The Phillies’ top three prospects will be on display at major league spring training in February.
Shortstop Aidan Miller, right-handed pitcher Andrew Painter, and outfielder Justin Crawford, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the top three prospects in the Phillies’ farm system, headline the 23 nonroster spring training invitees announced on Tuesday. This marks the first invites for Miller and Crawford, while Painter previously attended major league camp in 2023 before undergoing Tommy John surgery that July.
Across 102 games between three levels in 2024, Miller slashed .261/.366/.446 with 28 doubles and 11 home runs. The 20-year-old finished the season at double-A Reading after earning a promotion in September.
» READ MORE: Andrew Painter is healthy and pitching again. Here’s how the Phillies are planning for his return in 2025.
Crawford, 21, was named the winner of the Paul Owens Award as the Phillies’ minor leaguer of the year. He split the 2024 season between high-A and double-A, posting a .313 batting average and an .805 OPS. Crawford is fresh off a bronze medal finish at the 2024 WBSC Premier12 tournament, where he started all nine games in center field for Team USA.
Painter’s six Arizona Fall League starts in 2024 marked his first competitive game action since March 2023 as he worked his way back from elbow surgery. Painter, 21, is expected to throw in spring training but will not appear in Grapefruit League games. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said in December that he intends to save Painter’s innings for a midseason call-up to the majors.
Other notable nonroster invitees include outfielder Gabriel Rincones Jr., the Phillies’ No. 10 prospect. Rincones, 23, played 59 games for double-A Reading in 2024, slashing .263/.357/.487. With his regular season limited by injury, he also completed a stint in the Arizona Fall League, where he hit .273 in 22 games for Glendale.
Paul McIntosh, a 27-year-old catcher the Phillies acquired from Miami in December alongside Jesús Luzardo, also received an invite. McIntosh spent last season with the Marlins’ double-A affiliate, where he slashed .246/.340/.385 and had a 23.1% caught stealing rate from behind the plate.
Right-handed pitcher Griff McGarry is a nonroster invitee for the third year in a row. The 25-year-old put up a 4.70 ERA across 29 relief appearances in triple A in 2024.
Also on the list are left-handed pitchers Tristan Garnett and Nick Vespi; right-handers Nabil Crismatt, José Cuas, Joel Kuhnel, John McMillon, Nicholas Padilla, Austin Schulfer, and Guillo Zuñiga; catchers Josh Breaux, Payton Henry, and Caleb Ricketts; infielders Rodolfo Castro, Rafael Lantigua, Carson Taylor, and Otto Kemp; and infielder/outfielder Matt Kroon.
» READ MORE: Phillies avoid arbitration hearings with six players, including Alec Bohm and Ranger Suárez
Source: www.inquirer.com…