Box Score Recap 6-2-2012

Box Score Recap

DMitch had a nice double header – 8 RBI on 4 hits, including a walk-off in game 1 and a grand slam in game 2.  Also, a nice looking High-A debut from Mario Hollands.

LV1  LV2  REA  CLR  LKW  DSL  VSL

60 thoughts on “Box Score Recap 6-2-2012”

  1. Darin Ruf has really been having an insane season. Hit his 10th homer and has a .344 average

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    1. Does anyone have a report on Ruf’s defense at first? If he’s solid there, I think he’s got to be considered a prospect at this point.

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  2. zach Collier continues to rake now that hes back. and hey! Mr. Colvin threw two innings without a walk!

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  4. Hard not to. What is up with that? A left hand batting catcher should be welcome. He hit very well last year.
    Mitchell is also picking it up .finally, his defense is needed.

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  6. Brody Colvin pitching out of the bullpen? That’s new, right? And not terribly effective there either, it appears. I wonder if this signals they’ve given up on him as a starter, or if it’s just some strategy to straighten him out.

    Pretty poor start for Dave Bush as he comes up for consideration for a call-up.

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    1. It look like both Bush and Elarton, LHV pitchers that had been pitching pretty well and appeared to be ripe for a call-up in the wake of all the injuries have started to struggle. It looks like Cloyd might be the best bet.

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  7. I can’t wait for the AndyB write-up on the DSL. A lot of the guys who had good seasons last year are not on the DSL roster so we’ll be seeing them in the GCL or Wmsprt. 4 guys jumped off the page at me. Not that I know anything about them but their ages and size look intriguing. Most guys weigh around 155. Samuel Hiciano is 18 y/o, played RF and is listed at 6’1″ 203 lbs. He was also batting 3rd yesterday. Roberto Contreras is 17 and another OF’er. He’s listed at 6’3″ 170 and is a lefty. Emmanuel Salas will be 17 until December. He plays OF and is listed at 6’2″ 172.

    Yesterday’s starter was Gregorio Santos. He’s 19 and is a 6’3″ righty. He went 6 IP, giving up 5 hits and a run. Interesting thing there iis starters often open the season and go 3 or 4 innings. He went 6. He played last year and was mostly a reliever. I’ll keep an eye on him.

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    1. Thanks for the note. Probably going to let them go through the rotation once to see who is in the rotation and who is getting playing time before putting something together. The guys that always draw my eyes early in the season are the 17 year olds getting regular playing time. Roberto Contreras is a classic case. He is a big kid as you noted but only 17. He played last year at 16 and hit .127. But he is playing at a young age. Hiciano is also interesting. Though he is 18 the Phillies have him batting 3rd in his debut. Santos as the opening day starter is also a sign the Phillies like him and at 6’3″ there is probably some projection there.

      With such little info available on these players I have always thought that the Phillies’ decisions on who plays where and how often are really important. They certainly have a few older players sprinkled around for competitiveness. But rule number one with prospect development is to play the best prospects in spots where they at least have a chance to succeed. This might mean breaking in a young pitcher as a reliever. But it also might mean throwing a Roberto Contreras out there to take his lumps because he has the tools to be a good prospect.

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  9. Joe B is going to pitch a great one today. Saw his throw day bullpen, has his command worked out.

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    2. Well you were right through six innings but they left him too long again. When will they learn that Blanton is usually just a six inning pitcher and thats it?

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  10. Joe B better pitch well today. Needs to pickup Hamels. 3,4,5 starters must have at least 2 good starts out of those 3 and hope Hamels and Lee stay solid.

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    1. Blanton definitely a six inning pitcher. Letting him go more is highly risky. Blanton with four straight starts of allowing four or more runs – first since Gavin Floyd in ’06. Still, he must remain in the rotation w/ Halladay on the DL.

      Biddle’s line today: 7 4 0 0 1 12 WOW! Keep it up and he’ll be in Reading by August.

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      1. Passably I think. I know he’s been in right field before, so I assume he’s good enough to avoid first base at least.

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      2. He’s average to below average in the OF…at least at the corners. Good to enough to handle the positions if nothing else.

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        1. If his hitting and plate discipline hold, and he can be passable in the OF, he is a less expensive option than the Lance Nix’s of the world.

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  12. Jesse Biddle is on fire again today. Since the middle of April he has dominated. I think he is now our top prospect, although May is 1A.

