More Lehigh Valley News

7. Lehigh Valley

Courtesy of Jeff Schuler of The Morning Call.  Tagg Bozied, Drew Naylor, and Juan Perez have been placed on the DL with undisclosed injuries.  A reminder that the DL is 7 days in the minor leagues. 

Ronnie Belliard has been added to the Lehigh Valley roster, while pitching coach Rod Nichols announced that Vance Worley would start the season opener on Thursday evening.

So, with that being said, this is where we are at:

Catchers: Kratz and Sardinha

INF: Barfield, Belliard, Frandsen, Larish, Robert Hudson

OF: Miller, Moss, Sullivan, Thompson, Young

SP: Worley, Bump, Feirabend, Bonine, Bass

RP: Mathieson, Stutes, Schwimer, Zagurski, Carpenter, Grilli, Meyer

DL: Naylor, Bozied, Perez

 

 

64 thoughts on “More Lehigh Valley News”

  1. I know that people are crucifying Bonine, but he’s becoming a knuckleball pitcher. It can take a guy like that a few years to develop, but once he does he can pitch another 10 years.

    I love the move.

    Like

    1. I’ve always thought it was a good idea to pick up 5 or 6 Eddie Bonine types(washouts) and get them with a knuckle ball guru and make the commitment to build themselves a knuckle baller. If you end up with a solid pitcher major league pitcher, that would be a pretty big payoff for not a lot of cash. Thanks for the heads up Catch 22, I’ll be watching Bonine now.

      Like

  2. Shuler also listed the Ext Sp groups-
    Here’s the remaining players in camp according to the Phillies.I guess anybody not listed was released or on some teams DL.

    Group 1

    C: Francisco Diaz, James Kocke, Jeffery Lanning, Robert Stumpo.

    IF: Carlos Alonso, Jeffrey Cusick, Chris Duffy, Maikel Frankel, Stephen Malcolm, Patrick Murray, Matt Payton, Nerio Rios.

    OF: Luis Amaro, Michael Dabbs, Kelly Dugan, Gauntlett Eldemire, Kyrell Hudson, Bill Rice, Tyson Gillies, Jeremy Slayden.

    P: Gabriel Arias, Lisalverto Bonilla, Lendy Castillo, Craig Fritsch, Percival Garner, Juary Gomez, Jay Johnston, Colin Kleven, Siulman Lebron, Pedro Lora, Hector Neris, Michael Nesseth, Jacob Smith, Ethan Stewart, Kevin Walter Nick Hernandez, Matt way, Brian Gordon.

    Group 2

    C: Angel Chavarin, Chase Numata.

    IF: Jorge Castillo, Gutavo Gonzalez, Yeisson Morales, Carlos Valenzuela, Alexandro Villalobos.

    OF: Witer Jimenez, Jorge Miranda, Brian Pointer, Bernandro Solarte, Luis Unda.

    P: Leonel Bastidas, Carlos Best, Fabian Cota, Luis Gonzales, Steve Inch, Lino Martinez, Marek Minarik, Luis Morales, Jonathan Musser, Miguel Nunez, Ramon Oviedo, Luis Paulino, Jese Pirela, Ryan Sasaki, Jorge Serrano, Joshua Warner.

    Like

    4. None of the position players on the Lehigh Valley team were drafted by the Phils and they are old. It is more like an Indy ball team other than pitching. But a majority of the pitchers on that staff were drafted by the Phils. Rizzotti was fun to watch in ST and might be too young to play for the Pigs. He stole a base and hit a 400ft. plus home run to right in the major league ST games yet as always worked the count.

      Like

      1. I’m not a huge Rizzotti fan… but

        What is with the reports that Rizzotti came in out of shape? That directly contradicts several articles about him last year. If I recall, Rizz attributed much of his success last season to an off season regimen with his college strength training coach. It would be very surprising, given his ascent last year to AAA, if he did not learn from that.

        Did I miss something?

        Like

      2. I’m not a huge Rizzotti fan… but

        What is with the reports that Rizzotti came in out of shape? That directly contradicts several articles about him last year. If I recall, Rizz attributed much of his success last season to an off season regimen with his college strength training coach. It would be very surprising, given his ascent last year to AAA, if he did not learn from that.

