Phillies Prospect Profile: Dalton Guthrie

Clearwater, FL – Dalton Guthrie was the Philadelphia Phillies sixth-round pick in the 2017 MLB Draft out of the University of Florida.

The months surrounding the draft were a whirlwind for the middle-infielder. The previous summer, he was selected to play for Team USA’s summer collegiate team. He traveled to Taiwan and Cuba while playing some of the best competition in the world. Coming into his junior season, he was named to the All-SEC preseason team. He had a red-hot start to the year, hitting .310 over the first month and earning a spot on the Golden Spikes Watch List. He lead the Gators to an SEC championship and 2017 NCAA Tournament berth. The team made a run to the College World Series, and defeated the worlds #2 baseball program, LSU, to win the programs first College Baseball Championship.

During the CWS, Guthrie had blinders on regarding the MLB Draft. He didn’t even care that he had been drafted by the Phillies, because his focus was to bring a championship to Gainesville, and he succeeded.

“It was the highlight of my baseball career…it was one of the best moments I’ve ever had in my life,” Guthrie told me about the moment he doggy piled with his teammates on the mound of TD Ameritrade Ballpark.

Guthrie played only nine games in his first season of professional baseball. Primarily because the Phillies wanted to give him a break after a 71-game college season. 

He worked hard during the offseason and earned himself a spot on the Phillies Class-A affiliate Lakewood Blue Claws roster to start 2018. Guthrie became the everyday third baseman for the Blue Claws, despite primarily being a shortstop throughout his collegiate career. 

“A lot of organizations now want people who can play around the field and play different positions and I’ve kind of stepped into that role and pride myself in playing so many positions,” Guthrie told me. 

Guthrie is currently with the Clearwater Threshers, the Phillies A+ affiliate. He is running into a problem that he never really had seen in his life, always being one of the most advanced players. He isn’t getting as much playing time. He has been nearly perfect defensively, but he is still waiting for his offense to come around.

“I’m just trying to hit fastballs,” Guthrie said. “Good hitters make a living hitting fastballs and that’s my philosophy. (Before the games) I specifically like hitting off the tee a little more than most guys.” 

Guthrie is working hard to achieve his goals of playing under the bright lights of Citizens Bank Park and hopefully bringing a championship to Philadelphia as he did at Florida.