January 24, 2026
Jonathan Dyer/Imagn Images
Andrew Painter is expected to make the MLB roster out of spring training.
The Phillies have been criticized of late for having a top-heavy farm system, and MLB.com's most recent pre-season rankings of the sport's top 100 prospects more or less confirms that.
Lagging behind 14 teams that have at least four players on the list, three Phillies youngsters — all recent first round picks — are on the latest top 100.
Somewhat surprisingly, infielder Aidan Miller (23rd) beat out pitching phenom Andrew Painter (28th) for the honor of being the best in the farm system.
Miller spend two weeks in Lehigh Valley with the Triple-A Iron Pigs at the end of last season but spent most of 2025 in Reading. He's been invited to spring training next month but barring an unexpected injury to an infielder he'll be in Triple-A again to begin 2026. The 21-year-old slashed .264/.392/.433 with 59 stolen bases in his last campaign.
Painter has long been the best prospect in the Phillies farm system, and the big righty has a direct path to a spot in the big league rotation if he has a decent showing in Clearwater. But he struggled in 2025 as he tried to get his stamina up for the rigors of a full season (following Tommy John surgery in 2023) — he had a 5-8 record with a 5.26 ERA. He still had an impressive 11.46 strikeout to walk rate.
The final of the three touted 20-somethings is J.P. Crawford (53rd), another Phillies' prospect with an opening in the majors in front of him. The 22-year-old hit .311 over 112 games in Triple-A with a solid glove in centerfield. He has a good chance of breaking camp as a starter in center or a corner outfield spot.
Missing the MLB's list, perhaps surprisingly, is last year's first rounder Gage Wood, a college star who could be on a fast track to the majors. Aroon Escobar did land on the site's list of top 10 second base prospects (at 7th) but isn't in the top 100 either.
Dante Nori and Gabriel Rincones are two other noteworthy prospects who will be in spring training next month and will be ranked among the franchise's top 10 when the season starts.
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