Steve Susdorf to the Majors

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The Phillies place Domonic Brown on the 7 day DL for a concussion.  They have called up Steve Susdorf to take his place.  Susdorf is a great story, he is average to below in all tools except a plus hit tool.  He will make solid contact in almost every at bat.  His major league stay might be brief and his impact little, but he certainly deserves his moment.  He is likely a better option than most of the OFs on the roster waiting for him.

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About Matt Winkelman

Matt is originally from Mt. Holly, NJ, but after a 4 year side track to Cleveland for college he now resides in Madison, WI. His work has previously appeared on Phuture Phillies and The Good Phight. You can read his work at Phillies Minor Thoughts

40 thoughts on “Steve Susdorf to the Majors”

  1. you couldn’t of put it any better !! great news for our local home grown talent, a real neat story, maybe he can be the next Daniel Nava (Red Sox) !!

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  2. Way to go Steve! Enjoy that meal money! I really hope he gets a few at bats. Playing in Detroit, an AL park with DH, he probably won’t get any at bats there unless Charlie gives him a start.

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    1. Not crazy, who on this team will DH? If it’s Ruf or Young, then someone needs to play Right or First. On the bench you’d have Nix, McDonald or Mini-Mart, all 3 awful options. I suppose they could DH M. Young and start Frandsen at Third, but anyway you do it the only bat of any use on the bench is basically Susdorf’s. I’d imagine he gets some shots to hit this weekend.

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      1. Just one day on a MLB roster gives a player a lifetime healthcare plan from MLBPA.

        If you manage to stay on an active roster for 43 days you qualify for a pension around $34,000 a year.

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        1. Now that is an interesting fact. A nice perk for all of those guys like Susdorf who get a cup of coffee and not much else.

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  9. One thing I like about Manuel, he’ll give rookies a shot at getting their first MLB hit. I think Susdaorf will get at least 2 ABs in the next 4 games. He better make them count.

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  10. Its obvious the Cardinals absolutely mash. Most of the team is hitting over .300. However, which guys in the starting 8 have plus tools besides hitting with the exception of Molina? Beltran 6 years ago? Adams is a good hitter with meh pwer who looks like a well below average athlete.

    My question is h ow much defense do you lose if a guy like Susdorf hits for an average??? I have no idea if Susdorf can hit MLB pitching consistently but if a guy hits on every level, why not give him a shot in the show? Good for the Phils for rewarding a guy that has done nothing but hit since he was drafted. I have willed Mayberry to be an average major leaguer but its never gonna happen. Let the kid(s) play. I hope Asche is next.

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    1. If Susdorf hit with power at every level, he would probably get a real chance eventually. There just isn’t much value in a not-speedy, defensively limited singles hitter.

      I’m glad to see him promoted- he’s earned it. But I don’t think he necessarily deserves a chance to play regularly. Not at this point anyway.

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  12. I have been a huge Susdorf fan since his draft. Irrationally so. James used to call me an idiot for liking him so much in rookie ball. Great story. A great example of why I love baseball so much.

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    1. I still remember watching him in the College World Series against Gordon Beckham and UGA when Susdorf was at Fresno State. Hard to not like the guy, he just busts his ass everyday.

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  14. Susdorf is really nothing more than a pinch hitter. But that is an actual roster spot that gets used nearly every game. He won’t be a HR threat, but if he can get on base he’d be better than most in that role. He is not a butcher in the OF (from what I have heard) but certainly not a defensive replacement. He should not clog the bases like Ruf, D.Young, or Howard.

    I think I compared him to Greg Gross from the 80’s Phillies teams. I believe Gross was an excellent PH, so I’d be thrilled in Susdorf could have that kind of impact.

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    1. Exactly. The best case for Susdorf is if he can consistently hit the ball as a pinch hitter. If he can still hit the ball with limited reps he could hang around, but that’s it. He really has no other tool. I suppose he could pinch hit and then stay in the outfield if necessary – but that’s really only to spell a guy like Young – and basically only the Phillies are willing to carry a guy like Young, so maybe this is the perfect system for Susdorf to be in!

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    2. Del Unser. He was an amazing PHer for the Phils about 15-20 years ago…!?

      But he did have some extra base power.
      Good luck, Susdorf. Hangin’ in finally produces a male Cinderella story. Even if just for a taste.

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  15. poor SoaB grounded into a double play in his first major league at bat. Hit it right back up the middle but the pitcher knocked it down right to the 2ber. Hope Charlie gives him a shot tomorrow.

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    1. so what your sayings is it would have a been a hit had the pitcher not a made a spectacular play just to get a glove on it, because that is really what I wanna hear !

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  16. Grounds into an inning-ending double play for his first AB. Already looking like he belongs with the Phils veteran batters.

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      1. Worse because it’s two outs instead of one. I’d guess that Susdorf currently ranks among the worst major league players in history, since every time he gets a plate appearance, he makes two outs.

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    2. Susdorf is part of history. The Card’s pitcher Lynn was involved in 3 DPs. Only the 2nd pitcher to do that since 1921. I’ve always been a huge Susdorf fan. He’s got his 15 minutes of fame and I hope he extends that. The season is sinking into the abyss fast so let’s get a high, maybe really high, draft pick and play some guys who we never thought would get the chance.

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  17. Please ,please end the Nix era.Does Ruben even look at a guys record before he acquires him.
    Susdorf should of been here a while ago.
    The Phils are a second half team because it takes a few months to get rid of Ruben’s “winter garbage”.

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    2. Nix’s record indicates that he can hit with some power if he gets over 300 at bats. Unfortunately, the Philies don’t give him the at bats he needs so you are right, they are handling him as if they did not look at his record.

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      1. He’s a backup, which can be prone to the same performance fluctuations as Relievers. Also, it’s a bit of a goofy complaint since all backups have pretty big flaws (if they didn’t they’d be starters somewhere). Nix was a decent-ish hittier in the past, maybe he seeing age related decline, maybe it’s just bad luck, but it wasn’t a bad signing at the time.

        Now, I think you can make a case that him still being on the team is bad, but it’s not like there are any other options right now. I doubt Fields would be any improvement.

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  18. Steve Susdorf and Dave Watkins (April, 1969) now share a Phillies record.
    Both grounded into a double-play in their first official Phillies/MLB AB.

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