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The Phillies opened the second day of this year's amateur draft by selecting SS Cole Stobbe out of Millard West High School in Nebraska with the initial pick of the 3rd round (78th overall). The six-foot-two 195-pounder features incredible bat speed, which scouts were very high on. The righty batter hit .437 with 14 home runs as a senior this spring. Stobbe, who had a commitment to play college ball at Arkansas, told the media that he intends to fly to Philadelphia to sign a pro contract. Defensively, it has been said that the Phils would likely change Stobbe's position to third base or possibly second base. In the 4th round, the Phillies chose lefty pitcher JoJo Romero out of Yavapai College, the same school they drafted Ken Giles out of in 2011. The five-foot-11, 190-pounder sports a fastball that gets as high as the mid-90's. He also features a slider, curve ball and a change up that is said to have nice potential . I would expect Romero to be best suited...

The Phillies took high school pitcher Kevin Gowdy with their 2nd pick (42nd overall) in the 2016 MLB amateur draft on Thursday night. The pick marked the second time on the first day of this year's draft that the Phils selected a high school player committed to Chase Utley's alma mater, UCLA.  They took outfielder Mickey Moniak with the top overall pick in the draft just hours earlier. Gowdy, a 6-foot-4 175-pound right-hander, has a lean frame that could fill out nicely.  He features a 90-94 MPH fastball along with a strong slider, a good change up and mechanics that are described as smooth.  With a 1.59 ERA along with 93 strike outs and just five walks in 56 2/3 innings in his senior season at Santa Barbara High School, Gowdy was impressive all year. He was a member of the USA 18U team that won a gold medal last autumn in Japan. It's said that the Phillies love Gowdy's ceiling and see him having the potential to become a front line pitcher. Honored to h...

The mystery and intrigue is finally over, as the Phillies selected outfielder Mickey Moniak La Costa Canyon High School in California with the first pick in the 2016 MLB amateur draft. The lefty swinging Moniak has big time offensive upside.  He is said to sport considerable bat speed and gets his stick through the zone with noteworthy torque, both in his hips as well as his arms.  He drives the ball well to all fields.  Additionally, Moniak, who stands six-foot-two and weights 190 pounds, is strong defensively as a center fielder. Praised for being mature and composed, the athletic Moniak, described as a natural on the baseball field, has the make up to be a strong performer along with a modest star that leads by example. This year marked just the second time in their history that the Phillies had the top pick in the draft.  The previous time was 1998 when they took Pat Burrell out of Miami. Last year's top pick by the Phillies, Cornelius Randolph (taken ...

Image- Tug Haines Earlier this week, Phillies Nation's minor league reporter Jay Floyd (follow on Twitter @PhoulBallz ) was interviewed on the Philadelphia Sports Table Podcast. The weekly program, hosted by Jeff Warren and Len Hunsicker, focuses on the big four pro sports teams in Philly, touches on local Division 1 college athletics and more. The pair embraces the passion of the Philly sports fan base along with what the fans bring to each game, online discussions, talk radio and more. On the latest edition of the PST Podcast, Jay phoned in to discuss the Phillies' rising prospects, key story lines among the non-roster invitees heading into spring training, the future of the catcher position, a possible future ace among the organization's young talents, along with the Phils' upcoming number 1 overall draft pick as well as plenty more. The interview with Jay kicks off at about the 46:30 mark of the show and you can check it out by clicking this link .