Im starting off my rookie year as a correspondant with Phuture Phillies focusing on the Reading Phillies. Im a long suffering Philadelphia sports fan and my goal is through my focus on the Reading Phillies, to quickly forget the horrid year the Sixers and Flyers had and not have to listen to the Eagles explain why they took “the best athlete on the board” next week.
Category Archives: 02. Org Reports
Lakewood Report, Week 3
(Kyle Drabek, courtesy of Blueclaws.com)
Lakewood’s defense of their Sally League title has gotten off to a somewhat slow start, as the Blueclaws sit at just 7-7, 4.5 games behind front running West Virginia in the Northern Division of the SAL. The two biggest culprits to date are the bullpen and the weather, the latter of which the Blueclaws obviously can’t control. Garrett Hill and Michael Dubee have been a bit shaky in the pen, and Andrew Cruse is looking to get back on track after a rough outing last week.
Ottawa Lynx Week Two
“Pitching and defense are the keys to winning ball games.” An old and hallowed baseball cliche to be sure but Ottawa manager John Russell’s comment after the third Lynx win in a row on their current home stand has been an absolute. Ottawa came off a miserable road trip which took them through Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse and began their 2007 home schedule with a 2-5 record and sitting in last place in the Northern division of the International League.
The Reading Report, Week 2
Unlike Lakewood, and Clearwater to a degree, the Reading roster is not filled with legit prospects, but one guy is attempting to make his way back into the discussion, one Javon Moran. Moran was originally drafted by the Phillies in 2003, but traded to the Reds in 2004 in the Cory Lidle deal (thanks for the reminder), and spent 2 and a half seasons in the Cincinnati organization. Moran found his way back to Philadelphia as part of the Jeff Conine deal, and though he is 24 and playing in AA, he’s making his claim for legit prospect status. For the season, he’s compiled a .413/.451/.630 batting line in 46 AB, with 7 extra base hits, 7 RBI, 13 runs scored, and 7/8 in SB just for good measure. It’s premature to jump to too many conclusions, but if he finishes with a solid .330/.390/.500 line this season, he’ll gain quite a bit of his stock back heading into next year, and could offer a much better outfield alternative to Chris Roberson.
Threshers win 20 inning marathon
I’ve been strapped for time the last few days with a deadline at work, so no Clearwater report today, but if you haven’t already, check out the action from last night, which saw Clearwater win a 20 inning game against the Tampa Yankees. Greg Golson was the hero, going 1-10, but driving in the winning run. Josh Outman had a nice bounce-back performance, giving up only 1 ER in 6 innings, but each team would eventually have to use 7 pitchers in total before the game would end. Today’s game went the standard 9, with Carlos Carrasco rebounding from a tough performance to deliver 7 innings of 1 ER ball.
The Lakewood Report, Week 2
(courtesy of Blueclaws.com)
Lakewood started off week 2 of the season on the right foot, beating West Virginia on April 9th and 10th behind strong pitching performances. After 4 shaky innings from Jarrod Freeman, the bullpen, led by Ben Pfinsgraff, clamped down on West Virigina and held on for the win. In game 2, Kyle Drabek tossed his first gem of the season, going 6 innings, allowing only 1 earned run on five hits, two walks, while striking out 4. Alex Concepcion and Justin Blaine combined for 3 scoreless innings to take Lakewood to a 3-2 record. The third game of the series was rained on Wednesday, and when play resumed Thursday, things didn’t go quite as well, with Lakewood losing both ends of the double header, largely due to shaky bullpen work from the Hill’s, Garet and Ronald. Lakewood traveled to Hickory for what was to be a 4 game series, winning the opener 9-5, with Ben Pfinsgraff notching his second win of the week in relief of Darren Byrd. The next three games, however, were canceled due to wind and rain.
