pac Bell Park on August 9, 2003 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images) /

1. 1998, Pat Burrell, Ryan Madson, Jason Michaels, Nick Punto, Geoff Geary

The 1998 draft class is hands down the greatest class in Phillies history, producing five major league players. The first two players were cornerstones of the franchise while the other three became solid journeymen major leaguers.

Burrell was the first overall pick in 1998 out of the University of Miami, and the first number one overall selection in Phillies history. Drafted as a third baseman Burrell became the everyday left fielder early in his career, joining the Phillies in 2000. A candidate for both Rookie of the Year and MVP in his career Burrell hit 251 home runs for the Phillies over nine seasons and was the veteran bat in a potent 2008 lineup.

Madson was the perfect setup man for the Phillies after bouncing between the rotation and pen early in his career. He’s one of four members of the 2008 team still in the major leagues, and is now working as a reliever for the Nationals at 37-years-old.