Box Score Recap – 5/11/2014

Box Score Recap

Tyson Gillies has it going on a little bit right now. He’s OPSing .908 in seven games this month, including 2-3 with a BB on Sunday. Maikel Franco also had two knocks in that one, while Sean O’Sullivan, Cesar Jimenez and Justin De Fratus held Gwinnett to two runs on five hits and three walks, all given up by O’Sullivan. De Fratus hasn’t walked a man in his last five outings, and has struck out eight over those six innings.

Cam Perkins is coming back to earth a little. He’s still been on base in all but one of his last ten games, but he’s OPSing just .579 over that span. Severino Gonzalez should have stayed in bed Sunday. He allowed 10 runs and couldn’t escape the fourth inning. Austin Wright didn’t manage to stop the bleeding, as he allowed 5 runs over 3 1/3 IP. Both men threw more than 2/3 of their pitches for strikes, they just weren’t fooling anyone with them. First baseman Brock Stassi pitched a scoreless eighth inning, so there’s that.

Mark Leiter Jr. managed his start well, leaving with two men on base in the sixth. Delvi Francisco couldn’t strand them, but the Blueclaws offense was one better than Delmarva on the day. All but Dylan Cozens had base hits, and Willians Astudillo, Mitch Walding and Jan Hernandez had two hits a piece. J.P. Crawford extended his hit streak to 12 games, walked, stole a base, rescued a cat from a tree, performed the Heimlich Maneuver on a wounded combat veteran, helped an adorable old lady cross the freeway and manned the grill at the post-game tailgate. I heard he let the burgers on the flame too long, though, and they got all dried out. Luckily, he made a really fine Garlic Aioli for the grown-ups and a homemade ketchup for the kids. Hard working young man, there.

Continue reading Box Score Recap – 5/11/2014 →

Box Score Recap – 5/10/2014

Box Score Recap

J.P. Crawford extends his hitting streak to 11 games, as he went 3-3 with a double and drew another walk to match his season K total. He’s OPSing 1.242 this month thus far, no big deal.

Delmarva, Orioles affiliate in the SAL, has a guy with a familiar last name – Mike Yastrzemski. He is, in fact, Yaz’s grandson, and he was a home run shy of the cycle to help The Shorebirds take down The BlueClaws. Not sure how I missed young Yaz last season in the NYPL. I blame Mitch.

Maikel Franco had a double and drew a walk in the Iron Pigs extra inning loss. He’s now drawn five walks in his last seven games, after drawing just six on the year prior to that point. He’s OPSing .959 in May. Clearly he’s turned the corner from his slow start.

Reading’s game was suspended by rain in the 13th inning. Chris Serritella had three hits, including two doubles. Colton Murray gave up an unearned run and walked two in his AA debut. They’ll finish up that game on Sunday, and I suspect Tyler Knigge will come out for the 13th so as not so burn another pitcher. They’re quickly running out.

And finally, don’t forget to read Jim’s game story from CLR tonight. Good notes there on a couple guys.

Continue reading Box Score Recap – 5/10/2014 →

Threshers; May 10, 2014

Game Reports, , , , ,

Highlights and lowlights from the Threshers’ game Saturday night.

Dunedin’s #6 prospect (per BA), Daniel Norris, took the mound.  The left hander took the mound with a 3-0 record in 6 starts and a 0.63 ERA and 38 Ks in 28.2 innings.  He had only given up 2 earned runs this season, both against the Threshers.  The Threshers loaded the line up with 8 right-handed batters.  The righties went 2 for 16 with a BB.  The lone lefty in the line up, Pete Lavin, collected 2 singles in 3 AB.  Norris left the game after pitching 4.2 innings and runners on first and second.  The reliever allowed an inherited runner to score when Darin Ruf greeted him with an RBI single, his only hit of the night. Continue reading Threshers; May 10, 2014 →

Looking to Add More Writers

Announcements

We have been really excited about the content we have been able to provide you this year.  I cannot speak highly enough of the work Jim has done reporting on the Florida teams, and we are looking forward to Victor’s work going forward on Reading.  Also, look for more work from Chris King as we move into the summer.  We are not looking to add a ton more content to the site as we don’t want to drown out the work already occurring here.  We are looking to add some diversity to our coverage to fill in the gaps.

Lakewood & Williamsport Corespondents:

  • 1-2 Articles a week covering the team as a whole as well as highlighting individuals
  • The ability to contribute long form articles about the organization as well as minor league baseball or the draft
  • Must be able to attend games on a semi-regular basis
  • Should have a good feel for the Phillies organization
  • You may approach this from the perspective of a fan, reporter, statistician, or a scout
  • Should be able to proofread and edit ones own work

Continue reading Looking to Add More Writers →

MAG pitches at XST! May 10, 2014

Game Reports, , , , , ,

I arrived at the Carpenter Complex and prepared to watch Cord Sandberg, Trey Williams, Luis Encarnacion on Ashburn Field.  Adam Loewen was warming up for the start, so I walked over to see who would start for the GCL squad on Roberts Field.  Miguel Gonzalez and Cameron Rupp were to be battery mates, and I was going to watch this game instead.

Gonzalez started off with 2 fast balls for balls. They were low and at 92 and 93 mph. Continue reading MAG pitches at XST! May 10, 2014 →

Box Score Recap – 5/9/2014

Box Score Recap

Maikel Franco went 2-5 with his third home run of the year. Justin De Fratus and Cesar Jimenez worked clean innings of relief, before Ken Giles made his AAA debut – he walked one, allowed a hit and a run and struck out one. Some guy named “Derrick Mitchell” hit three home runs off of Lehigh Valley pitching. Never heard of him.

