Phillies Select Gage Wood With 26th Pick in First Round of 2025 MLB Draft

After ignoring development in their farm system for multiple years, the Philadelphia Phillies have gotten back to emphasizing the production of homegrown talent.

With their current core of players at the Major League level aging out, it's imperative that they find the next wave who can become stars for them at some point.

In the past, the Phillies have routinely gone with the prep player route, but they deviated from that strategy in this one.

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At pick No. 26 in the first round of the 2025 MLB draft, they selected Gage Wood.

Wood is a pitcher out of the University of Arkansas.

He began his college career as a reliever, operating in the closer role during his freshman season before he started three games out of 22 appearances in 2024.

Arkansas moved the right-hander into a starting role this year, and he posted a 3.82 ERA across his 10 starts, striking out an eye-popping 69 batters in 37 2/3 innings pitched with just seven walks.

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Philadelphia is adding someone with a big-time arm, with his fastball sitting in the 94-96 mph range with it reaching 98. He pairs that with a plus-curveball and slider.

How the Phillies choose to use him will be interesting.

Wood could be a fast-tracked through the minors to help them almost immediately if they opt to have him be a reliever, but they could also develop him into a starter if they want to go that route.

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Philadelphia has plenty of high-end arms in their pipeline, with superstar Andrew Painter No. 1 on the farm and top 10 in baseball, while fifth-ranked Mick Abel has shown flashes at the MLB level this year.

Outside of those two, Moises Chace -- who underwent Tommy John surgery this spring -- is No. 7. Jean Cabrera is ranked No. 12, current reliever Seth Johnson is No. 13, Mavis Graves, Alex McFarlane, Eiberson Castellano and Wen-Hui Pan are Nos. 17-20. Christian McGowan is No. 22, Michael Mercado is No. 23 and Micah Ottenbreit is at No. 28 to round out the pitchers in their top 30.

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