We officially began the second half of the season on Tuesday evening with a 5-4 win over Buffalo and  Lehigh Valley now sits at 28-45 and in 5th place of the Northern Division of the International League, 14.0 games behind division leading Buffalo. Lehigh Valley is now 7-4 over their last 11 games after losing 15 of their previous 18 contests.   The ‘Pigs begin a 8 game home stand with 3 games against Louisville over the weekend followed by 3 against Scranton early next week.

News and Notes: RP Adam Loewen has a four game scoreless streak spanning 6.2IP.  He has allowed just 3 hits and struck out 14 over that time period.  With the merry-go-round of pitchers getting a shot in Philly, if Loewen strings together another 3-4 good outings, his number may be called.

–Brian Bogusevic, who has a July 1st opt out, has now hit safely in 55 of his 62 starts and has not gone back to back games this season without a hit. Continue reading Lehigh Valley Weekly Report →

Lehigh Valley

Brian Bogusevic, 31, Signed as a free agent in 2015; 254 AB’s; .311/.367/.437; 6HR 31RBI; 11/14SB; 8%BB/17%K rates; .270 vs LHP; .328 vs RHP; .298 last 30 days; .304 with RISP; 60 games in the OF; 3 assists; 0 errors; 2.23 R/F.  Bogusevic has been far and away the best player in the Lehigh Valley lineup day in and day out.  He has consistently hit for average, shown some power and decent speed along with playing a very good OF.  He has a July 1 opt out, which I would be surprised if he doesn’t take as it seems clear he wont be getting a chance with the big club.  His opt out may coincide with his selection to the IL all star team.

Jordan Danks, 28, Signed as a free agent in 2014; .241/.286/.292 in 212 AB’s; 1HR 22RBI; 2/4SB; 6%BB/28%K rates; .298 vs. LHP; .219 vs RHP; .227 last 30 days; .321 with RISP; 54 games in the OF with 2 assists and 2 errors (.983); 2.19R/F.  Danks was given a spot on the 40 man in the off season and has done little to impress.  With Altherr and Dugan knocking on the AAA door, a Bogusevic opt out is what may save his roster spot.

Note: Danks and Bogusevic are the only two active IronPigs who have played the majority of their games in the OF.

Reading

Aaron Altherr, 24, Phils 9th round pick in 2009; .292/.369/.478 in 226AB’s; 6HR 29RBI; 8/11SB; 11%BB/16%K rates; .308 vs LHP; .287 vs RHP;.321 with last 30 days; .276 with RISP; 57 games in the OF without an error; 3 OF assists; 2.14 R/F.  Altherr has improved in his areas of weakness and is at a place where he can’t do much more in AA.  With 700 AA plate appearances, it is time for him to move up. Continue reading Around the System–OF →

It has been ugly for Lehigh Valley who are in the midst of a seven game home stand and have lost 17 of their last 24 games, even after their walk off come from behind win last night.  Hope comes tonight with the introduction of Aaron Nola into the IronPigs rotation with his scheduled start against Buffalo.  At 25-43, the ‘Pigs are in 5th place of the Northern Division of the International League, 13.5 games behind division leading Scranton.  Scranton visits Coca Cola Park over the weekend before an off day on Monday.

News and Notes: Tyler Henson is hitting .542 (13-24) with RISP and two out.  Not bad.

–SP Adam Morgan threw two innings (35 pitches) on Wednesday night before being removed from the game.  Not injured, speculation quickly grew that he was being removed to keep him fresh to pitch Sunday for the Phils in Jerome Williams spot in the rotation.  That speculation was seemingly stomped after the game when Manager Dave Brundage commented that they were simply trying to limit Morgan’s innings and did not have an available starter to take Morgan’s rotation spot.  Not sure how much I am buying into that.

–I have no real idea why Jayson Nix was re-acquired.  He was awful last year and continues to be awful .  He is 0 for his last 18 and 4-38 in his last 11 games.

–1B Chris McGuiness is hitting .177(11-62) over his last 19 games and has fallen to .234 on the year

–SS Edgar Duran, who has been out around a month with a hamstring strain, is close to returning. Continue reading Lehigh Valley Report →

At 10:00AM this morning, twenty newly signed draft picks began their professional baseball careers.  Along with 21 other holdovers in camp, they took calisthenics and began taking PFPs and fielding drills.

