Clearwater is winning like no other team in baseball, and building a culture for the Phillies’ future

CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Clearwater Threshers are winning at a clip of .688. It’s the highest winning percentage in major and minor league baseball. They have a run differential of 107, tied for third-best in the minor leagues. They clinched their playoff berth over a month ago. But if you watch them, you wouldn’t know it. They play with a sense of urgency.

On July 5, a hot and humid night at BayCare Ballpark, Wen Hui Pan took the mound in the 10th inning. The right-hander was given the unenviable task of extending a 4-4 game with a ghost runner on second base. When he started warming up, he heard something.

“Chia yo Pan! Chia yo Pan!”

He turned to find his teammates, lined dutifully along the top step of the dugout, chanting “Let’s go Pan,” in his native Mandarin Chinese. It filled him with confidence. He struck out two hitters in his first inning. He struck out the side in his second. He struck out two more and allowed two runs in his third, but his teammates were still waiting for him on that top step.

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Selflessness is not an easy thing to teach, especially when players are competing for big league roster spots, but the Threshers have it. This is all by design. Last July, shortly after players in the 2022 draft class signed their contracts, farm director Preston Mattingly held a meeting at the Phillies’ complex in Clearwater.

He told his players that they were the most important Phillies’ draft class in the last decade. This wasn’t hyperbole. They were here to learn how to become big leaguers, but they were also here to build a culture. A winning culture.

Mattingly was in the midst of his first full year as the Phillies’ farm director at the time. Brian Barber, the Phillies’ director of amateur scouting, was in his third full year. With this draft class, they saw a chance to make a change. And the farm system badly needed a change.

Communication was an issue. Minor leaguers were getting mixed messages, which led to poor results. The culture was described by multiple employees as “toxic.” They had no identity.

But Mattingly told them that together, they could create one. And one year later, they are doing just that. The single-A Threshers have fielded 18 players from that 2022 draft class and have won 55 of their 80 games. They play free and fast, with a resiliency that good teams need, but above all, they play selflessly.

It’s something they take pride in, and it stems from their manager, Marty Malloy. He believes that selflessness is integral to winning teams, and he is here to win.

There’s a debate in player development over how much that really matters. To some, the outcome of a game is far less important than a player making strides. But Malloy doesn’t buy it. He only uses the word “development” in one context.

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“Developing winning players,” he said. “Because what do they want to do in Philly? They want to win. Yes, it’s low A. Yes, it’s the Florida State League. But it’s always about developing winning players. Teaching them, so when they get to Philly, they know how to win.”

Malloy is eccentric. He’s been known to chug a Red Bull in the dugout with his players before a game. He often stands on the third base line with a stopwatch to monitor catchers’ throws to second and sprint speeds for baserunners. He pays close attention to his infielders’ positions, to make sure they’re not tipping pitches.

It might seem a bit intense for low A, but his players love it. They feed off it. They see that their manager cares, and it makes them care, too.

“We take after him,” said outfielder Cade Fergus, a 13th-round pick in 2022. “He preaches how important it is to take care of your brother, take care of your teammates. And I think the team has really taken that and made it our mantra. We’ve bought into it.”

When outfielder Emaarion Boyd arrived in Clearwater, he kept to himself. He said he has always been this way. His family couldn’t get a word out of him, so the thought of a minor league team in Clearwater doing so was hard to fathom.

But over time, things changed. Malloy found out that Boyd, 19, liked to fish. He liked to fish, too, so they started to talk about fishing. It made Boyd feel comfortable, and that comfort has translated to the field, where he plays a loud style of baseball. On most nights, he leads off. He has stolen 41 bases, which leads the Florida State League.

“I feel blessed to be here,” said Boyd, an 11th-round pick in 2022. “They really brought me out. At first, I was really quiet and stuff. But they brought me out of my shell. I feel like this is the place I’m supposed to be.

“It just feels like a family. I can tell them anything. It feels like family.”

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A few weeks ago, Malloy made a promise to Boyd. He and a few of the coaches would drive out to Boyd’s hometown of Batesville, Miss., to visit him this offseason. They have plans to go fishing.

