When Brian Barber’s third draft as Phillies amateur scouting director was complete, he looked at a full list of the club’s 19 picks and was a little surprised. It’s not as if the Phillies were intentional in drafting more hitters (11) than pitchers (eight). That is just how the board fell — there were so many injured pitchers and the talent pool, as a whole, was a tick weaker than in past years.
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“This draft was just weird,” Barber said last month.
The result: The player the Phillies drafted in the 11th round received the second-highest signing bonus. Emaarion Boyd’s $647,500 bonus is believed to be the largest the Phillies have ever given to a player outside of the first 10 rounds of the draft. Josh Stephen signed for $600,000 as an 11th-round pick in 2016. Jarred Cosart signed for $550,000 as a 38th-rounder in 2008.
It’s a big number. Boyd’s bonus was the equivalent of a mid-third-rounder’s. The Phillies lacked a second-round pick — they forfeited it for signing Nick Castellanos in free agency — so they searched for ways to be creative. As they plotted how to draft and allocate their bonus pool, they trusted the information gathered by their 19 area scouts on the ground. They are the Phillies employees who know the draftees better than anyone. The draft is merely the culmination of years-long work.
Here, in the Phillies scouts’ words, are seven of this year’s picks.
First round (No. 17): Justin Crawford, CF, Bishop Gorman (Nev.) High
Scout: Zach Friedman
Justin Crawford (Abbie Parr / Associated Press)I saw it the first time I ever saw him play, to be honest with you. He just stood out. I was there to see another prospect on their team, the Astros’ pick in the third round (last year, Tyler Whitaker). And (Crawford) stood out right away. It was everything about him. The way he moved around. The athleticism. The way he swung the bat. How the hands worked offensively. You saw him make an amazing play in center field. You saw him run the bases.
I saw him 25 times over the last two years. I think the biggest thing with him is each time I saw him play, he always did something. Like it might not be, go 4-for-4, but he might go 1-for-4 and make an amazing play in the outfield. Or he might go 2-for-4 and steal a couple of bags and do a few things that make you go, “Wow.” I just think there are so many things to like about him as a player and as a person.
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We did our in-home visit in November or December of this past year. Sat down with him and his mom. Amy’s fantastic as well. Got to know them and, shoot, I left that house and made a few phone calls and said, “Hey, he’s the real deal. He’s the real deal on the field and the real deal off the field.”
It was the maturity level. His self-awareness. His ability to understand his own weaknesses, to understand his own strengths. What he wants to do. What his attack plans are. He was just so complex, but also refined in his thinking process. I mean, I just walked out of there like, “That was one of the best (home visits) I’ve ever done.” So it was a really cool experience.
He was just kind of always that player for me. So I just hoped that I put him up high enough where everyone else wanted to come see him. “Let’s see what Zach sees.” I think, throughout the organization, a lot of people saw that. He wasn’t going to go 4-for-4 every day, but he was going to do something where you’re going to walk out of the ballpark and go, “Oh. That’s pretty good.”
People don’t give him enough credit for how much he does right now, to be honest with you. I mean, I’ve always seen he can hit. He has really good hitter hands for me. His ability to use his hands at the plate are what I think is his best trait offensively. And I think that’s a God-given ability, to be honest with you.
It helps, of course, that his dad played in the big leagues for 15 years. Four All-Star teams. He was a dynamic player for a few years. Made a lot of money as well. So, I mean, it definitely helps. But, for me, if his last name was something different, I don’t think it would have changed my opinion if I wanted to take him (at No. 17) or not.
Related: Justin Crawford — ‘Blazing fast,’ Vegas roots and a big-league dad
Third round (No. 93): Gabriel Rincones Jr., OF, Florida Atlantic
Scout: Victor Gomez
It was two years of hitting over .400 in junior college. Sometimes you don’t want to overthink it. Hitters hit. Coming into the spring, I kind of took that as a good first impression. I wanted to see how he would handle, obviously, some better arms this year (after transferring to FAU). He was hitting in a primary spot in the lineup. He was going to get challenged. And I thought he did a really good job of not just hitting for some power. He was real good when he gets two strikes. He knows the advantage counts when he can go and be aggressive.
