Phillies prospect Adonis Medina expected to make MLB debut Sunday

The Phillies are set to promote prospect Adonis Medina to start Sunday afternoon’s game against the Blue Jays, manager Joe Girardi told reporters (including Meghan Montemurro of the Athletic). It will be Medina’s major-league debut.

The right-hander was once one of baseball’s top young pitchers, ranking as Baseball America’s #84 overall prospect in 2018. He participated in the Futures Game the same year. Medina’s stock has fallen a bit since then, thanks in part to his uninspiring performance last season in Double A.

Last year, Medina posted just a 4.94 ERA/4.53 FIP in 105.2 innings in the pitcher-friendly Eastern League. Along the way, his strikeout rate dropped to a mediocre 17.5% (6.98 K/9). That marked a far cry from the gaudy strikeout numbers (around 26%) he had racked up between Low-A and High-A over the two previous years.

Despite his 2019 struggles, Medina is still among the best young arms in the organization. BA placed him 11th among Phils’ farmhands midseason, noting that he continues to flash the three-pitch mix that once made him so well-regarded but hasn’t yet developed consistency with his secondary stuff. MLB Pipeline (sixth), Keith Law of the Athletic (ninth) and FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen (11th) all continue to slot Medina among the organization’s top prospects.

Medina was added to the Phillies’ 40-man roster after the 2018 season, so Philadelphia needn’t make a move in that regard. If he sticks in the majors for good, he’d be controllable through 2026.