The Phillies lost to the Astros on Friday night, 7-0. Cliff Lee had his second consecutive rough outing, surrendering six runs on nine hits, and surviving only three innings. He was BABIP'd to death by bloops in a four-run Astros' second, and gave up a two-run bomb in the third inning. Jamie Moyer pitched well in relief, allowing only a solo home run. Unfortunately, even a solo home run would have been too much for the recently offense-deficient Phillies to overcome, as their eight hits (seven singles) lead to a total of only zero runs. The Phillies' bats are slumping now, but should perk up in the near future. Hopefully. Of course, it's better to slump now, than in the Fall Classic.
The biggest positive for the Phils on Friday night: Cliff Lee threw a mere seventy-four pitches! Typically, Lee has averaged, approximately, seventy-five gajillion pitches per start. This "vacation start" will help him stay fresh for the playoffs. Reliever Jamie Moyer has seen most of his success pitching in the rain, on at least ten days' rest, and following fastballer Pedro Martinez. The elderly slowballer was called upon to relieve Lee on Friday night, with a mere six days' rest, barely having recovered from his sixty-one pitch outing on August 28th. There wasn't any rain, either. Despite the trying circumstances, Moyer rose to the occasion, and kept the Phillies within seven runs.
When the Phillies gutted the Lehigh Valley IronPigs' roster on September 1st, the Phils' AAA squad saw their hopes of a .500 season dashed. It was the right move for the organization as a whole, however. The Phillies are chasing a playoff spot, and need to put their regulars in position to perform their best in the postseason. With a full lineup's worth of AAA talent, including Eric Bruntlett and Miguel Cairo, the Phillies now have the personnel available to rest their starting eight early and often.
All of the recent call-ups contributed on Friday night, if only by their mere presence. Sure, none of them got hits, or anything like that, but they pitched well, and fielded adequately. The one substitute who should make the postseason roster, Brett Myers, looked sharp in his scoreless inning. Phillies' Manager Charlie Manuel chose the spot for Myers' return to MLB prudently, inserting the fiery fireballer into the seventh inning, of a 7-0 game. Myers looked like anything but a sub, retiring all three batters he faced, two on strikeouts. With Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge locking down the eighth and ninth innings, respectively, Myers would make a good addition to the seventh-inning mix, in the playoffs. Paul Hoover, Quinton Berry, J.J. Furmaniak, John Mayberry, Jr., Mike Cervenak, and Kyle Kendrick also appeared, though none did anything of particular note.
There was one scary moment, in the eight inning, when Phillies' centerfielder Jason Ellison was injured diving for a line drive. Ellison was helped from the field, but could be ready to return by the start of Spring Training. Provided his extensive rehab goes well, he should help bolster the bench of his next organization's AAA squad. Showing that kind of effort, in a game that had been long-decided, displays the kind of hustle that serves as a good model to actual prospects. I wish Ellison the best of luck in his future endeavors, but I do have a confession to make. As Ellison's inert form was carefully removed from the field of play, I thought to myself that the Phillies were very fortunate that the injured centerfielder wasn't All-Star Shane Victorino. Losing Victorino would be very damaging to the Phils' hopes of postseason success, and would have been especially frustrating under such futile circumstances. It was good planning that positioned Ellison in center to "take the bullet" for Victorino. (Though the Phillies' Win Expectancy would have remained at .1%, whether the centerfielder made the catch or not, you still have to applaud the valiant effort.)
Joe Blanton will get the start in the second game of the series, on Saturday night. As the workhorse northpaw has thrown a few gazillion pitches of his own this season, he probably won't pitch more than five innings on Saturday. The Phillies want to keep him on his routine, but want to save some arm strength for October. Moyer won't be available in relief, but with Kendrick, Rodrigo Lopez, and Drew Carpenter, stretched-out starting pitchers all, ready to go, the Phillies have the depth to keep the workload of their postseason hurlers low. That's just smart management, the type of management that wins WFCs.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Phillies Reinforce with...Jack Taschner? (But more to follow soon...)
It was September 1st. The day when the Phillies could expand their active roster, by as many as fifteen players, and reinforce the tiring bullpen and the ineffective bench. The Phillies had a wide variety of replacement-level options for recall, and they summoned...Jack Taschner. And...that's it. Yikes.
On the plus side, the Phils have indicated that more recalls are coming. Some pitchers (Rodrigo Lopez? Kyle Kendrick? Drew Carpenter? Steven Register? Sergio Escalona?) should be up shortly. A catcher (Tuffy Gosewisch? Paul Hoover?), an outfielder (John Mayberry, Jr.?), and a player with some speed (Rich Thompson? Quintin Berry?) should also get the call. Players have to be on the 40-Man roster to be recalled (Gosewisch, Hoover, Thompson, and Berry are not.), but Joe Bisenius and Jack Taschner are easily DFAable. Rehabbing relievers Brett Myers, Clay Condrey, and Antonio Bastardo are also probable additions.
