Lehigh Valley and Reading lost. Jersey Shore won as Eiberson Castellano struck out 13 of the 17 outs he recorded. Clearwater won in a walk-off, George Klassen tossed four scoreless innings. The FCL Phillies lost by a run to the worst team in the FCL.
FCL Phillies (10-10) lost to the Blue Jays, 6-5. Enrique Segura pitched six innings and gave up 3 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks. He struck out seven. Kleyderve Andrade took the loss allowing 3 runs in 1.1 innings on 3 bits and a walk. He struck out three. Luis Avila stranded an inherited runner allowing a hit and striking out four.
The Phillies tied the game with 2 runs in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single by Yemal Flores and an RBI ground-rule double by AJ Shaver. They tied it again in the seventh with 2 runs on an RBI triple by Guillermo Rosario and a fielder’s choice by Rickardo Perez. They scored a run in the ninth on a ground out by Juan Villavicencio but fell a run short.
- #5 Starlyn Caba (.286/.857): went 0-5
- #9 Eduardo Tait (.242/.628): went 3-5 with 2 R, 2B
- #25 Alexis De La Cruz (1-1, 18.00): DNP
- Other players of interest
- Aroon Escobar (.311/.931): went 1-3 with a R, BB, HBP, SB
- Guillermo Rosario (.299/.955): went 1-5 with a R, RBI, 3B
- Leonardo Rondon (.308/.982): DNP
- Rickardo Perez (.314/.871): went 1-5 with an RBI
- Pitchers of interest
- Adilson Peralta (1-0, 0.87): DNP
- Danyony Pulido (4.08): DNP
- Juan Amarante (1-0, 1.59): DNP
- Luis Avila (4.91): 1.2 IP, H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Lehigh Valley (21-32) lost to Columbus, 5-2. Mick Abel pitched four innings and gave up 3 runs on 5 hits and 4 walks. He struck out two. Tyler Gilbert allowed one of three inherited runners to score and pitched two scoreless innings allowing 2 hits and a walk. He struck out three. Rehabbing Yunior Marte pitched two innings and gave up 2 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks. He struck out two.
The IronPigs scored 2 runs in the seventh inning on a 2-run HR (6) by Weston Wilson.
- #2 Mick Abel (1-5, 6.26): 4.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 2 K, 2 HR
- #11 Griff McGarry (1-1. 3.24): 7-day IL
- #19 Simon Muzziotti (.222/.617): went 0-4
Reading (20-29) lost to Hartford, 6-4. Kolby Allard pitched four innings giving up 4 runs on 7 hits. He walked none and struck out three. Efrain Contreras pitched four innings and gave up 2 runs on 3 hits and a walk. He struck out four.
Reading scored a run in the second inning on an RBI double by Trevor Schweke. The scored another run in the fourth when Schweke came home on an error while stealing throw. They scored 2 runs in the eighth on an RBI ground out by Schweke and on a fielding error.
- #1 Andrew Painter: rehabbing from TJ surgery on 60-day injury list
- #10 Gabriel Rincones: 7-day IL
- #13 Carlos De La Cruz (.213/.625): went 1-3 with a R, BB, HBP
- #21 Caleb Ricketts (.277/.772): went 0-4 with BB
- #26 Robert Moore (.224/.615): went 1-5 with a 2B
- #28 Jose Rodriguez (.266/.758): went 1-5 with a 2B
Jersey Shore (27-22) beat Brooklyn, 7-2. Eiberson Castellano pitched 5.2 innings giving up 2 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks. He struck out thirteen of the seventeen outs he recorded. Andrew Walling stranded 2 inherited runners and pitched 1.1 scoreless innings walking one and striking out two. Daniel Harper pitched a scoreless inning striking out two. Charles King pitched a scoreless inning striking out two.
The BlueClaws opened the scoring with 3 runs in the first inning on a 2-run triple by Cade Fergus and a passed ball. They added to their lead with a run in the fifth on an RBI double by Otto Kemp. After the Cyclones cut the deficit in half, the BlueClaws scored a run in the seventh on a solo HR (4) by Jordan Dissin. They tacked on 2 insurance runs in the eighth on an RBI triple by Zach Arnold and an RBI single by Troy Scheffler.
