2021 Instructs continued Monday with a game between our Phillies and the Blue Jays. The nine-inning game was played in BayCare Park.
I tweeted most of the action thru the first seven innings. Here’s what I saw.
CF Yhoswar Garcia showed some surprising power with a leadoff HR in the first inning. During the 2021 season, Garcia had a slug of just .271 and 2 XBH (a double and a triple) among his 16 hits. His HR landed two rows deep in the Tiki Terrace section of the left field bleachers. He smacked a fly ball to the warning track in his second at bat.
RF Jhailyn Ortiz grounded out twice and looked a little slower than I remember.
SS Luis Garcia walked twice and stole a base. He looks a little bigger than I remember.
LF/DH Jordan Viars went 1-4 with a single. He looks real comfortable at the plate. I’ve seen him make a lot of hard contact.
2B Lee Hao Yu hit a couple of line drive singles, one thru the hole into left field and the other up the middle. He also drew a walk. He stole third twice and also took second on an errant pickoff throw from the catcher. He also scored a run.
TJ Rumfield went 0-2 with 2 walks and scored a run.
C Adony Mejia struck out twice.
3B Freylin Minyety went 1-3 with a 3-run HR. He smoked a ball deep into the left field bleachers.
DH/LF Marcus Lee Sang went 1-3 with a walk, hard single to left, stolen base, and a caught stealing at third. He launched a drive to right field that the outfielder caught leaping at the wall.
Logan Cerny replaced Y. Garcia and went 1-3with a single.
Gavin Tonkel replaced Ortiz and went 0-2.
Nicolas Torres replaced L. Garcia and went 0-2.
Erick Brito replaced Lee and drew a walk.
Freddy Francisco replaced Mejia and went 0-2.
Randy Vasquez replaced Minyety and went 0-1.
Cristian Betancourt started and pitched two innings. He struck out two in a 1-2-3 first inning. He gave up a run in the second on a walk and a single. The run scored on an error and he was furthered by an inning-ending double play. With runners on first and second, a ball was hit to Garcia in center field. He tracked ot down and threw a seed toward third. Luis Garcia leaped to cut the ball off and fired to second to force out the runner who was slow getting back to the bag.
Carlo Reyes pitched the third inning. He sandwiched a pair of walks around a strikeout before getting a couple fly outs to end the inning.
Erubirel Armenta pitched the fourth inning. He retired the side on a fly to Garcia, strikeout, and a ground ball to Lee.
Tommy McCollum pitched the fifth inning. He loaded the bases with back-to-back singles and a walk. A wild pitch allowed the Jays to close within 4-2. He got a ground ball back to the mound and charged the runner who came too far off third. The runner was tagged out on a 1-2-5 play. The next batter hit a line drive to Gavin Tonkel in right who caught the runner too far off second for another inning-ending double play started by an outfielder.
Alex McKenney pitched the sixth (the official scorer missed the pitching change). He gave up a one-out ground-rule double and a walk before a wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position. He got the second out on a ground ball to third and another base running mistake by the Jays and a 5-2-6-1 play. He gave up an RBI single, a go-ahead 2-run double, and a wild pitch before retiring the third out on a strikeout.
Maikel Garrido pitched the seventh inning. He gave up a one-out single and a walk. Then, the third baseman botched another ground ball that the scorer ruled a base hit that loaded the bases. (BS, it hit him in the glove.) A hit batter, single, and sac fly each brought in a run. Garrido got a strikeout for the final out.
Jason Ruffcorn pitched the eighth inning. He gave up a walk but also struck out two batters.
JP Woodward took the mound for the ninth inning. He gave up a leadoff single to center. Logan Cerney threw the batter out trying to stretch it into a double. After another single, Woodward recorded two strikeouts.
Except for a couple plays at third base, the defense looked solid. The Phillies almost got another outfield assist on a sinking line drive that Ortiz charged and scooped on a short-hop. The runner at first didn’t hesitate and just barely beat Ortiz’ strong, accurate throw to second.
The new guy Preston Mattingly was here but busy talking to all the Phillies people in the stands. Dana Parks moved around the stadium to view the players from different vantage points. She stooped by to say hello and had a longer conversation with my buddy, Steve. Charlie Manuel was in the dugout. The team was managed by the BlueClaws’ Chris Adamson. As we left, it looked like Adamson and then Jason Ochart were addressing the team. Parks and Mattingly were part of the group. I assume Mattingly addressed the group, too.
Baseball America put out an Instructs roster. It is not complete nor accurate. Here’s what I have. BA’s list is in bold text. The DSL players have arrived.
