Six Phillies prospects named South Atlantic League All-Stars
Six Phillies prospects with Low-A Lakewood were named to the South Atlantic League All-Star team. Four of Lakewood’s five starters were named All-Stars.
The Low-A South Atlantic League announced their 2018 All-Stars this week, and six Phillies prospects were named to the team. Four Lakewood pitchers, lefties Will Stewart and Kyle Dohy and righties Ramon Rosso and Addison Russ, as well as infielders Nick Maton and Jake Scheiner, were all selected.
Maton is the only player named an All-Star who is a Top 30 prospect according to MLB.com. He was just added to the list when J.P. Crawford and Scott Kingery graduated to the majors this year. Otherwise, none of the players were considered top prospects heading into the season.
As a whole, Lakewood’s pitching staff has been utterly dominant this season. The team has the lowest ERA (2.56) and third-lowest WHIP (1.16) in the SAL. Of the top five ERA leaders in the league, four are BlueClaws: Stewart, David Parkinson, Rosso, and Damon Jones.
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Stewart is having a breakout season with the BlueClaws. He was a 20th round pick in 2015, spending the last three years in short-season ball. He leads the SAL with a 1.23 ERA and 0.85 WHIP. Stewart has walked eight batters and struck out 53 in 58.2 innings. His last start on May 30 was a complete game shutout with a season-high 10 strikeouts.
Rosso originally signed with the Dodgers in 2015 but was released a year later.
The Phillies signed him in 2016, and he pitched his way up to short-season Williamsport last year. Everything is coming together for him this year as he has a 1.44 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, and 4.50 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His 63 strikeouts this year rank sixth in the league.
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Dohy, a 16th-round pick last year, has made 19 appearances out of the bullpen this year. He has 14 walks in 27 innings but has counteracted that with a whopping 51 strikeouts. He certainly has dominant stuff but needs to rein in his command.
Russ, not to be confused with Chicago’s Addison Russell, is in his second season with Lakewood. He had good numbers last year after being selected in the 19th round but is pitching even better this year. In 20 relief appearances, he has a 0.98 ERA and just three walks in 27.2 innings.
Moving onto Maton, the team’s No. 30 overall prospect, has been performing okay but not amazing this season. The 2017 seventh-rounder has a .267/.326/.385 line with three home runs and 15 runs batted in. His 101 wRC+ indicates he is only around league-average, yet he still was named an All-Star.
Scheiner was Philadelphia’s fourth-round pick last year. He has racked up 19 extra-base hits in 52 games, including seven home runs. Scheiner has a .773 OPS and 118 wRC+ this season for the BlueClaws. Both are best among qualified hitters on the team.
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While Maton is the only player among this group who is a top prospect, considering their strong seasons, a few others may make their way into the conversation.