Box Score Recap – 8/9/2013

Box Score Recap

Cam Rupp knocking on the door of a .700 OPS in AAA, after 2 doubles Friday night. He’s hit in 8 of his last 9, with four two-hit games in that span. With Eric Kratz in his way, and the possibility of Carlos Ruiz coming back to the big club, Rupp may not start 2014 with the Phils, but I would say that as of September 1, or maybe the last Lehigh Valley game of the year, he’ll supplant Steve Lerud on the big league depth chart, if he hasn’t already. With serious questions about Tommy Joseph’s future behind the plate, Rupp’s become the org’s best catching prospect outside of the short season leagues, and probably ahead of all but Andrew Knapp.

Around the system – David Buchanan with another good start in his second AAA appearance – throwing strikes and getting outs on balls in play. DMitch 3-5 with his second AAA HR of the year. Zach Green was 2-4 with just 2 singles. I hope he’s alright. Keivi Rojas with a kind of rough outing, giving up 2 runs in 2 innings on 2 hits and 1 walk. He also struck out five of the 10 men he faced. Guy’s been pretty much dominant this year in the NYPL, after being the same last year in the GCL. 27K and just 8 bb in 19 IP. Ricky Bielski is indeed human, Jan Hernandez hit his third homerun, and Nick Ferdinand walked it off in the second game of that double header. JP Crawford continues to rake, OPSing 1.151 over his last ten games.

And a great line from Seranthony Dominguez in the DSL – 2H 2BB and 7K in a rain shortened 5.1 inning shutout. Really, that was just an excuse to use his name, though it was a nice line.

Here’s the affiliate Scoreboard from MiLB.

http://www.milb.com/scoreboard/index.jsp?sid=milb&org=143&ymd=20130809

8-9-2013

71 thoughts on “Box Score Recap – 8/9/2013”

    2. I was at the game last night. If he has that much control, why not move him the Clearwater and see what he can do for the rest of the year against people his own age?

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      1. He was already in Indy ball, doing just that, for most of the year with good results. He’s likely a guy that the Nats thought had good enough stuff to survive at lower levels and not enough projection to keep around. Like a Ryan Duke or Eric Pettis type from our system. Really, a 24-yr-old who got hit around pretty badly at A+ in 2012 probably doesn’t have it, but you never know when someone can find an extra tick or dip on a fastball or refine a breaking ball or a change-up or the like. I imagine if the Phils think he has a chance to be even a serviceable org piece, they’ll take another look at him in instructs.

        Did you happen to catch any gun readings on his FB? Curious about his profile. Here’s a scouting report from his college summer league days from http://blog.northwoodsleague.com/tag/prospects/

        “PLAYER POS. TEAM B-T HT WT YR 2010 SCHOOL
        22. Ryan Demmin LHP Mankato Moondogs L-L 6-1 210 Sr. Wisconsin-Oshkosh
        SCOUTING REPORT: Demmin isn’t the flashiest of athletes, but earned the reputation of an innings-eater this summer with his strong lower half and polished overall approach on the mound. He went 5-4, 1.36 with 16 walks and 72 strikeouts in 80 innings for Mankato “(Demmin) is going to give you a quality start every night,” said one coach. Demmin gets batters out using a mid-to-upper 80s fastball and a very sharp slider, one of the best breaking balls in the league. He could be a sleeper as a senior sign next summer.”

        I asked a Nats MiLB blog for their take. I’ll keep you posted.

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        1. I don’t pretend to be much more than a fan who occasionally takes a trip through our system. I try to go to a game in Williamsport, Lakewood, Reading, and Lehigh Valley every year.

          That being said, I noticed the gun hitting mostly high 80s with him dipping in the 7th and 8th innings. I didn’t really have a good angle to watch the slider at all. He missed a lot of bats with it, and got some questionable calls from the ump. When the batters did make contact, it was generally hit hard.

          I was impressed with his stamina, going a full 8. The rest of the team was a bit of a yawn. I’m not even sure that lineup has ANYBODY who would eventually help the big league club on it.

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        2. Here’s what I got from Luke Erickson at http://nationalsprospects.com

          “FB/SL/CV — Average to below average velocity. Slider is his best pitch. The Nats skew older to begin with (thanks to their tendency to draft collegiate players) so a 25-y.o. who couldn’t master High-A is going to be let go — even in an org that’s not deep on pitching prospects.”