Jesse Biddle with another poor showing – 5R, 4ER, on 8H, 3BB and 6K over 5.1IP. He only threw about 57% of his pitches for strikes. Cesar Hernandez was back in the lineup after a groin tweak made him a late scratch Thursday. Tommy Joseph left the game early. Jay Floyd (@PhoulBallz) reporting it as a left wrist issue, which is better than a head/concussion issue.

And for CLR, Kuis Paulino pitched pretty well – 1R on 2H, 3BB and 5K. Ethan Martin loaded the bases in the sixth before being pulled –  he was bailed out by Jeb Stefan. Our friend @BaseballBetsy said Martin appeared to be laboring through the inning. Darin Ruf had two hits in his second rehab appearance.

Continue reading Box Score Recap – 5/9/2014 →

XST and Threshers May 9, 2014

Game Reports, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Okay, before I start with the notes from the XST game, let me give you the big news.  Ethan Martin pitched in the Threshers’ game tonight.  He gave up a single and walked 2 batters. He lasted only 2/3 of an inning.  He threw 23 pitches, only 8 for strikes.  Now for the bad news.  He hit 92 only once. (Dunedin’s Florida Exchange Stadium posts the pitch speed.)  He was in the 89-91 range for all of his other fastballs.  After ground balls to first on 3-1 counts for each of the first two batters, he surrendered a single on a 1-0 pitch.  Then he walked the next batter on 4 pitches.  After a visit by Milacki to the visibly aggravated Martin, he ran a deep count before walking his last batter to load the bases.  I’m not so much concerned about his command, the umpire was erratic all night, prompting catcalls from the fans all night.  But the lack of velocity was alarming.

So, let’s finish the Threshers’ report. Darin Ruf started in left field. Continue reading XST and Threshers May 9, 2014 →

Around the System–Corner Infield

Other Stuff

A first look at corner infielders throughout the system.  Next up will be middle infield, early next week.

Lehigh Valley

Maikel Franco, 21, Signed as a free agent in 2010; .215/.280/.322 in 121 AB’s; 2HR 10RBI; 1SB; 8%bb/18%k rates; .222 vs. LHP; .212 vs. RHP; .176 with RISP. 24 games at 3B with 2 errors (.970); 7 games at 1B without an error;  A very disappointing first 6 weeks for Franco, but some recent signs of life to hang onto.  He ultimately will come around, question is how long it takes.

Jim Murphy, 28, Phils 17th round pick in 2006; .277/.354/.482 in 112 AB’s; 4HR 18RBI; 9%bb/23%K rates; .200 vs. LHP; .312 vs. RHP; .273 with RISP; .321 in May.  26 games at 1B without an error; Murphy has been one of the most consistent performers for Lehigh Valley this year swinging a good bat and playing well at 1B.

Reading

Cesar Hernandez, Soon to be 24, Signed as a free agent in 2006; .353/.423/.518 in 85 AB’s; 3HR 13RBI; 1/3 SB; 11%bb/11%k rates; .367 vs. LHP; .345 vs. RHP; .368 with RISP. 14 games at 3B with 7 errors (.829); 7 games at SS with 1 error (.962); 2 games at 2B without an error;  Hernandez has simply scalded the ball since being sent to the minors in mid April.  The Phils have tried to get him acclimated at 3B and that has proven to be an uphill battle with some significant troubles at the hot corner.

Chris Serritella, 24, Phils 4th round pick in 2012; .216/.260/370 in 46 AB’s; 2HR 7RBI; 6%bb/32%k rates.  3 games at 1B with 1 error; Has shown very little in his limited playing time this year. Has been used almost exclusively at DH. Continue reading Around the System–Corner Infield →

Giles, Simon, Galvis to AAA, Brignac to MLB, Camp to FA, and Murray to AA

Transactions

Roster musical chairs continue and Cesar Hernandez still doesn’t have a seat.  Ken Giles moves on up to LHV where he will have to prove that the control is for real and learn to not pitch up in the zone as much (more AAA than AA hitters will crush or lay off those pitches).  Kyle Simon gets another crack at AAA after finding some control in 6.1 AA innings.  Colton Murray finally gets past Clearwater.  Murray is missing less bats this year, so we will see how he holds up against better hitters.  Reid Brignac is a former top prospect (Top 100 2006-2009, #17 in 2006), he is coming off a hot week in AAA and could provide more offense to the bench than Freddy.  Freddy Galvis needs to relearn how to be productive both in the field and at the plate, there is talent, but he hasn’t really had consistent playing time in 2 and a half years.  Shawn Camp will now be looking for a new job.

Is it too early for the return of Cesar Hernandez?

6. Reading, , , , , ,

After the week that was the Great Blue Jay Massacre of 2014, we were bound to see some roster shuffling with the big club. It began with the outrighting of Shawn Camp and the promotion of Luis Garcia, which certainly did not pay any dividends for the team Thursday night.

It continued with the demotion of Freddy Galvis following the Phils’ 12-6 loss, a shock to none considering his hard-to-believe 2-for-42 start to the season. The Phillies will make a corresponding roster move prior to Friday’s game against the Mets, and the team now has a question that needs answering: Is it time for Cesar Hernandez to return? Continue reading Is it too early for the return of Cesar Hernandez? →