A Critical Look at the Phillies Organization and Minor League Baseball
After months of ugly, muggy weather it is finally beginning to feel like fall. And when it’s fall, that can only mean one thing: playoff baseball. The minor league playoffs are underway, and Lakewood would host the White Sox affiliate Kannapolis in Game 2 of the South Atlantic League’s North Division championship. Lakewood won Game … Read more
The minor league playoffs kicked off in earnest yesterday with the Clearwater Threshers winning Game 1 of their series. Today the Lakewood BlueClaws and Lehigh Valley IronPigs get their turn. Lakewood enters the playoffs having gone 87-51 on the year and winning both halves of the season in the SAL North. Much like their friends … Read more
Every draft pick matters. It is a concept that makes sense on paper, but when you start to see picks come off the board on Day 3 of the draft, it is much easier to see the low minors roster depth than actual talent. While teams can give any player picked after the 10th round … Read more
On Friday night, I made my fourth trip to Lakewood this year to watch Spencer Howard for a second time. This would also be coincidentally the third time I’ve gotten to see the Nationals low A affiliate Hagerstown. The mission for the evening was to see two things: to see if Howard could have a … Read more
It’s June 19th, and at least one Phillies affiliate will have it’s season extend past September 3rd, when most of the minor league regular ends. On Sunday, Lakewood played it’s final game of the first half of the season. In the South Atlantic League, the schedule is truly split into two seasons. To reach the … Read more
This past week, I spent time at each of the Northeast affiliates of the Philadelphia Phillies scouting some of the intriguing depth pitchers in the organization. This report won’t have the usual pitching stats I give out because of time spent on video editing, so I apologize in advance if you were looking forward to … Read more
Baseball development does not care for roster construction. In the minor leagues there is one finite constant in development, playing time. When it comes to pitchers, this means starts. Teams have tried to get creative with pitching rotations, with some opting for shorter rotations with piggy back starts, or other like the Phillies have opted … Read more
The minor league season has kicked off, which means it’s time for more in-depth analysis and live in-game video to share with everybody. In the first week of games, I experienced two different weather conditions. On Tuesday I watch 10 of 13 innings in Reading, where I watch Ranger Suarez battle the bitter cold and … Read more
The minor league season is almost underway. The rosters are revealed, most of the players have been assigned a place to play. As we head into opening day my previews of the Phillies’ affiliates starts with the lowest level in the Lakewood BlueClaws. This year’s BlueClaws team is less exciting then the previous version, but … Read more
While we are now less than a month away from the start of the baseball season, something has been quietly bothering me for a while now, and that is what do I feel about Mickey Moniak? His 2017 started out well, but ultimately ended poorly where to the point that many people from scouts, analysts, … Read more