Rapid improvement of Phillies prospect Crawford a positive for 2014

BELIEVE IT or not, there have been some encouraging signs to come out of this 2014 season for the Phillies.

Ken Giles has been nothing short of dominant. Cole Hamels continues to pitch like an ace. Maikel Franco is in the major leagues after a an explosive couple of minor league seasons. At the top of the list, though, is the performance of 2013 first-round draft pick J.P. Crawford, who was at Citizens Bank Park yesterday to receive the organization's Paul Owens Award, given annually to the top pitcher and top hitter in the minor leagues.

When the Phillies selected the 19-year-old shortstop with the 16th pick in last June's draft, the scouting report emphasized the maturity of his game, particularly in the field, where he was regarded as having an uncommonly polished feel for the position.

While Crawford has lived up to that billing thus far, he also has developed faster at the plate than many thought, particularly with regard to his power production. In 228 plate appearances in the Gulf Coast League and at Lakewood last season, he hit only one home run, nine doubles and three triples. This year, he hit 11 home runs and 23 doubles in 538 plate appearances at Lakewood and Clearwater, giving the Phillies plenty of reason to think that he can provide the club with a seamless transition once Jimmy Rollins' playing days are through.

In fact, in every category except baserunning, Crawford is ahead of where Rollins was as a 19-year-old minor leaguer. In 1998, Rollins hit .244 with a .306 on-base percentage, .354 slugging percentage and six home runs in 547 plate appearances at Clearwater. Compare those with Crawford's numbers in 271 plate appearances at Clearwater this season (he started the year at Lakewood): .275 batting average, .352 on-base percentage, .407 slugging percentage, eight home runs.

The pop Crawford has shown stems from both the development of his approach at the plate and the development of his body. At 6-2, the former California high school standout is noticeably thicker than he was when he was drafted. Crawford says he weighed 170 to 175 pounds when he was drafted. Right now, he weighs about 190. His target for next season?

"I'm trying to come back at 200," he said.

With that in mind, his goals for the offseason are simple: "Get bigger and stronger." He'll do that with the help of a couple of former top prospects whom he counts as friend, Mets catcher Travis D'Arnaud and Twins centerfielder Aaron Hicks.

Crawford, who ranked No. 78 on Baseball America's list of the Top 100 prospects, has the potential to leap into the realm of the game's truly elite young talent. Next year could be that defining year. With Rollins under contract for 2015 and the big-league club looking at another difficult season, the Phillies are in no hurry to rush their top hitting prospect to the majors. Generally speaking, they like their young talent to spend an entire season at Clearwater before moving on to Double A, although if Crawford continues his current pace of development, he should arrive in Reading sooner rather than later.

"Wherever they put me, they put me," he said. "I don't have an idea. I'll be happy wherever I go and play hard wherever I go."

Circumstance also could hasten Crawford's ascension to the major leagues. At this point, Freddy Galvis and Cesar Hernandez still project as utility or rotational players. Both players are out of options and thus figure to be on the big-league roster next season, when Rollins will be playing out the final year of his contract. Once 2016 arrives, Crawford could very well be the leading candidate to step in at shortstop, with Franco at third base.

"Whenever it's my time, it's my time," Crawford said. "I'm not going to try to rush anything."

In fact, of all the players who filtered through the Phillies dugout before last night's game against the Marlins, Crawford might be the strongest bet to be a member of that 2016 squad. Besides Rollins, Utley will be playing out the last guaranteed year of his contract in 2015, although the second baseman does have three vesting options that could keep him in Philadelphia through 2018. First baseman Ryan Howard is signed through the 2016 season, but he entered last night hitting only .222/.309/.377 with 21 home runs in 595 plate appearances, and if those struggles carry over into 2015, the Phillies will have to seriously consider moving on from their longtime star (if they have not done so already).

Franco, who was out of the starting lineup last night against righthander Henderson Alvarez, still needs to show that the mechanics of his swing will translate to the big leagues. In six games, he is 4-for-22 with a double, four strikeouts and one walk. He has shown an impressive glove and arm throughout his rise to the majors, and both of those have been on display in his short time in the bigs. That should help him hold down an everyday spot if the Phillies give him one next season, thus providing him with ample opportunity to adjust to big-league pitching.

We should have a better feel for Crawford's timetable after this offseason, when the Phillies will have no choice but to offer some indication of their play for the next couple of seasons. At the big-league level, their options for improvement are limited. In the minors, they appear to have at least one good one.

Blog: ph.ly/HighCheese