Philadelphia Phillies Linked to Infielder With Immense Potential in Mock Draft

The Philadelphia Phillies have made it a point to go after high school talent in their past several drafts, and 2025 could be the same.

May 26, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a Philadelphia Phillies hat and glove on the bench against the Atlanta Braves in the seventh inning at Truist Park. / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Phillies have made it a point of late to go with prep talent with their first-round picks.

In fact, the Phillies haven’t taken a college player in the first round since 2019, when they took current second baseman Bryson Stott out of UNLV. Then a shortstop, he moved over to second base when Philadelphia signed shortstop Trea Turner to a long-term deal.

The 2025 MLB draft is 11 months away but that didn’t stop Bleacher Report from putting together a mock draft for next year’s first round. And, guess what? The site linked the Phillies to yet another prep player, this time an infielder.

At No. 27 the site has Philadelphia taking Lucas Franco, who plays shortstop for Cinco Ranch High School in Katy, Texas, which is outside Houston.

Franco has already committed to play college baseball at TCU and played in the 2024 Perfect Game All-American Classic. He’s also spent some time in the USA baseball development system, as he was invited to the 2022 15U National Team’s training camp.

Baseball America loves the potential. The site has ranked Franco one of the Top 15 prospects in the draft. Bleacher Report writes that scouts believe the left-handed hitter has plenty of room to grow physically and has “serious upside.” Baseball America wrote that depending on how much size Franco puts on, he could move to third base.

But he fits the recent model of Phillies first-round picks, as the organization has rolled the dice on prep prospects with each of its last five first-round selections.

Last month Philadelphia selected outfielder Dante Nori and MLB Pipeline has already installed him as the organization’s No. 7 prospect.

Last year’s first-round pick, infielder Aidan Miller, has already reached High-A Jersey Shore and was one of two Phillies to take part in the MLB Futures Game last month during All-Star Game weekend. He is now the organization’s No. 1 prospect and one of four Phillies in the Top 100 prospects in baseball, MLB Pipeline.

The other Phillies farmhand to join him at the MLB Futures Game was outfielder Justin Crawford, who was Philadelphia’s first-round pick in 2022. He’s now at Double-A Reading and has a Major League pedigree, thanks to his father, Carl, who played in the Majors for more than a decade. He is now the Phillies’ No. 3 prospect.

Ahead of him and behind Miller is pitcher Andrew Painter, who was selected in the first round in 2021 out of high school but is out for the season as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.

In 2020 the Phillies snagged another prep pitcher, Mick Abel, who is among the organization’s Top 30 prospects.