Phils Make Cuts

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The Phillies made their first round of cuts today, as Minor League camp opens and games begin shortly. Included in the cuts: P Phillipe Aumont and P JC Ramirez (both acquired in the CLiff Lee deal), P Jesus Sanchez, P Joe Savery, P Drew Naylor, P Yohan Flande, P Bill White, C Tuffy Gosewisch, C John Suomi, C Kevin Nelson, OF Quintin Berry and OF Tyson Gillies (also acquired in the Lee deal). The one somewhat surprising name to be sent down early was Scott Mathieson who made two appearances giving up a run in two innings of work.  With the question marks surrounding the health of  both Lidge and Romero in the back of the ‘pen to start the year, many expected (myself included) Mathieson to make a legitimate run at an opening day roster spot.  I would expect him to start the season potentially closing in Lehigh Valley.

45 thoughts on “Phils Make Cuts”

  1. when are the next cuts going to be? do the phillies not like mathieson? i thought he was going to get a chance last sept. but nothing and now being in the first cuts, whats going on. is he hurt again? really thought he had a chance to make the team?

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  2. Not suprising to me, at all. Not sure why Mathieson is rated so high by the fans. It is not as if Major league hitters have never witnessed high 90’s fastballs.
    The suprise for me is that Rosenberg was not cut in the 1st round along with Mathieson. That may be a bad sign for Mathieson’s chances this season. They may like Rosenberg better.

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  3. I think they basically just want Mathieson to get in regular work on a set schedule over the next few weeks, build up his arm, and then work on his secondary offerings. His fastball obviously is what it is, he’s going to need to refine his secondary offerings.

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  5. It’s not a very significant transaction but the Phils released Reginal Simon and here’s some interesting info from BA…..According to Baseball-Reference, no player born in Haiti ever has made it to the big leagues. And if Simon, the sole Haitian minor leaguer to play in the U.S. last year, is to become the first, he’ll have to do so with a new organization.

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  6. The Phils wanted to take a long hard look at Herndon. He’s a rule 5 and he has a sinker that CBP will love. Mathieson would be taking innings from him. Rosy won’t be stealing as many innings. As James says, if you’re going to get Mathieson ready, he has to pitch on a schedule. He’ll be up with the Phils at some time this season… maybe even opening day.

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  8. In one of the articles discussing Mathieson, the Phillies said that they wanted him to get some regular work after having such a light workload last year. They also said that he still needs to refine his breaking pitches.

    I wouldn’t rule out Mathieson helping at some point this season, but it probably won’t be for a few months.

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  9. I would not rule out Mathieson either. He will not be on the team on opening day, but if he stays healthy and someone from the major league club gets hurt, he might get a chance.

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  10. Yeah remember Mathieson pitched around 30 innings last year. They probably want to see him get 50-60 IP in. Call-up in Sept. I think Rosenberg gets a longer look because he is older for where he pitches and the Phils want to get a better look. I think Rosenberg will begin at Reading but end at LHV with the opportunity for a Sept call-up

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  11. “I think they basically just want Mathieson to get in regular work on a set schedule over the next few weeks, build up his arm, and then work on his secondary offerings. His fastball obviously is what it is, he’s going to need to refine his secondary offerings”

    I agree with this statement entirely. This is about making 100 percent sure that Scott Mathieson is physically ready for the majors and has command of the pitches he needs when he gets promoted. They don’t want to jerk him around. It has nothing to do with how highly they think of him.

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  12. mathieson has the best stuff over rosenberg and bastardo, and swimmer, but he has not pitched enough after the injury to prove to the phillies he is back. he doesnt just have a fastball? where did you get the impression that all he throws is a straight fastball?

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  13. Mikemike, please tell me the other pitches Mathieson throws and if you can, describe how they are rated. It would really help me understand.

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  14. I remember when he pitched for the Phils, all he had was a very fast, straight fastball that got tattooed a lot after ML hitters got a feel for him.

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  15. Mathieson has an improved slider. It was always just OK, but a recent article said the talk is that it has improved. Can’t remember where I read that. I think what he needs is command of his pitches. He has enough stuff, that with honing of his command, he can be a RH Billy Wagner type (at a beginner’s level for MLB). His power FB and well-placed slider is enough to overpower batters in the 7th and 8th innings over the next few years.

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  16. ML hitters never got a feel for Mathieson. He has not pitched enough for that to happen. If he got hit, it was because of inexperience and inconsistent command.

    Billy Wagner had a straight FB, at a similar velocity. He did pretty good for a long time. Scott has a chance to be something like that. He also has a chance to be Kyle Farnsworth, but based on his competitiveness and personality (he is smart and has Roger Clemens-style competitiveness), I will bet he is closer to Wagner than Farnsworth.

    Everyone is always so quick to write guys off. Gavin Floyd, Kendrick, others. Not everyone is a Tim Lincecum. Almost no one is. Most need time to get in comfort zone, begin repeating their pitches consistently and know how to approach batters.

