Lehigh Valley
Michael Schwimer, 25, 32 games, 5-0 with a 1.89 ERA; 5 saves, 47.2IP; 33H 17BB 59K; 3 HR allowed, 1.04 WHIP; 3.2BB/9, 11.1K/9; 0.68 GO/AO; .190 opp. avg., .282 vs. LH, .126 vs. RH, .157 with RISP; 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA since May 1. Has been simply awesome, and should be called up in September, if not sooner.
Mike Zagurski, 28, 24 games, 2-0 with a 1.95 ERA, 10 saves, 27.2IP 24H 16BB 41K; 1.19 GO/AO; .250 opp. avg., 5.2BB/9, 13.3K/9; .267 vs LH, .242 vs. RH, .192 with RISP; 1-0 with a 2.31 ERA since May 1. Has been very good at this level but his reverse splits and inconsistent control work against him for a callup.
Jason Grilli, 34, 22 games, 4-0 with a 1.73 ERA; 1 save, 26IP, 23H 10BB 33K; 1.26 WHIP, 1 HR allowed, 1.32 GO/AO, .237 opp. avg., 3.4BB/9; 11.4K/9; .237 vs. LH, .237 vs. RH, .030 with RISP; 3-0 with a 1.69 ERA since May 1. Has been deserving of a major league callup this year. His numbers with RISP are astounding.
Les Walrond, 34, 12 games, 2-1 with a 2.25 ERA between Reading and Lehigh Valley; 16IP 11H 9BB 19K; 1.25 WHIP; 1.14GO/AO; .190 opp. avg. Walrond has been a nice mid season signing out of the Independent League and gives an extra, competent left handed arm out of the bullpen.
Justin DeFratus, 23, 6 games with Lehigh Valley; 1-0 with a 5.79 ERA; 9.1IP 12H 4BB 12K; .324 opp. avg. Had been 4-0 with a 2.10 ERA and 8 saves in 23 games with Reading. 34.1IP 28H 14BB 43K. Combined: 29 games, 5-0 with a 2.89 ERA and 8 saves; .247 opp. avg. The talent is clearly there. SImply a matter of acclimating himself to more advanced hitters.
Phillipe Aumont, 22, 5 games with Lehigh Valley; 0-0 with a 3.52 ERA; 7.2IP 11H 5BB 13K, .324 opp. avg., 1-5 with a 2.32 ERA in 25 games with Reading; 31IP 23H 11BB 41K; Combined: 30 games; 1-5 with a 2.56 ERA; 4 saves; 38.2IP 34H 16BB 54K; 1.54 GO/AO; .224 opp. avg., 1.29 WHIP. His control and composure remain his issue, however, both are less of a concern then this time last year.
Tyson Brummett, 26, 25 games (6 starts) between Reading and Lehigh Valley; 2-6 with a 3.76 ERA; 67IP 70H 23BB 51K; 1.39 WHIP; 5 HR allowed; 1.72 GO/AO; .270 opp. avg. Brummett has bounced back and forth between the rotation and relief and Reading/Lehigh Valley, now behind asked to fulfill the long relief role with Nate Bump’s activation from the DL.
Reading
Chris Kissock, 26, 20 games (7 starts); 2-6 with a 5.34 ERA; 62.1IP 67H 15BB 37K; 6 HR allowed, 0.88 GO/AO; .273 opp. avg., 1.31 WHIP; .281 vs. LH, .266 vs. RH, 2.1BB/9, 5.3K/9; .333 with RISP; 1-4 with a 5.31 ERA since May 1. 1-2 with a 3.38 ERA as a reliever. Kissock has looked a bit better as a reliever, but still nothing outstanding.
Josh Zeid, 24, 13 games (11 starts); 2-3 with a 6.39 ERA; 1 save; 50.2IP 55H 25BB 39K; 0.68 GO/AO; .282 opp. avg., 4.4BB/9; 6.9K/9. .360 vs. LH, .220 vs. RH, .286 with RISP. Zeid just came off the DL into a relief role, a role in which he has had success in the past. In his first two outings for Reading as a reliever he has been lights out.