I left after an hour, before they started batting practice, but here is a list of the new players and a list of the players remaining from XST. (Draft Tracker updated) Continue reading Today at the Carpenter Complex →

The State secret that is Ruben Amaro’s timeline for Aaron Nola was finally learned today with his call up to AAA Lehigh Valley to presumably make his first start Thursday in Allentown.  Nola, who just turned 22 has been consistently outstanding this year, with a 7-3 record and a 1.88ERA in his 12 AA starts.  In 76.2IP for Reading, Nola has allowed just 59 hits, walking 9 and striking out 59, while holding the opposition to a .219 avg.  After having one start skipped to “keep him fresh”, Nola threw 5 innings yesterday (69 pitches), and yielded 2 earned runs on a first inning 2R homer.  Just one year removed from college ball, I would expect the Phils to keep Nola at no more than 160-170IP this year and to be closely monitored post All Star break.  Top prospect status aside, Nola will be a very welcome addition to both the team (23-42) and the fans in Allentown who have had very little to watch and even less to cheer about as we approach the minor league seasons half way point.

The moves to me at this stage are obvious.  Stassi to Lehigh Valley, Charles playing regularly in Reading and Hoskins to Clearwater.  See the evidence below.

Lehigh Valley

Chris McGuiness, 27, SIgned as a free agent in 2015; .226/.342/.296 in 159 AB’s; 1HR 16RBI; 16%BB/15%K rates; .263 vs LHP; .215 vs RHP; .200 last 30 days; .205 with RISP; 38 games at 1B with 2 errors (.994); 8.18 R/F.  Has been consistently unproductive all year.

Russ Canzler, 29, Re-Signed as a free agent in 2015; .260/.319/.383 in 196AB’s; 4HR 20RBI; 8%BB/18%K rates; .276 vs LHP; .254 vs. RHP; .211 over last 30 days; .245 with RISP; 28 games at 1B with 2 errors (.992); 5 games at 3B without an error; 6 games in the OF with 1 error.  After a fast start, Canzler has been almost non-existent for over a month now.

Cord Phelps, 28, Signed as a free agent in 2015; .220/.298/.269 in 182 AB’s; 2HR 9RBI; 2SB; 10%BB/15%K rates; .224 vs. LHP; .218 vs. RHP; .267 over last month; .250 with RISP; 27 games at 3B with 3 errors (.952); 22 games at 2B with 2 errors (.981).  Has provided little to no offense while continuing his versatility in the field

Reading

Art Charles, 24, Acquired from Toronto in 2013; .274/.355/.514 in 146 AB’s; 6HR 27RBI; 12%BB/24%K rates; .304 vs LHP; .268 vs RHP; .177 over last 30 days; .283 with RISP; 18 games at 1B with 2 errors (.988); 9.22 R/F. After an unbelievable start, Charles has come back to Earth, hard over the last month.  That said, he is playing sparingly and I would like him to receive more regular time.

Brock Stassi, 25, Phils 33rd round pick in 2011; .333/.395/.498 in 207AB’s; 7HR 48RBI; 3SB; 10%BB/12%K rates; .388 with RISP; .339 over last 30 days; 48 games at 1B with 3 errors (.992); 8.19 R/F; 2 games in the OF without an error.  Stassi has been consistently outstanding all year.  I am far from convinced of any major league credentials, however, he should be in Lehigh Valley.  With an organizational guy above him who is hitting .226 with 1HR, there is no reason Stassi should be in Reading after 600 plus AB’s at this level.  Move Stassi and let Charles play. Continue reading Around the System–Corner INF →

Hello, its me. I apologize for not writing up a final draft prep piece on Sunday, life sort of got in the way. I did want to pop back in and write up some thoughts on the first two days of the draft. This is not going to rival the draft recaps I wrote up for 5 years, where I spent waaaay too much time dissecting draft picks and potential signability concerns, but I do have some thoughts, so I figured I’d share them with the masses, in case you were interested to see what I thought.

