Report: Philadelphia Phillies Promote Ben Brown to Double-A

The Philadelphia Phillies promoted top pitching prospect Ben Brown to Double-A on Saturday.

Deep into trade season, just days before the deadline, the Philadelphia Phillies made a major internal move. Right-handed top pitching prospect Ben Brown was promoted from High-A Jersey Shore to Double-A Reading.

The leap from A-Ball to Double-A is often considered the the biggest difference between levels in the minor leagues. High-A is for younger developing players, whereas Double-A is for more established prospects close to making the Major League leap.

Brown falls into the latter category. At 22 years old, the 33rd round pick is having a breakout year. He currently sports a 3.08 ERA over 73 innings. He's struck out 12.9 batters per nine innings and walked only 2.8 per nine with just seven home runs surrendered on the season.

However, Brown is a golden candidate for a deadline trade. One of the better lower-level prospects in the Phillies system, he's a player Dave Dombrowski may be willing to part with in the right deal.

According to Jayson Stark of The Athletic though, a Hall of Famer and one of the more connected Phillies writers, Brown might be off the table.

That would put the Phillies in a tough situation come Tuesday's deadline given that Philadelphia doesn't have much desired talent below Brown. His promotion, however, could be a bid to raise his trade market value.

Either way, Brown's next start will be an entirely new challenge, whether it's with the Reading Fightin' Phils or a new organization entirely.

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