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      1. Forget what site… but somebody here posted a link to one that said he was low 90’s again.

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    2. This is the type of start that can propel is prospect status. We’ll see if he comes out here for the 7th, but a flat out dominating line today and only 1 BB thru 6

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      2. If the Phillies sign Hamels, Biddle could very well surplant Lee in the rotation in 2/3 years.

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          1. Lee has a vesting option yr six and a club buyout of like $12m I think. Biddle wouldn’t be supplanting him. They can both pitch on the same staff.

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            1. That and he has a no trade, which I doubt he’d waive and a contract that would be unmovable if you wanted to move him.

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    3. May got rocked again today…3 starts in a row where he’s been destroyed. Hopefully he’s not hurt.

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    4. 6 ER in his last 7 starts (46 IP…technically he had a 0.1 IP appearance in there that I’m counting for IP but not for starts as I think it was a rain delay situation).

      1.17 ERA with 48 SO/14 BB in that time period.

      Nice work by Jesse.

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      1. You can see Biddle’s 11th and 12th strikeout from today’s game here:

        Credit goes to baseballbetsy for the video.

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      2. That 1/3 was when he got hit in the hand and was taken out as a precaution. He’s really dealin’.

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  13. Brown 2-4 with a HR today … anybody seen him in CF that can attest to how comfortable he looks?

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    1. saw some tweet that he made an awesome catch today but other than that I don’t know

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    2. His error rate is down at least.

      Yes, I know that is a terrible way to judge defense but Brown’s problem has never been getting to the ball, its been making the play so I take that as a huge positive. Maybe CF really is easier for him.

      .872 OPS in his last 10.

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      1. Well, maybe the simplest explanation is the best. It is easiest to see the ball of the bat from center field. Given his athleticism and speed, perhaps there is positive synergy there defensively.

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  14. How about this lineup come late July?
    1 Rollins SS
    2 Utley 2B
    3 Pence RF
    4 Howard 1B
    5 Ruiz C
    6 Victorino CF
    7 Brown LF (Mayberry vs LHP)
    8 Polanco 3B

    Or if Blanton could right the ship and we swap him for Youkilis, how about….
    1 Rollins SS
    2 Utley 2B
    3 Pence RF
    4 Howard 1B
    5 Youkilis 3B
    6 Victorino CF
    7 Ruiz C
    8 Brown LF

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    1. Blanton for Youkilis is ridiculous.

      Dice-K for Chase Utley. How does reading that make you feel? Exactly. 5th starter for All Star 3rd baseman is unrealistic.

      Somebody other than Jesse Biddle and Trevor May for Kevin Youkilis + Salary Relief is realistic. (somebody being a package)

      ________________

      No way Domonic Brown comes up before September unless there’s an injury. I’d love to see him in our line up and have since the Pence trade… but when he comes up, I want him to stay.

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      1. If you think Kevin Youkilis is still an all star…….I’ll let you finish the sentence. He is an overpaid, aging corner IF with a slowing bat….yet one that would still be an upgrade for the Phils.

        And if you would trade any prospects for Youkilis you are crazy.

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        1. I would trade like a Cameron Rupp or Leandro Castro – fringe prospect guys. Pretty sure that Boston would just hold onto Youkilis – wait and see, if you will.

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          2. I think the problem with that is, the Phillies are going to need (or want) a ton of salary relief back from Boston.

            To do that, I think they might need to consider one of the lesser touted arms outside a May and a Biddle and include a Jiwan James/Castro type. Two low top 10 guys plus a lottery ticket guy might get the job done. (keep in mind, our top 10 isn’t exactly a huge deal compared to other teams in the hunt for Youk).

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        2. Answer my question. Would you trade Chase Utley for a 5th starter? If the answer is no, why would Boston trade Kevin Youkilis for one?

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          1. When you ask me a sensible question I will answer it. There is no sense in your comparison. Chase Utley to us means something completely different than what Youkilis means to the Sox. There contract situations are very different, their health situations are both very different, and their value / potential to their teams because of the DH is very different. Youkilis makes alot of money and has no place to play without supplanting someone that would be a significant impact. Chase Utley coming off the DL is totally different – we can play him at 2B, we could consider playing him at 1B, and some would even say (not sure I agree) we could play him in LF, without supplanting anyone near the value that Ortiz, Gonzalez, or Middlebrooks offer to the Sox at this point. I LOVE Galvis, but he is a) not Middlebrooks at this stage of his career, and b) if we really want Freddy to play, he can platoon at 3B or be a rotating 5th infielder to give Polanco, Utley, and Rollins a day off per week.

