Not pretty behind the plate with a continued scary lack of depth.

Lehigh Valley

Paul Hoover, 34, 130 AB’s; .215/.297/.315; 2 HR 11 RBI; .174 vs. RH, .224 vs. LH; .216 with RISP; 9% bb rate, 24% k rate; .178 in June. 38 games, 5 errors, 5 passed balls. thrown out 16/50 runners (32%). Hoover’s defense behind the plate has not been up to his usual level possibly because of his bum knee, although still throwing out quite a few would be base stealers. Has struggled at the plate this year as well.

John Suomi, 29, 91 AB’s between CW, REA, and LV. .275/.316/.462; 4 HR 15 RBI. 21 games at C, 5 errors, 1 passed ball. Has thrown out 2/30 (7%). Suomi’s defense is bad at best.  He has little to no arm behind the plate, although can hit a bit.

Reading Continue reading Around the System–C →

A look at the ‘Pigs weekend with a few notes at the end.

Friday–An ugly night for Lehigh Valley as Syracuse starter came within four outs of a perfect game in the 7-0 Syracuse victory on Friday night.  The Chiefs scored a first inning run off of Lehigh Valley starter Brian Mazone and added two more in the 4th on their way to the victory.  Mazone (5-8) went 6 innings, giving up 3 runs on 6 hits. He walked 2 and struck out 9, a season high.  The perfect game was broken up by none other than Domonic Brown, who singled up the middle in the 8th. In a game where the ‘Pigs gave up 7 runs, their pitchers struck out 17 Chiefs, a franchise record. Continue reading ‘Pigs Weekend Update →

Way, May, good day!

May was young for the FSL, and as we noted, he had issues with his command and control, a not uncommon trait for raw pitchers. Maybe the Phillies simply want him to get back to basics, and felt it would be best to have him do that at Lakewood. Way, on the other hand, was too old for the SAL, and after a rough start to the season, had pitched better of late. He needs to be on the fast track.

Last night, in a game that finished very late due to a 2-hour rain delay, Harold Garcia, the Clearwater Threshers’ 23-year-old second baseman, tied a record that had lasted almost 60 years in the FSL (Joe Altobelli, 1951), hitting in his 36th consecutive game (he was 1/3 with a first-inning HR and a HBP).

NOTE: GARCIA BROKE THE RECORD SUNDAY, JULY 4th, WITH AN RBI SINGLE IN THE FIRST INNING.

Below are some details on his Philies’ career.

Continue reading Harold Garcia ties Joe Altobelli’s FSL hitting streak record →

The Phillies called up infielder Cody Ransom today and designated infielder Brian Bocock for assignment. Ransom, 34, is among the leaders in the International League in homers (16) and RBI’s (51) and was recently selected to represent Lehigh Valley in the IL All Star Game.  Although hitting for power, Ransom often has trouble putting his bat on the ball, as he is among IL leaders in strikeouts as well with 90 thus far on the year.  Ransom was drafted as a SS but has spent most of his time at 3B.  He is an average fielder at best (16 errors this year), some very costly for Lehigh Valley.  Ransom’s hitting line .238/.309/.456. Ransom was most recently in the bigs with the Yankees last year, starting the year as the everyday 3B while AROD recovered from injury. He hit .190 in 79 AB’s with the Yanks last year.

 Bocock was designated without playing an inning for the big club.  No doubt the right move here, but far from the answer.

Taking the Lehigh Valley roster spot of Cody Ransom for now is 2B/SS Ozzie Chavez, called up from Reading. Chavez, 26, was hitting .218/.316/.287 in 188 AB’s for Reading.  He added a homer and 18 RBI’s, playing predominately 2B for the Rphils.

A look at the Outfield throughout the system, as the Phils monitor both development and who may be expendable for the right player.

Lehigh Valley

Chris Aguila,31,  7 at bats thus far, 2 hits.

