Two young stars are budding for the Phillies in the Arizona Fall League
Phillies fans were disappointed when top prospect Sixto Sanchez was pulled from the Arizona Fall League, but there are plenty of prospects to keep an eye on.
Eight Phillies prospects are on the Scottsdale Scorpions in the Arizona Fall League, an extension of the minor league season featuring some of the top young players in baseball.
Two of Philadelphia’s representatives are off to a hot start four games into the year, pitcher Luke Leftwich and first baseman Darick Hall.
Leftwich was drafted in the seventh round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of Wofford College. Philadelphia let Leftwich start in his first two seasons with Williamsport and Clearwater, but he’s converted to a reliever.
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
Last year with Reading Leftwich had a 3.73 ERA in 44 games, but he’s off to a much better start in Arizona.
In his first four games Leftwich has thrown 5.2 shutout innings with eight strikeouts and two walks. He’s allowed just three hits, two walks and left hitters with a .150 batting average. The righty could return to Reading to start next year and potentially make a jump to Philadelphia if an injury in the big leagues calls for it.
Hall was a 14th round pick in 2016 out of Bueno High School in Arizona, three hours north of his Arizona Fall League home. The home cooking must be helping Hall, who is hitting .292 with two home runs in six games.
Last season was a slight disappointment from an overall production standpoint for Hall despite the 26 home runs between Reading and Clearwater. He hit just .244 with 118 strikeouts in 128 games. As Phillies fans have come to learn, the power numbers of players in Reading can be deceiving, highlighted by Darin Ruff and Dylan Cozens.
Another notable name for Philadelphia fans in the Fall League is Austin Listi, who took home the Paul Owens award for the best Phillies prospect in 2018 after hitting .312 for Clearwater and Reading. The outfielder is hitting .261 and coming off a game where he went 3-6 with an RBI and two runs scored in Arizona.
The biggest disappointment thus far in the Fall League has been shortstop Arquemedes Gamboa, the organization’s 11th overall prospect, per MLB Pipeline. Gamboa is hitting just .208 in eight games, though he has walked seven times and struck out just eight.