        Did I miss something?

        Like

        1. Also, I would like to know if all these people who are saying Rizzotti showed up “fat” and thus was sent to AA as punishment actually know this to be the case or if that’s just a SWAG.

          Like

  4. A couple comments:

    –Spoke to Mike Schwimer at the complex. Nice guy, very engaging and relaxed talking to me. He was helping out at the Group 5 (XST) level game on his day off pitching. He said Solarte really impressed him. The guy can really play.

    Also a lot of buzz about Chace Numata (spelled with a “c,” not “s”,” I believe, unless I have it wrong). Japanese guy, it appears. He looked very athletic and active, can really run and throw and has a nice line drive stroke with the bat, looks like some gap power. We may have something there. Would love to see him make it to Williamsport this year and compete against more experienced players, set himself up for full season at Lakewood. He looks like a player.

    Spoke to Bill Conlin in the bleachers watching the high A game. He commented on Mathieson needing to control his breaking stuff better. Spoke for the better part of an hour on various topics. Bill gets some bad ink here, but I know there are some guys around who appreciate that he was sometimes the lone opposition to bad ownership for decades and he could and still can write his ass off, IMV. It was a unique experience for me to just talk one on one with him for an extended time, just sit and watch the game, exchanging comments with Bill Conlin, as if he were just one of my buds. Pretty cool. I’ve enabled him several times. He is always ready to debate, but has always replied to me with logic and friendliness, even if I disagreed. He was the same in the bleachers. I think he is around 80 yrs old, looks like 60.

    –Travis Mattair’s dad said he worked hard in off season, came to camp 6 weeks early.

    –Darrin Ruf’s dad said they were just happy to see him pursuing his dream, giving it his all and understood the chances of making the majors was remote. I told him Darrin has played solid and if he got to AAA, who knows, they might need a fill-in one day.

    Like

    1. Numata actually is from Hawaii where he was a pitcher and converted to C by the Phillies.

      Like

      1. I think that they’ll be working on his defense a lot at extended. I noticed he had quite a few passed balls, which isn’t unusual for someone being converted to catcher.

        The positive is that he wasn’t a pitcher converted to catcher. He was a SS (who also closed) being converted to catcher. So that shows a level of athleticism which should help him (as should the reported low to mid 90s fastball he had as a closer).

        The Phillies are familiar with converting players to catcher so that should be a benefit as well. Chooch was a 2B who I think only put on a catchers mitt and gear for his try-out with the Phils. Sebastian Valle was converted to catcher by the Phillies and towards the middle of last season you stopped seeing a lot of criticism about his defense behind the plate and see praise of of it.

        Like

        1. Numata was one of the few if only major league prospect that I saw in the spring rookie games. He showed off his speed and pop on a triple over the rightfielders head . Great arm in throwing out a runner at second. But showed his inexperience in getting called for catchers interference in another game. I am sure he will continue to progress when the Extended Spring camp starts on Wednesday.

          Like

  7. and according to milb.com, all of these players have been assigned to Reading:

    Slayden, Kennelly, Edell, Susdorf, Aumont, Mitchell, Brian Gordon, Diekman, Zeid, Frey, Hernandez

    and these guys were assigned to Reading and placed on the DL:
    Gillies, Cartwright, Suomi

    Like

  8. Note: On the Iron Pigs website on the opening day roster article, it says Dan Meyer is one of the starting pitchers in lieu of Brian Bass.

    On a related note: a similar article on the Lakewood website says Ervis Manzanillo is one of the starting pitchers , in lieu of Eric Pettis.

    Like

  9. I loved watching Brian Roberts today. He might not be the best second baseman in the division, but I think he would be one of the top 5 in baseball if he could just stay healthy. Seems as if that guy is always doing something to help the team win.

    Like

    1. I think the release of Meyer means that Juan Perez’s injury is not serious and he’s ready to pitch and won’t go on DL

      Like

      2. . Jeff Schuler, The Morning Call’s IronPigs beat writer is now reporting that Perez has been placed on the 24 man roster after the release of Meyer.

        Like

  12. Diamond, you seemed to enjoy your time with Bill Conlin. Bill comes across like the brilliant doctor with the horrible bedside manners who can easily alienate people and does not seem to care.