Domonic Brown, 22, Reading: 236 AB’s; .318/.391/.602; 15 HR 47 RBI; 12 SB, 6 CS; Lehigh Valley: 28 AB’s; .429/.467/.714; 2HR 6 RBI; 1 SB, 1 CS; TOTALS: 264 AB’s, .330/.399/.614; 17 HR 53 RBI; 13 SB, 7 CS; 11% BB rate, 19% k rate.  69 games in the OF, 3 assists, 4 errors. Not much more to say that hasn’t been said already.

Chris Duffy, 30, 250 AB’s; .248/.313/.372; 4 HR 29 RBI; 10 SB 4 CS; .347 vs. LH, .224 vs. RH; .385 with RISP; .257 in June; 8% bb rate; 23% k rate. 66 games, 2 assists, 1 error. Striking out too much for a guy at the top of the order.

John Mayberry, 26, 272 AB’s; .246/.311/.419; 10 HR 41 RBI; 7 SB 0CS; .241 vs. LH, .248 vs. RH, .230 with RISP; .187 in June; 7% bb rate, 24% K rate. 69 games, 1 assist, 0 errors. Has struggled mightily over the last month, diminishing what trade value he has. Continue reading Around the SYstem–OF →

I was at the Lehigh Valley game Thursday.

Savery’s outing was interesting. First, he came into the game in the third inning after a reliever (Concepcion) had started, and finished things out.  I don’t know why they brought him in out of the pen, but it seemed to hep him. He mixed in a lot of pitches, threw a lot of 84-86 mph sinkers. Threw one FB at 89, which was his maximum velocity. He got a lot more swings and misses than he usually does, and really only gave up a couple hard-hit balls (one was a 450-foot HR, his only run). IF he could recover three or 4 mph on his FB, he could be a help in the majors. If not, I just can’t see him being more than a AAA/AAAA guy. He’d have to be the next Jaime Moyer, and he doesn’t seem to have the consistent control in the strike zone to do that.
Continue reading Brief write-up of LV game Thursday night →

Some insightful comments on various Lakewood BlueClaws on their blog today…(http://blog.blueclaws.com/) .  Manager Mark Parent was interviewed and he commented on:

Jonathan Singleton: “Word is out on him, thats for sure…He is going to have to expand the zone or be more aggressive early in the count.  They are going to pitch to him like a big leaguer rehabbing. He is a good hitter.  His swing is simple and good.  He will certainly adjust to whatever they are doing”.

Brody Colvin: ” He was already a big prospect but he has opened alot of eyes.  When people get alot better in a short period of time, you never know how much further they can keep going.”

Matt Way: ” Way has come out where to, for me, he has pretty much done all he can do at this level. At his age, his stuff, we need to see if it transfers to a higher level. We have talked about that for a few weeks. There has to be an opening but he has been great.”

The Bullpen: “Wertz has stepped up.  Lugo’s almost been perfect. Zeid, in my opinion, is a starter. Some people have the temperament where they can come in with other guys on base and even if they give it up, they can bounce a bad outing off him.  He is a guy that has to prepare and work through his stuff.  I think Zeid will do a great job as a starter.”

A crazy week in Allentown with a continued roster makeover, some by injury, and some by design.  Domonic Brown’s Lehigh Valley debut definitely added an atmosphere of excitement with simply his presence, and his play this week added to the aura of what appears to be a star in the making. Lehigh Valley went 3-4 on the week, and are now 32-48, in 5th place of the Northern Division of the International League, 16 games behind division leading Scranton. Continue reading Lehigh Valley Weekly Report →

With all the Phillies injury issues, this seems as good a time as any to take another look at the Middle Infield throughout the system,  Note: The players listed under a particular affiliate are those players on the CURRENT team roster that have played a majority of their games at a particular position.  For example, although Cody Ransom seems to be the current starting SS for Lehigh Valley, he was already covered in the Corner Infield post as the majority of his games have come at 3B. It is still very early for Williamsport and GCL, so just the names, without stats. Continue reading Around the System–Middle Infield →