So, Lakewood’s defense of their Sally League crown has begun with a 4-4 record, and they sit in 5th place, 2.5 games behind first place Greensboro in the Northern Division. There have been plenty of positives as well as a few questions left to be answered. Kyle Drabek, who’s first appearance came in relief, was excellent in his first start, and has 7 strikeouts in 7 innings against only 2 walks. Edgar Garcia has two good starts under his belt, having allowed only 3 ER in 12 innings with an 8:1 strikeout to walk ratio. Adrian Cardenas, thrust into full season ball, is hitting .333 in 27 AB, and in Week 2 alone, he hit .467. Maybe the most pleasant surprise has been Gus Milner, an outfield prospect that really wasn’t on anyone’s radar after a disappointing debut last year. Milner’s overall line .387/.424/.548 in 31 AB is an impressive start, and in Week 2, he 2 doubles and 2 stolen bases as well. Even CJ Henry, who struggled mightily last season, has shown some promise, with 5 extra base hits and 3 stolen bases so far.
Their are two things to keep on eye on however, that aren’t looking quite as positive. Darren Byrd and Jarrod Freeman, both promoted to full season ball this year, have struggled a bit. Byrd has allowed 7 ER in 8.1 innings, with 7 walks and 8 strikeouts, and Freeman has allowed 5 ER in 5.2 innings, but does have 7 strikeouts. Not every arm is going to pan out, and it is only two starts, but keep on eye on these two and see how they develop and handle the jump to a full season league. The other disconcerting aspect of not only Lakewood, but of all the Phillies affiliates, is the general lack of plate discipline being shown. In 274 AB as a team, they’ve managed to draw a grand total of 22 walks, with 5 of those going to Julian Williams and 4 to Tuffy Gosewich, neither of whom are really great prospect material. I’m not sure if it’s an organizational teaching method or not, because the big league club clearly doesn’t have a problem drawing walks. Again, keep an eye on this trend and see if it improves or gets worse as the season progresses.
Lakewood returns back home this week for a 3 game series against Delmarva and then they welcome in Hagerstown.
Lynx Report Week 1
Greetings all you Philly fans from your northern neighbor. I’m Doug Bird and this year I will be covering your Triple A affiliate- the Ottawa Lynx. Last season I reported the baseball comings and goings of the Ottawa Lynx as a daily contributor to Orioles Hangout. Our major league affiliations have ranged from the now sadly defunct Montreal Expos to the Baltimore Orioles and this season, a team which should be a strong contender in the National League East, the Philadelphia Phillies. With the Major League franchise Triple A affiliation changes this past winter, Ottawa is now home to the Northern division winner from the 2006 season. The Lynx last season finished with a 74-69 last season, but were 10.5 games out of first at the end and failed to qualify for the playoffs. Opening on the road this season with games in Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse, the Lynx will begin their home schedule April 17th vs. the Charlotte Knights. I’ll be making weekly reports on the goings on with the Lynx this season, and touching on the rest of the International League. Hopes are high for a successful run at a playoff spot this season with veteran signings such as Lou Collier and Pedro Swan and the return of top prospects such as Michael Bourn, (now with Philadelphia). Manager of the Year for 2006 John Russell returns for another season, (his tenth season as a minor league field manager), along with his pitching coach of last year, Rod Nichols, (his fourth season at Philadelphia’s highest minor league affiliate), and field coach Sal Rende, (his fourth season).
Neither the weather nor the opposition were kind to Ottawa in this, the first week of the regular season. In a week of all offense and no pitching, or all pitching and no offence, the Lynx managed only two victories in seven games. After the scheduled April 6th opener was cancelled due to snow and cold, both teams were able to finally begin the 2007 season the following day. In this one, Ottawa rallied for seven runs in the ninth to take an 11-9 lead only to have the bullpen allow three in the Rochester half of the ninth, the winning run scoring on a base loaded walk issued to Tommy Watkins by Justin Miller. Lynx starter Brian Mazone lasted only four innings, allowing four unearned runs on five hits as Rochester won 12-11.
An off day for travel saw Ottawa in Buffalo to play the Bisons who had been unable to play any of four scheduled games against the Richmond Braves due to bad weather. Ottawa fared no better in this, their second game of the season, losing to Buffalo 8-3. Ottawa starter Matt Childers surrendered four first inning runs, all top Cleveland pitching prospect Adam Miller would need as he went six innings for the win. The Buffalo pen shut down the Lynx offense over the final three innings giving Ottawa an 0-2 start to the 2007 season.