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The approach started separating itself. It’s a real good one to be able to hit. He’s a strong, physical kid that can hit for some power as well.
He’s got a good mind and understands his body real well. He’s going to take those traits of still being a hitter, but combine maybe a little bit more power with his approach. The competitor within him is going to make some adjustments naturally. But he really loves to hit, man, and he doesn’t like striking out. He’ll tell you. He likes drawing his walks and he likes having quality ABs. I think sometimes in this game, we’ve gotten away from some of those real important concepts.
His dad played a little bit, then worked on the oil rigs and such in Venezuela. His jobs moved them around. Gabe also lived in Scotland for a while. He took on jujitsu and judo. Different kinds of sports with his hands. So, yeah, he’s got a real interesting background. He was born in Florida. He’s got a unique personality, man. It’s a lot of good qualities. He’s humble but confident. He’s seen a lot and he has a lot of information.
He moved around to play some center field. He made some good plays. But it’s going to be a corner, I think. It’s arm strength enough to get the job done. It’s accurate hitting the cutoff man and doing the things that it needs to. He’ll be a fine defender. He takes pride in his defense. Just because he’s a bat-first type of guy — you heard the way he didn’t like that some scouts had 30 run tools on him (on the 20-to-80 scouting scale). He’s ambitious to keep getting better.
Fourth round (No. 122): Alex McFarlane, RHP, Miami
Scout: Victor Gomez
Well, here’s the cool part about being an area scout: You get to see them since they were freshmen, right? I mean, he’s always been a guy that Miami has projected to be part of their rotation. So I’ve seen him go and have several starts over the last three falls. This past fall, he was still getting innings towards being a starter. Even started at the beginning of the season.
It wasn’t maybe as consistent as you want, which is still why it’s the projection that we’re excited about. It’s not just grabbing a guy out of the ‘pen, who’s real limited throughout his career. So, there is starter history in his background.
That’s not a question for us, really. It’s an athletic movement. He’s in good physical shape. Big boy (6-foot-4, 215 pounds). So the durability to have the stuff and repeat should be there. It’s big-time stuff that he’s bringing. Some of the better sliders and even a changeup that he didn’t use very often. He’s got enough in the arsenal to be able to use weapons to get through a lineup multiple times. The velocity out of the bullpen was 98 (mph) — and some guns may have had 99s. So you combine those things with the ability to have multiple pitches to get outs, that kind of projects, and projects into what can be a starter. I think he enjoys starting. He wants to be a starter. For us, it’s an exciting pick with some real big upside to it.
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We think we can probably make some mechanical adjustments, too, that can aid him. Just a lot of different avenues that we were really excited about, then to put (him) into our player-development (program), it gave us a good feeling.
It’s the things you can’t teach that keep bringing you back to the yard, right? I mean, when he put it together there for a stretch, he had some innings where he could tell you what was coming and you still didn’t have a chance. That’s kind of the stuff that he had. No matter what successes or some bumps in the road he showed you, he kept bringing you back to scout. Make sure you didn’t lose sight of what he currently was and could be. He proved that throughout the year. He kept bringing me back to watch him.
Fifth round (No. 152): Orion Kerkering, RHP, South Florida
Scout: Bryce Harman
Orion Kerkering (Phelan M. Ebenhack / Associated Press)He’s in my backyard. Another Tampa kid. He was a closer as a sophomore, and then he went to the Cape (Cod League) and we got some good looks on him the summer between his sophomore and junior year. He threw well up there. There were some rumblings that he could potentially start for USF his junior season — something that they had never done before.
He started in the bullpen closing games for them. A couple of weeks into the season, they moved him into the Sunday (starting) role. He had a couple of good starts and then started to get hit around a little bit. So they moved him back to the bullpen. Then he went back into the starting rotation on Friday nights. Then, finally, toward the end of the year, he went back to the bullpen.