    Like

    1. Afraid Conlin doesn’t come across as a brilliant doctor. He’s more like the regular at the local bar who knows something about everything. All you have to do is ask him.

      No one knows how he makes a living, how old he is, etc. They just know he’s been there as long as they can remember and have become accustomed to his ramblings. When he goes off on one of his tangets, you just roll you eyes and say to yourself, “there he goes again”…

      Like

  13. If Victorino’s tweaked calf was something more than what it is, who would be the call-up? CF is one of those positions that you just don’t call up an OF’er. Does anyone feel comfortable with Martinez and Mayberry for an extended period of time? There are two CF’ers on LHV: Corey Sullivan and Rich Thompson. Sullivan is on the 40 man and Thompson is not. Both are left-handers so neither one is a full-time option. Would you rather call-up Delwyn Young and platoon Mayberry, Martinez and possibly Francisco in CF or call up Sullivan and platoon him with Mayberry?

    Let’s hope Vic stays healthy because this in one position that really doesn’t have a plug and play option.

    Like

    1. Whoever they would call up with sit on the bench with Martinez and Mayberry getting the playing time.

      Like

      1. Sorry, the LHV roster has him listed on the 40 man. I didn’t go back to the Phillies website.

        Like

  14. But Vic played in yesterday’s game. He made a great running catch on a ball hit by Bourn. Manuel said this showed he had passed the test. I don’t think there’s anything wrong.

    Like

  17. Julio Rodriguez out pitched Cosart, Colvin, May and Pettibone in the games I saw them pitch this spring. The opponents had trouble making contact with his breaking ball. Julio may have had an advantage since he pitched and started in winter ball. I hope they start Julio and not bring him in from the pen.

    Like

  18. Two guys I am going to keep an eye on early are Derrick Mitchell and Jeremy Barnes. Watched Derrick take Roy Oswalt out to right center in an inter squad game and read that he put Andrew Carpenter in his book in an AAA/AA game Friday at Bright House. The cozy Reading Stadium is made for his swing. Watched Barnes hit two bombs in a minor league game and read he went deep again against the Pirates over the weekend. Reportedly he worked out with Ibanez in the off season and he looks like he is ready for a big power season . Shame he has to play again in Lakewood where long fly balls to left go to die.

    Like

    1. Hey Rickey. Enjoyed all your reports and thoughts so far. Solid descriptions and analysis. Keep ’em coming.

      On Mitchell: I’ve been thinking of him as purety org filler. Saw him in Clearwater and he looked good. Also liked his energy and attitude, seemed very positive. He could be a sleeper to be a fringe prospect. I think he will have to step it up with more impressive production this year to really get on the radar.

      On Barnes: I’m hoping Phils put him in Lakewood temporarily to let Mattair show what he has in Clearwater, give Travis some confidence that they still have some hope for him. Barnes can provide veteran leadership and solid hitting there. I see Barnes as a pretty solid utility prospect, can play 2B/3B fill in at SS for a few innings for an in-game injury. Like to see him get some OF experience also. His upside is a starting 2B for a lower level team, hit .270, take walks, 10-15 HRs, solid, not spectacular fielding. Hope Phils have not soured on him.

      On Mattair: Spoke to his dad, who said he really took the off-season seriously for the first time–personal trainer, best shape of his life, worked on his core, increased his strength. He came to camp 6 weeks early. Phils rewarding that, I guess.

      Like

      1. Mattair has wasted a lot of time since being drafted. I guess he never fully committed to baseball as his sport until now. Rolen left basketball behind as soon as he was drafted. It is somewhat saddening that youngsters who are drafted reasonably high, get a decent bonus, and are given every chance to succeed approach the game so casually that they see winter as pure vacation, rather than a time to get into better shape. Perhaps Mattair has finally matured. It is more disappointing that Rizzotti didn’t bother to get in shape over the winter, given that this season is likely his last, best chance to make it in MLB.

        Like

        1. Frankly, I’ll be surprised if Mattair plays into an actual prospect. All of this “best shape of his life” and “finally committed to baseball” stuff gets trotted out because it sounds better as a justification for his two pretty lousy years than merely “doesn’t have it”. I am sure he was in good shape and was fully committed to baseball when he played in Lakewood in 2008 and 2009. His success was mediocre so he went back and tried basketball and then didn’t do that great at that either.

