Phillies: Busts, bloomers, and bluechip prospects of the last decade
Phillies 2012 Prospects
Top 5: Jesse Biddle, Brody Colvin, Tommy Joseph, Larry Greene, Phillipe Aumont
Bust: Larry Greene
Surprise: Cody Asche
We’ll get to Jesse Biddle later, but Larry Greene was a colossal bust, maybe one of the worst in team history.
Greene was a supplementary first-round pick out of Nashville, Georgia and began is career in A ball, but could not hit professional pitching. He bottomed out of pro ball in 2014, never playing above Single-A.
A few picks after Greene? All-Star Trevor Story, followed by Blake Snell.
Cody Asche came in with lower expectations, but churned out a few years in the big leagues, albeit when the Phillies were in free fall after the 2008 ERA. He’s stuck around in pro ball up until this year, with some independent league stints in between.
Phillipe Aumont is a name most have forgotten, but he had closer written all over him, until we found out he couldn’t hit the ocean from 10 feet off the shoreline.
Phillies 2013 Prospects
Top 5: Jesse Biddle, Maikel Franco, Roman Quinn, J.P. Crawford, Tommy Joseph
Bust: Jesse Biddle
Surprise: Andrew Pullin
Jesse Biddle did eventually make it to the big leagues, but not the way the Phillies envisioned. A local kid out of Germantown High, Biddle had the makings of an excellent starting pitcher, with three plus pitches despite never possessing an excellent fastball.
Jesse couldn’t put it all together for the Phillies, suffering multiple long-term injuries and failing to execute when healthy. He was let go in 2015, was out of baseball for year, then made a comeback with the Braves. He’s been a relief arm in the show for a few teams, but has yet to find success.
Andrew Pullin was a young outfielder with loads of potential, but retired at 24 years old after struggling in Triple-A. Pullin played only 100 games at the AAA level, but decided that he wasn’t good enough to make it.
Tommy Joseph has appeared twice in the Top-5 category without mention; he’s now in AA with the Red Sox. This year was also the beginning of the Maikel Franco-J.P. Crawford hype train.