The Lynx record fell to 0-3 the next day as Buffalo once again defeated them, this time by a score of 5-3. Ottawa starter J.A. Happ in only his second Triple A start of his career, was outstanding, pitching five innings and allowing no hits. After counting 87 pitches in his five innings of work, Happ was replaced, leaving with a 2-0 lead. Again, the bullpen was unable to hold the lead as Buffalo, trailing 3-0, rallied against recently assigned Joe Besinius for three runs. Eude Britto replaced Besinius but fared no better, giving up a two run double to Keith Ginter, breaking the tie and putting Buffalo in the lead for good.
Ottawa finally got in the win column the next day, defeating Buffalo 13-7, getting 15 hits total. Lou Collier continued his hot start to the season, going 4-5 with two runs batted in and raising his average to .526. Eight different Lynx players drove in a run and three Lynx relievers followed starter Jim Crowell, reliever Fabio Castro earning the first Lynx win of the season.
The final game of this series against Buffalo was a tight pitching dual between Lynx starter Brian Mazzone and the Bisons Jeff Harris. Keith Ginter once again hurt the Lynx, this time with a solo home run in the second inning. Ryan Muthern broke up a 1-1 tie with a solo home run of his own in the Buffalo half of the fifth inning. Three Buffalo relievers shut down Ottawa the rest of the way giving Buffalo a 2-1 victory and dropping the Lynx to 1-4 on the season.
After an off day on Friday, Ottawa spent the weekend of April 14th in Syracuse against the Sky Chiefs. Impending bad weather once again played havoc with the scheduling and what was scheduled to be a single game Saturday, a double header Sunday and a single game Monday, was reworked into a doubleheader Saturday and a postponement of the games on Sunday and Monday’s game, both games rescheduled for August.
With all of this rescheduling, Ottawa managed a split of the Saturday double header, dropping the first game 4-0 but coming back to win game two, 4-3. Lynx starter Zach Segovia went the distance in game one but gave up a two run homer run to John-Ford Griffith in the fourth inning and a two run home run to Mike Vento in the fifth. The Lynx could do little against Syracuse starter Ty Taubenheim who worked six innings for the win. Game two saw the Lynx jump out to a 2-0 first inning lead on a two out double by Chris Coste, a lead they never relinquished. Ottawa starter Matt Childers allowed only one run through five innings and the bullpen, with a key defensive play in the sixth inning by Ottawa center fielder Chris Roberson, managed to hold off a sixth inning Syracuse rally giving Ottawa their second win of the season.
The Lynx, 2-5 and in last place in the Northern division three games behind Buffalo, rank third in the IL in team batting, (.280), and twelfth in team pitching, (5.63). Lou Collier leads the team with a .379 average and Chris Roberson has 8 runs batted in. The Lynx have yet to hit a home run. Brian Mazzone leads the team with a 1.64 ERA but has an 0-1 record in two starts. Fabio Castro and Matt Childers have the lone Ottawa wins and Brian Sanches has the only Lynx save. The team is off today, (Sunday) and tomorrow. Pitcher Kane Davis has been placed on the disabled list.
The Reading Report, Week 1
The Reading Phillies are coming off a 71-69 campaign in 2006, and with a handful of quality pitching prospects, are hoping to improve on that record in 2007. The composition of the R-Phillies is largely made up of minor league veterans and non-prospects, so my attention to the team might be a bit less this season than that of Lakewood and Clearwater, which contain many more actual prospects. Nevertheless, Reading will feature some interesting pitching, as well as Mike Costanzo’s bat at 3B, and should have some new arrivals from Clearwater at some point during the season. Reading continues to sit near the top of the Eastern League in terms of attendance, which speaks to the quality atmosphere at games. While they should be able to maintain their performance of last season and possibly improve on it, winning the league will be tough, as many teams like Akron, Binghamton and New Britain will again be filled with promising prospects.