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  17. I believe Mathiason will help this year, but down the road. it doesn’t do him any good riding the pine. As stated he needs the reps. Ditto on Aumonte and the new delivery. reps, reps, reps.

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  19. Wagner had far more than a straight fastball. He is probably the best lefty reliever of all time, so that’s hardly an apt description. A guy like Hong-Chih Kuo, another multiple arm surgery survivor, is the type of pitcher Mathieson could easily be within a year. But based on his minor league numbers, his command has not entirely returned. This is common for pitchers rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. I wonder too if the Phillies wanted to get Mathieson away from a competitive environment for fear of reinjuring his arm prematurely. If Mathieson pitches to his potential in AAA though, he’ll certainly be in the majors before long.

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  20. Frankly, given the situation, I think it would have been foolish to start Mathieson in the majors this year and I’d be surprised if he’s promoted before mid to late summer, absent an emergency. The goal is for him to be the next Ryan Madson or Brad Lidge, so let’s not rush him and force him to regress.

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  21. According to what I read about Mathieson last season, his velocity was very good, but command was a little bit of an issue. Couple that with breaking stuff that is ok, but not great, that is a recipe for disaster. I am sure they want to see him command the fastball and sharpen the slider to afford him success. If his fastball is a little straight, ML hitters would eat him up with just the one pitch.
    Prior to his injury, I always thought he was a closer. From what I observed, he was a two pitch pitcher; fastball and slider. When I see guys like that, my preference is to let them take their two pitches to the back end of the pen and add some mph’s to the heater. Let it rip.
    However, I am pulling for Mathieson after all he has been through. Hopefully, he can come up in early June.

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  22. Dynamic, fluid, stinky however you want to put it I foresee
    30 or more different combination in the pen this year. Maybe I am going overboard but the players who start the season won’t be around at the end or even middle. The starters have been great thankfully. Lets hope that carries over.
    PS as a side note I listened to the Mets on the way to Lancaster. They are as Omaresgue as ever but also noted
    John Baker (Marlins) has hurt he shoulder which will cut into his 20% CS rate so nice early break for the Phils.
    Omar we luv ya!

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  24. Guys, get a grip. Matheson needs to pitch. He needs to pitch back to back days and see how he feels. He only pitched 30 innings over three years. He needs to go the minors for the entire season and just relax and pitch. he needs to go through the dwad arm phase that all pitchers get mid season and work through that. Give him a chance to finish developing himself as a pitcher. There is a zero percent chance that Matheson will be closing this season in the big leagues. He’s definitely got a chance to be a spot call up and to be a Sept call up if he does well but you don’t suddenly put major league pressure on a guy off of two major arm surgeries. Especially when they have other options. As for the last major league spots, Bastardo will likely get JC’s spot initially and Lidge’s spot will be held down by Carpenter or BJ for a week or so in case they need a long man. In all liklihood, they’ll never pitch. There isn’t a spot for Herndon unless they send Kendrick down which would really surprise me at this point. Maybe he won’t beat out Moyer right now but he’s definitely one of the top 12 pitchers on the staff and should stay.
    Minor league games today!! The comment of the day from Saturday was from a minor league intrasquad game viewer: “With Gose and Gillies in the same outfield, there wouldn’t be a need for a third outfielder.” Fellas, there is some flat out speed in CF in our system and James is supposedly a better athlete than both of them but he’s not as fast.

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  26. I’m a moron. All this time, and I thought Herndon was a left handed pitcher. Of course he won’t be mentioned in that article.

    Just ignore it. I’m treating Herndon like I treated Scottie Upshall when he was in Philadelphia – personal favourite. But hopefully his story ends differently from Upshall’s (still fuming over his trade.)

    Hell, I’m still fuming over the Mike Williams trade in 2003 for a nobody. And there’s no REASON to be mad, but it was just a stupid trade and it angered me.

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  27. Dr Steve- that article was about LH relievers, Herndon is RH. Herndon will probably stick on the roster if Lidge starts on the DL, otherwise the numbers game might get him.

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  28. Carpenter and Rosenberg have no chance at a bullpen spot coming out of Spring Training. There is only one spot available, and Bastardo likely has that one wrapped up. If Lidge is hurt, Herdon will probably get to stay with the team for a week before they have to send him back to the Angels.

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  29. Couldnt the Phils just stash Herndon on the DL off and on? I know the Pirates did that with their Rule 5 guy last year.

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  30. A message to readers here–according to schedules, the minor league games started today in CLW. Neither the Reading site nor the Lakewood site (which has been redesigned) seem to have anything set up to give reports on the games.

    There are a couple of folks who seem to read this site who are in CLW and could certainly give us intermittent reports, but if we email the Blueclaws, the R-Phils, and the Phils PR guys, they may give us daily details.

    Just a suggestion.

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  31. It’s really hard to argue with getting rid of Herndon. He’s been solid this spring training, and you really don’t want to give up a talented prospect for no reason. I think stashing him on the DL is a great plan – especially since they have a pretty beat up pen already and odds are people will be on and off the DL.

    I want to keep him.