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    3. The first comment on thios string was from Lakewood. I was going to say, Nothing to see here. Move along. 1-9 in their last 10. The lineup is so sad right now. Outside of Willie Carmona, you can sleep through the ‘Claws at bats. Wiliie is the best DH in the entire organization and if the DH comes to the NL, he’s right in line for that.

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      1. IF a 22-year old with a .766 OPS in low-A is your best DH hope…you are in trouble. Willie isn’t likely to make the bigs.

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  3. Setting aside the BBs, that’s a nice line from Mitch Gueller. 6 Ks, 0 ER.

    Now, about those BBs … in the past two days, Gueller and Jesse Biddle walked a combined 11 batters without surrendering a single run. That’s … something.

    Speaking of BBs: Sebastian Valle had two of them. In the same game. One never knows …

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  4. I would sign Navarro to split time with Kratz in 14, have Rupp platoon with Navarro in 15, andhopefully Knapp wins job in 16 with Rupp as backup!

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    1. I’ll continue to beat the Brian McCann drum. He’s an impact free agent in his prime at a position of dire need for the Phillies, and could probably be had for 5 years, 75 million-ish. Kratz could back him up until Rupp is ready to assume that role.

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        2. If the MAG signing falls through, definitely. Even if it doesn’t, I think ownership has demonstrated a commitment to trying to stay competitive in the coming years, given the age of its core players and the pending TV contract. If signing McCann means surpassing the luxury tax, I think they do it.

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          1. Even with MAG, they shouldn’t have to go over the luxury tax threshold for McCann, unless they have a couple of other significant signings.

            I have them up to about 145 million with McCann and MAG for next year. Obviously that’s with some other holes to be filled, but most of those holes will be filled cheaply.

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            1. Agreed. I believe Brown, Revere, Asche, Ruf (who is playing his way into the conversation for a corner OF job next season) and Pettibone all qualify as pre-arb regulars, and the bench could be fairly inexpensive with Galvis, Hernandez, etc. I’m also a proponent of trying to sign Cruz to a two-year deal as well, with Ruf backing up the corners and starting at 1B against lefties.

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            2. I agree with that. I have the Phils around $130m-$140m with variation built in for arbitration raises and potential re-signs. Kendrick being the largest wildcard there. I don’t expect Bastard or Revere(first year) to jump up that much in arb. There’s also a chance the Phils pull a Blanton and sign Kendrick to 2 or 3 year extension.

              I’m not sure there’s room for 2 big FA signings, but definitely room for McCann as the big bat, find a depth option(RH bat with power) for the bench and find some bullpen help. Whether or not MAG goes through impacts the rotation and potentially what they do with Kendrick as well.

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        1. Disagree … I can’t see them signing McCann long-term with Gattis in the mix, particularly with Freeman already entrenched at first.

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          1. Top Ten Brave Salaries:
            1 Dan Uggla 13,146,942
            2.B.J. Upton 13,050,000
            3 Brian McCann 12,000,000
            4 Justin Upton 9,958,333
            5 Scott Downs 5,000,000
            6 Jason Heyward 3,650,000
            7 Kris Medlen 2,600,000
            8 Chris Johnson 2,287,500
            9 Luis Ayala 1,000,000
            10 Paul Janish 725,000

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            3. If retaining McCann is that big a priority for the Braves right now, then they would have already extended him. They’re letting him hit the market. And Gattis is four years younger (next season is his age-27 season, not 28 as the poster below says) with a .791 OPS in his rookie year. It’s pointless to argue what the Braves might or might not do, but I don’t think McCann’s return to Atlanta next season is nearly as cut-and-dried as you make it out to be.

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            4. That’s probably right as much as it pains me to say it. They only have to increase his salary $3 million annually to make it top of the market. I think they do that without blinking. He’s a big part of their team and it would be stupid to lose him. Say what you want about the Braves, but, as a general rule, they ain’t stupid.

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          2. McCann is the “Utley’ of the Braves….they will re-sign him, they have plenty of money under the ‘cap’.

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            1. Atlanta’s not worried about the luxury tax threshold, its their own internal budget that they have to comply with, and I don’t think McCann will fit under that budget.

