A look back at the week of July 18-24. Quick thoughts…when your team is struggling offensively as much as the Phillies, dont you find a way to get Cody Asche into the major league lineup? He won’t fix things, but will at the very least add some energy. (Ruf to LF, Brown to RF, Young to 1B, Asche to 3B)…Cameron Perkins has really struggled since coming off the DL with his broken wrist…Ethan Martin has been pitching extremely well over the past two months and may be positioned for a September call up…I am getting pretty excited about Kenny Giles again.

Hot Hitters: Cody Asche (.429); Cesar Hernandez (.390); Gabrial Lino (.364, 4R 2HR 5RBI); Matt Tolbert (.364); Angelo Mora (.350); Albert Cartwright (.346, 7R, 2SB); Maikel Franco (.333); Jiwan James (.333); Honorable Mention: Greene, Cozens, Dugan, Morelos Continue reading Hot or Not →

Its been a rough two weeks for Lehigh Valley, even with an 8-1 win last night, as they have gone 3-7 since the last report and now sit at 52-52, and in 3rd place of the Northern Division of the International League, 5.5 games behind division leading Pawtucket and 2 games behind Norfolk in the race for the wild card. Lehigh Valley is in the midst of an eight game road trip during which they play two more in Rochester, followed by a four game series in Pawtucket.

‘Pigs Prospects: Cody Asche has hit safely in 20 of his last 27 games and is hitting .359 during that time frame. Taking it back a bit further, Asche has hit in 38 of his last 49 games (.324). After having a fairly miserable time hitting left handed pitching during the first two months of the season, Asche has been a solid .294 since May 26th.  He continues to show the occasional pop, good base running and very good defense. On the year, Asche is at .292/.352/.451 with 12HR and 60RBI, to go along with 11SB. Extremely solid. I really hope to see him in Philly before the end of the year. Continue reading Lehigh Valley Weekly Report →

Lakewood

Larry Greene, Jr, 20, Phils 1st round pick in 2011 draft; .234/.329/.317 in 278 AB’s; 2HR 23RBI; 5/9 SB; .131 vs. LH, .278 vs. RH, .229 with RISP; .275 since June 1; 13%bb/34% k rates. 77 games in the OF with 9 errors (.927); 2 OF assists; The good news is Greene has shown great improvement over the last two months, renewing hope that using a #1 pick on him wouldnt rank up there in the realm of Jeff Jacksonesque failures. The bad news: VERY pedestrian power and speed numbers combined with difficulties in the field and .131 against lefties. 

Brian Pointer, 21, Phils 28th round pick in 2010 draft; .228/.346/.357 in 311 AB’s; 5HR 39RBI; 21SB; .177 vs. LH, .241 vs. RH, .276 with RISP; .225 since June 1; 11%bb/26% k rates; 85 games in the OF with 4 errors (.974); 5 OF assists, I have been infatuated with Pointer’s skill set since I saw him in Spring Training in 2011 and am pretty consistently disappointed by his line. The guy has skills. He needs to hit lefties and strike out less and probably has one more year to learn to do those things. Continue reading Around the System, OF, Lower Half →

A look at the OF at the upper reaches of the organization. Stats are thru Saturday. The report on Lakewood, Williamsport and GCL will be out this week.

Lehigh Valley

Leandro Castro, 24, Signed as a free agent in 2007; .267/.297/.397 in 292 AB’s; 7HR 43 RBI; 16/22 SB; .364 vs. LHP, .225 vs. RHP; .338 with RISP; 4%bb/18%K rates; .259 since June 1. 77 games in the OF with 6 errors (.966); 6 OF assists. Castro has had a very good year and in my mind has placed on himself on the radar screen for a 4th or 5th OF candidate in Philadelphia next year. His biggest issue has always been his free swinging. While still a free swinger, he is making a whole heck of alot more contact than in the past.  Work in the OF has been less than stellar.

Steve Susdorf, 27, Phils 19th round pick in 2008 draft;.341/.429/.438 in 185 AB’s; 1HR 24RBI; 8SB; .324 vs. LH, .344 with RH, .327 with RISP; .352 since June 1. 13%bb/14% k rates.  43 games in the OF with 1 error (.983); 2 OF assists; I am not quite sure what Lance Nix gives you that Steve Susdorf can’t. Susdorf has been the picture of consistency, hitting both righties and lefties and giving you a very good AB each and every time. Continue reading Around the System–OF, Top Half →

Most major publications have released their Midseason Rankings.  The only two players to make any list where AA LHP Jesse Biddle and AA 3B Maikel Franco.  Both did not appear on all lists and there was no a consensus on the order in which they appeared or the opinions about them.

