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Phillies Star Prospect Justin Crawford Reportedly Broke His Teeth in Collision

Originally posted on Philadelphia Phillies on SI
By Brad Wakai | Last updated Sep 5, 2025 5:31 PM ET

The fanbase of the Philadelphia Phillies has been waiting basically all second half of the season to see star prospect Justin Crawford get called up to The Show.

Ranked third in the team's pipeline and No. 66 overall in the sport, fans have been clamoring for the Phillies to give Crawford a chance in the big leagues after he has torn up the Triple-A level to the tune of a .334/.411/.452 slash line with seven home runs, 34 extra-base hits, 47 RBI and 46 stolen bases.

But Dave Dombrowski never made that call, opting to keep the 21-year-old on the farm so he can further develop as an everyday player instead of having him play on a limited basis at the major league level, even when rosters expanded to 28 men on Sept. 1.

Now, there are serious health concerns about Crawford after he was involved in a scary collision with teammate Otto Kemp on Thursday during a Triple-A Lehigh Valley game.

Justin Crawford is out of the game for Lehigh Valley after this collision with Otto Kemp. Might have lost a tooth on that one. pic.twitter.com/cWmVHz6VPq
— Destiny Lugardo (@destiny_lugardo) September 4, 2025

With both players scrambling to catch the fly ball in shallow left field, Crawford and Kemp collided. As Kemp was reaching for the ball with his glove, his shoulder ran into Crawford's face and resulted in the star prospect laying on the ground in visible pain.

Teammates rushed to check on Crawford as he laid on the ground. He eventually picked his head up and a trainer rushing onto the field to take a look at the youngster. Thankfully, it appears like Crawford avoided a major injury, although he might need some dental work.

Justin Crawford Broke Teeth in Collision With Otto Kemp

According to Matt Gelb of The Athletic, the team believes Crawford "avoided major injury" in this collision, but he is now dealing with "a few broken teeth."

While that's not pleasant by any means, it beats would could have happened in a worst-case scenario where he suffered more severe facial or orbital injuries along with a concussion. He likely will continue to be evaluated for a concussion as the team sees if any symptoms pop up in the aftermath. But all signs seem to be positive at the time of writing.

First and foremost, the hope is Crawford is OK and nothing further besides the broken teeth come out of this so he can get back on the field this season and continue to perform at a high level to finish the campaign.

By dominating at the Triple-A level at the age of 21, he has shown that he could be a future star for this franchise by as soon as next year if he gets the opportunity.