Five Phillies prospects who could be in majors by end of 2018
By John Town
Joey Meneses
While Joey Meneses isn’t really considered a prospect, he has been a standout in Triple-A and may force his way onto the team at the end of the year. The Phillies signed Meneses as a minor-league free agent prior to the season after he was a MiLB.com organizational All-Star for the Braves last year.
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Meneses is having a great year at the plate for the IronPigs. In 81 games, he has a .300/.344/.520 line with 15 home runs, 50 runs batted in, and a 139 wRC+. He has already set career highs for home runs and RBI. He has been named International League player of the week twice and is a Triple-A All-Star.
Of course, Meneses’s biggest obstacle to the majors is cracking the 40-man roster. Spots are tight but the team may decide Meneses is a better option than Mitch Walding or Roman Quinn. How it all shakes out down the road will remain to be seen.
Another thing limiting Meneses are his defensive limitations.
He has mainly played first base for the IronPigs with some games in right field. The team is placing high precedence on their players being versatile, but by the time Meneses is in the majors, it may not matter as much.
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Even if Meneses isn’t in the prospect conversation, his performance this year has warranted some consideration for making his major-league debut.