By Michael Lipinski, Sports Talk Philly Editor 
Four Philadelphia Phillies prospects have found themselves on the prestigious Baseball America Top 100 Prospect List. Their names should be familiar to Phillies fans: Andrew Painter, Mick Abel, Logan O’Hoppe, and Griff McGarry. All four have been the talk of the minors this season and all four are worth paying attention to as the MLB trade deadline approaches.
Congratulations to Andrew Painter (@Andypainterr), Mick Abel (@mickabel13), Logan O'Hoppe (@logan_ohoppe) and Griff McGarry (@griffmcg3) on being named to Baseball America's Top 100 Prospect List. pic.twitter.com/B41MwhgBNV
— Phillies Player Development (@PhilsPlayerDev) July 14, 2022
Painter (#38) and Abel (#66) arguably have the most upside of the quartet. Both are currently pitching for High-A Jersey Shore in the South Atlantic League. Painter, 19, is currently 1-1 with a 1.74 ERA, 79 Ks, and a .092 WHIP between the BlueClaws and Low-A Clearwater. Abel, 20, is 5-7 with a 4.23 ERA, 77 Ks, and a 1.36 WHIP. His numbers are skewed a bit thanks to three outings where he gave up five-plus runs.
It’s not a surprise the duo found themselves on Baseball America’s list. The pair were drafted in the first round of the 2020 and 2021 MLB First Year Player Draft and were highly regarded when selected.
Baseball America is considered the standard bearer when it comes to prospect ranking and farm system evaluation. That makes the addition of O’Hoppe (#92) and McGarry (#99) a bit more eye opening.
The Phillies snagged O’Hoppe, 22, in the 23rd round of the 2018 MLB First Year Player Draft out of high school. The Long Island native, considered by many to be a diamond in the rough, has turned heads with his power in the minors. O’Hoppe is slashing .283/.401/.522 with 14 HRs, 40 RBIs, 11 2Bs, 1 3B, 6 SB, and a .923 OPS this year with Double-A Reading. The Phillies are short on catchers in the system and O’Hoppe could be on the fasttrack to the show especially with J.T. Realmuto’s regression.
McGarry, 23, was drafted by the Phils’ in the 5th round of the 2021 MLB First Year Player Draft after playing college ball at the University of Virginia. Now with Double-A Reading, McGarry has seemingly found himself in 2022. His month of June was absolutely dominant and earned him a promotion to Double-A. He was 3-1 with a 2.86 ERA, an incredible 48 Ks, and a 1.12 WHIP. His career high in strikeouts came on June 22 against Brooklyn when he fanned 13 Cyclones. McGarry struggled in his Reading debut on July 6 allowing three runs in 2.1 IP before being lifted with an apparent blister. He is currently on the 7-Day Injured List for the Fightin’ Phils.
All four players will likely be trade targets if (when?) the Phillies decide to make a move at the trade deadline. While it would behoove the Phillies to hold on to all four, President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski is known for his “win now” mentality and usually burns down the farm.