- #4 Justin Crawford (.283/.735): went 1-5 with a R, SB
- #8 Bryan Rincon (.204/.659): 7-day IL
- #12 William Bergolla (.234/.589): DNP
- #14 Pan Wen-hui: on 60-day injury list
- #17 Emaarion Boyd (.203/.546): went 0-3 with a R, BB
- #23 Hendry Mendez (.299/.801): DNP
- #24 Samuel Aldegheri (3-3, 2.51): DNP
Clearwater (34-15) beat Lakeland, 3-2. That ties this series at 2-2 and ties the season series at 5-5 between the two teams vying for the first half division playoff berth. They’ve restored their three-game lead over the Flying Tigers.
George Klassen pitched four scoreless innings allowing 6 hits. He walked none and struck out four. Rehabbing Jonh Henriquez pitched two innings allowing an unearned run and walking two. Drew Garrett pitched a scoreless inning walking one and striking out two. Saul Teran got the win pitching two innings and allowing one run on one hit, a hit batter, and 3 walks.
The Threshers tied the game with a run in the seventh inning on a solo HR (4) by Bryson Ware. There was an hour delay with the score tied. When play resumed the Threshers tied the game in the eighth on a sac fly by Pierce Bennett. They walked off in the ninth on an RBI single by Raylin Heredia.
- #3 Aidan Miller (.309/.979): went 0-2 with 2 BB
- #7 Devin Saltiban (.229/.709): went 1-4
- #15 Alex McFarlane: on the 60-day injury list
- #18 TJayy Walton (.237/.755): 7-day IL
- #20 Raylin Heredia (.268/.731): went 2-4 with an RBI, SB
- #22 Kehden Hettiger (.172/.593): went 0-3 with BB
- #29 George Klassen (2-0, 0.26): 4.0 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
- #30 Nikau Pouaka-Grego (.293/.843): went 0-4
Other Prospects:
- #6 Orion Kerkering (1-0, 1.47) in 18.1 innings with the Phillies
- #27 Jalvin Arias, Rookie Level, DSL Red
Transactions –
5/31/2024 – Clearwater sent OF TJayy Walton on a rehab assignment to FCL Phillies
I hope Abel puts it together, rooting for him.
Read on Twitter that he walk off the mound with a trainer, hope he is ok, I wouldn’t mind him visiting the “pitching lab”
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Baseball is a really hard game. Everyone struggles at some point. Everyone. If the player handles adversity well, they will come out the other side a better more mentally hardened player. If they can’t handle adversity then it was never meant to be.
I don’t know what Abel’s issues are. Last night he sat 91-94. Yes there were some 91s in there. Unless he is intentionally taking off velo for command then there is something wrong physically. Your comment about walking off with a trainer is new information. I searched on Twitter but I couldn’t find that. I hope is is not a physical issue and it is a mechanical one. And I hope that he handles this hard spot well and becomes a better player for it.
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I doubt that this consistent loss of velocity is a mental toughness issue. Some guys lose or don’t have the ability to retain velocity. Maybe he can recover, but otherwise he becomes a relief pitcher. And it bears noting that pitching in relief is also what happens to pitchers who struggle with control as he has. Listen, this was still a good pick at the time – but sometimes things don’t go the way you’d prefer or expect.
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When I was watching Hoffman last night all I kept thinking about was “that’s Abel”
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Hoffman finally put it together at age 30 for his 3rd team…
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Yes. Because they kept trying to make him a starter.
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The problem now is that at age 22 at Lehigh, Abel is posting the worst numbers of his entire minor league career. Taijuan Walker is a 4/5 starter now but at age 22, he was actually in the bigs generating WAR.
I can’t recall a pitching struggling this hard at AAA and doing a 180 at the ML level. Abel really needs a reset or a change of scenery.
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Oh it happens all the time. Seriously I don’t think AAA struggles for a 22yo pitcher is a killer. But the question is “why?” Why is his command so poor? Why is his fastball velocity down sow much?
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Just picking one example, Luis Gill. His AAA numbers were terrible. High walks and high era.
https://www.fangraphs.com/players/luis-gil/21052/stats?position=P
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Gil’s AAA numbers are bad (1.464 WHIP) but you could argue that Abel’s is much worse (1.791 WHIP). And Gil finally broke out at age 25/26. How long will the Phillies wait for Abel (age 22) to turn the corner?
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what else are they going to do, release him? Yes, Abel is struggling but the Phillies have nothing to do but try to turn it around.
Really don’t get the constant harping on his performance at this point. Is being the first to declare him a failed prospect that important?
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To whom are you talking to? Certainly not me. I don’t think that he is a failed prospect at all. I made the opposite point.
