The 2021 MLB draft is slowly approaching, with the event set to kick off on July 11th. The Phillies currently sit at pick #13 in the first round. With the pick this year, it’s likely that whoever they pick wouldn’t be expected to play for the big league club, if they made it, for upwards of another five-to-six years. With the Phillies’ farm system light on top pitching prospects, they could look at one very intriguing right-hander.
Insert: Chase Petty to the Phillies
Very local to the Philadelphia Phillies, Chase Petty has been making his name known this past season. Currently only a senior in high school, Petty is one of the hardest throwing prospects in the 2021 class. The right-hander is currently hitting upwards of 102MPH on his fastball. Oh, let’s not forget to mention his disgusting off-speed stuff, which sits in the mid-to-upper 90s as well.
Jonathan Mayo at MLB.com is very high on Petty, ranking him the fifth-best high school prospect in the 2021 draft.
“Some scouts felt Petty, who isn’t the biggest guy in the world, reminded them of Walker Buehler in terms of his combination of slighter build and electric stuff,” Mayo wrote. “With some effort in his delivery, there is a little reliever risk here, but most feel the Florida recruit is athletic enough to start.”
From Jim Callis of MLB.com:
Petty opened the Area Code Games on Friday morning by throwing a 99-mph fastball and following it up with 100-mph heater, setting a standard no one would match. He sat around 96-97 mph with sink for three hitless innings, backed up his fastball with an upper-80s slider and showed promising depth on a couple of changeups. His command wavered a little, but he struck out six without issuing a walk.
Petty has even caught the attention of the notorious “Pitching Ninja,” Rob Friedman.
Stellar Senior Season
The University of Florida commit has been catching the attention of scouts galore. There has been an average of 30-40 scouts at each of his games for his Senior season at Mainland Regional High School in Linwood, NJ. Two outings ago, Petty threw an 18 strikeout no-hitter, while also sending a two-run shot into right field. In his most recent outing this past week, the 18-year-old tossed a one-hit, 17 strikeout gem. As someone who witnessed the outing on this past Tuesday, Petty is truly something special coming out of South Jersey. And yes- he does know the Mike Trout family.
Petty is next set to face off against the No. 2 ranked Don Bosco Prep School at Arm & Hammer Stadium in Trenton, home of the Trenton Thunder.
As mentioned, Petty is currently a commit to the University of Florida. He’s currently being mocked anywhere from 12 all the way down to 29, which makes sense due to the COVID effect of these prospects. However, Dave Dombrowski made it known this offseason that he was prioritizing speed among his relievers. This could help the right-hander climb the Phillies’ draft board come July.
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