We won’t be getting one of these tomorrow as the Rays have not yet moved into the 21st century. The pitching was not great as Pivetta was stymied by a combination of poor command and bad defense. The same would plague Elniery Garcia, who was once again 91-93 with his fastball and broke off some nice curveballs. The Phillies managed to tie off of New York Penn-League pitcher and 2016 first round pick Cody Sedlock. On the major league side, Tommy Joseph crushed a baseball and Maikel Franco looked bad on some pitches.
The real star was Scott Kingery who went 3 for 4 with a laser home run to left and a double. He also made some great defensive plays. The double was a Kingery special where he pulls the ball down the line past the third baseman. Teams may be able to take that away by playing him close to the line, but they are going to leave a huge gap to his pull side, and his speed makes the play in the hole pretty much impossible for a shortstop. His home run was crushed and was possibly the most positive thing he did on a day of good things. Kingery is a bit bigger this year, something that should help him avoid a late season fade and do what he did today when he crushed a pitch in his power zone. If Kingery ever hits 10 home runs in a year it will be a surprise, but if he can be at 6-8 per year that is going to keep pitchers more honest. His glove continues to come along and he looks like a guy who will be a long term asset with it for years. Cesar Hernandez obviously has the inside track at the long term Phillies second base job, but Kingery has had as good a first week as you could expect.
Brock Stassi is now 4 for 6 with 2 home runs, a double, and a walk. His slim hopes of making the Phillies reside in his ability to play left field semi-competently, but hitting for power will certainly be appealing when compared against a no bat catcher or utility infielder.
Aaron Altherr also had a good game, and while he is not a prospect, him hitting home runs like he did today is never a bad thing to see. His roster spot is locked up given that he is the only player other than Herrera on the roster who can actually play center field.
Thanks Matt. I’m really enjoying your daily write-ups.
Has Altherr’s landed yet? Wow!
Matt – so far, Stassi and Kingery impress me (in SSS) in ST. Do you already have a projected 5-bench coming out of ST and who will be booted out of the 40-man (Luis Garcia looks like a foregone conclusion).
What’s your thoughts on the future 2B? I’m one of the few who is beating the “Trade Cesar” (while his value is high) drum because I see Kingery as the future 2B.