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Crawford, Garcia Named Paul Owens Award Winners

The Paul Owens award is bestowed upon the best of the best in the Phillies organization. It was a rough year for all levels, yet a few names stood out.

J.P. Crawford, named by several publications to be the Phillies new top prospect, won the award for best position player. He becomes the youngest to do so since an 18-year-old Jimmy Rollins won in 1997.

Crawford, 19, hit .285 with 23 doubles, 11 home runs, 48 RBI, 69 runs scored and 24 stolen bases in 123 games this season with low-A Lakewood and single-A Clearwater. Crawford is one of the youngest players in the Florida State League.

Luis Garcia is a bit of a surprise, winning the award for best minor league pitcher at age 27. The righty went 2-1 with a 0.96 ERA in 39 games for triple-A Lehigh Valley. He converted 22 of his 25 save opportunities and tied for the International League lead in saves.

Pat Gallen

Pat joined Phillies Nation in July 2009, coming over from Examiner.com. As a previous employee of both Comcast SportsNet and the National Basketball Association, Pat prides himself on being a well-rounded individual when it comes to sports. However, the Phillies are first on the list. You’ll usually find Pat chiming in on the Phillies Nation Facebook or Twitter account, weekdays on 97.3 ESPN radio or hosting Phillies Nation TV. He’s also a Senior Writer for the site, and in his free time is a music enthusiast and Will Ferrell movie-follower. His favorite beer: Philly’s own Yards. In 2015, Pat moved on from Phillies Nation as a sports anchor and reporter for CBS-3 in Philadelphia.