The Phillies have signed 1B/3B Jeff Larish to a minor league deal, with 3B at Lehigh Valley his likely landing spot.  Larish, 28, was a 5th round selection of the Tigers in the 2005 draft. After spending 5 years in the Tigers organization, Larish was claimed off of waivers late last season by Oakland.  He has 245 major league at bats, including 67 last year with a .224/.308/.380 line to go along with 8 HR and 32 RBI.

Last year in AAA, Larish hit .284/.377/.533 with 20 HR and 74 RBI.  Larish should be an upgrade over Cody Ransom, both offensively and defensively in Lehigh Valley.

According to Jeff Schuler of The Morning Call, Pitcher Nate Bump, 1B/OF Tagg Bozied and OF Rich Thompson have re-signed with the Phils organization for the 2011 season.  Bump is expected to rejoin the rotation in Lehigh Valley in 2011 after a very good first half of 2010.  Bump struggled with his health in the seasons second half, but should be 100% healthy entering 2011.  Bump, 34, is a local guy from Towanda, PA who has 113 major league appearances to his credit in the Marlins organization.  In 2010 Bump went 8-4 with a 3.35 ERA in 20 starts and was named to the International League All Star Team.

Rich Thompson, a personal favorite of mine because of how he plays, returns to the Lehigh Valley outfield for a 4th season after resigning this week.  Last season Thompson hit .284/.339/.382 with 5 HR and 45 RBI’s in 476 AB’s.  Thompson, 31,  was very impressive on the base paths stealing 41 bases in 45 attempts. 

Bozied, 31, returns after having a phenomenal 2010 at the plate in Reading, hitting .315/.402/.631 in 355 AB’s with 27 HR and 92 RBI’s.

The Phillies announced the signing of catcher Erik Kratz late yesterday.  Kratz, 30, from Telford, PA, was a 2002 draft pick of the Toronto BlueJays and spent the last two seasons in the Pirates organization at AAA Indianapolis.  Kratz made his major league debut last season for the Pirates, seeing action in 9 games. For Indianapolis last season Kratz hit .274/.380/.496 with 9HR and 41 RBI and threw out 21% of baserunners attempting to steal on him. In his minor league career, he has thrown out 31% of baserunners.  Kratz should be an upgrade over Paul Hoover who struggled last season for Lehigh Valley. Continue reading Phils Sign Erik Kratz, Eddie Bonine →

Baseball America came out with the list of the minor league free agents in each organization and the highlights of the Phils list are as follows:

1B: Andy Tracy; 2B: Melvin Dorta; SS: Ozzie Chavez, 3B: Neil Sellers, Cody Ransom; OF: Rich Thompson, Mike Spidale, Kevin Mahar, Timo Perez; C: Joel Naughton, Kevin Nelson, John Suomi; SP: Brandon Duckworth, Ty Taubenheim, Brian Mazone; RP: Jason Anderson, Alex Concepcion, Oscar Villarreal, Ehren Wasserman, Kyle Carr.

Some names that may interest the Phils organization to fill their holes that will be created who have major league experience: P Chuck James, OF Endy Chavez, P Yusmeiro Petit, P Tony Pena, Jr., P Dana Eveland, 3B Dallas McPherson, P Brett Tomko, P Jason Hirsch, C JR House, 3B Mike Cervenak, OF Jacque Jones, INF D’Angelo Jiminez, P CHarlie Haeger, P CLaudio Vargas, OF Brett Carroll, 1B Brad Eldred, 3B Andy Marte, P Jason Grilli,  C Clint Sammons.

The recent injury to Jimmy Rollins turned into an opportunity for Lehigh Valley SS Brian Bocock as he was called by the Phils today to add some insurance up the middle.  Bocock, 25, is known for his defense which is among the best I have seen up the middle.  While he is still less than adequate with the bat, he has improved greatly throughout the season (and with the help of Greg Gross) and finished the year in the neighborhood of .240 having been on base in 26 of the ‘Pigs final 29 games. Look for him to act simply as an insurance policy should Rollins/Valdez fall prey to continued injury woes.

The Phils claimed 26 year old RHP Cesar Carillo out of the Padres organization off of waivers yesterday and added him to their 40 man roster. The 26 year old was a 1st round pick by the Padres in the 2005 draft out of the University of Miami.  Once very highly touted (Padres #1 prospect in their system according to Scout.som in 2007), Carillo’s stock fell after Tommy John surgery in 2007 and has struggled to regain his form.  He was 5-14 this season with a 5.60 ERA for the Padres AAA club in Portland, to go along with a WHIP of 1.48 in just over 150 innings of work.

Lehigh Valley closer Scott Mathieson, along with starters Nate Robertson and Vance Worley have all been called up to Philadelphia and are expected in Philadelphia on Sunday according to Jeff Schuler of the Morning Call. 

Both Robertson (who had been scheduled to start Sunday in Lehigh Valley) and Worley (who was removed after one inning yesterday in his start yesterday vs. Buffalo) remain in the mix to start on Monday.  The Phils will need to make a move to free up space on the 40 man roster for Robertson, presumably moving Jamie Moyer from the 15 to the 60 day DL.

Mathieson who has been working extensively with Hall of Fame Closer Bruce Sutter over the last 10 days on a split finger fastball leaves Lehigh Valley having set the club record for saves in a season with 26.

Sometimes it is the lack of a move that tells a story.  During their last two post season appearances, Lehigh Valley Manager Dave Huppert was asked to join the Phillies following the minor league season for the final month of the major league regular season and for the post season run to help out with coaching responsibilities.  According to sources, Huppert has not gotten that call this season as of yet, a call he generally would receive by this juncture of the season.  With Lehigh Valley 28 games below .500 and generally exhibiting a stunning lack of fundamentals at many times throughout the season, speculation is that his player’s performance may have caught up with Huppert after three sub par years.  Currently at 2-10 in extra inning games and 14-34 in one run games, Lehigh Valley has exhibited the talent to remain close in games (they have played the most one run games in the league), however their late inning inability has left many a viewer/fan scratching their head.

The Phillies called up 3B/OF Greg Dobbs from AAA Lehigh Valley today, giving them another left-handed bat on the bench as the team returns home from Colorado. Dobbs was hitting .289 since returning to Lehigh Valley in late August from Philadelphia and has looked much more comfortable at the plate as of late. Still no word on additional call ups, somewhat of a surprise with the extended use of the Phillies bullpen last night.

The playoff rotation has been set by Lakewood: Gm One Trevor May; Gm Two: Brody Colvin; Gm Three(if necessary) Jon Pettibone.  The games are next Wednesday, Friday and Saturday (if necessary) with the games Friday and Saturday being played in Lakewood.