Coming off of a division-winning season in 2024, the Philadelphia Phillies find themselves in a surprisingly weird spot as we near the commencement of 2025 spring training. Sure, the club just finished winning 95 games a few months ago, but there's still a fair amount of uncertainty surrounding the organization.
Most of the Phillies' immediate concerns are at the big-league level, but the unfortunate fact is that they don't stop there. Most of the industry's top farm system rankings aren't out just yet, but Bleacher Report's latest from December has the Phillies sitting 23rd in the league, which is far less than ideal.
One particular prospect, Alex McFarlane, is working his way back from a Tommy John surgery that wiped out his entire 2024 campaign. The right-hander made it up to No. 15 in MLB Pipeline's Phillies prospects rankings pre-surgery.
McFarlane, 23, has spent the entirety of his professional career as a starting pitcher, but it sounds like he could take on a new role once he returns to action in 2025.
Phillies prospect may face shift to bullpen after Tommy John recovery
In a recent piece penned by Baseball America, McFarlane got a shoutout as one of the Phillies' top prospects on the cusp of a breakout in 2025 who could fit as a high-leverage reliever (subscription required). The 23-year-old earned praise for his three-pitch mix that's highlighted by a two-seam fastball, slider and split-changeup. All of his offerings come with their fair share of movement, so he's a pitcher with a repertoire worth keeping an eye on.
Of course, as we so often see with pitchers who throw the ball hard with a lot of movement, McFarlane's kryptonite to this point has been his below-average control. In a total of 58 1/3 innings since going pro, he has walked 41 batters, which is good for a 6.3 BB/9. There's no universe where this number, or anything even close to it, would be acceptable in the high minors or at the big league level, so he's going to have to spend considerable time getting his pitches under control if he has any hopes of making it big as a high-leverage reliever.
In 19 games since being selected in the fourth round of the 2022 MLB Draft, McFarlane has gone 0-7 with a 6.17 ERA and 81 strikeouts. He has punched out 12.5 batters per nine innings, which provides a whole lot of hope for his future. The immediate future and handling of his development is going to have to focus solely on getting his control under, well... control.