Phillies to sign 17-year-old pitcher prospect as first Australian MLB signing of 2026

The Philadelphia Phillies have been building one of the better organizations in Major League Baseball over the last few years, especially when it comes to the prospect depth.

For a while, the depth in the organization was questionable. But now, there are some fun young players who could turn into impact Major Leaguers, as seen already by Andrew Painter and Justin Crawford in 2026.

However, they're still looking to add players to their organization. As Stephen Clarke and Hannah Moon write for abc.net.au, the Phillies are signing the first 2026 professional baseball player from Australia to a contract to join the farm system.

Phillies sign first Australian pro of 2026

"Redcliffe teenager Patrick Crotty was just five years old when he pitched his first baseball in the backyard with his three older brothers," Moon and Clarke write. "Now the 17-year-old has become the first Australian to secure a professional baseball contract for the 2026 season after signing on with the Philadelphia Phillies last week."

Crotty is a right-handed pitching prospect who is the first Australian to sign with an MLB team this year. He's not the only Australian to be playing professional baseball, as there are 42 others who are playing pro ball overseas, though he is the first to sign this year.

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The 6-foot-4 righty pitcher is still just 17 years old and has plenty of development ahead of him. He's going to start out in the lower levels of the Phillies organization and steadily work his way up if all goes well.

Crotty also shared that he has the ability to throw 150 kilometers per hour, which equates to around 93.2057 miles per hour. That's not slow, but ideally, for the 17-year-old to make the Majors, he will need to pick up the speed.

But, this signing is a very long-term one, that might not come to fruition for the Phillies and Crotty in the Majors until the 2030's. He's only 17 years old and has plenty of years of development ahead of him.

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