The lineup for the R-Phillies will consist of two real prospects in Javon Moran, a former Phillie farmhand reacquired in the Jeff Conine trade. Moran, now 24, will be on the old side to be considered a bona-fide prospect at AA, but he brings a lot of speed, good contact skills, and solid center field defense, and with a big season, could bring his prospect status up a bit. The other main draw in the lineup is 3rd baseman Mike Costanzo. Costanzo, who had a so-so 2006 campaign at Clearwater, is now thrust into the middle of the Reading lineup and into the spotlight of 6,000+ fans every night. There were reports that Costanzo was “taking AB’s off” last season, but he shouldn’t have to worry about a lack of atmosphere this season. Juan Tejeda, a fringe player, will play 1st, and newly acquired Michael Garciappara will likely see time at 2B, trying to resurrect his career. The pitching rotation features free agent pickups Landon Jacobsen and Heath Totten, and they will be joined by legit prospects Kyle Kendrick and Matt Maloney. Anderson Garcia, picked up off waivers from the Mets, will likely get the majority of the save opportunities early, and at age 25, he’ll need a big season to be considered prospect material heading into next year.
Reading opened at home with a three game sweep of Harrisburg, with Jacobsen, Maloney and Key picking up wins and Anderson Garcia netting 2 saves in as many tries. Mike Costanzo started off on the right foot, homering in his first two AA games. After dropping the first two games of the series to Bowie, the R-Phillies managed to salvage a game behind the second strong performance of the season from Landon Jacobsen. Javon Moran has been the story so far offensively, with a line of .417/.462/.625, adding 5 doubles and 4 stolen bases. Costanzo, after the hot start, has cooled significantly, hitting only .167 in 24 AB, but more troubling, with 0 walks and 12 strikeouts. Garcia is 3 for 3 in saves, with a 2.25 ERA in 4 games, the only runs given up in a non-save situation. Kendrick and Maloney both had respectable debuts. The progress of Moran will be interesting to watch, as he could work himself into a midseason promotion to Ottawa, and Kendrick, who will have to be added to the 40 man at the end of the season, could emerge as the ace of the staff. Reading finishes out their week with a four game series in Altoona, where they’ll run into one of the best prospects in the game, CF Andrew McCutchen.
The Clearwater Report, Week 1
In the first edition of the Clearwater affiliate report, we’ll look at the composition of the roster, the potential excellence of the pitching staff, and how the team can make a run at the Florida State League title.
Last season, the Threshers posted a 67-72 record, which doesn’t look great until you consider the fact that they were an unbelievably bad 41-95 the year before. Everyone that follows the minor leagues will tell you that the records of the minor league affiliates aren’t important, that it is all about player development, and they are correct. However, everyone likes to win, at whatever level they are at, whether it be little league or the International League, and losing hurts, regardless of the situation. Last year’s team was in a state of flux, as two of their better pitches, James Happ and Zach Segovia, as well as their best reliever Joe Bisenius, were promoted to Reading mid season. This year, the staff is loaded from top to bottom, starting with the Phillies #1 ranked prospect, Carlos Carrasco. Following Carrasco are 2006 draft picks Andrew Carpenter and Dan Brauer, as well as rising prospect Josh Outman, and the rotation is rounded out by Patrick Overholt, a reliever being converted to a starter this season. In the bullpen, Brett Harker is likely the closer, with lefty Mike Zagurski setting up and Will Savage also getting into some high leverage situations. The offensive core is led by Brad Harman at 2B, looking for a rebound season after a terrible 2006, outfielder Jeremy Slayden, catcher Lou Marson, and CF Greg Golson.
In the early going, the lineup has fluctuated a bit, but Golson, Harman and Slayden have hit 2-3-4 a few times, with Marson hitting 5th or 6th. Chris Coste had been rehabbing in Clearwater, and was batting in the middle of the order, and Freddy Garcia is doing his rehab here as well, plus an appearance from Jon Lieber has meant a changing lineup/rotation. Once the season starts to take off, Golson, Harman, Slayden and Marson should consistently be in the 2-5 spots every night in some order. Welinson Baez has been hitting lower in the lineup, likely to try and put him in low pressure situations as he adjusts to High A after struggling at Lakewood. Slayden is likely the first of this group to be promoted, as he’s still too old for this league. On the pitching side, Outman probably has the ability to move up to Reading first depending on how he pitches.
