Mass quantities of homers, say us Rinconesheads
Many excellent things have emerged from the rolling hills and azure lochs of Scotland: Shetland sweaters. The poetry of Robert Burns. Golf. One of the Phillies’ better hitting prospects.
Yes, Gabriel Rincones Jr., 24 years old, 3rd round draft pick, left fielder, and breakout star of the Phillies’ 2025 Spring Training, hails from Scotland. Born in Florida, he moved with his family to Venezuela, and then to Glenrothes, Scotland, as a child. The desire to play baseball (as his father, who played in the minors as part of the Mariners organization, had), brought him to St. Petersburg, where he played college ball with St. Petersburg Junior College before a transfer to Florida Atlantic University. His college performance earned him a spot in the draft plans of the Padres in 2021 (with whom he did not sign) and the Phillies in 2022 (with whom, of course, he did). The Sunshine State is thus his birthplace, his college town, and the place where his professional career is taking flight.
Rincones, a lefty slugger, weighs in as the Phillies’ 14th-ranked prospect with FanGraphs, 7th-ranked with Baseball Prospectus, 10th-ranked with MLB Pipeline, and 8th-ranked with Baseball America. The consensus on Rincones is that he offers impressive power, but underwhelms in regards ability to hit same-handed pitching. Pipeline notes that he generally avoids chasing, a trait that is appealing in any context, but especially, it must be said, in the context of the current-day Phillies. His fielding and speed are not considered remarkable, though Pipeline clarifies that behind the just-okay speed lurks a surprisingly prodigious basestealer. Observers have generally projected Rincones to be a platoon player, ready to step in when there’s right-handed hurlers to punish, and to be kept in reserve when the moundsmen are southpaws. FanGraphs is relatively pessimistic on him even as a platoon player, deeming his struggles against breaking balls to be too much of a limiting factor; others, with their eye on his power, are more optimistic.
This spring has decidedly tilted, so far, in favor of the optimists. Through 7 games, Rincones is averaging .333, with 3 homers. And while a single Spring Training (to say nothing of part of a Spring Training) is too small of a sample size to draw conclusions, Rincones’ overall performance in the organization is promising. Rincones spent 2024 with the Reading Fightin Phils of the AA Eastern League, slashing .263/.357/.487 with 11 homers across an injury-shortened campaign of 59 games (torn thumb ligament). The injury did not seem to impede his progress; his 2024 numbers were roundly better than those he posted in his 2023 efforts with the Jersey Shore BlueClaws (.238/.326/.416, 10 homers).
The outfield for the Phillies has been in flux in recent years, with the team searching for consistent options. Rincones does not seem likely to be blocked positionally, with left field currently occupied by Max Kepler, whose contract is only for a single year. The team does have a number of other promising outfield prospects (Justin Crawford, Griffin Burkholder, Dante Nori), although they tend to be penciled in as center fielders for the moment. The Fightins (big league variety) have been searching for ways to put the OF in Offense; if Rincones can keep up his torrid springtime pace, he might find himself with a shot in the show relatively soon. That being said, his limits against lefty pitching present a problem: the Phillies already have an outfielder who struggles against the southpaws in the form of Brandon Marsh. If he only had the opposite sort of split he’d slot in much more smoothly. Then again, if “if”s and “but”s were candy and nuts, the Citizens Bank Park concessions vendors would all be out of their jobs.
Nevertheless, he does have the potential to earn a real role with the Phillies. And if he can improve against lefties and demonstrate the potential to effectively wield his power against them, then he could end up taking a larger role than he’s currently projected to have. It’s rare, of course, for prospects to end up significantly better than they’re projected to be. The prospect experts are only human, but they tend to be particularly savvy and experienced humans. That being said, Rincones has seen only a relatively small amount of professional pitching due to injuries. Perhaps his limitations are less sticky than they seem to be, and his spring breakout is the prelude to a durable improvement and a career as a regular in Philadelphia. It’s nice to think about: perhaps attending a performance of Macbeth might not be the only way to watch the Scottish play.