Should Philadelphia Phillies Finally Call Up Top Prospect After Latest Injury?

It could be time for the Philadelphia Phillies to see what one of their current top prospects can do at this level after the team suffered another pitching injury.

Jul 8, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; National League Futures starting pitcher Mick Abel (25) of the Philadelphia Phillies pitches to the American League during the first inning of the All Star-Futures game at T-Mobile Park / Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Phillies were able to win another series after toppling the Detroit Tigers in the finale of their three-game slate on Wednesday.

They are now back at the top of Major League Baseball standings and continue to hold a sizable lead in the NL East race.

After being without their superstar shortstop Trea Turner for an extended period of time, he's back in the lineup and producing at a high level like he was before his hamstring injury. Brandon Marsh has also returned and made some noise, so the only position player they're missing is their elite backstop J.T. Realmuto.

Health has been kind to the Phillies this season, something that couldn't have been said the past few years.

However, two of their starting pitchers have picked up some nicks with Taijuan Walker being placed on the IL and Spencer Turnbull leaving his outing early on Wednesday after being inserted back into the rotation.

It doesn't sound like Turnbull's issue is too serious, but Philadelphia will be extra-cautious with him based on his past injury history and the amount of innings he's already thrown.

So, there's a good chance he could be sidelined for a bit.

If that's the case, manager Rob Thomson seems to have his replacement already in mind, but that also brings to question if the Phillies should go in another direction.

Michael Mercado is probably going to be a solid fill-in option based on how he's thrown at the Triple-A level, but this was also a great opportunity to give one of their top prospects a shot to see what he can do in The Show.

Mick Abel was Philadelphia's first round pick in 2020, and he's been viewed as one of their starters of the future.

The 22-year-old has yet to make his Major League debut, and it still could be a little early based on this being his fourth season of professional baseball. He's also struggled at Triple-A so far, posting an ERA of 7.08 with a 1-7 record across 12 starts and 54.2 innings pitched.

There's no need for the Phillies to throw him against MLB hitters if they feel he's not ready, and based on his current performance, that is very likely the case.

However, this might also be a missed opportunity.

If Abel was able to pitch well in some spot starts, that would give this organization a better idea of what they have in the right-hander. Maybe that shows them he can become the fifth starter of this rotation going forward and they don't need to sign another free agent.

On the other side, maybe he performs poorly.

At least that would give Philadelphia a better idea of what his ceiling might be at the highest level, even if it's a small sample size.

That might make them more willing to include him in trade packages ahead of the deadline this year to bring in a true impact player who can help them win a World Series right now.

However, barring a bad string of injury luck to their starting staff, it doesn't seem like Abel is going to get any Major League exposure this season, something that might be a missed opportunity based on the ideal situation they're currently in regarding the standings.