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          3. You are kiddin’ me, right! About Gattis. A guy who will be 28-years old in 2014, with a below.300 OBP and a K% of 21, with a total of less then 300 MLB PAs! And you think the Braves are going to go with him for 135 games! He will be exposed, he is a back-up in the Erik Kratz class.

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      3. Hard to see a Phillies team with LH at 6 out of 8 regular positions. No team has been to the playoffs I believe with 5 LH hitters getting 400 AB’s.

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        1. With that being said concerning a lefthanded heavy lineup . The 2012 Phillies faced righthanded pitching 70% of the time in over 6k PAs. So there would be the rock and there would be the hard-place.

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      4. Mccann would take less money and play for the braves rather than come to philly. He has said multiple time he doesnt like philly

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        1. Plus, there seems to be a strong mutual respect thing between him and Charlie Manuel.
          However, Charlie is probably gone after October.

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          1. Charlie got us one world series and i will remember that but I think it is his time. I like mccann game but dont really want him in red pinstripes. Maybe its just me but he will always be a brave and im not to fond of them

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  5. I am both very excited and very concerned about Zach Green. At this point, I would almost be glad to see an 0-4 with no Ks from him.

    Also, another day putting everything in play for Franco.

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  6. I feel like the box scores have been disappointing overall for about the last week or two. Lot’s of guys not hitting, and the ones that are strike out a ton except for Crawford. Very few SPs who are real prospects are pitching well too.

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    1. I don’t know about that. Morgan and Buchanan in AAA, Gonzalez, Anderson, and a few in rookie ball. The overall system lacks great pitching. Biddle has the upside, apart from his lack of control, which is fixable. It took Matt Cain a while to get it and even now he is up and down. I still think it is extraordinary to have such great pitching in the majors on one team. Now that they are losing more we will get better chances at real quality pitchers. We had and tossed Grilli and Vogelsong on our AAA roster, like we did Stewart a few years ago. I guess it is partly good scouting and partly good coaching that yields the unknown gem.

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      1. I don’t think Buchanan is a real prospect. I’m glad to see that Morgan is back, although I’m still waiting for some more velocity readings. There’s Severino and then, yeah, Anderson with a 6.02 K/9 in Williamsport. I’m not buying into him yet.

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  8. How can you not love McCann – he is a bonafide Phillie killer ? After Molina, the class of the hitting catchers. However, money not withstanding, how can you field an almost entirely left handed batting lineup ? One of the rarest things in baseball today is a right handed hitter with real pop. Make up the 2014 lineup and see what I mean.

    Otherswise – the hidden silver lining of an atrocious year – they will undoubtedly finish with one of the 10 worst records in baseball. I believe that means they will have protected picks and can still sign as many free agents as they want – without penalty. Its only money and after the tv contract that won’t be an issue.

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    1. It will be interesting to see what the organization does if they get a protected pick. I’ve written before about how, for the TV contract especially, they need to show a commitment to winning, one reason the “fire sale” option is off the table. If they don’t have a protected pick, they can correctly argue that they can’t make a big FA signing because they don’t want to lose the pick. But if the pick is protected, I think the pressure will be on to make a reasonably splashy FA signing.

      That said, pretending that the money won’t be an issue after the TV contract is quite wrong. First of all, it is by no means foreordained that the Dodger’s contract will be a precedent. There are already rumblings that the dynamics have changed and that future TV contracts may be much small. Moreover, even if it is the huge contract that people hope for. people seem to forget that, even were the Phillies org likely to buck the commissioner, which they aren’t (which puts them in the boat with every other franchise except the Dodgers), they would still have to confront the very steep penalties for going over the luxury tax threshold.

      No, if you want to engage in fantasies about the organization’s future, dream large. The notion that the team will regularly exceed the salary cap is far less likely than pigs flying, so why waste energy dreaming about it?

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  9. 2 more BB for Crawford. Since 7/9, he has 19 BB and only 12 K. Hurt his BA though, by only going 1-3.

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    2. Grullon has been pretty impressive lately too. Even his overall numbers, while not great, are pretty encouraging for a catcher his age.

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      1. A 17 year old, defense 1st catcher, with a good OBP, great K/BB%. He should be getting talked up more than Cord Sandberg and some of the other guys on the GCL team.