Baseball America: http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/midseason-prospect-update-top-50-prospects/

Jesse Biddle – #43

Maikel Franco – Breakout Prospect (surefire Top 100) Continue reading Industry Mid-Season Top 50 Prospect Lists →

A look at the week of July 11-17. Quick thoughts…Sebastian Valle’s offensive struggles have reached epic proportions with his average now hovering around .200 for the year…Is Jim Murphy the next Darin Ruf?  I think more likely Matt Rizzotti, but the numbers are impressive nonetheless…Time to pay attention to Wilmer Oberto. He has more than twice as many RBI’s as any other member of the GCL club…Very good to see Kenny Giles back on the hot reliever list after a frustrating injury filled year.

Continue reading Hot or Not →

Hard to believe, but there remains only about 6 1/2 weeks in the minor league season. Full season leagues are passing the 2/3 mark of their campaigns. Guys who haven’t had a lot of success to date have one last push to improve their stock going into instructs/fall and winter ball. I’ll guess a couple of hard charging closers here – guys who six weeks from now could be pushing us all to consider their so-far mediocre years a success. Continue reading Guessing On Strong Finishers →

A look at the Statistical Leaders throughout the organization: Minimum 30IP and 135 AB’s. Stats are thru last night.

AB’s: Cody Asche (358); Maikel Franco (347); Jim Murphy (332); Chris Serritella (328); Aaron Altherr (318); Cesar Hernandez (314); Darin Ruf (305); Albert Cartwright (301); Carlos Alonso (299); Carlos Tocci (297);  

Hits: Maikel Franco (111); Cody Asche (103); Jim Murphy (96); Cesar Hernandez (96); Willie Carmona (92); Chris Serritella (88); Aaron Altherr (87); Darin Ruf (81); Carlos Alonso (79); Leandro Castro (76) Continue reading Minor League Leaders →

A look at the catchers throughout the organization. Next up: the OF from the high levels of the organization.

Lehigh Valley

Cameron Rupp, 24, Phils 3rd round pick in 2010; .236/.305/.418 in 225 AB’s between Reading and Lehigh Valley; 10HR 33RBI; 8%bb/24%K rates; .220 since June 1. Has caught 55 games with 4 errors (.991); 3 passed balls; Has thrown out 16/52 would be base stealers (31%); Rupp has been asked to really step up this year for a variety of reasons and he has been predominately up to the task. I like Rupp and while he does not project as a major league starter, he could be a very effective back up with another 250-300 minor league AB’s.

Steven Lerud, 28, Re-signed as free agent in 2013; .242/.405/.358 in 120 AB’s; 3HR 17RBI; .214 vs. LH, .250 vs. RH, .243 with RISP; 20%bb/24% k rates; 41 games caught with 6 errors (.981); 1 passed ball; Has thrown out 13/39 would be base stealers (33%); Lerud has played well for Lehigh Valley. Even with a marginal batting average, the huge walk rate has led to an excellent OBP. Above average defensively, pitchers like throwing to him.  Seemed over matched offensively in the majors but a capable short term fix if necessary. Continue reading Around the System–Catchers →

One of the biggest moments in a prospect’s development is making the 40-man roster because it puts them in the position to be called up to the majors at any time.  Additionally, it comes with an invite to major league training camp.  Not making the 40-man is not the end for a prospect, but it can indicate a lot about their position in the organization.

That being said, for those prospects on the bubble of consideration their inclusion can depend on whether their profile is attractive to another team looking to make a pick in the Rule V draft.  In addition to Rule V picks the Phillies have a trio of interesting OFs that will be eligible for minor league free agency.

Locks:

Cameron Rupp: Rupp’s lack of overall upside has been stated many times on this site, but there is no doubt that he could be a solid major league back up to open 2014.  Almost any team would love to pick up that type of player for $50,000 in the Rule V making him a must protect. Continue reading Midseason Look at 40-Man Considerations →