Continue reading Thoughts on the first 10 rounds of the draft →

Certainly several who are capable of moving up sometime very soon.  At the top of the list:  Ramos and Forsythe at Clearwater as well as DeNato, Hockenberry and Rivero at Lakewood

Clearwater

Jesen Therrien, 22, Phils 17th round pick in 2011; 15 games between Lakewood and CLearwater; 1-1 with a 1.11ERA; 2 saves; 24.1IP 22H 3BB 18K; 1HR allowed; .242 opp avg; 1.03 WHIP; 0.86 GO/AO; 1.1BB/6.7K per 9; For CW, 6 games, 1-0 with a 2.57ERA; .310 opp avg; 1.43 WHIP.  Therrien threw very well for Lakewood before his promotion and now is getting his feet under him in CLearwater.

Cody Forsythe, 24, Phils 25th round pick in 2013; 16 games, 2-0 with a 2.92ERA; 24.2IP 23H 6BB 26K; 3HR allowed; .232 opp avg; 1.18 WHIP; 0.76 GO/AO; 2.2BB/9.5K per 9; .361 vs. LH, .159 vs. RH, .208 with RISP.  Forsythe continues to pitch well for Clearwater and now has made 41 appearances at High A.  Time for movement upward.

Harold Guerrero, 25, Signed as a free agent in 2015; 9 games, 1-0 with a 1.32 ERA: 13.2IP 11H 12BB 13K; .224 opp avg; 1.68 WHIP; 0.53 GO/AO; 7.9BB/8.6K per 9; .091 with RISP.  Guerrero has been pitching himself into all kinds of trouble because of his high walk rate b but has done a decent job pitching out of the problems he creates. Continue reading Around the System, RP, Clearwater and Lakewood →

Not a whole lot to be excited about when discussing relief pitchers at the upper reaches of the organization.  In fact, almost no reason to be excited.  That will come when discussing Clearwater and Lakewood.

Lehigh Valley

Jake Diekman, 28, Phils 30th round pick in 2007; Sent down Friday, Diekman pitched s scoreless frame in his first outing, yielding both a base hit and a walk.

Seth Rosin, 26, Acquired from San Francisco in 2012; 22 games, 1-1 with a 2.35 ERA; 2 saves; 30.2IP 32H 6BB 21K; .254 opp avg; 1.24 WHIP;1.39 GO/AO; 1.8BB/6.2K per 9; .302vs. LH, .219 vs. RH, .250 over last 30 days; .268 with RISP.  Rosin has thrown very well this year and has likely past Hector Neris as the likely RHP to come up if need be.

Hector Neris, 26, SIgned as a free agent in 2009; 19 games; 1-3 with 4.50ERA; 1/3 saves; 24IP 28H 17BB 26K; .292 opp avg; 1.88 WHIP; 1.14 GO/AO; 6.4BB/9.8K per 9; .395 vs. LH, .224 vs. RH, .234 opp avg last Month; .294 with RISP.  Neris has pitched very poorly with an astronomical walk rate combined with getting crushed by left handed hitters.

Nick Hill, 30, Signed as a free agent in 2015; 13 games, 0-3 with a 3.80ERA between Reading and Lehigh Valley; 2 saves; 21.2IP 22H 11BB 14K; .289 opp avg; 1.55 WHIP; 0.95 GO/AO; 4.6BB/5.8K per 9; .389 vs. LH,.285 vs RH, .286 with RISP.  Hill has been nothing more than an innings eater for Lehigh Valley.  Very inconsistent. Continue reading Around the System, RP, Lehigh Valley and Reading →

Johnny Almaraz, the Phillies Amateur Scouting Director, said in an interview this past week that one of the criteria of his scouting crew is to find out about the players family and background. In his words “The apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree”, he feels it is very important to not just focus on baseball ability, albeit obviously of primary importance, but to also try and determine the makeup of the young player as desire, will, composure and passion are big elements of succeeding in professional baseball.

With that theme I thought it might be worthwhile to review, as best I can, some of the backgrounds and support of some of the present Phillies minor leaguers. My focus on Phuture Phillies is the Reading Fighten’s, with that being the case here is a look at a player who has perhaps performed better than any other minor leaguer in the system thus far, Brock Stassi.

