Phillies promote Crawford to Triple-A

J.P. Crawford is taking another step closer to Philadelphia.

The Phillies promoted their No. 1 prospect to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday after the 21-year-old shortstop homered in his last game with Double-A Reading.

"Thanking God for this opportunity I'm getting," Crawford tweeted. "Stay blessed."

The Phillies announced the move on Twitter Friday morning after Crawford, MLB.com's No. 3 overall prospect, went 1-for-3 with his third homer of the year Thursday night in Reading's 5-1 win at Bowie. In 36 Eastern League games, Crawford hit .265 with three homers, 13 RBIs, five stolen bases, eight doubles and owned a .398 on-base percentage.

The promotion puts Crawford at the doorstep of the Majors, where he could potentially take on his older cousin, Dodgers outfielder Carl Crawford.

Crawford was the Phillies' first-round pick in the 2013 Draft out of Lakewood High School in California and has hit .288 with 21 homers, 124 RBIs and 55 steals in 319 career Minor League games. The lefty-hitting infielder is considered one of the best defensive shortstops in the Minors thanks to great hands and strong arm. At the plate last season, he walked more times (63) than he struck out (54) and was named an Eastern League and Futures Game All-Star after hitting .288 with six homers and 42 RBIs between Reading and Class A Advanced Clearwater.

He overcame a torn UCL in his left thumb last fall in the Arizona Fall League and jumped out to a solid start this April, when he went 22-for-79 (.278) in 21 games.

MLB.com's No. 1-ranked shortstop prospect also appeared in 11 Major League Spring Training games earlier this year, going 3-for-20 with an RBI and three walks in the Grapefruit League.