Hot or Not

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Another week, another edition of Hot or Not.

–Excellent week for hitters throughout the organization with Dom Brown having perhaps one of the best offensive weeks in the system this year.  Another three weeks of solid production and the Phils will have a decision to make, as he continues to improve his OF route running.

–The whispers are beginning about when/if to move Jesse Biddle up to Reading based on his recent dominance. I would give it at least another 6 or 7 starts at High A with similar results to what we have seen lately.

–There has been some debate about whether concern about Trevor May’s recent performance is “too early”.  Its not based upon him having to be sent back to Low A less than a year and a half ago to get himself straight.

–Interesting week for Ethan Stewart who may have set a Phuture Phillies record by appearing on the Not Hot list for both starters and relievers. Stewart got back on track last night with a nice outing for Lakewood.

—Brody Colvin appears to be gaining some confidence in the bullpen.  How log do the Phils keep him there?

–Watching Steve Susdorf, he is a player that simply knows how to hit.  He came out of a major college program and has translated his success there to the upper minor league level nicely.

Hot Starters:Jesse Biddle (7IP 4IP 0ER 1BB 12K); Mario Hollands (W, 5IP 0H 0ER 1BB 5K); Tom Cochran (8ip 5H 2ER 3BB 8K)

Not Hot Starters: Trevor May (L, 3.2IP 9H 6ER 2BB 5K); Jon Pettibone (L, 6IP 7H 7ER); Lino Martinez (4.2IP 9H 5ER); Perci Garner (11.2IP 17H 10ER); Ethan Stewart (7.1IP 10H 7ER 5BB 5K)

Hot Hitters: John Suomi (.571, 6R 1HR 4 RBI); Steve Susdorf (.500, 5R 5RBI) Domonic Brown (.440, 10R 4HR 5 RBI); Cesar Hernandez (.429, 4R);Albert Cartwright (.421, 6RBI); Tug Hulett (.400);  Sebastian Valle (.389); Derrick Mitchell (.385, 9 RBI); Zach Collier (.375, 5 RBI); Peter Lavin (.357, 6R, 2SB); Honorable Mention: Castro, Murphy, Overbeck, Dugan, Pointer, Villalobos

Not Hot Hitters:Anthony Hewitt (.000); Bob Stumpo (.091); Carlos Alonso (.125); Brandon Tripp (.143); Jiwan James (.143); Troy Hanzawa (.143); Cameron Rupp (.156); Kyle Hudson (.167); Miguel Abreu (.190)

Hot Relievers: Jeremy Horst (5IP 2H 0ER 2BB 2K); Juan Morillo (3IP 0H 0ER 1BB 3K); Brian Sanches (3IP 2H 0ER 0BB 2K); Tyler Knigge (W, 3IP 2H 0ER 2BB 1K, SV); Juan Sosa (3IP 1H 0ER 0BB 4K); Colby SHreve (3IP 1H 0ER 1BB 3K); Brody Colvin (W, 6IP 5H 1ER 2BB 7K); Lisalberto Bonilla (2IP 0H 0ER 0BB 3K, SV); Mike Cisco (2IP 1H 0ER 1BB 2K).

Not Hot Relievers:Matt Campbell (1.1IP 6H 9ER 4BB); James Birmingham (oIP 1H 2ER 3BB); Yari Sosa (3.2IP 6H 4ER 3BB); Ethan Stewart (0.2IP 0H 1ER 3BB 1K)

24 thoughts on “Hot or Not”

  1. I agree about Biddle, looking forward to seeing him in Reading for a fair amount of games this year. Dominic has the talent to be a difference maker on the big club right now, he’s always had it. It would be fantastic if a year from now he’s being talked about as a potential all-star outfielder. (hey you never know!)

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  2. How long does Susdorf have to hit in AAA before a call up? It’s not as if the bench is setting the world on fire right now with the likes of Fontenot and Orr.

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    3. The rest of this year at least, probably. Then maybe the Phils would let him compete for a spot next year.

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  3. I wouldn’t move Biddle up any time soon. He’s in his 20 year old season in high A, there’s no rush. The jump to AA is the most difficult in the minors and I would like to be sure he’s ready. If the team is competitive, he’s almost certainly not going to be in the Phillies rotation next year anyway, so lets take it slow here.