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            1. It’s a 100% sensible question.

              Why on Earth anybody would trade a 5th starter for a 3rd baseman makes no sense to me, regardless of his pitchability.

              It’s a sensible question because I’m asking you, would YOU trade YOUR past their prime star for a 5th starter? It’s a hypothetical.

              “we can play him at 2b”

              To be determined. His future is as a DH. Just like Youkilis, his health has kept him from being an effective player.

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        3. I like the way Polanco is playing right now, but he does not offer the power that Youkilis demonstrates. Not sure if Blanton has any trade value at the moment and the team needs to hold on to him with the injury to Halladay.

          Youkoulis would be a great spark plug for this veteran club, especially with not knowing what Howard and Utley will give you.

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        4. … accidentally hit post.

          The guy saying Blanton for Youkilis is calling me crazy.

          It won’t take top prospects but it’s going to take prospects. Yes. I would trade pretty much anybody other than Biddle and May for Kevin Youkilis. Maybe not Valle but yes, prospects. That’s what Boston wants.

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          1. If the Sox trade Youkilis, this is how it will go down. They will either a) trade him and pay most of his salary and try to get a decent prospect or two back, or b) trade him and get nothing in return but a team will pay most of his salary. The only other option for them is to keep him and create significant chaos in their defensive lineup by putting a gold glove caliber 1B in RF or to bench someone or send Middlebrooks back to AAA. Bottom line, unless they suffer an injury to someone, they WILL trade him and guess what, everybody knows it.

            He makes I believe $12M this year, has a bad back, and his production has been dropping steadily, minus a good week or so since he came back which is a very small sample size to get hopes up that he is a big time player. By swapping Youkilis for Blanton, the Red Sox would be trading someone they need to trade, would be gaining money in the process by swapping salaries, and would be getting someone where they are in a position of need (starting pitching). Do I think the Red Sox would do this trade today? Absolutely not because Blanton hasn’t pitched well lately, albeit better today than the last couple. As I said in my original post, this idea is predicated on Blanton “righting the ship”, and what I mean is if Joe goes out there and throws decent games his next couple of outings, he is a very manageable 4th starter to the Red Sox, something they need more than Youkilis right now.

            I’m not sure, to John H’s point, that I would do this until we know more about Halladay’s condition and how Worley bounces back off this injury. Until Halladay gets back, if Blanton pitches bad, he isn’t tradeable, and if he pitches well, I’m not sure a Tyler Cloyd or Dave Bush, would do as well as a good throwing Joe Blanton. Of course there is the argument that Cloyd could do well since team’s haven’t seen him yet and maybe he’d even be an upgrade over Blanton, who knows.

            I would NOT trade for Kevin Youkilis if it meant giving up any prospect of value. You mention James Castro and a “lottery pick” guy. If I was going to trade either James or Castro (as examples) I would not be paying any of Youk’s salary. Looking at it another way, if the Red Sox had Joe Blanton right now, would they trade him to us for Jiwan James or Leandro Castro? I highly doubt it.

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            1. Joe Blanton has no trade value regardless of how he pitches for us. He’ll get torn apart in the AL East and Boston has Dice K coming back.

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  15. where does brown play, pierre is doing great , he isnt better than pence, and he is no center fielder. how about rollins, polanco, and victorino hit , that would help. look at that sick linup today the averages were pathethic

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    1. You make Brown the everyday LF with Mayberry. Pierre is a PH and 4th OF. The lineup will be better with the power threat that Brown offers and you are investing time fornext year.

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      1. I don’t think it makes sense for Brown to be anything but an every day player when he comes up. I don’t want Mayberry taking at bats away from him. (except against a REAL tough lefty like a Sabathia… just not a straight platoon).

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  16. sorry cant see brown a unknown over a quality run scoring player like pierre and mayberry cant hit he can hit a off speed pitch to save his life.

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  17. Brian Pointer has a .900 OPS in his last 10 games. Hopefully he can really get it going again.

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  18. BTW, Valle, Castro and Pointer are resurgent of the offensive front during the past ten games. I am hoping this bodes wells for hitting season, as Cholly puts it.

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