The ‘Pigs are 4-2 on their 8 game home stand that began last Thursday and concludes tomorrow morning against Louisville. After 32 games, Lehigh Valley now stand at 14-17 and are  in 4th place of the Northern Division of the International League, 6.5 games behind division leading Buffalo.  The ‘Pigs conclude their home stand with a Thursday morning contest and then go on an 8 game road trip against Durham and Norfolk.

‘Pigs Leaders:Cesar Hernandez is 6th in AB’s (119); 9th in runs (18); 3rd in hits (41); 1st in triples (4); 7th in SB’s (9) and 7th in avg (.345). Continue reading Lehigh Valley Weekly Report →

There has been a good deal of chatter about Jesse Biddle’s last start, admittedly disappointing after simply dominating in several starts just prior.  In Biddle’s last outing, he lasted less than an inning, and was removed because of an organizational pitch count.
According to a very good source, Biddle was fighting a respiratory infection that took a considerable amount out of him prior to his start Saturday. I thought this tidbit noteworthy to help calm the “panic” in at least this area,  after a fairly miserable weekend of Philadelphia baseball throughout the organization.

A look at the 2B/SS through the system.  The talking points will surely be Hernandez and Quinn. Next up is the OF, Thursday or Friday next week.

Lehigh Valley

Cesar Hernandez, 22, Signed as a free agent in 2006; .358/.412/.514 in 109 AB’s; 2HR 11RBI; 8/8 SB; 8%bb/15% k rates; .360 vs. LHP; .357 vs. RHP; .333 with RISP. 26 games at 2B with 3 errors .970); 3.69 R/F.  Hernandez simply could not have played better than he did during the seasons first month.  Incredibly consistent, he has been getting on base, stealing bases and very good in the field. Starting to convince me that he can start in the majors as I watch him more and more. 

Pete Orr, 33, Signed as a free agent in 2011; .185/.254/.222 in 54 AB’s; 0HR 1RBI; 1SB; 12 games at SS with 1 error (.981); 3 games at 2B without an error.  A total non factor during the seasons first month.  We have seen much more from Orr at this level in years past. Continue reading Around the System–Middle Infield →

The “Around the System” series is back as we continuously rotate through the System taking a look at the production of each and every player.  We start with Corner Infielders, and will continue through the middle infield, outfield, catcher, starting pitchers and relief pitchers, all in time to get back to where we started (corner infield) usually about 75 AB’s later. Stats are thru Friday May 3rd. Look for a report on the Middle Infield over the next several days…

Lehigh Valley

Cody Overbeck, 26, Phils 9th round pick in 2009; .250/.297/.515 in 68 AB’s; 5HR 12 RBI; 1SB; 6%bb/29%k rate; .417 vs. LH, .214 vs. RH, .214 with RISP. 14 games at 1B with 1 error (.992); 8.57 R/F. Overbeck has been simply OK in the years first month. He continues to show power but is far from consistent and has been striking out a ton.

Cody Asche, 22, Phils 4th round pick in 2011; .267/.330/.367 in 90 AB’s; 1HR 13RBI; 9%bb/25%k rates; .071 vs. LH; .303 vs. RH, .143 with RISP. 24 games at 3B with 3 errors (.952); 2.50 R/F. Asche had an awful start but adjusted and has been coming on strong in his transition to AAA as of late.  His progress has been similar to what I expected prior to the year, but some troubling splits. Continue reading Around the System–Corner Infield →

It is hard to not get excited about hot starts for prospects because they bring so much promise and optimism.  The key as always, is to know why they are starting out how they are.  Sometimes regression is right around the corner and other times there is something there that has changed our view on them.