Jacob Diekman, 24, 28 games, 0-0 with a 4.18 ERA; 1 save; 32.1IP 28H 21BB 40K; 1.51 WHIP; 1.55 GO/AO; .250 opp. avg., 5.8BB/9; 11.1K/9; .091 vs. LH, .308 vs. RH, .188 with RISP; 0-0 with a 1.26 ERA in his last 10 outings. AFter a miserable first two months of the year, Diekman has been much improved as of late, specifically against lefties.
Mike Cisco, 24, 10 games, 5-0 with a 1.76 ERA; 30.2IP 23H 9BB 21K; 0.84 GO/AO; .207 opp. avg., 3HR allowed, .205 vs LH, .209 vs. RH, .130 with RISP, 1.04 WHIP; Cisco has thrown very well when healthy. He just returned after missing 6 weeks on the DL with a bum elbow.
Jordan Ellis, 25, 18 games, 1-1 with a 7.20 ERA; 25IP 31H 14BB 28K, 1.19 GO/AO; ..301 opp. avg., 1.80 WHIP; .289 vs. LH, .310 vs. RH, .333 with RISP, 5.0BB/9, 10.0K/9. AFter throwing well in 6 games with Clearwater to start the season, Ellis was sent to Reading and pretty much struggled since Day One.
Derrick Loop, 27, 29 games between Clearwater and Reading, 2-2 with a 1.38 ERA; 3 saves, 39IP 27H 20BB 36K, 1.25 GO/AO; .203 opp. avg., 1.20 WHIP, 4.6BB/9, 8.3K/9. Loop was lights out in CLearwater and has thrown well in his first 5 appearances in Reading.
Justin Friend, 25, 32 games between Clearwater and Reading, 2-4 with a 2.29 ERA; 22 saves, 35.1IP 26H 10BB 36K, 2.05 GO/AO; .203 opp. avg., 1.02 WHIP; 2.5BB/9; 9.1K/9. Friend, a Minor League Rule 5 guy leads the minor league in saves. Still early to have too much of an opinion about his success in Reading.
Clearwater
Andy Loomis, 25, 5 games, 0-1 with a 3.60 ERA. SIgned recently as a free agent. He had been a 16th round pick of the Marlins in the 2008 draft out of Purdue.
Ebelin Lugo, 24, 27 games, 2-2 with a 4.14ERA; 3 saves, 41.1IP 42H 7BB 40K; 0.62 GO/AO; .289 opp. avg., .224 vs. LH, .313 vs. RH, .324 with RISP; 1.18 WHIP; 1.5BB/9; 8.7K/9; 6.40 ERA in his last 10 outings. Pinpoint control for Lugo but he has been getting hit around a bit this year.
Mike McGuire, 25, 9 games , 0-0 with a 10.80 ERA; 11.2IP 21H 7BB 11K; 1.40 GO/AO; .375 opp. avg. Extremely ugly since getting activated from the DL.
Tommy Palica, 23, 4 games, 0-0 with a 8.31 ERA. Recently signed as a free agent. Originally the Braves 10th round pick in the 2007 draft.
Eric Pettis, 23, 26 games between Lakewood and CLearwater, 1-1 with a 1.24 ERA; 4 saves, 43.2IP 31H 7BB 37K; 1.22 GO/AO; .201 opp. avg., 0.87 WHIP; 1.4BB/9, 7.6K/9; .204 vs. LH, .218 vs. RH, .250 with RISP. While not as overpowering as Justin DeFratus, Pettis is on the DeFratus track through the minors, dominating the lower levels of competition. Now at High A, Pettis has had continued success.
Jason STephens, 26, 4 games, 0-0 with a 10.80 ERA.
Jordan Whatcott, 26, 22 games, 1-1 with a 3.32 ERA; 1 save; 38IP 41H 12BB 26K; 2.04 GO/AO; .289 opp. avg., 2.8BB/9; 6.1K/9; .359 vs RH, .281 vs. LH, .234 with RISP. SIgned as a free agent last season, Whatcott has thrown effective innings but isn’t going anywhere with a .359 split against righties.
Phuture Phillies 
Looks like we’ll have to wait until ’12 to have genuine prospect starters at Reading assuming none of those at Clwtr now. Some decent relievers at AA & AAA, maybe one or two of them up this season.
