Phillies Prospect Rafael Lantigua Sets Walks Record, Hits Walk-off at Lehigh Valley

The Philadelphia Phillies have a prospect at Triple-A Lehigh Valley that is enjoying an unusual week in baseball terms.

Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Rafael Lantigua (83) throws to first base against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the fourth inning during spring training at LECOM Park. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

One day, perhaps, Rafael Lantigua will find himself in a Major League uniform and will finally make his long-awaited MLB debut. Until then, he’ll have to settle for doing something unusual in baseball terms.

Lantigua is a second baseman for the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, the highest affiliate for the Philadelphia Phillies. The 27-year-old went 1-for-4 against the Durham Bulls. But it’s what he did the previous two games that was worth nothing. It involved a lot of walking.

Rafael Lantigua’s Team Record

Dave Nelson-Imagn Images

On Tuesday night, Lantigua went to the plate five times as the IronPigs defeated the Bulls, 8-2. But he didn’t have an official plate appearance because he drew a walk each trip to the plate. His five walks set a franchise record.

Lantigua drew his record-breaking walk in the eighth inning on a 3-1 count. Lantigua drew walks in the second, fourth, sixth, and seventh innings. He scored a run and stole a base. He was part of an IronPigs performance that saw the team draw a season-high 14 walks.

But that was just a prelude to what happened on Wednesday night.

Rafael Lantigua’s Walk-Off Home Run

Down 2 in the 9th, the boys never gave up! Rafael walks it off!#ironpigs #ironpigsbaseball #milb pic.twitter.com/Br7uSGtA2I

— Lehigh Valley IronPigs (@IronPigs) August 21, 2025

Before his heroics, he started the scoring for Lehigh Valley in the first inning with an RBI single. It was his first official at-bat of the week, thanks to his 0-for-0 performance on Tuesday. The IronPigs fell behind from there before Lantigua stepped in to lift them to a 5-4 victory.

With two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, Otto Kemp drew a walk and Donovan Walton followed with a base hit to keep the game going for Lantigua. He slammed a three-run home run to lift Lehigh Valley to the victory.

Rafael Lantigua’s Career

Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Dominican Republic native started playing professional baseball in 2017 in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He spent the vast majority of his professional career with the Blue Jays in the minor leagues, reaching Triple-A Buffalo in 2022. He’s played in more than 700 games in the minor leagues, but he’s never played in a Major League game.

He followed that with his best professional season at the plate in 2023, his first full season at Triple-A. With the Bisons, he slashed .305/.425/.469 with 12 home runs and 85 RBI. It wasn’t enough to get a promotion to the Majors. In 2024, he slashed .265/.367/.336, but he experienced a downturn in power as he hit just four home runs and drove in 33 runs.

After last season he elected for free agency and then signed a minor league deal with the Phillies in December. His slash has taken a downturn for the second straight season as he has slashed .240/.369/.346 with six home runs and 44 RBI in 108 games.