A Critical Look at the Phillies Organization and Minor League Baseball
It’s been awhile since I have had a weekend where I got to sleep in, as I have had to wake up early in the morning for my regular job the last four for mandatory extra work. So here I am for the first time in what seems like an eternity, waking up at 9 … Read more
Last Friday night, I was scrolling through Twitter trying to escape the miserable play of the Phillies (though they won that night), and ran across a tweet from Mitch Rupert, who covers the Phillies short season A-ball affiliate in Williamsport, about the UNC-Duke game. J.B. Bukauskas was on the mound for UNC, so I flipped … Read more
Two-year colleges are a unique opportunity for many students in this country. Some use it to lessen the financial burden of higher education. Others, like myself, need a fresh start after giving the four-year experience a go. For baseball players, it is a chance to improve deficiencies and play in front of Major League scouts. The three … Read more
Imagine being 18 years old, getting ready to be drafted by a Major League team, having already played on national television before. That’s the life of Nick Pratto. Six years ago at the age of 12, he stepped up to the plate against the always daunting Japan Little League team in the championship game of … Read more
This past weekend, Bryce Harper once again destroyed Phillies’ pitching. Pitch selection continued to be a problem on Saturday night, as it has been throughout the nine games Harper’s faced the Phillies this season. They should not be throwing him fastballs. But Harper’s dominance stems from a much deeper issue that I mentioned in my first ever … Read more
Philadelphia is in a draft frenzy mode right now. Last weekend, the city was center stage as the hosts of NFL Draft, which was a monster success and wild party. The Eagles fared pretty well in the draft as well getting some real quality players. As the NFL draft concluded, the Flyers lucked into a … Read more
There now 40 picks in the books and we are now roughly 2 days removed from that final pick being made, so it feels like a good time to look back at the three days of the draft holistically. You can read some earlier thoughts on Day 1 and Day 2, as well as all … Read more
My eyes are struggling to keep focused on the computer monitor. The Phillies meanwhile have taken another 6’10” LHP, a puzzling college pitcher, some HSers, and some other players. Round 31 – Tyler Frohwirth, RHP, Minnesota State University Mankato Frohwirth has bloodlines, a funky delivery, and almost no innings in college. Round 32 – Daniel … Read more
The middle rounds of Day 3 saw the Phillies take a couple interesting projects to go with a bunch of college arms to fill out the short season bullpen. Round 21 – Jonathan Hennigan, LHP, Texas St University Hennigan has size and projectability (6’4″ 185), but he walked over 5 per 9 this year. I couldn’t … Read more
The draft is never ending… In reality this is the part of the draft where the team is picking for need, that need is filling up the low minors rosters. The goal is to find guys who are a break or two away from being some sort of major leaguer. Almost none will make it … Read more