Stassi is a 25 year old first baseman who stands 6’2″ and weighs in at 190 pounds. He was the 33rd round selection of the Phillies in the 2011 draft. He is from Sacramento, California and attended Yuba City High School where he played the positions of pitcher and outfielder for his dad Jim Stassi who coached the high school team for 18 years winning 337 games in his career. Brock graduated from the University of Nevada-Reno and was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 44th round of the 2010 draft but chose to complete his senior year and subsequently signed with the Phillies the following year. His father Jim also attended and played for the Wolfpack at the University of Nevada Reno and holds a few school records still.

Brock also pitched in college but focused primarily as an outfielder and led the team in hitting his senior season with a .360 average in 55 games and 203 at bats. He was not heavily recruited out of high school and being a third day draft pick is an underdog to make the show. As Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer pointed out in an article published on May 24th Stassi sees himself as someone who has always had to prove his doubters wrong. In a quote in that article Stassi said “I’ve always had to grind stuff out and open people’s eyes,  I play with a chip on my shoulder. Being a 33d-rounder, I use that as motivation. I take pride in that.”

Read more of that article http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/phillies/minor_leagues/20150524_Reading_s_Stassi_looks_to_keep_proving_doubters_wrong.html#4cLOKmxxFxLSU833.99

So what about family background? As mentioned his dad was a very successful high school coach and actually continues to coach as the hitting coach for the Marysville Gold Sox Baseball Club which is a summer collegiate wood bat team based in Marysville, CA. He played in the San Francisco Giants organization after being drafted in the 17th round of the 1982 draft and made it to the triple A level before ending his playing career in the Italian Pro League in Rimini, Italy. Additionally, Jim’s uncle Sam Stassi played minor league ball, and he is the great-nephew of big leaguer Myril Hoag. Some news stories claim his father Bob played in the minors as well as his grandfather Sam Sr.

Brock’s brother Max Stassi is a 24 year old catcher in the Houston Astro’s system playing at Triple A Fresno, he was a 2009 4th round draft pick of the Oakland A’s and was acquired via trade by the Astro’s.

So Brock definitely has a family with a baseball background and therefore a platform for reference to succeed. Now let’s take a look at his numbers, prior to this season he has had a relatively non-descript pro career. His first summer as a pro in 2011 was spent in Williamsport where he hit only .200 in 150 at bats while converting to a new position, first base. In 2012 he spent time at both Williamsport and Clearwater but the brunt of his time was at Lakewood where he posted a .247 average (.342 OBP with a .719 OPS) in 186 at bats. He only struck out 34 times against 28 walks while posting 15 extra base hits ( 9 doubles, 3 triples and 3 home runs).

Brock spent 2013 in Clearwater where the offensive game came around as he hit .295 ( .347 OBP and .746 OPS) in 288 at bats. Again he had minimal strike outs with 43 but only 23 walks with 19 extra base hits ( 11 doubles, 5 triples and 3 home runs).

In 2014 he struggled at Double A Reading hitting .232 ( .302 OBP and .629 OPS) in 440 at bats as the regular first baseman. He struck out 49 times with 39 walks and 23 extra base hits ( 12 doubles, 3 triples and 8 home runs) while driving in 44 runs. He actually got off to a decent start hitting .282 thru June but faltering to a .188 average in the second half of the season.

In an April, 2015 article written by Mike Drago of the Reading Eagle Stassi cited nutrition as a factor in his 2014 fall off, he spent the offseason living and training with his brother Max and adapted a diet which includes a regimented frequency of more meals as he said last season he lost weight and strength as the season went on.

So far so good this season for Brock as he comes into play today with an Eastern a League leading .339 average thru his first 180 at bats. He also leads the league in Runs Batted in with 43 and is second in OPS at .913 while being fourth in OBP at .402.  He already has 19 extra base hits ( 13 doubles and 6 home runs).

I for one always pull for the underdog and the hard worker, Brock Stassi seems to fit the mold there and I hope he has continued success, as Mr. Almaraz stated this week the mental make up and family background of players goes a long ways in helping them to succeed in this sport where the majority of the time you fail, this season so far Brock Stassi has turned prior setbacks into success, sure would be nice to see that continue.