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  32. I don’t think you can get through an entire year counting on the DL. Any chance they would release Moyer when Lidge comes back to keep Herndon? I’m assuming there’s no trade market for Moyer even if the Phils eat most of his salary. Kendrick has looked awfully good…
    We need to se how we can get our daily minor league action updates. Reading had those great reports last year.

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  33. You can not stash a rule 5 player on the DL. If that was the case, nobody would ever be returned.

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  34. ****You can not stash a rule 5 player on the DL. If that was the case, nobody would ever be returned****

    Its pretty common practice to place a Rule 5 guy on the DL for the slightest causes to keep him for the season. If the guy has even the slightest injury, he goes to the DL for 15 days here, 15 days there, etc. MLB has never really pushed too hard about that.

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  35. There are specific rules about the DL, in that a team needs to have the player active for something around 90 days for it to count. The Red Sox had Adam Stern on the DL as a Rule 5 pick several years ago, and had to keep him on the roster the following April for a period of time to meet the requirements.

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  36. We’ll have to see how well Herndon does toward the end of ST. The guys who played winter ball look better now than they really are, since a lot of players still getting reacquainted with speed of MLB and getting their timing and motion into mid-season form. I don’t see why Herndon can’t break campwith the Phillies. I doubt Romero or Lidge are ready on day 1, and still have doubts about Moyer. I don’t think the real crunch for staff positions comes until 3-4 weeks into the season.

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  37. Teams are really gearing up with their cuts. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a decision on Monasterios in the near future.

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  38. The Phillies have dropped a bench player for more bullpen help in the past. In truth, Moyer is the odd man out, but if they keep Herndon (and they better) and push comes to shove I think it’s likely a bench player would be sent down before they drop Moyer.

    But really, there’s no reason to keep Moyer, is there?

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  39. Moyer is the only legit option to spot start…assuming he doesn’t make the team as the 5th starter, which he almost certainly will.

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  40. ****There are specific rules about the DL, in that a team needs to have the player active for something around 90 days for it to count. The Red Sox had Adam Stern on the DL as a Rule 5 pick several years ago, and had to keep him on the roster the following April for a period of time to meet the requirements.****

    That’s about the only specific rule though. The actual “injuries” are never really argued about by gentlemen’s agreements.

    It the same with the setup of the playoff roster with DL exemptions in Sept.

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  41. Moyer’s a bit beyond the range of this site, but I’d be cautious about casting away a pitcher who has given so many average innings. I have more faith in him than I do in Kyle Kendrick.

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  42. Was at the opening day ST games for the AAA and AA teams against the Blue Jays today. Joe Savery opened for the AAA team followed by Gordon, Mathieson , White and Stephens. White was hit hard. Mathieson receive applause from the fans after one of his innings. The starting lineup was Berry 8, Maza 6, Sellers 5, Bozied DH, Stavisky 3, Maher 9, Gosewisch 2, Guzman 7 and Y Rodriguez 4 .

    I was more focued on the AA game. Ramirez started and pitched three innings. He opened giving up a hit, walk and HBP to load the bases but got out of the inning giving up only a run and then settled down for his final two innings. He was followed by Chapman and Schwimer who eached worked an effective two innings. Velasquez who gave up a wind blown home run and Brummett each pitched an inning.

    The starting lineup was Diaz 8, DeRenne 4, Kennelly 2, Susdorff 9, G Martinez 3, Campbell 5, Farkas DH, Mitchell 7 and Galvis 6. Overbeck 5 , Milner 9, Purdom 3 and Gillies 8 came in during the game. Gillies right elbow had an elastic sleave on it.

    Offensively Eric Campbell hit the ball hard everty time up and had a double and couple of singles. They manufactured a run in one inning when Mitchell doubled, Galvis, who has a knack for moving runners, moved him to third on a ground out and Gillies drove him in with a scrifice fly. Both catchers showed strong arms as Kennelly nailed a runner at second on a 7-2-4 play and Purdom threw from his knees to get a runner attempting to steal second later in the game.

    Notes: Chavez, Naughton, Spidale and Vogelsong were at the B game in Dunedin and I have not seen Harold Garcia or Michael Durant in camp. Don’t quote me on the score but I believe the AA game was a 3-3 tie.

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  43. The only bench spot that could be sent down is Francisco’s spot and that would leave Gload as your fourth outfielder and Castro as the only right hand bat off the bench. Thats not going to happen. With Kendrick pitching as well as he had has, I can’t see him being sent down. As for the pen, there is only one spot left, and it almost has to be a lefty. My gut feeling is that they sign someone (Mahay or Beimel) and Bastardo and Escalona get sent down. As for Moyer, he either starts on the DL or is released.

    That doesn’t leave any room for Herndon, unless they can work out a deal to keep him and send him down.

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  45. First time in a long time here on site. I like what you have here.
    Mathieson is a pitcher I feel that could end up building a new and cheaper bullpen for the Phils around. He has the stuff that he could replace Lidge, Madson, Baez, or Durbin at some point. He will likely be a 1 inning guy but should be effective. Hopefully he shows something this year in the minors or he will not be back next year.

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