- Mick Abel
- Erubiel Armenta
- Konnor Ash
- Drew Baker
- Carlos Betancourt
- Malik Binns
- Ben Brown
- Blake Brown
- Ty Collins
- Alex Garbrick
- Maikel Garrido
- Matt Goodheart
- Cristian Hernandez
- Jonathan Hughes
- Rafael Marcano
- Gunner Mayer
- Tommy McCollum
- Griff McGarry
- Christian McGowan
- Jake McKenna
- Alex McKenney
- Matt Osterberg
- Micah Ottenbreit
- Andrew Painter
- Jose Pena
- Carlo Reyes
- Jason Ruffcorn
- Matt Russell
- Cristian Soriano
- Victror Vargas
- JP Woodward
- Cam Wynne
- Juan Aparicio
- Chris Burke
- Arturo De Freitas
- Freddy Francisco
- Herbert Iser
- Nick Matera
- Daniel Mejia
- Anthony Quirion
- Micah Yonamine
- Alexis Azuaje
- Jamari Baylor
- Wilfredo Flores
- Luis Garcia
- Matt Goodheart
- Lee Hao Yu
- Casey Martin
- Freylin Minyety
- TJ Rumfield
- Kendall Simmons
- Nicolas Torres
- Rixon Wingrove
- Jared Carr
- Logan Cerny
- Yhoswar Garcia
- Baron Radcliff
- Johan Rojas
- Gavin Tonkel
- Jordan Viars
- Ethan Wilson
- Tristan Garnett
- Eduar Segovia
- Oscar Gonzalez
- Andrick Nava
- Marcus Lee Sang
- Jhailyn Ortiz
- Jean Cabrera
- Oswald Medina
- Jackie Pertruz
- Erick Brito
- Randy Vasquez
- Samuel Aldeghari
- Chase Antle
- Albertus Barber
- Andrew Brown
- Starlyn Castillo
- Joel Cesar
- Dallas Dyar
- Ethan Evanko
- Nick Fanti
- Neyker Ibarra
- Sam Jacobsak
- Keylan Killgore
- Taylor Lehman
- Ethan Lindow
- Jordi Martinez
- Tyler McKay
- Erik Miller
- Corey Phelan
- Nicoly Pina
- JoJo Romero
- Andrew Schultz
- Brett Schulze
- Jose Valadez-Acuna
- Jared Wetherbee
- Braden Zarbnisky
I have a schedule now. They started playing games this week. I am approved for admittance to the two games each of the next two weeks at the Complex.
Phuture Phillies 
The performance of Y Garcia could determine whether they’re comfortable trading Rojas, their highest ranked position prospect other than Stott.
At least we have multiple OFs with good arms.
Though, .Driveline ‘s contract is not being renewed….Jason Ochart working until the end it appears.
The Phils came out the day after that Gelb article and said no decision had been reached yet on renewing the Driveline contract.
The exec type he implies is his source is not as high up or that involved in baseball operations as you believe. If you knew who he is, as I’m sure I do, you would question a large part of his article. Same goes for the rival scout he talked to. Neither believe nor disbelieve 100% of anything you read by people who get paid for writing. Their jobs depend on readership. They will often shape their articles, and the truth, for their audience.
Ok……wonder how the prospects feel about Driveline?
I trust what you say, jim, so I am left with this. Whatever the cause, or many causes, Driveline, changing the way the team operates too quickly, poor talent evaluations, poor development efforts, a combination of all of them, plus things I have no idea about, the way the team has operated has resulted in a failing grade. Maybe it’s gotten a little better, maybe not, there needs to be an identification of what exactly is wrong, and the people in place to fix it. Because the Major League team is never going to have the success we all hope for, without a thriving Farm System.
It really felt like they were buying “Driveline” type analytics because it was the hot thing as opposed to integrating Driveline analytics into a coherent developmental philosophy. Like the first year under Kapler when we were the worst in the league at shifts.
A good organization can figure out a way to integrate analytics into traditional instruction. Hopefully we can be better at this in the future.
Preston Mattingly said something very similar to that in an interview.
He wants to have a productive integration between the traditional and new age analytics.
But…i think I have read, and have heard all of the new hire farm directors say that.
Exactly, Romus….it’s becoming the new “just taking it one day at a time.” It’s so much more convenient to say something that no one can measure or account for.
andyb, I agree with exactly what you said. I don’t know what occurred, and jim has way better intel than I do, but that is exactly the sense I got. “we are so far behind everyone, let’s hire a company to do it for us, and we will shoot right to the top!” That is the sense I got.