Schwim’s issue keeping from a call-up is his horrendous failure vs. lefty hitters. BUT if you’d want a guy to shut down a righty hitter, he looks up to that job.
I’d like to believe that lefty Dieckman is really a relief prospect. We need some more lefty relief candidates.
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I know low level relievers are rarely prospects but the current Clearwater group just seems like a list of unknowns. I do not mind if Phillies use some good minor league vets to help the solid rotation finish games, but Pettis seems worth watching for now.
The dominance of Zagurski should be a warning sign for translation from the minors to the majors. I assume his lack of control hurts him the most in the majors. But I am still curious what is so different about minor league hitters he is able to expose. Normally I expect great breaking ball guys (like RJ Swindle) to having issues in the majors after cruising through minors. Pure fastball hitters probably litter AAA (Ranson, Mayberry, etc…) and maybe Zagurski has just enough control of his slider to be effective.
Diekman and Zeid still might have a chance to touch the majors as relievers. These are guys I always hope can be hot at the right time to get a brief callup.
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http://www.thefightins.com/meechone/ironpigs-reliever-michael-schwimer-feels-slighted-by-the-phillies/
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Someone needs to sit down and have a chat with him. I like what the kids does and not what he says. If I were Ruben I would have Chuck Lamar make a special visit and along with Ryne Sandberg sit him down and tell him the realities of baseball. This is dissapointing. Almost as a dumb when he went on the autograph rant. He needs to think then speak.
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Wow…had to watch again…really hard to believe the kid is that dumb..more crap like that and Jason Grilli will be the next to be recalled. Grilli has had a great year and deserves an opportunity in the bigs whether with the Phils or another team.
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Better watch himself—-may be included in a trading deadline deal come July.
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He’s not a dumb kid, he’s just pissed off. He’s very competitive and his goal was to get called up to the big leagues. He’s seen guys go up who aren’t as good as him and it hurts. He’ll be fine and the Phils know it. If he gets traded, and its possible he will, it will have nothing to do with this.
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For all of Schwimer’s intelligence he took a lousy moment to say what he did. I can understand that he may be frustrated. Maybe no one has told him what they think of him. I know from his blogs that he has worked on what they want.
Ironically, his strength — words — may now be used against him.
I’m sure the front office has been talking with Ryne Sandberg and has definite plans for Schwimer. I guess Ryne will be talking to him.
First Worley; now Schwim better stick to pitching. Things will work themselves out.
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On this list I feel that Schwimer has the best chance for the bigs. He reminds me of a Jon Rauch type. Yeah the same guy who got tossed the other day during the Phils game. After that I would go with Aumont and DeFratus. I have heard good things about Aumont’s curve and De Fratus has been succesful at each stop in the minors. Eric Pettis is kind of similiar. I would like to see Josh Zeid stay in as a reliever, a poor mans Ryan Madson. He was throwing in the high 90s last yr for Lakewood in the playoffs. The Phils need a lefty reliever. Maybe Mario Hollands. We will see.
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I would be frustrated too, if I played for an organization that isnt bothered by not having their best 25 men on their roster.
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This is not just a Phillies thing. Remember teams have to deal with contracts. Do you think Jorge Posada is in the top 25 of the Yanks. I went to see to Phils-Red Sox and there corner outfielders were Darnel McDonald and Mike Cameron (both batting under .200). They finally shipped out Cameron. The Mets had to deal with Oliver Perez and his bad contract for years. There is always that prospect knocking at the door. Sometimes they need to be patient.
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Schwimer is an attitudinal anomaly. Of course, I knew that early on when I smarted off to him in a question and he smarted off back. Of course, all that means nothing. When he gets outs in a sufficient enough distribution to be of use for more than a batter or two, and there is a viable roster spot he can be placed in to provide sufficient work to continue to maximize his value, then they will utilize him , if necessary. Or to put it another way, want to be in MLB? try getting more LHH’s out.