“That’s how you get the clubhouse,” Malloy said. “Because they know you care. They know you’re not in it for yourself. I’m old. My knees hurt. My elbow hurts. And I’m out there throwing BP every day. Someone asked me yesterday, how do you keep throwing BP every day if your elbow hurts? And I said, because I can’t tell them no.

“There is nothing more important than showing them you care. I know the coaches and managers who cared about me. And I know the ones who didn’t. I know who they are. You think these kids don’t know? Sure, they do.”

One of the first messages Malloy preached to his team was the importance of unity. He doesn’t bring up individual stats. He knows his players look them up, but he doesn’t emphasize them in the clubhouse.

This was always going to be an important message, but it has become especially important this season. The Threshers have a crowded roster. There are about six or seven players on the bench on any given night.

“We know there are only three outfield spots,” Fergus said. “I’m the oldest of the group. I try to help the other guys, and they try to do the same for me. It doesn’t matter if one person is in one position because we can all play everywhere. And we take pride in that.”

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Gabriel Rincones Jr. was one of those outfielders before he was promoted to high A Jersey Shore. He said the unity on the Threshers extends far beyond sharing at-bats. Last season, the players began making a concerted effort to learn each other’s languages. Rincones, who is fluent in Spanish, started to teach it to English-speaking players. Players began learning Mandarin Chinese from Brian Chen, Pan’s translator.

“Even just the simple words, like how to say ‘good job’ in Mandarin. Or, ‘how are you doing?’ Or ‘God bless you.’ It goes a long way,” Rincones said. “As soon as you would say something in Mandarin, he would light up.”

The Threshers aren’t just exchanging niceties. A few weeks ago, players started picking up some curse words in Mandarin Chinese — which, in baseball, is a term of endearment. Naturally, Pan had to learn some English and Spanish curse words of his own.

One of the main culprits is his throwing partner, right-handed pitcher Estibenzon Jimenez, a native of Venezuela. He doesn’t speak English, but he has learned some Mandarin so he can communicate with Pan. Pan has learned some Spanish so he can communicate with Jimenez. They like to tease each other in their native languages.

“He’s one of the guys who curses me,” Pan said with a grin, through his translator.

After games, the players rotate who plays music in the clubhouse. They see it as another effort toward inclusivity.

“We didn’t really care what was playing,” said pitcher Orion Kerkering, who was recently promoted to double A Reading. “There was rap, country music, Latin music. No one really cared. Just make sure everyone’s included. That’s all we cared about.”

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“You just want to show them that you care,” said outfielder Justin Crawford, the Phillies’ first-round pick in 2022. “Learn the way they speak. Learn the way they do things. It helps bring this team together, honestly. Just making an effort.”

Mattingly likes to say the Threshers play free and fast. It’s a good way to describe them. The low-A affiliate has stolen a Florida State League-leading 187 bases this season. That’s 71 more than the team with the second-highest total of steals.

They’re aggressive, but in a smart way. On July 4, in a game against the Palm Beach Cardinals, Crawford hit a single in the first inning. One pitch later, he stole second base. In the sixth, utility man Felix Reyes hit a chopper to shortstop. He hustled down the line and the shortstop sailed the throw over the first baseman’s head. Reyes made it to second base safely.

The Threshers have a word for this.

“Pressureville,” Crawford said. “Keep putting pressure on the defense. Keep making them make mistakes. Because when we do put pressure on them, they get a little jumpy.”

Position coach Mycal Jones came up with the term after Malloy started calling his team “Thresherville.” Jones tells his base runners to be fearless. In a game against the Cardinals on July 5, outfielder Troy Schreffler and Boyd both reached base to start off the third inning. But instead of sparking a rally, Schreffler tried to steal second, and was caught. Boyd tried to steal second, and was caught.

Jones wasn’t upset.

“I don’t care if you get thrown out,” he told them. “I really don’t. If you did something wrong, we’ll talk about it, and we’ll teach off of it. But I don’t care. The best base stealers get thrown out.

