Sixto Sanchez is known for his lively arm (Photo Courtesy Baseball Betsy)
T
he Phillies were just recently rated as the seventh best farm system by MLBpipeline.com and third best by Baseball America, which can partly be attributed to the success their young arms have experienced recently headlined by Phillies' second best prospect, Sixto Sánchez. The Phillies awarded Sánchez with a promotion to the Clearwater Threshers earlier today after having nothing left to prove in low-A with the Lakewood Blue Claws.
Sánchez, 19, has been almost untouchable in first full professional season, going 5-3 with a 2.41 ERA and 64 strikeouts in 13 starts this season. What's most impressive about him and sets him apart from other pitchers at his level is the way he can command his fastball that can hit triple digits, only walking nine batters in 67 1/3 innings pitched. Opponents batted .191 against Sánchez and only one batter out of the 256 he faced managed to hit a home run.
Sánchez has flashed ace-potential countless times this year and could possibly be the Phillies' next ace, but is still ways away from thinking about the majors. The whole world of baseball has taken notice of Sánchez's dominance and it shows in the recent Top 100 prospects list by MLB.com, ranking Sánchez, who previously was unranked, as the 52nd best prospect in all of baseball. He joins a stacked rotation in Clearwater led by Franklyn Kilome, Ranger Suarez, JoJo Romero, and Seranthony Dominguez, who have all been dominant this year in their own right. Sánchez will likely replace Edgar Garcia, who has been splitting time between starting and relieving, in the rotation as he starts his ascent in the Phillies system.
Sánchez will have a good opportunity with the Threshers to work on his change-up and curveball, which still require a lot of tinkering. This is a huge first step Sánchez and it could be the start of a fast riser for the Phillies even at his young age.
