The Philadelphia Phillies have a prospect comped to Elly De La Cruz. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
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Wait one ding-dang second, do the Philadelphia Phillies actually have the next Elly De La Cruz lurking in the minors?
Well, probably not. Almost definitely not. But one recently published prospect poll – from a reputable source – dropped an Elly comparison onto a teenager buried deep in the Phillies’ farm system.
The poll in question: FanGraphs, which ranks the Phils’ top 34 prospects. And on first glance, all looked normal through the top 10: Aidan Miller, Andrew Painter, Justin Crawford and so on.
But then you hit the mystery name at No. 11: Romeli Espinosa, a 17-year-old shortstop who played for the Phils’ squad in the Dominican Summer League in 2025, the kid’s first year of pro ball.
FanGraphs called Espinosa’s ranking “aggressive” but says it’s “meant to illustrate his ceiling.” Now brace yourself for the Elly comp, with Fangraphs writing: “(Espinosa) presents a rare combination of present contact feel and long-term power projection for an up-the-middle prospect. Espinosa’s build comps to Elly De La Cruz at the same age: endless limbs on a broad-shouldered 6-foot-4 frame, with the room to add big strength while remaining sufficiently lithe and agile for shortstop.”
So that’s the comparison to the Cinncinati Reds’ superstar. It’s not much but it is notable because of how respected FanGraphs is among fellow evaluators.
In a small sample, Espinosa’s stats look Elly-esque, slashing .282/.363/.430 with five triples, two home runs and 12 stolen bases in 41 games. Here’s Espinosa going launch-mode in the D.R.:
FanGraphs points out a big strength of Espinosa’s game: his bat-to-ball skills. He struck out only 34 times in 168 plate appearances last season. “That’s a very positive contact-hitting origin point for a shortstop prospect built like this, as long-levered hitters like Espinosa are often still uncoordinated at this age,” FanGraphs wrote.
Espinosa signed with the Phillies for a $250,000 bonus as an international free agent on January 15, 2025. He didn’t turn 17 until June of last year.
For the upcoming 2026 season, Espinosa will likely head stateside to the FCL where he’ll be one of the youngest hitters in the league.
And it’s in the FCL where we’ll find out if his FanGraphs’ ranking was a little too aggressive. And we’ll forget all about the Elly comparison – or not – and maybe we dream that one day the kid does something like this in Philly: