Brad Penner-USA Today Sports
For the Philadelphia Phillies, the most exciting thing remaining in the 2013 season is the quickly approaching September call-ups. And for the Phillies, who have used the call-ups in the past to help bolster playoff runs, this year might actually be the most important of all.
The Phillies have the opportunity to promote a host of their talented minor league stars that are considered fringe players right now. There is potential and optimism for a handful of the organization’s top players and there is no better time than the present to see if it will pan out. Particularly, this concerns three players, all of whom are currently in the Phillies’ plans for the future.
Jesse Biddle was the top prospect in the organization for the longest time. Drafted out of high school in 2010 and making his minor league debut at age 18, Biddle quickly earned the title of baby ace. He joined a group of other top pitching prospects that included the recently promoted Jonathan Pettibone.
Biddle, who rapidly ascended the minor league system, ran into a bit of a wall this year at Double-A Reading. He has just a 4-12 record and a 3.76 ERA, but he has also had moments of greatness, including an 18-strikeout game and an incredible month of April.
His biggest problem has been control, which has never been an issue for the 21-year-old to this point in his career. What is incredible about Biddle though is his strikeout stuff, which is already considered by some to be major league-ready.
Is he ready to pitch in the rotation next year? No. But would a few September starts hurt his progress though? No. Biddle has been up and down and while he is still young and still has a ways to go, giving him a September call-up seems absolutely the right thing to do.
Then there is Adam Morgan, another young hurler, drafted in 2011 out of Alabama. The 23-year-old Morgan has been in the minors for just two seasons, but he is already pitching at the Triple-A level. Like Biddle, Morgan hasn’t the best year; but also like Biddle, he has incredible stuff and has shown that with 42 strikeouts in 58.1 innings pitched.
An injury derailed him in June, but if healthy, Morgan most definitely needs to join the big league club in September. He seems to be further along than Biddle and considering the state of the current rotation, he could very well get a shot during spring training to make the club. And for the pitcher who got a chance to make a big league spring training start, a September call-up is the next logical step.
That leaves Maikel Franco, the organization’s quickly-ascending top ranked prospect. The 20-year-old, who was nothing more than an average third base prospect with little power and a weak swing before this season, has lit the minors on fire with his torrid 2013 year. On the season, split between Class-A and Double-A, Franco has 24 home runs, 30 doubles and a .314 batting average.
The only problem is that Franco’s position is third base, a place now occupied by a 23-year-old Cody Asche. However, Franco has said that he will switch positions if needed. The likely thought at this point is that his athleticism will enable him to play shortstop, a position at which the Phillies could use a top prospect and future player.
Ruben Amaro Jr. has said that all three of these guys will likely get an invite to spring training, so why not step up the game? The team has nothing to lose and everything to gain if they let Morgan, Biddle and Franco get an early taste of the bigs. Who knows, it might even bring some much-needed excitement back to the weary fan base.
Marilee Gallagher is a baseball writer for www.RantSports.com. You can follow her on Twitter @MGallagher17 like her page on Facebook, or join her network on Google.