This isn’t a Hot Start This Is Who He Is:

Maikel Franco – Franco is by no means a finished product or a perfect prospect.  He has some limitations that will likely keep him from being a superstar.  At the plate he is a free swinger (not a hacker) and is going to have reasonable strikeout rates and walk rates but he is not going to be a high OBP guy.  His swing can get long and he can sell out for power exposing him to premium stuff, especially when pitchers can get inside on him.  But what he has, is special, Franco has a very quick bat that makes solid contact and projects to have a plus hit and plus power tool.  He should be able to be average to above defensively at third, and all round you have an occasional All-Star and well above average third baseman. Continue reading Taking Stock a Month In – Making Sense of Hot Starts →

A look back at the April 24-30 time period.  Quick thoughts/questions…What should Biddle’s timeline for promotion be?….Very rough week for the Lakewood rotation….Cesar Hernandez remains on fire. As solely a 2B, what should the Phils do next year if he keeps it up?10 RBI week for Maikel Franco whose stock is clearly rising into the very top echelon of Phils prospects…Zach Collier is overmatched at AA(0-8, 7K’s the last two days)…Start paying attention to Mauricio Robles. He is on the 40 man roster and has been dominant this year, striking out 22 in 15.1IP, with a WHIP well below 1.

Hot Hitters:(12AB MIN) William Carmona (.500, 5R, 4RBI); Cesar Hernandez, (.458, 6R HR 3RBI, 3SB); Cameron Perkins (.412, 5R); Darin Ruf (.400, 3HR 9RBI); Kelly Dugan(.375, HR 3RBI); Tyler Henson (.368); Maikel Franco (.333, 5R 3HR 10RBI);   Honorable Mention: Castro, Rupp, Pointer

Not Hot Hitters: Edgar Duran (.059); Roman Quinn (.077); Zach Collier (.100); Logan Moore (.125); Larry Greene (.125); Albert Cartwright (.125); Dis (Honorable) Mention:  Orr, Overbeck, Martinez, Hudson Continue reading Hot or Not →

We often think of minor league players as needing to continuing to improve.  Sometimes it is almost as good to sustain success on a higher level.  the second part of this series taking stock in the system looks at  the guys where nothing has really changed this year.  Some of the stats may be slightly above or below but the profile has not changed.

Adam Morgan – Morgan has been dominant at times and has struggled during other times.  He is more the guy he was in Reading then Clearwater, which is a very solid #3 starter with some upside.  Despite clamoring for him to be called up, Morgan still has a lot to do on the AAA level.  He now has only about 66 innings (11 starts) above A ball, and could easily take the whole year to refine his secondary pitches without it affecting his value. Continue reading Taking Stock a Month In – They Are Who We Thought They Were →

Lehigh Valley completed their 8 game road trip with a 9-5 loss against Louisville yesterday, and after a long bus ride back to Allentown, have an off day today followed by an 8 game home stand that begins Thursday against Indianapolis.  Since the last report, Lehigh Valley went 3-5 and now stand at 10-15 on the year, 7 games behind division leading Buffalo.

‘Pigs League Leaders: Cesar Hernandez is 5th in AB’s (95), 8th in SB’s (7), 9th in OBP (.417); 3rd in avg. (.375), leads the league in triples (3), and leads the league in hits (36); Darin Ruf is 3rd in doubles (9); Cody Overbeck is 6th in HR(5).

Pitching: Justin DeFratus is 5th in wins(3), Tyler Cloyd is 5th in losses (5), 8th in HR allowed (4), has the 8th worst ERA (6.67), and 3rd worst WHIP (1.78); Ethan Martin has the 3rd worst ERA(7.66), 2nd worst WHIP (1.79) and leads the league in walks allowed (20); Adam Morgan is 7th in IP (30.2); Jake Diekman is 9th in walks allowed (14)

‘Pigs Prospects–Darin Ruf is now officially on fire, after slumping last week. In the series against Louisville, Ruf smacked 3 doubles and 3 HR’s while going 8-16 in the series.  After dropping to just over .200, Ruf is at .267/.319/.512 on the year with 4HR and 15RBI. Ruf is striking out in around 26% of his AB’s, but is showing a good deal of recent improvement. Some strange splits, as Ruf is at .091 vs. LH and .154 with RISP. His defense in LF has been surprisingly adequate. Continue reading Lehigh Valley Weekly Report →