3 Phillies prospects make exciting jumps up updated MLB Pipeline Top 100

MLB Pipeline recently released their updated Top 100 Prospect list and quite a few Philadelphia Phillies prospects have seen their stock rise.

Players who started the season on their team's Opening Day rosters have officially timed out their 45-day prospect window prospect and have graduated to MLB players. Some significant players to graduate off the Top 100 list include two who recently earned massive extensions: the Detroit Tigers' Colt Keith and the Milwaukee Brewers' Jackson Chourio.

At the beginning of 2024, the Phillies had four players in the Top 100, including top pitching prospects Andrew Painter and Mick Abel as well as the top two hitting prospects Aidan Miller and Justin Crawford. After impressive performances and the graduation of quite a few players, three Phillies have climbed up the rankings, with a new face inside the Top 50.

Andrew Painter, No. 20 (prev. No. 27)

A jump up the board for a pitcher who hasn't thrown one inning in 2024, Andrew Painter finds himself in the Top 20 in the rankings update. The 21-year-old went down in July of last season with UCL damage and Tommy John surgery. Since then, he has been off the field, with his first throws coming in January of this year.

As hyped as Painter was at the time, the Phillies front office and Painter's team decided it was best to shut him down for the full length of recovery. This means it's unlikely we'll see him on a mound in 2024 (subscription required) while he rehabs, according to The Athletic's Matt Gelb. But that hasn't cooled off his momentum, and the Florida native is continuing to get respect from the baseball world.

Painter moves up the list seven spots, the smallest jump of the three Phillies prospects. His rise to No. 20 comes on the back of his limited production in his two years of professional baseball and his elite upside recognized by scouts across the league.

The big right-hander holds a 1.48 ERA in his professional career across four levels, the highest being Double-A. In his 26 starts, Painter has pitched 109 2/3 innings, striking out an incredible 167 batters with only 25 walks and a career WHIP of 0.875.

His 20th-overall ranking is nothing unusual for the former 13th overall draft pick in 2021. Entering 2023, Painter was Baseball America's No. 5 prospect and started the season as MLB Pipeline's No. 6 prospect.

His 70-grade fastball and 65-grade control keep him among the top-ranked pitching prospects in the league. Coming out of high school scouts already knew how well his velocity and command would play.

Due to injuries, his prospect status dropped as newer, more hyped players like the Tigers' Jackson Jobe made big leaps. That being said, with players graduating, underperforming, and figuring things out, Painter climbs closer to the top of the rankings, putting him in a great spot come the beginning of 2025 with a recovered and healthy arm.

Justin Crawford, No. 65 (prev. No. 77)

The third Phillies first-round draft pick to make the jump up MLB Pipeline's Top 100 prospect rankings, Justin Crawford, much like Miller has been outstanding in his short stint in professional baseball.

Son of long-time MLB veteran Carl Crawford, Justin has a lot of similar skills to his dad. Coming out of the 2022 Draft, Crawford's 75-grade speed and 60-grade fielding made his floor much higher than most. The Phillies saw a potential defensive wizard but the Las Vegas native's contact skills have been what have caused him to start gaining traction.

Over his 129 games in the minors, Crawford is hitting .317 with an on-base percentage of over .400. In this most recent season of 2024, the center fielder is hitting .308 with 32 hits, nine walks and 18 runs scored hitting primarily in the one or two spot in the Jersey Shore BlueClaws' order. He adds on 68 stolen bases in his career, totaling just under a stolen base for every two games played.

Already ranked as the fastest player in the minor leagues, it has been crucial for Crawford to show some development on the hitting side as he begins his trek up to the majors. With consistent contact and not much swing and miss, Crawford is able to use his elite speed to steal hits and extra bases.

In his nine games so far during May, Crawford has 13 hits with five multi-hit games, including a 4-for-4 performance against the Wilmington Blue Rocks.

The 20-year-old has a bright future ahead of him with skills that can keep him around for a long time, much like his father. His MLB pedigree, elite running and defensive skills, and a bat that could develop into a top-end leadoff hitter in the majors make him an increasingly valuable prospect, as shown by his 12-spot jump up MLB Pipeline's Top 100 list.