An inside look at the Phillies top prospects.
(MLBPipeline lists the top 30 prospects on each team’s website. While biding time waiting for baseball to resume, Steve Potter will provide his views of these young players. A Clearwater resident, his passion is seeing and following these prospects in person. Normally, Spectrum Field and Carpenter Complex are his second homes. His 4th Annual Phillies Minor League Digest is on sale at www.amazon.com.)
SS Luis Garcia
Phillies # 6 prospect according to MLB.com … 19 years old … signed 7/2/2017 ... from San Pedro De Marcoris, Dominican Republic
Luis has tremendous defensive skills ; range, arm, reads, first step and very soft hands. When other players turn their heads on plays you know that the young man has special tools ... when a legend like Larry Bowa also heaps praise it’s even more evident, Luis is a joy to watch whether at shortstop or second base.
Offensively he won a GCL batting title at just 17 years of age, he’s a switch hitter and possesses above average bat speed, he definitely needs to add strength to drive the baseball at a higher exit velocity than we witnessed in the GCL but he’s still a teenager so hopefully that will come. Last season he struggled in the South Atlantic League, particularly with off speed deliveries ... he had a great Fall Instructs though ... skillset is there to succeed ... patience is key
Projection : the defensive capabilities are perhaps unparalleled at present in the organization, he’s at or near the top of the rung in that category. Offensively I see the tools to be an above average hitter ... a gap to gap type with speed also as a weapon. It’s harder to project teenagers, my thoughts this spring were that Luis would benefit immensely with a repeat season at Lakewood ... continued development is key. He’s got big league tools for sure and a sparkling smile to go along with it ... I’ve got a feeling he will get to the show in a few years and do quite well.
Luis Garcia - Photo by Michael Dill