After an absolutely monster year at two levels of the minor leagues, hot prospect Maikel Franco was named the Paul Owens Award winner as the best player in the Phillies system. Severino Gonzalez took home the honors of best pitcher.
Franco batted .320 with 36 doubles, 31 home runs and 103 RBI in 134 games between single-A Clearwater and double-A Reading. The third baseman, who recently tried his hand at first base, led all of Minor League Baseball with 308 total bases this year. At just 21 years old Franco finished tied for second in MiLB in extra-base hits (70), ranked fourth in hits (173), tied for seventh in HR and tied for eighth in RBI.
Gonzalez, 20, went 7-5 with a 2.00 ERA in 25 combined games (14 starts) between low-A Lakewood, Clearwater and Reading this year. With 119 strikeouts in 103.2 total innings this season Gonzalez averaged 10.33 strikeouts per nine innings. The Panama native went 6.2 innings and picked up the win in his double-A debut yesterday for Reading.
Hopefully there is a bright future at the major league level for both.
Pat GallenPat joined Phillies Nation in July 2009, coming over from Examiner.com. As a previous employee of both Comcast SportsNet and the National Basketball Association, Pat prides himself on being a well-rounded individual when it comes to sports. However, the Phillies are first on the list. You’ll usually find Pat chiming in on the Phillies Nation Facebook or Twitter account, weekdays on 97.3 ESPN radio or hosting Phillies Nation TV. He’s also a Senior Writer for the site, and in his free time is a music enthusiast and Will Ferrell movie-follower. His favorite beer: Philly’s own Yards. In 2015, Pat moved on from Phillies Nation as a sports anchor and reporter for CBS-3 in Philadelphia.
