Scott Kingery traded after nearly a decade in Phillies organization originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Nearly a decade after being drafted in the second round and six and a half years after signing one of the most unusual contract extensions in baseball history, Scott Kingery’s time with the Phillies came to an end on Friday.
Kingery, now 30, was traded to the Los Angeles Angels for cash considerations.
The Phillies once had high hopes for Kingery as a long-term setter and middle infielder. He spent 2017 in Double-A and Triple-A, hitting .304 with an .889 OPS, and the Phillies were impressed enough to sign him to a six-year, $24 million extension just before the upcoming Opening Day.
At the time, Kingery was just the second player to sign a multi-year contract extension before setting foot in the majors. Houston’s Jon Singleton, a former Phillies prospect traded for Hunter Pence, was the other.
Kingery was one of baseball’s top prospects when the Phillies extended him, but his success did not translate to the majors. He had some big moments in his first two weeks as a Philly, driving in 12 runs in 13 games with seven doubles and two home runs, but he hit .219 the rest of the way.
His best season was 2019 (.258/.315/.474 with 34 doubles and 19 home runs in exactly 500 plate appearances), but it was all downhill from there. Kingery’s growth was probably slowed, at least partially, by having to play so many positions. He did it in college but it’s at a different speed. Kingery rose through the minor leagues with the Phillies playing primarily second base, but in the majors he started 119 games at shortstop as a rookie, then had double-digit appearances in Year 2 in center field, left field and third base. base, shortstop. and second base.
It was a lot of on-the-job training. In retrospect, maybe it was too much.
Kingery’s last stretch with regular playing time in the big leagues was the shortened 2020 season. From 2020 to 2022, he hit .144 in 143 plate appearances with the Phillies and then spent all of 2023 and 2024 with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Kingery had a good year in Triple A, hitting .268 with 25 home runs and a .804 OPS.
With the Angels, he will have a real path back to the majors if he performs. They lack talent and depth like any team in baseball and spent most of 2024 giving playing time to turnaround projects like Kingery.