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        1. On that team, positional players I rank in order:
          1.Crawford
          2.Grullon
          3.Pujols
          4 Sandberg
          5.Hernandez
          6.Biter
          7.Sweaney
          8..Williams

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        2. Grullon is looking quite good. He’s starting to come around. If he adds in a little power then we’re talking

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            1. Um, ok? Did you take my comment to be negative towards Grullon? It was positive. If he adds power to his game, which looks like he has some plate discipline, then he could be a pretty good player.

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        1. I’m really still in shock that he lasted until the 16th pick. The top SS in the country usually gets drafted in the top ten. Every time I looked through the names, I couldn’t see Crawford getting past #13 in any scenario.

          I’m just glad the Royals, Blue Jays and Mets went off the board, and let this guy get to the Phillies.

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          1. At first i wanted dom smith because they talked up his stick. But smith is only 6ft and doesnt seem to be anything more than a 1b who is undersized and might be light on power . Either way im glad crawford ended up a phillie and i am excited to watch his progress through the system . Which i believe will be fast . 4 years tops . And 3 years easily . Fingers crossed

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            1. Not necessarily – BA loves raw tools and high pedigree players – Crawford fits that profile better than Franco.

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  10. Glad to see Rupp getting attention as he eases into his history of gaining offense in a season’s 2nd half. He could gain experience in the bigs as soon as this September. It has been maybe a year or so since a Phils’ coach praised his catching defense as the best in the minor lg system.

    He is now bearing down on .270 with that decent OBA and capable of stroking a ball out frpm time to time.

    However, to my knowledge there has been no mention of his ability to call games. Unless that is included in his defense valuation.
    We don’t know if they will re-sign Ruiz; his physical condition seems questionable. If they could re-sign him to a 2 yr deal, then I’d like to see Rupp as his backup (learning) beginning at the start of next season. Because they should not wait to develop their apparent new few players (Asche, Rupp and Martin), and because new life can inject a much better spirit than this present 25 who should not enter the next season intact, the time is now.

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  11. Rupp’s peripherals took a huge step back in AAA. Only thing making his numbers look decent is an unsustainable BABIP. The K rate is especially ugly.

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  12. Something to file away in the FWIW column: J.P. Crawford leads the GCL with a .977 OPS. According to Fangraphs, in the past eight GCL seasons, only one other 18-year-old has finished with a higher OPS than that number: Michael Burgess, an outfielder with the Nats who suffered from a Hewitt-esque K rate as he rose up the ladder. (Just as a comparison, the GCL’s OPS leader last season finished at .875, more than 100 points below J.P.).

    Not that it means a whole lot — rookie league stats, after all — but Crawford is doing something that’s atypical of someone his age.

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    1. Thankfully Crawford is doing this with a much lower K rate than Burgess. Also higher BB rate. I think it bodes well for him. Really excited to watch him. I’d rank Franco and Biddle ahead of him on a list but he’s probably the most exciting out of all our prospects right now

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  13. Does anyone know if the any of the following international players have been signed by another MLB club to date?
    1. Mayky Perez – RHP
    2. Yimm Alonzo – ss
    3. Bryan Lizardo -3b
    4. Wladimir Galindo – 3b
    5. Michael DeLeon – ss
    6. Nic Figueroa – OF
    7. Wasner Peguero – OF

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    1. Perez is supposedly going to the Padres for 635 K, not sure about Alonzo, Lizardo to the Blue Jays for 250k, don’t know about Galindo, De Leon signs with Rangers for 550k, don’t know about Figueroa or Peguero

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      1. Thanks. Like to see Phillies sign Galindo…big and strong, put him as a corner OF or 1st.
        Rangers have signed about 3 or 4 of the top 20/30 prospects. Every year they seem to do that.

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  14. For those of you who are McCann lovers, you might want to check his stats against the rest of the league before you put him in red pinstripes. Just this year BA vs.: Nats -.095, Mets – .208, Marlins – .333, STL – .250, Cin- .176, Pit – .333, LAD – .100, SFG – .316. And, of course the Phillies who help make him appear to be an all-star every year – .571. Yes, McCann has always been a Phillie-killer. Too bad those numbers don’t look nearly as good against the rest of the league. And at age 30, overweight and with over 1,100 games (most at catcher) already played on those knees, you have another Ryan Howard waiting to happen. Catching is definitely a problem for this team, but McCann is not the solution.

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