5 Non-40-man prospects to watch in Philadelphia Phillies Spring Training

Erik Miller, Phillies LHP

The Phillies’ top lefty pitching prospect, Erik Miller is expected to debut this season, though he’s never pitched above High-A in their system. The Phillies took the hard-throwing college pitcher in the fourth round of the 2019 draft, and hope he’ll become a valuable part of their rotation in the future.

Injuries limited Miller last season, and he only made five starts. However, over 12 2/3 total innings, he posted a 1.42 ERA, struck out 16 batters, and only allowed two earned runs. He did average almost one walk per inning, so there’s work to be done in that area, but otherwise, he’s a promising part of the Phillies’ next phase.

Johan Rojas, Phillies OF

MLB.com estimates Johan Rojas’ debut to be in 2023, not this year, but the Phillies need outfield depth now. With the lockout, they cannot make any major-league free-agent signings or trades to replace Andrew McCutchen and Odúbel Herrera, and their current outfield section of the depth chart is just Bryce Harper and Matt Vierling.

Rojas is the Phillies’ highest-ranked outfield talent, slotting in at #6 in their top-30 prospects.

Over 96 games between three levels of the system last year, Rojas hit .262/.329/.417 with a .746 OPS. He spent the bulk of the season with Low-A Clearwater, but played 17 games at High-A.

Picked up during the 2017-18 international signing period, Rojas has been praised for his “knack for contact” and aggressivity at the plate. He only struck out 77 times in 96 games in 2021. However, unlike the Phillies pitchers who issue too many walks, Rojas needs to work on drawing more walks, as he stole more bases (34) than walked (33) last year.

The scouting report on him makes it abundantly clear: he has “one of the highest ceilings in the system.”