Phillies Only See Slight Drop in MLB Farm System Rankings Despite Blockbuster Trade

With the Philadelphia Phillies playing some excellent baseball of late, the team has been able to give themselves some breathing room in the National League East, finally.

For much of the season, it was a tight battle between the New York Mets and the Phillies in the division. However, it has been Philadelphia of late that is starting to pull away from the Mets and assert themselves as the team to beat.

Despite the team being fairly one-dimensional for most of the year, they are firing on all cylinders now. The starting rotation continues to be great, the lineup has been led by NL MVP candidate Kyle Schwarber, and the bullpen has been fantastic since their blockbuster trade at the deadline.

The Phillies are hoping that this will be their campaign to get over the hump and back to the World Series. The franchise has been able to put together a strong roster, and they very well could accomplish what they set out to.

However, while all the attention might be on what the team will do in October, the front office always has to be thinking about what’s next. That usually starts with how their farm system is looking.

MLB.com recently ranked the top farm systems in baseball, and the Phillies only saw a slight drop from 17th to 21st in the rankings despite making a blockbuster trade at the deadline.

“Trading Eduardo Tait and Mick Abel to the Twins for Jhoan Duran contributes to a little hit here, as does Miller’s sub-par season, but not too much.”

Seeing Philadelphia only drop a few spots despite trading two of their top prospects is very encouraging. Even though the team has a bottom-half-of-the-league farm system, that isn't overly surprising considering the success that they have in the Majors. It is rare to get the best of both worlds, and the Phillies being ranked at 21st is solid.

Why Didn't the Phillies Drop More?

Philadelphia Phillies prospect Justin Crawford swingingg the bat in grey jersey — Feb 25, 2025; Port Charlotte, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Justin Crawford (80) breaks his bat as he reaches on a fielders choice against the Tampa Bay Rays during the fourth inning at Charlotte Sports Park. | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

It is a bit surprising to see that they didn’t drop more than just four spots. Both Mick Abel and Eduardo Tait were considered to be strong prospects who went to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Duran.

What certainly did help Philadelphia was that they had a strong draft class coming in. Going after college players who are going to potentially make an impact quicker than someone from high school is a good way to replenish the farm system quickly.

Overall, while the farm system took a step back, this is still a decent unit for a team that is contending. With some high-end talent in the system led by Andrew Painter, Justin Crawford, and Aiden Miller, the unit remains strong for Philadelphia.