The Phillies acquired RHP Charlie Morton from the Pirates for Clearwater RHP David Whitehead per MLBTR, http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2015/12/phillies-acquire-charlie-morton-from-pirates.html. Morton has avearged between 5-6 IP per game in 69 starts over the past 3 seasons. The Phillies designated recently claimed right-handed reliever A.J. Achter to make room for Morton. If he clears waivers, he’ll likely be assigned to LHV.
Category Archives: 01. Site Features
Winter Meetings and Rule 5 Draft Discussion: Mid-Week, December 9th (updated post-Giles trade)
The Phillies made a major trade Wednesday when they sent Ken Giles to the Astros. I figured that we would need a thread to discuss the impending Rule 5 Draft and had intended to post this tomorrow, but the Giles trade has accelerated the publishing of this post. I’ll include the draft news as it occurs tomorrow. Continue reading Winter Meetings and Rule 5 Draft Discussion: Mid-Week, December 9th (updated post-Giles trade)
Kenny Giles traded to the Astros
Limited time tonight to post but I wanted to get something going before Jim expertly fills in the details as he always does. Kenny Giles was traded this evening to Houston for P Vincent Velasquez, P Brett Oberholtzer, OF Derek Fisher and a player yet to be announced. Both Velasquez and Oberholtzer spent time with the Astros last year, with Velasquez looking to have a very high upside and likely to join the Phils rotation. Fisher , a Pennsylvania native split time between A and High A and put up impressive numbers (22HR 87RBI, 31SB, .275 avg) in just under 500 minor league at bats last year. He was the Astros Supplemental First Round Pick (37th) in the 2014 draft.
With little need for a lights out closer with likely multiple rebuilding years to come, this is a trade that makes sense for the Phils for a host of reasons.
Open Discussion: Week of December 7th
Baseball’s Winter Meetings start Monday, December 7th. The much awaited Rule 5 Draft will be held on Thursday, December 10th. I have entered the 6 most recent transactions to the list below. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of December 7th
Cheese Steak in Paradise
Please excuse the clumsy paraphrasing of a Jimmy Buffet lyric in the title. This is NOT a prospect article. It is the promised review of a new restaurant. It is specifically targeted toward readers who travel to Clearwater for Phillies’ Spring Training and Grapefruit League games and those who live in the Clearwater area. Continue reading Cheese Steak in Paradise
Phillies Claim Bourjos, Lose Ogando
It was reported today that the Phillies claimed CF Peter Bourjos off waivers from the Saint Louis Cardinals. Subsequently, the Phillies tried to slip RHP Nefi Ogando through waivers only to have him claimed by the Miami Marlins.
I recall that Bourjos would have been a popular acquisition among readers of this site had the Phillies acquired him a few years ago, before they traded for Ben Revere. He put up solid numbers in the 2011 season but saw limited at bats over the next 4 seasons.
Ogando came to the Phillies from the Boston Red Sox in August of 2013 in exchange for INF John McDonald. He possessed a mid-90s fastball but had control problems. He flashed a reasonable BB/9 in 2014 in the AFL and DWL, but reverted to form last season.
Steve Adams of MLBTR provides a more extensive write up of the transactions.
The Phillies 40-man roster remains at 38.
Open Discussion: Week of November 30th
Not much on the Phillies’ front this week. Next week they’ll be prepping for Matt Klentak’s first Winter Baseball Meeting as the GM of the Phillies.
MLBTR’s Brad Johnson profiled several possible top Rule 5 picks by the Phillies in a recent article. Interestingly enough they are all outfielders or first basemen. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of November 30th
Open Discussion: Week of November 23rd
How quickly things change. In less than 4 weeks, could the fans’ honeymoon with new GM Matt Klentak be over?
Not too long ago, the Phillies introduced Klentak to the media at a news conference on October 26th. Since then the GM has been involved in only a few publicly observed team decisions and a couple of press conferences that revealed some of his thoughts – Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of November 23rd
Phillies 40-Man Roster Moves as Deadline Approaches
With the deadline to protect players from the rule 5 draft approaching, the Phillies have added 3 players to their 40-man roster – Roman Quinn, Jimmy Cordero, and Edubray Ramos. They have also claimed Twins RHP A.J. Achter off waivers.
The Phillies 40-man roster level stands at 37 going into the rule 5 draft barring any further moves before tonight’s 11:59PM deadline.
Open Discussion: Week of November 16th
Phillies’ General Manager, Matt Klentak, continued adding to the organization in the second week of the off season. Following the waiver acquisition of RHP Dan Otero on November 2nd, the Phillies FA LHP James Russell on November 12th and traded for Arizona Diambacks’ RHP Jeremy Hellickson. True to his word (and remarkably similar to his predecessor), Klentak is proving that his emphasis will be adding to (improving?) the pitching depth in the organization. Continue reading Open Discussion: Week of November 16th
Phuture Phillies 