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    1. I agree, as does Gregg. Gregg’s time table, 6 or 7 starts would be early July. I would Rather move him in late July or August, if he continues to do well, he could move to Reading for a few starts in August. He’s probably got 150 to 160 inning in his arm. No more than that because he pitched 133 last year. I’m not so worried about his psyche as I am about the physical beating. Moving to AA, where the rubber meets the road, would push his arm and body a little too hard. If he was needed in the big leagues soon, then you push him. Otherwise, let him work on things in A+ and let him have a taste of AA at the end of the year.

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      1. I agree, I would like to see him get his feet wet at AA by starting 2-3 games there at the end of the year. In the meantime, its important for him to stay in the same league allowing hitters to make adjustments and him to do the same as they adjust. That’s an important element in a pitcher’s development and maturity.

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      3. He is kind of needed in the big leagues soon… Hamels could leave (I doubt he does), Halladay’s contract’s up next year, Blanton’s contract is finally up.

        The only sure things in the rotation over the next year or so are Lee, Worley, Kendrick.

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  4. Leave Biddle and Brown alone.
    What about Cody Asche getting promoted? Although hes not an “All Star”, hes the perfect canidate to be promoted to AA.

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    1. Except that he’s not. He has already been double-jumped to start the season. Let’s give him time to continue to do well.

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  5. I think Biddle will stay where he is until very late in the year, both Morgan and Wright could go up before him. Its very encouraging to see Castro make adjustments and turn his season around. Valle seems to be doing the same thing. I’m still waiting for some of the Lwood guys to do the same. As for Colvin, how long he stays in the bullpen depends on what changes they’ve made with him. If they’ve reduced him to a 2 pitch pitcher, he might stay there forever. Maybe he’ll get some starts later in the year when other guys’ innings get too high. Its all about getting his confidence back at this point.
    Watching Susdorf hit is to watch a professional hitter. He plays 1B, LF, and RF and none great but he could be a terrific bench player and 4th OF on a good team.

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  6. On the other thread there’s a lot of debate about bring up Dom Brown (or not). My two cents: bringing him up after the All-Star break would be justified, if he continues to hit. But most importantly, whatever they do with him, he *has* to play every day. If Charlie insists on playing Juan Pierre in front of him sometimes, leave him in AAA. I actually like Charlie more than many people seem to, but he definitely has a tendency to favor veterans over young players. If Dom gets called up and sits on the bench, we run the risk of being right back where we were two years ago with him. Don’t make the same mistake twice with his development.

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    1. Great point. Right now it’s easy to say “call him up” because of the offensive inconsistencies, but if he’s going to be yanked in and out of the line-up, leave him where he is. I also hate the argument that you can’t deal with a young players’ growing pains on a contending team. With an offense like ours that’s a little disingenuous. And yes, his defense still needs work, but Pence has been suspect in right and you don’t hear half the complaints you did with Brown last year.

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    2. I agree. In a line-up of empty averages (as in no OBP and no Power) brown should start 6 out of 7 games. No problem. If he continues to perform over the next month, call him up, and give him 600 AB’s as a starter before anyone makes a decision on him (perm starter, bench player, etc.). If the no-hit Galvis can make 300 AB’s on a team who desperately needs offense, I’m sure we can swallow brown’s learning-on-the-job-defense.

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      1. In the back of my mind, I think Ruben is going to include Domo in a package, possibly with an AL team. No factual knowledge, just a hunch at this juncture.

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        2. For who? The only bat out there that’s known to be available is Kevin Youkilis and it’s not going to take Brown to get him.

          Twins won’t trade Willingham.

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  7. Yeah, they need to be careful with him. It’s funny how last year Charlie clamored for Brown to be called up and then clamored for Brown to be sent down. With him, it’s all about winning in the current year. Did it make sense to have Brown sit on the bench in 2010? In the short-term, yes. In the long-term, probably not.

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    1. Just a clarification on last year. Charlie was clamoring for a RH bat and the only non-rental was pence and Brown then needed consistent ABs since he was coming back from injury and there was no way Carlie was going to sit Ibanez. I can understand Charlies rational for the RH bat because you were being hurt late in games with a lineup of Utley, Howard, Ibanez, Brown. I think you need to make sure the next move with Brown is his last move up and down. If you call him up he is up to stay and get his ABs. If not leave him down to get some more confidence, and let him have LF next year.

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  8. Finally! A good week for our hitters. A lot of the VSL hitters have started out pretty hot as well.

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