When the latest update of FanGraphs’ 2025 Top 100 Prospects list came out, to no one’s surprise the Philadelphia Phillies found three of their top prospects among the best in the league. Top pitching prospect Andrew Painter was firmly planted in the No. 6 spot, and top positional prospect Aidan Miller found himself comfortably in the No. 15 spot on the list. Even promising pitching prospect Moisés Chace came in at No. 74.
However, there was one Phillies top prospect who remained conspicuously absent from the Top 100 in their newest rankings. That hard-luck prospect is none other than outfielder Justin Crawford.
Phillies’ Justin Crawford has doubters among prospect evaluators despite his impressive minor league season in 2024
It comes as quite a surprise since, after all, Crawford is coming off a strong 2024 minor league campaign split between the Phillies’ High-A affiliate Jersey Shore BlueClaws and Double-A affiliate Reading Fightin Phils.
In 110 games, the 21-year-old batted a stellar .313 with an .805 OPS, along with 79 runs scored, 25 doubles, four triples, nine home runs, 61 RBI and 42 stolen bases. More importantly, Crawford actually led the Phillies’ entire minor league system in hits and stolen bases, along with ranking among the top three in runs scored, doubles and batting average. With his impressive performance, he ultimately took home the Paul Owens Award, which is given to the Phillies’ top minor league hitting and pitching prospects each year.
Despite Crawford’s strong showing last year, the industry appears to have mixed feelings about his overall value and evaluation. The Athletic has Crawford among its Top 50 prospects, while MLB Pipeline has him a little further down at No. 64. He barely made Baseball America’s Top 100 at No. 96. But none of them was as disappointing as FanGraphs, which has Crawford outside the Top 100 completely.
It wasn’t like Crawford was just a flash in the pan in 2024, as he had actually put together a solid 2023 minor league campaign as well. That season, he compiled a strong .332 batting average and .859 OPS, with 71 runs scored, 22 doubles, eight triples, three home runs, 64 RBI and 47 stolen bases in just 87 games. So, with back-to-back noteworthy seasons, one would expect many would take notice of it.
Perhaps the young budding prospect just needs more exposure at the national stage to gain more recognition in his performance and abilities. After all, it’s not everyday that a potential five-tool player in the making wouldn’t be considered among the best in the rankings coming up the minor league system.
Nevertheless, it should give Crawford plenty of motivation to prove all of his doubters wrong this upcoming season as he looks to break out once again in 2025. In doing so, it would make his jump to the majors that much closer to becoming a reality in due time.