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“Shooters keep shooting. How many three-pointers does Steph Curry miss? A lot, right? But he also makes a lot. We don’t care. That’s our identity. That’s how we play the game. Keep doing it. The only way for them to learn is to fail.”

The Threshers run as much as anyone. They have six players with 14 steals or more. Crawford, who has stolen 35 bases, is second on the team behind Boyd. He’s been caught stealing only four times.

“I obviously love Pressureville,” Crawford said. “We run. That’s what we do. That’s our identity — me, Boyd, Fergie, all of us. If we get a good jump, we take it.

“That’s been one of the main reasons why we’ve been able to win a lot of games. You’re giving it your all whether you’re 4-for-4 or 0-for-4. Running out the ball, never jogging, playing hard, really. That’s what we live by.”

When first baseman Darick Hall was in Clearwater for a rehab assignment in May, he shipped his favorite pitching machine to the complex. He would turn it to changeup mode, so the machine would fire pitches at different speeds without warning.

Younger players tend to struggle to hit off-speed pitches. Hall was one of those players when he was in the minor leagues. But over time, he learned how to be ready for different types of velocities. And in Clearwater, he saw a group that was eager to learn the same.

As he started hitting in the minor league batting cages, he noticed a few players watching him. Outfielder Jordan Viars showed up, then Rincones, and then catcher Cole Moore. They asked if they could jump in.

The players took turns. At first, they’d swing and miss at the changeup, and the fastballs would blow by them. But they weren’t embarrassed; they were curious.

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“That’s what’s happening in the game,” Hall told the group. “You can never let the fastball by you, even on the machine. And you have to do everything you can to stay back on the off-speed.”

They started to use Hall’s machine every day, on top of their pregame routines. When he finished his rehab assignment, the players asked him if he could leave it down there. They still use it to this day.

“We’ll send it back at the end of the year,” Mattingly joked.

Hitting coach Chris Heintz said he is most impressed by the Threshers’ work ethic. In April, when they were in Bradenton, Fla., to play the Pirates’ low-A team, they had to share a batting cage with the opposing team. Because of that, the players only had 30 minutes to go through their routines, instead of an hour.

They were despondent. Heintz could see it in their body language. He had to go around to each hitter and explain why the change was necessary.

“It was impressive that they were wanting to do more, on a day game,” he said. “They were like, ‘Am I going to be ready? I need my full workload.’”

They work hard and play hard. After wins, the Threshers will throw a dance party in their clubhouse. Sometimes, even Malloy will dance. Like the big league team, they have a special post-win song (which Fergus, who walks up to “Fergalicious” by Fergie, has declined to share publicly).

“I think it stems from what our big league team does,” Heintz said. “Winning is hard. It’s hard to do. So, when you win, let’s enjoy it. It’s a team bonding thing.”

Pitcher Tommy McCollum played with the Threshers in 2021 and 2022. He returned in June while he was on a rehab assignment. He got to know the 2022 draft class while he was down there.

It didn’t take long for him to realize that something had changed.

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“They were talking about how unselfish the baseball was down there,” he said. “Individual stats weren’t the priority. They started playing as a team, and when you do that, you win. And you win, then you get people looking into you like, ‘Oh, what’s this team doing that we’re not?’ It got me so excited.”

McCollum started to follow the team from high A Jersey Shore. He believes the Threshers’ success has had a ripple effect on the other affiliates.

“You start paying closer attention, and then you start really paying attention,” McCollum said. “People are noticing.”

Mattingly isn’t surprised. He’s heard the buzz, too. Players will ask him when the Threshers will join the Phillies’ affiliates up north. They’re not threatened; they’re excited. To Mattingly, that means this whole thing — which started with a group of 18 players — is working.

“A bunch of players who love to play, love to get better, and love each other,” Mattingly said. “To me, the culture is how they prepare, how they compete, and how they play. We’re very confident that if you can do those controllable things, then your talent will come out. And that will allow you to play free. That’s the culture we want to set.”

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