And that’s where he’s best. When he’s in the bullpen, it’s 93 to 97 mph with a really, really good slider. At least a 60 grade. And that’s where he’s going to flourish — in a bullpen role. He had that type of mindset. The kid wants the ball late in the game. He wants to shut the door on guys.
The slider is up to 86 mph. The hitters just really don’t pick it up until it’s too late. It’s got really tight spin. He’s got a really good feel to manipulate it based on the count. He can shorten it up with lesser velo or he can tighten it up later in the count. Put a guy away, expand a little bit off the plate. That’s definitely his bread and butter. Guys with breaking balls like that, I’m starting to learn, you can’t shy away from that. Even though he didn’t have great success as a starter, with breaking balls like that, they tend to climb the ladder and get to the big leagues.
Orion Kerkering, Disgusting Breaking Balls. 🤮
He's more than a Star…he's an entire freakin' constellation. ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/R1Kxf0iDh1
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 26, 2022
So I’m definitely excited to get him. Probably the best breaking ball in my area. Just the overall feel to use it in the zone. A lot of guys, they have really good action on the breaking stuff. But they don’t really have great feel to use it. And I think that’s what separates Orion. Because it’s his best pitch, and he probably has better command of that than he does his fastball.
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Sixth round (No. 182): Mavis Graves, LHP, Eastside (S.C.) High
Scout: Aaron Jersild
Well, honestly, he was a little bit under the radar. Last summer, he was supposed to attend the East Coast Pro Showcase; they get all of the top high school seniors east of the Mississippi. And he got COVID last July, so he couldn’t go to that, or else he probably would have been more well-known on a national level.
I saw him early. Then he made a jump in physicality and velocity. We stayed with him. (Southeast cross-checker) Buddy Hernandez saw him and we kind of stayed with him to the end. He’s 6-4. Just a ton of projection. He’s got excellent projection. He’s going to get stronger. I think he’s going to throw harder. And he’s got a feel to spin the breaking ball — a curveball. He’s not going to race to the big leagues. But when it’s a finished product, he’s got a chance.
He was committed to Clemson originally. South Carolina kid. Sometimes, you know, South Carolina high school baseball is not as strong as Florida or Georgia. So those kids don’t typically face as good of competition. But this is a scouting pick. We scouted him well and knew him well. Thrilled to get him.
I saw him once in the summer, once in the fall, and then four times this spring. Early on, I made it known to Brian (Barber) that I’d like at least another set of eyes on this kid. And he made it happen. He sent Buddy in there. He liked what he saw. The rest is history. We took video of him. We had spin-rate data on him. And Brian was able to piece it together. He liked what he saw. We saw some things in his delivery that perhaps we can help him out with. Namely, incorporating his lower half more. So he’s kind of a blank slate, you know, but it’s 6-4, left-handed with loads of projection. The upside, I think, is exciting.
He’s been up to 94 (mph). We saw him up to 94. But, mostly, it’s more 91 and 92 at this point. Once he fills out physically, if he’s regularly touching mid-90s from the left side, that wouldn’t surprise me. A little bit of projection on this one. But, I mean, we felt we would have done it all day long.
Eleventh round (No. 332): Emaarion Boyd, OF, South Panola (Miss.) High
Scout: Mike Stauffer
He’s a plus defender and a plus runner. I’ve known him for a little bit over two years. And the one thing he does is he gets after it — whether he’s on the bases, he’s at the plate, or he’s in the field. He just does it easy. I nicknamed him Del Monte. I just thought he could catch six cans of corn out there.
But, obviously, he’s a good athlete. He’s got good contact skills. It showed that he hit over .400 at most of the (showcase) events. He’s got a loose swing. And that’s what we were looking for. He’s a good contact hitter. This fall, I went back, and I heard the sound. I saw the carry. I saw a little bit more strength than I did the year before. You combine that with the tools he has, and I think he’s going to be an exciting player for us. I think he’s going to play center field in the big leagues.
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I see him as an 80 runner on the field. Out of the box, it might be more 70. But, for me, it’s a 70-80 athlete that’s close to the top-scale speed. He’s got enough contact to hit at the top of the order. If I had to reference him, you know, Billy Hamilton is probably a marquee kid in Mississippi. He flat-out had the run speed. (Boyd’s) not quite there, but he’s close.
Most people don’t know: There’s at least 31 high school kids from Mississippi since I started here (20 years ago) that went on and played in the big leagues. But very few have signed out of high school. (Note: Boyd was one of two Mississippi prep players picked in the 2022 draft.) It’s good to see Austin Riley do well for Mississippi. Because to be an everyday player, it’s difficult. Normally, my area will average one everyday player (a year) — and good luck finding the second one from the states of Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama. So, when a player fits that profile, you pay a little bit more attention to him. When you have those 80-type runners, they’re going to play the big leagues.
He had not decided until late in the year that he was going to go to Northwest Mississippi Community College. But I think his intention was to play professional baseball.
Last year, I saw him quite a bit in the summer and then the East Coast Showcase. I think that’s where he stood out. Maybe not too much with the bat, but his defense. When players play easy instead of loud, you have to pay attention to those players, too. I don’t think he struck out. When he did make contact, you saw the base-running skills. Then he made one or two plays with the ball behind him; he showed above-average body control and made it look easy. When you recognize that, you just want to go back and see what the bat skill might be. But I had confidence when I went in there early in February and saw it. I just let the rest of our guys know, “Here’s what I saw.” To the credit of our scouting department, they went back in and saw him play.
Fourteenth round (No. 422): Bryan Rincon, SS, Shaler Area (Pa.) High
Scout: Jeff Zona Jr.
He’s from Venezuela. He came over about two years ago. Obviously, just to escape Venezuela. Not a whole lot of good going on down there as of now. He lived with a relative here, but the head coach of his high school team (Brian Junker) was almost like his second dad. It’s definitely been a big transition from Venezuela to Pittsburgh. Especially climate-wise more than anything.
So proud of this young man. He has overcome so much it is amazing. And he’s just getting started!! @Phillies @Shaler_Baseball @ShalerArea @Shalerathletics @Big56Conference Go Titans!! pic.twitter.com/1GD7f4xuDO
— Brian Junker (@coachjunker) July 19, 2022
He’s got tools. He’s got the run, field and throw more than anything. He’s a slick-fielding, switch-hitting shortstop. To pretty much sum it up, he’s very Freddy Galvis-esque. He’s like a younger Freddy Galvis. Very, very similar tool profile and body. That’s just the easiest way to describe him. It’s going to be a lighter bat down the order. He’ll run into some home runs here and there. He can pick it at short. A good arm. And he can run.
He played on the East Coast Pro team, and he got a lot better last summer — then, really, from the fall to the spring. So he’s one of those guys, I really wasn’t on him that much coming into the year. He was a guy when I was in Pittsburgh, he was just a name that I had to get to, to kind of check him off the list if I’m being honest. And I show up there, and the BP that day was just OK. But, man, he started uncorking balls. In the game, I mean, it was almost a plus arm. It’s above average. He was throwing seeds over there. I had always seen him make contact, but he barreled up some balls.
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So then I went back to see him again. The raw power was better. He was hitting like .375 from both sides of the plate — with a wood bat. He hit with wood all high school season. He was the 5A state player of the year and it was all with wood. I mean, for the 14th round, it’s a great toolset.
From the archives: Area scouts on Phillies draft classes
• 2018: Alec Bohm, Matt Vierling and more
• 2019: Bryson Stott, Erik Miller and more
• 2021: Andrew Painter, Griff McGarry and more
(Top photo of Gabriel Rincones Jr.: Doug Murray / Associated Press)
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