Clearwater opened the season with 4 games against Dunedin, going 2 and 2. Carrasco produced a nice 5 inning debut, while Brauer and Carpenter combined on a 9 inning, 2 run performance. Josh Outman, pitching in relief in his first appearance due to a Jon Lieber rehab appearance, struggled mightily, allowing 7 ER in 2.1 IP, with 3 BB and 3 K. It may have been nerves, or it may have been because he was pitching in relief, something he isn’t accustomed to doing, but we shouldn’t worry too much about it. Once the rehab assignments are done with, he’ll be back in the starting rotation and should be able to get comfortable. Offensively, Jeremy Slayden is off to a solid start, hitting .533 in 15 AB. Greg Golson also has come out of the gates strong with a .389 BA in 18 AB, with 4 extra base hits and 2 SB. This week, Clearwater will play 4 games against a good Tampa team, and then 3 games against Lakeland, all at home.
The Lakewood Report, Week 1
Welcome to a new feature on the site, the affiliate reports. Today, and hopefully most Tuesdays, we’ll feature the Lakewood report, covering all the week’s action with the Blueclaws. Just a reminder, if you have any pictures you’d like to share, please drop me an email and we’ll work out an arrangement to get the pictures up and share them with everyone else.
Lakewood began the defense of their South Atlantic League title at home against a tough Greensboro team, giving Carlos Monasterios the honor of starting opening night. It was a memorable and forgettable night all at once, as Monasterios was rocked for 7 ER in just two thirds of an inning, giving way to Justin Blaine in relief. Blaine would give up 2 ER in his 2 innings of work, and eventually Alex Concepcion, Jarrod Freeman and Ronald Hill would finish out the game, with Lakewood allowing a total of 11 runs, but clawing back to score 7 of their own. On Friday night, however, the team bounced back on the strength of Edgar Garcia’s full season debut. One of the Phillies most promising arms, Garcia tossed 7 innings of 1 run ball, and was followed in relief by #1 pick Kyle Drabek, who proceeded to strike out the side. In the rubber match, Greensboro won a tight 3-1 ball game, as Darren Byrd lost his full season debut. The bullpen, featuring Ben Pfinsgraff, Michael Dubee and Andrew Cruse didn’t allow a run, but the offense couldn’t muster anything against a tough Greensboro bullpen.
While the pitching at Lakewood figures to be entertaining, the offense has it’s share of potential bright spots, as the middle infield is manned by 2006 draft picks Jason Donald at SS and Adrian Cardenas at 2B. Toolsy center fielder Quintin Berry is batting leadoff and Gus Milner has manned right field thus far. CJ Henry, acquired in the Bobby Abreu deal and recently relocated to 3B, has started strong, with Tuffy Gosewich handling the bulk of the catching duties. So far, Henry has been the most surprising guy in the lineup, with a batting line .400/.500/.800 early on, collecting 2 2B, 1 3B, 3 RBI, and 2 SB. Donald and Berry are both hitting .294 after the first few games, and Cardenas is at the .250 mark. Milner, who it seems not many people are paying attention to, has a .333/.375/.533 line after 15 AB, with a double and a triple. Tuffy Gosewich owns the only home run for the team thus far, along with 2 2B.
Lakewood, tied for 3rd in the SAL at 2-2, will spend this week on the road, finishing a 3 game series at West Virginia, and then onto Hickory for a 4 game series. The rotation does not quite seem set yet, as Jarrod Freeman has both started a game and pitched out of relief, and Kyle Drabek has also been used as a reliever, but is likely to wind up starting sometime in the near future. Edgar Garcia seems like a lock to start every 5th day, and Carlos Monasterios will likely be given plenty of time to get acclimated despite his rough debut. After that, it’s tough to figure out the probable rotation until we see a few more games. Lineup-wise, the top four of Berry, Donald, Cardenas and Gosewich appears set, with Milner hitting 6th and CJ Henry hitting either 7th or 8th. Henry, if he continues to hit well and maintain his focus, is likely to slide up a spot, and could eventually be hitting 6th or 7th consistently. Prospect followers should keep an eye on Hickory OF Jamie Romak, as well as pitcher Mike Felix, the Pirates 2nd round pick in 2006.
Phuture Phillies 