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No, was response to question about how long are the Phillies going to wait.
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With a prospect with his body and pedigree md stuff they will wait for a while for sure. 25/26 no problem. No benefit getting rid of him unless there is an issue we don’t know.
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Yeah, he seems to be frustrated with the new stuff in my personal opinion with the new stuff, it’s part of the process.
That’s the tweet.
https://x.com/phixated/status/1796700607039860916?t=f8FEsF3BXzcPqfG7wfoEuA&s=19
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Nothing serious like that. I would expect him to make his next start.
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I can’t imagine the organization feeling time pressure with a 22 yo pitcher now at AAA. Every option including a change of role, demotion or assignment to a training facility are available. Patience could be the best choice.
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Thank you Jim, love reading you at midnight
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Tait has really been coming on. Won’t turn 18 until the end of August. Younger than most kids eligible for the upcoming draft. Untouchable.
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Exactly. Tait has good size for a 17-year old, swings hard…willing to bet other GMs in trade discussions with Sam Fuld will at some point bring up his name. And also, somewhat resurrecting his career is Ricardo Perez…SSS so far with <50 PAs, but he may have matured and is dedicating himself more to his career.
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Yes. I’ve noticed too but didn’t want to “jinx” him. .346/.802 in his last 6 games, 175/.517 in his first 12 games.
Rickardo Perez (20) .314/.871 and Guillermo Rosario (19) .299/.955 are also coming along rather well. In fact, Tait and Rosario have probably “pushed” Perez to first base permanently.
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Jim…..can you recall, was there ever a time , say in the last 10/15 years, where the Phillies have had this many young Latin position players with so much promise……Tait, Caba, Heredia, Reyes, Rosario, Escobar, Perez, Bergolla and even a trade newcomer in Hendry Mendez and I am probably missing a few more. I just cannot remember when the cupboard had this much quantity of Latin talent.
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It’s going to get interesting after the MLB draft in July. If the latin players keep this up in the FCL, a bunch should get moved to Clearwater to make room for the new draftees.
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Yeah……could be half-dozen, though they may just let the youngest of the group remain in the FSL a bit longer….season there goes thru the 3rd week of July then comes a short play-off.
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It’s hard looking back because we know how many of these players turned out. But, the 2019 mid-season MLB top 30 included 14 Latin American players – 6 pitchers, 3 catchers, 3 middle infielders, and 2 outfielders.
Plus, OF Jose Pujols had finally figured it all out and had a solid 2018 getting as far as Reading but suffered a leg injury, missed all of 2019 and was released in 2020.
Everyone had high expectations of Garcia. The catchers were all thought of highly though for defense over offense. Ortiz was still young with power. Muzziotti was an interesting CF candidate. And, Brito would eventually be on the verge of a call-up when he suffered his career-ending collapse.
I don’t know if they compare favorably to today’s group. The recency bias plays in favor of the young.
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That’s a tough list to look at. The Phillies system has thankfully come a long way since then.
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Or, maybe, our Reader Top 30 from 2014.
The 2014 Reader Top 30:
Plus, that hitting machine who actually made it to the bigs, Willians Astudillo. Couldn’t walk him, wouldn’t strike out. Remember, every season, a writer from Baseball America kept track to see which reached double digits first, his walks or strikeouts.
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Willians Astudillo…lol…..he was a fun loving guy. short and beefy….remember him dancing and frolicking in a Lakewood dugout after a big hit…he did get his somewhat lengthy cup of coffee with the Twins….and close to 600 MLB PAs with less than 5% K rate
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I think it might be time to move Klassen up, even with the innings restriction. Having a 0.26 era isn’t challenging him enough.
Castellano getting 13 Ks is really something. The staff got 19 Ks in total, super impressive.
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https://x.com/MLBPipeline/status/1796969969965506935?t=TPbMgyDmV1IFDl3kduWGGA&s=19
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This implies that the no other team wanted Tarnok.
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Another guy that Braves and A’s tried to make a starter…..maybe another future BP find by the organization.
Scouting report from 2023:
“His fastball sits around 95 mph, topping out at 98. While his curveball has long been an effective pitch and he added a slider more recently, he did struggle a bit landing them for strikes in 2022, but his low-80s changeup took a nice step forward and missed a good amount of bats.”………so he has basically two, maybe three plus pitches FB, CB and change-up…try him out of the pen and maybe try to harness his control….could be a hidden future BP gem.
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We need to talk about Lazar. He’s only 24 and he’s having a tremendous year.
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