Dave Dombrowski recently said that he’s focused on the complementary players at this point with the Phillies roster and not so much on star chasing. The bulk of the roster, and especially the everyday players are pretty much set in stone.
But the best teams in the league, the teams that excel in the regular season and go deep into the playoffs, are the teams with deep roster depth. That includes a thriving and contributing farm system.
Year after year, organizations call down to their Double- and Triple-A teams for reinforcements and those players need to step up for the big league team to succeed. You can see it the most with consistently successful organizations like the Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, and now the Baltimore Orioles. Teams that seemingly always have a minor league player to be called upon and deliver in the brightest of moments.
With few exceptions, the Phillies haven’t had much success from their minor league system in recent years. But the last couple of years has seen prospects rise in MLB Pipeline's Top 100 ranks and make some noise that they're ready to contribute. Dombrowski and general manager Sam Fuld have already reiterated the importance of having less expensive complementary players like Bryson Stott, Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh, and Cristopher Sánchez because of the many high-priced star players already on the team.
Who from the Phillies farm system will step up and be that guy in 2024? There are a number of players from the 40-man roster, Triple-A, and even Double-A, who will almost definitely be given a shot at some point this season.
Let’s look at some of those players and what they can offer the big-league team.