As far as the roster spot, Stutes, Bastardo, and the closer type to return or be added, will handle the important stuff. Perez can be effective against LHH’s in limited exposure. In the 6th, Herndon will be a better choice than Schwimer and has better stuff and more relevant experience. Baez will be the long reliever, if at such time they have an opportunity to add higher salaried players, the other team can take the contract to offset some of the expense. (and to the self ordained roster geniuses, the same goes for Ibanez, et.al.) As for the current denizens: Mathieson, and Carpenter they will be utility pitchers, used only when the game is not in dispute of outcome. (As to the 40 man roster bull, Carpenter was not on the 40 man roster either). Both of those can be steadier presenses and are preferable to the hassle of promoting a younger, more volatile type, who would not receive sufficient work to justify them being there.
That bring the realities into focus and clear it up?
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The reality is that neither Matheson nor Carpenter will pitch in any meaningful spots unless a game goes into extra innings. Heck, Baez doesn’t either unless injury pushes him up the ladder like now. Herndon though is the guy that doesn’t impress me anymore. We’ll see how the month unfolds but I expect one or two of their relievers that is close to the majors (DeFratus, Aumont or Schwimer) to go in a trade with a hitting prospect (Overbeck? James?) for a right handed bat and a veteran reliever. We’ll see…
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Schwim’s ability to be equally tough on both lhh and rhh makes him useful for the big-club. They can and will bring him up, because they have to.
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Needs to be just a bit tougher with LHH. Not sure if .282 can be equated to added value at the major league level at this point.
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General discussion topic: of all the ‘young’ Phillies relievers, how will they rank in 3 years? I am including Herndon, Bastardo, Stutes, Mathieson, Carpenter, Schwimer, Aumont, DeFratus, Zagurski.
Bastardo projects the best. He was great in the minors, has great stuff, has had many injuries and seems to have figured out what he needs to do. He still walks too many but will likely be the late inning lefty for many years.
Aumont has possibly better stuff than Bastardo. He has pitched against top talent during international games with extremely small sample success (something Zagurski and Mathieson seem unable to do). He wants to pitch in relief and could be a closer.
DeFratus has pitched well at every level. I am not sure he will ever be a truly dominant pitcher but could see him in a setup/fill-in closer type role.
Stutes is the most interesting because he was certainly behind the first three guys I mentioned as well as Schwimer (and maybe others before Spring Training). This season he has limited walks and is now performing well in as setup role in the Majors. Based on his performance he would have to rank right behind Bastardo. What I wonder is if he will be less effective as the league sees him more often. His stuff has always been pretty good. I am really debating his long term value. He is too valuable right now and with his current experience may be the setup guy going into next season.
Schwimer has two pitches but gets plenty of K’s and does not walk many guys. He has produced effectively at every level. I seem him as similar to Stutes in projection as both could be effective in late innings but may not be able to get away with many mistakes.
I still hold out hope for Mathieson, as 98mph fastballs are still uncommon, but he has not been able to show anything at the major league level. I could see him eventually having a great half season for a cheaper club.
Herndon seems like his best will be as the cheap piece in bullpen. His groundball rate and ability to pitch multiple innings make him useful but that is about it.
Zagurski has flamed out in the Majors also. He continues to pitch great in the minors as Bastardo did. His walks are too high but I could see him hanging on the very end of a major leagure roster because he is a lefty.
Carpenter is a shock to me this season. Not sure how he did it but I doubt it will last that long.
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Stutes hasn’t really limited walks this season… at least not with the big club. He has a 4.9 BB/9 right now. If he doesn’t improve there is eventually going to come back to hurt him.
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PHxPhilly great review of the young relievers. I agree with you on virtually all accounts. I think the amusing thing is that it took Bastardo a long time to get to this level of pitching. As we all know his peripheral nos. are astounding. I keep waiting for him to blow a game so he can go back onto another skein of fantastic pitching. He just might be the future 8th inning pitcher and even the closer in another year or two ? Stutes is great but his control is a modest concern – see walks.
On another note – Juan Perez…I was watching J. Venters of Braves who pitches in almost every game and throws a 2 seam fastball which looks like the “old screwball.” Perez throws the same pitch – I wonder why some coach hasn’t worked with Perez more to make that pitch more consistent. I am not saying he is a Venters, but they throw a similar pitch and you could see Venters sets up his other pitches with the fading 2 seamer outside vs. righties. The difference may just be the velocity but Perez can throw some smoke too ?????
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