Phillies to send Cornelius Randolph, 8 others to Australia

Former first-round draft pick Cornelius Randolph and at least 11 other Phillies prospects will soon play in Australia.

Some key Philadelphia Phillies prospects have not seen live, professional game action for more than 14 months. With the 2020 minor-league season and Arizona Fall League canceled, that gap will only lengthen as we head into the winter months.

The Phillies are getting creative with several of their prospects in the meantime, however, to help them continue their development. They will send former first-round pick outfielder Cornelius Randolph, utility player Luke Williams, and at least seven others — a mix of position players and pitchers yet to be identified — to Australia to play for the Adelaide Giants in the upcoming 2020-21 Australian Baseball League (ABL) season.

These prospects will not be the only representatives from the organization, however, as Australia-New Zealand area natives and fellow Phillies prospects — first baseman Rixon Wingrove, catcher Mitchell Edwards, and right-handed starting pitcher Kyle Glogoski — will also be on the Giants roster.

Not to mention, Giants head coach Chris Adamson is also the manager of the Phillies’ Class-A affiliate Jersey Shore Blue Claws (formerly the Lakewood BlueClaws).

According to the Giants, no Major League Baseball club has ever sent more players to the ABL team in a single season, since ABL’s 2010 reformation.

It will be interesting to see which other Phillies prospects will travel across the globe with Randolph and Williams; some will reportedly be “top-30 prospects” and “high-end draft picks,” of which Randolph fits the latter description. A weak ABL showing out of the former 10th overall draft pick from 2015 would not hurt his standing in the organization as much as a strong showing would benefit him.

Randolph, 23, has slashed only .255/.343/.376 with 78 doubles, 13 triples, 31 home runs, and 190 RBI through 463 games and 1,867 plate appearances in the Phils’ system. Williams, 24, was drafted the same year, two rounds after Randolph, and too has struggled, slashing only .236/.310/.334 through 440 games.