Phillies Draft SS Casey Martin In Third Round Of 2020 MLB Draft

The Phillies added another piece to their farm system in the third-round, selecting shortstop Casey Martin with the 87th overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft Thursday night.

Martin comes from the University of Arkansas, where he hit .286 his sophomore season, with 40 extra-base hits.  He and was hitting .271 with 16 hits, seven for extra bases, five doubles and two homers over 59 at-bats in 2020 before the season was shutdown because of the coronavirus.

One of the things that excited the Phillies about Martin was the way he entered the SEC as a freshman and "excelled.

"We didn't think Casey had any chance of getting to us when the day started yesterday," Phillies director of scouting Brian Barber said on a zoom call.

He is described as a player with elite speed, and a lot of power with 30 career home runs.

Defensively, he has been described to have a solid arm, with the ability to play several positions. He has played second and third, before moving to shortstop.

"We believe in Casey's ability to play shortstop, Barber explained. "We also think he can play other positions on the field."

The Phillies first-round pick in 2019 was also a shortstop, UNLV's Bryson Stott, who .295 with six home runs and 27 RBIs over 48 games between the two teams.

"There was no way we were passing up Casey," Barber said.

Some scouts believe he could play center field at the next level.