Baseball America’s 2013 International Review

Other Stuff

Today Baseball America posted their review of the Phillies International spending during the 2013 calendar year (encompassing both the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 signing periods).  During that time, the Phillies signed 35 players, 4 of them for bonuses greater than $100,000.  The full article is here, but here are some highlights.

In April the Phillies signed 18 year old catcher Jose Gonzalez for $300,000.  Gonzalez had Tommy John surgery shortly after signing and did not play last summer.  The Phillies big signing was Luis Encarnacion for $1,000,000 in August.  Encarnacion was one of the best bats in the J2 crop and was widely expected to cost about $1,300,000 (Encarnacion does share a trainer with Gonzalez).  Encarnacion is in camp and should start in the GCL. Continue reading Baseball America’s 2013 International Review →

First Workout Groups of the Year

Spring Training 2014

Baseball Betsy posted the first posted workout groups of the year up on her site.

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Continue reading First Workout Groups of the Year →

General Discussion – Week of 3-3-2014 – First Cut Edition

Weekly Discussion

Last year we had a nice little discussion about who would be the first person let go from camp. Let’s do that again – FYI, I discount Joe Savery as he was technically gone prior to camp opening. He might have been my guess if he was still around, and he was clearly Amaro’s pick. 

You can pick guys sent back to minor league camp,  or guys who you think will be DFAed/Released/whatever method you’d like to use. I personally think the first guy back to MiLB camp will be Zach Collier and the first DFA/cut will be Jeremy Horst. Collier needs the reps he’ll get in MiLB camp and he is not making the big club ahead of guys like Gwynn and Thomas. Horst is the least useful pitcher on the 40-man and easiest to see sneaking through waivers, IMO.

Discuss.

Phillies 2014 Top 30 Prospects

** My Top 30 Prospects

Sitting down to write the Phillies Top 30 Prospect list is one of the most interesting parts of the offseason.  The ranking process poses questions about how we evaluate different profiles and try to replicate the kind of characteristics that major league clubs value.  That being said, I find the final order to be the least important part of the process.  I find the write-ups and other details to be the much more informative.  I felt much more comfortable approaching the list this year, and I feel that I have learned a lot from talking to people and examining what I value.

My Ranking Philosophy:

Overall this ranking is the order that I would value these players if I were running the Phillies.  This evaluation is what I think their major league profile projects to be, coupled with their risk of obtaining that.  In general I lean towards high impact talent, because the impact of a single all-star is more valuable than a collection of lower impact talent.  You can’t go pure ceiling though.  I tried to balance the player’s upside with their floor, as well as how their profile fits into a major league role.  With current budgets and the influx of money, roster spots are becoming the limited commodity and players that fit well onto rosters have more value than limited use players. Continue reading Phillies 2014 Top 30 Prospects →

They’re here!

Spring Training 2014

The kids are back in town!  According to Larry Shenk, about 50 minor leaguers have been working out at the Carpenter Complex for the past few weeks, and the rest of the 170 invited to minor league spring training reported this past Friday.  I caught most of the workouts held on Saturday and Sunday.

I need to explain that it is near impossible to keep track of particular players.  The organization hasn’t broken the players out into their respective groups, nor have they provided rosters yet.  The kids are wearing light gray T-shirts with their uniform pants.  The white lettering on their backs is difficult to make out from a distance.  The outfielders are usually in the outfield when they aren’t taking batting practice.  So I’m really not 100% sure who is or isn’t here.  It has been easier identifying the pitchers, infielders, and catchers. Continue reading They’re here! →

2014 Spring Training, Intrasquad Game

Spring Training 2014

Before the game, the Phillies held a morning workout at the Carpenter Complex.  It consisted of stretching exercises, sprints around the bases, long toss, and BP off the coaches.  I spotted Dugan and decided to watch him and his group which included Franco, Joseph, and Marson, who followed Brown, Byrd, and Gwynn.  I didn’t pay much attention to the first group while waiting for Dugan and Franco.  Dugan started slow but really picked it up after his first two ABs.  He made good contact before launching a couple towering home runs to right.  However, towering drives is not his trade mark result.  Franco launched a couple over the left field fence.  But otherwise made inconsistent contact on his other swings.  Joseph looked good and showed a little power.  Marson had a nice swing and hit a lot of line drives, but no power.  Practice ended, on to Bright House. Continue reading 2014 Spring Training, Intrasquad Game →

Thoughts on Those That Missed the Top 30

** My Top 30 Prospects

After working on the Top 30, I ended up with a list of names that I had opinions on.  This list may only represent two-thirds of them, because I just didn’t have time to finish them all.  This is not meant to be really in depth, so if you want more on a player just ask.  Previously I had attached this list to the Top 30, but in an effort to streamline the main list, the supplement gets its own post.  From this list you can probably take a good guess on who made the Top 30, so enjoy the speculation.

Jake Sweaney
Sweaney just missed the list.  Some evaluators love the upside, but I just feel that a raw catcher that may not catch, just doesn’t have a ton of value.  Check back in a year and he could be much higher in lesser form of what a Grullon did this year. Continue reading Thoughts on Those That Missed the Top 30 →

General Discussion – Week of 2-24-2014 – #TeamBiddle Edition

Weekly Discussion

I am #TeamBiddle today. For those of you that are #TeamCamp, take a hike!

Discuss.

2014 Spring Training, Day 12

Spring Training 2014

Not much to report today.  Just a short practice.  The annual golf outing is this afternoon.

They started a few minutes early.  I arrived after the meeting and exercises.  They were just finishing their run around the bases.

The pitchers long tossed on Schmidt Field.  Cole Hamels was among them, and looked to be throwing well. Continue reading 2014 Spring Training, Day 12 →

2014 Phillies Sleeper/Breakout Prospects Open Discussion

2014 Reader Top 30

Everyone has that one player they believe is just going to explode on to the scene this year.  Whether it is the growth of a single tool, the ability to stay healthy, or just to survive another level, a prospect’s stock can change wildly.  In general most people think of a sleeper as a player who is completely off the radar, and a breakout prospect as a player who is going to have his stock take a large leap forward, but feel free to define it as you choose.

I will post my sleepers along with my Top prospects, but for reference here were my 2013 picks.
Sleepers: David Buchanan, Braden Shull, Manuare Martinez, Marek Minarek
Breakout Prospect: Carlos Tocci

Lets hear yours.