          Like

          1. Honestly I don’t get the Mattair love from some fans and from the Phillies themselves. I really don’t see what he’s shown (in both his play and his attitude) to earn playing at a level about Jeremy Barnes.

            He put up a .235/.297/.340 (.637 OPS) line as his first pro season in GCL
            He followed that up with a .254/.321/.328 (.649 OPS) and .236/.326/.333 (.659 OPS) in back to back seasons at Lakewood before he quit on baseball and the Phillies.

            So he walks away from baseball and doesn’t play in 2010… He tries his hand at maybe being a walk-on college basketball player… Now he’s back with the Phillies and he’s earned his way onto Clearwater? Him and Anthony Hewitt are probably neck and neck for worst performers who keep getting promoted and hell at least Hewitt has shown legit power… I just don’t see what Mattair has ever shown to earn any hype. I’d read people posting last year about how they hoped Mattair came back to baseball and I just never understood it.

            Meanwhile Barnes gets drafted in 2009 and puts up a .287/.359/.464(.823 OPS) as a rookie in Williamsport… Starts 2010 in Lakewood and puts up a .292/.383/.441(.824 OPS)… And that’s earned him nada… He starts off 2011 back at Lakewood and he turns 24 in about 2 weeks.

            If you played very well a full season at a minor league level don’t you deserve to be promoted? Instead a guy who never has shown anything offensively in 3 minor league seasons and who quit on the organization strolls into camp and gets bumped up a level?

            Joe Savery being a bench player for the Phillies makes more sense to me than Travis Mattair starting at Clearwater.

            Like

            1. Bet Barnes moves up quickly this season. His build and bat this spring reminded me a little of Dodger great Ron Cey. Cey, a college guy like Barnes, was not an every day third baseman until he was 25 and he went on to hit 316 ML homers. Both have listed similar heights and weights anyway. Hope Galvis and Gracia stay healthy but they have had injury plagued seasons in the past. The Phils are fast tracking Cesar Hernandez so every one might move up if the AA guys break down again during the season.

              Like

            2. I agree with you Fly. Barnes deserves to be in Clearwater. I’m sure he knows that. All he can do now is play so well they have to move him up. Sometimes a chip on your shoulder is just the thing to take you that one step further in your game.

              Like

            3. Fly by night is right. The love Mattair gets here is mystifying.
              I am not one who constantly criticizes the organization, but I can not fathom how the Phillies can justify promoting Mattair to Clearwater, over Barnes. Mattair didn’t show anything for 3 years, then quit. He should at least have to hit his way out of Lakewood.

              Like

        2. Okay, my thoughts on your replies:

          A’town: Agree that it’s saddening some players don’t take their conditioning seriously. Rizz is perplexing, he found out last year how much it paid off–and then . . . .?

          Squire: Agree it’s unlikely–highly unlikely–Mattair plays himself into a prospect. I’m realistic about that. That said, I look at a lot of these guys like a dad looks at his son, with patience and appreciation they are all different. So I root for them until they fail finally and try to stay positive. That’s pretty much why I follow, to see kids “get it” at some point, to enjoy seeing them enjoy their own success, to see a little bit of magic in their game once they have paid the price. I’m just not one to take the cynical “he’s toast” view until the toast is burnt completely black. And I look for positives, such as Mattair’s hard work. There’s no way Travis will raise his plateau dramatically like Rizz did last year, based on physical conditioning. But it’s possible he can raise it incrementally to maybe .750 OPS, hit .280, 12-15 HRs, something like that. If so, he can still be a fringe prospect, with a ceiling of maybe avg, slightly below avg big league 3B for a lower team. To me even that’s worth rooting for.

          FlyByNite: No unconditional love from me for Mattair. See above on my thoughts on following guys like Travis. I agree Barnes should be at 3B for Clearwater and Mattair at 3B for Lakewood, based on what they have earned. It pissed me off when I saw that, because I’m bullish on Barnes, I think he might be a tough, lunchpail type big leaguer who can play a valuable role on a team. I’m wondering if there’s more to the story, maybe spanking Barnes for some unknown transgression. Just does not make sense. That said, it is what it is, and I subscribe to “get mad, get glad,” so my current thoughts are future-facing, the decision has been mad, I can’t do anything about it, and the Phils have been managing the farm pretty well, so they get the BOTD from me once or twice.

