Players:
Domonic Brown – 26 – MLB
Marlon Byrd – 36 – MLB
John Mayberry Jr – 30 – MLB
Leandro Castro – 24 – AAA
Steve Susdorf – 28 – AAA
Kelly Dugan – 23 – AA (5)
Cameron Perkins – 23 – AA (25)
Anthony Hewitt – 24 – AA
Justin Parr – 23 – A+
Brian Pointer – 22 – A+
Samuel Hiciano – 20 – A- (30)
Larry Greene Jr. – 21 – A-
Dylan Cozens – 19 – A- (12)
Jose Pujols – 18 – SS (17)
Cord Sandberg – 19 – SS (10)
Bryan Martelo – 17 – Rk
Freddy Zorrilla – 19 – Rk

Positional Overview: After many years of struggle Domonic Brown finally arrived in the majors with impact. Unfortunately almost all of his impact was in May, this leaves a lot of questions about his future value. This offseason the Phillies signed Marlon Byrd to match up with Brown in the OF, Byrd is also coming off a bit of a fluky year, but a new swing gives hope that he could be an average regular this year and forward. The farm system lacks an impact bat in the upper minors, and outside of Kelly Dugan it lacks a player with starting potential. Down in the lower minors there are intriguing players with power and good potential. There is a ton of risk there, and it will take some time for us to see how that talent develops.

Kelly Dugan’s Walk Rate: Up until his promotion to Reading, Kelly Dugan‘s numbers were marked by solid walk rates and high BABIPs. In AA that trend ended abruptly, which has left many questioning his hitting approach. Dugan lacks the hand eye coordination to keep his strikeout down, but he is not a hacker. Dugan has shown the ability to work deep counts, and I think we see the strikeout to walk rate balance out as he gets more playing time. If that starts to happen, Dugan profiles as major league regular.

Larry Greene has Been Really Bad:  In 2014, Larry Greene struck out in 35.7% of his ABs and hit the ball with little authority (.090 ISO).  His overall stat line of .213/.306/.303 was boosted by a 12% walk rate, as well as a .345 BABIP.  In the field he was atrocious with very few people thinking that he will end up anywhere but first base long term.  Right now he is still statistically better than Anthony Hewitt, but that might not last long.  There have been reports over the winter and spring that he is both in shape and looking better at the plate.  He is going to need to show his plus raw power in games very soon or he is going to start losing all of his playing time to better players.

The Power in Lakewood: The Lakewood OF has some big human beings (and Carlos Tocci), and these big human beings come with big power. We already have talked about Greene, and he is joined in the LF mix by Samuel Hiciano. Hiciano shows big power and the appearance of an approach, but there is noise in the swing and a limited defensive profile. There is certainly potential here but it comes with a lot risk. The most “famous” of the OF prospects is Dylan Cozens, who sports a giant frame and massive power. There is natural swing and miss due to the size, and he lacks further physical projection despite his youth, but there is intriguing talent. Cozens played some centerfield this spring, but don’t look too much into it, it has more to do with the lack of a true backup for Carlos Tocci in Lakewood than anything else. It is ugly, but workable in RF, bug he is going to need to keep the body in check and improves his route running to not end at first base.

The Bottom Levels:  The Williamsport outfield should be patrolled this year by a pair of teenagers with big upside.  Jose Pujols is the stereotypical all power, raw right fielder.  He has massive raw power, and room to add even more.  He has cleaned up his swing and has an idea of an approach, but still cannot recognize a breaking ball.  There is plenty of potential for bust or stardom here.  In the other corner is Phillies 2013 3rd Round Pick Cord Sandberg.  Sandberg lacks just enough to not stick in CF and have to move to a corner.  In a corner he has the potential to be a plus defender with plus tools across the board, other than hitting ability.  As a two sport athlete he is still really raw at the plate, but he has been making large improvements over his time in pro-ball and he needs reps more than anything else.  It likely won’t happen in 2014, but he could jump to the top echelon of Phillies prospects quickly.