The Phillies made a significant minor league transaction on Saturday.
Pitcher Griff McGarry, the team’s fifth-round pick in last year’s draft, was promoted to Double A Reading from High A Jersey Shore. The heavily armed right-hander will start in Richmond for Reading sometime mid-week.
Double A is the level where prospects are often separated from suspects, and it’s not uncommon for players to make the leap from Double A to the majors.
As this season progresses, McGarry could be a guy who could move up to Philadelphia, possibly as a backup if the team looks for a strike arm and Force Infusion.
The 23-year-old University of Virginia player made 12 starts for Jersey Shore and conceded just 33 hits in 46⅔ innings while striking 82 outs and making 24 walks. In his last three starts, he hit 34 batters in 17⅓ innings. He capped that run with six shutout innings in Wilmington on Wednesday night. He allowed just one shot, walked four and hit eleven in that outing.
Control can be an issue for McGarry – it was in college – but when he’s on he’s electrifying with a lively fastball that hits triple digits and a hard slider.
“We know Griff has a great arm,” said manager Rob Thomson on Saturday.
Could such an arm be tempting for a team in a race?
“Yeah, sure,” Thomson said, careful not to set undue expectations. “He’s got a really good arm and is a really good prospect, so you never know.”
Ultimately, McGarry will determine how quickly his performance gets to the majors. But his combination of maturity – he’s 23 and very bright – and raw stuff put him on the map for a team that would consider any advantage they could get from trying to end a 10-year drought to overcome after the season.