          Like

          1. I wonder if Anthony Hewitt is receiving the same patience, appreciation and positiveness as Travis Mattair.

            Like

            1. Barnes got screwed over. bottom line. Barnes also hired a personal trainer in the off season and it has been reported he spent the off season working out with Ibanez in Philadelphia. He did nothing but prove himself in spring training this year.
              There is absolutely no unknown transgression that went on with Barnes. He is a good kid and a very hard worker. Nothing negative can be said about him as a person or his work ethic. The Phillies simply decided to play Mattair in Clearwater even though it is undeserved. Barnes unfortunately has to deal with being back in Lakewood.

              Like

            2. (In re: to 2nd anonymous)–

              I’d actually argue that having to spend all summer in Clearwater, FL is more difficult to “deal with” than spending it on the Jersey Shore, but that is neither here nor there.

              If Barnes hits well, he’ll be promoted once if not twice this season (Phillies have a history of double-jumping deserving–and occasionally not-so-deserving–college kids). What Barnes or Barnes’s family, supporters, and various hangers-on and ne’er-do-wellers should emphatically *not* do is hang around internet message boards complaining about his assignment. The Phillies brass might not read these comments, but fans sure do, and it is hardly the kind of thing that turns a prospect into a fan favorite.

              (Ditto could be said for the D’Arby Myers anonymous below.)

              Like

          2. To those who have seen Barnes play, how is his fieding? Is he a good third basemen? Average? Below average? And if his fielding is’nt good right now, does he have the potential to be a good third basemen?

            Like

            1. Regarding (Ditto could be said for D’Arby Myers..) no one’s hanging around internet messege boards complaining about his assignments. We are fans that go to the games and we would like to know where to go and read about games results from the games we missed. if Myers or any other player played ofensively or defensively well we want to read about it. We read about other players but not Myers. We know he has excellent fielding skills with supper speed but have not read about it. so we just wanted to know more about that.

              Like

    2. Hi Rickey. I enjoy your reports also so please keep them coming. Thank you.
      I saw a game Clearwater vs Yankees where D’Arby Myers hit a triple, a bunt and then he hit off AJ Burnett and stole a base. He also played on the AAA team where he scored off an infield ground ball. He makes the games exciting to watch. He has supper speed. But I did not read about that anywhere. Descriptive about other players but not Myers. Myers got 2 hits. Also saw Barnes play very impressive.

      Like

  19. I agree that Barnes has earned a promotion while Mattair has not.
    However, I think sending Mattair back to Lakewood again would just be a waste. Give him a shot at the higher level and if he stinks then just cut him. At least his defense is considered excellent so he will not be a black hole in the field as well.

    I think the double jump of C.Hernandez is what hurt Barnes. Barnes should be the 2B for A+. Barnes should get full playing time and he is not a good enough SS to stay there at A+. Hopefully Shoenberger shows something at SS in A+ since Hanzawa is just org filler as a good fielder.

    I would like to see Barnes bumped up to A+ but I doubt Mattair or Hernandez will get promoted so he might get stuck, which I agree is not helping his chances to develop into a utility infielder in the bigs.

    Like

    1. Barnes shouldn’t be the starting 2B at Clearwater. Cesar Hernandez’s development and advancement shouldn’t be compromised for a guy like Barnes, who is a future utility IF at best. It is silly to have Hernandez play at Low A while he is burning option years on the 40 man. He already had nearly 400 OBP in a pitchers league. Jumping him to High A isn’t that aggressive. If he was a high round college player that would be standard.
      Mattair, who hasn’t done anything since getting his $295,000, is the guy hurting Barnes.

      Like

  20. Did anybody think of the reason they put Mattair in Lakewood is because his defense is awesome and we have some stud pitchers there that are MUCH more important in their development than Barnes? Seriously guys, there is more to the game than offense, and a whole lot more to these decisions than anybody on this board ever considers.

    Like

Comments are closed.