Once promising Philadelphia Phillies prospect Griff McGarry saw yet another example of how much he has to prove heading into the 2025 season. In the 2021 MLB Draft, the Phillies selected McGarry with the 145th overall pick in the 5th round.
After being selected in the draft, he was highly regarded, checking in at No.3 in the Phillies' 2023 MLB Pipeline prospect rankings before dropping to No. 11 in 2024. This season, in the new Phillies' Top 30 prospects released recently by MLB Pipeline, the right-hander saw yet another drop, just cracking the Top 30 at No. 30. He was the biggest faller on the rankings list for this season.
Phillies prospect Griff McGarry dropped from No. 3 all the way to No. 30 after some down seasons
McGarry, 25, saw a promising start to his minor league campaign in 2021, throwing 24 1/3 innings with a 2.96 ERA. He followed that with a 3.71 ERA in 27 games and 87 1/3 innings of work in 2022. His highly disappointing season in 2023 featured a 6.00 ERA in 17 starts, allowing 44 runs in 60 innings of work.
The organization, still trying to give McGarry a shot with the team, tried to send him to the bullpen last year, where he still could not find his rhythm. He finished the year with 30 appearances, all out of the bullpen. He finished with 17 runs in 31 2/3 innings for a 4.55 ERA. His most concerning part is not consistently throwing strikes, finishing with 36 walks for a career 6.8 BB/9 rate.
McGarry's change in delivery could lead to bounce back season
McGarry is still hitting 94-97 mph on his fastball, so the hope is that he can have a bounce-back season and start developing into the prospect the Phillies expected when he was drafted. In the Arizona Fall League (AFL), he moved back to being a starter in some games, including four of his five appearances. He finished with a 2-0 record and a 3.75 ERA in the AFL, throwing 12 innings and allowing five runs.
The biggest thing McGarry needs to find in 2025 is consistency in the strike zone, limiting his walks to find his way back to being a productive pitcher. In the offseason, he made adjustments to his delivery in hopes of finding more of the zone heading into the season.
McGarry was a non-roster invitee to spring training this season, where the struggles have continued. He threw 1 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on four hits with four strikeouts and two walks. He made it through the first set of roster cuts but was reassigned to minor league camp on March 8, so his bounce-back will have to continue from there.