A look at some of the recent Phillies' transactions should give us an idea of their likely thought process:
Jack Taschner is recalled from Lehigh Valley (AAA). Given that he was a dismal failure with the Phillies this season, didn't think we'd see him on the parent club again. But, he put up some good numbers in AAA, and the Phillies are paying him an MLB salary, so they might as well let him eat some low leverage innings. Besides, maybe having him around the 'Pen will help Chad Durbin.
For the IronPigs, Taschner posted an ERA of 2.18, in 20.2 IP. But we know ERA can be deceptive, especially for relievers. We saw Taschner spend weeks in MLB WHIPping the ERAs of his teammates, by allowing inherited runners to score. Looking deeper at Taschner's AAA numbers, we see a .249 BABIP/81.3 LOB%/4.02 FIP combo. Taschner has been rather fortunate in AAA.
However, the southpaw has been experimenting with a sidearm delivery, when facing left-handed batters. If he could get LHBs out, he might be a satisfactory LOOGY. He did look good in this role, during Wednesday night's loss to the Giants. But don't expect Taschner to make any meaningful appearances, and don't be surprised if he is DFA'd, when a 40-Man spot is needed for a more capable relief option.
Brett Myers pitched in consecutive games for Lehigh Valley, throwing scoreless innings on Tuesday and Wednesday. He needs to start facing MLB hitters, in order to evaluate him for a possible postseason role, as a reliever. An effective Myers could be a force in the seventh/eighth innings. Expect him to be activated this weekend, for the Houston series.
John Ennis was added to the 40-Man roster, and the 25-Man roster, and placed on the 15-Day DL. Brad Harman was designated for assignment, in order to open a spot for Ennis.
Harman had no future with the Phillies, due to his inability to hit.
Ennis probably doesn't have much a Phillies' future either, and is recovering from Tommy John surgery. He should be ready to pitch again around this time, in 2010. Why did the Phillies do this? Flexibility. As long as Ennis is on the DL, he can be replaced on the postseason roster by anyone in the organization on August 31st. So, one of the September callups would be eligible, as a result of this move.
Catcher Tim Gradoville was promoted to Lehigh Valley (AAA), from Reading (AA). Gradoville retired to begin his coaching career, but was activated as a player-coach for Reading. He served as backup catcher, appearing in two games, but not batting. It looks like he may reprise this role with Lehigh Valley, enabling Paul Hoover or Tuffy Gosewisch to be recalled to the parent club, as the third catcher. The veteran Hoover would seem the more likely candidate for an MLB bench role, with Gosewisch starting the majority of Lehigh Valley's remaining games.
Michael Schwimer was promoted to Reading (AA), from Clearwater (A). Schwimer was lights-out (12.3 K/9, 4.32 K/BB, 1.95 FIP) in Clearwater, and picked up two wins (in a doubleheader) on his first day as an R-Phil. He could really help Reading's bullpen, as they try to hold on to a playoff spot.
B.J. Rosenberg was placed on the temporary inactive list, so that he could participate in the World Cup. Any "World Cup" that includes Terry Tiffee and Cedrick Bowers probably isn't worth worrying about. Don't understand why the Phils didn't keep Rosenberg in Reading, to help with their playoff run.
Carlos Monasterios was promoted to Reading (AA), from Clearwater (A). Monasterios, one of the players acquired from the Yankees, in the Bobby Abreu/Cory Lidle trade, has been effective in A ball (7.79 K/9, 2.63 K/BB, 3.27 FIP). But, he is no Rosenberg.
After losing two consecutive games to the New Britain Rock Cats, the Reading Phillies fell into a tie with Erie, for the final playoff spot.
With games against the EL North's top two teams this week, New Britain and first place Connecticut, the R-Phils' playoff hopes are in trouble.
Reliever Chance Chapman will make a spot start for the R-Phils on Thursday. Chapman was an effective starter in 2008, with Lakewood (7.64 K/9, 3.19 K/BB, 2.95 FIP). He has been an effective reliever for Reading (8.24 K/9, 2.35 K/BB, 3.13 FIP), but his arm isn't stretched out. He'll, probably, be good for four innings. Don't understand why the R-Phils didn't recall a starter from Clearwater to make this start. They might make that recall, before the spot in the rotation comes around again.
On the plus side, the Phils have indicated that more recalls are coming. Some pitchers (Rodrigo Lopez? Kyle Kendrick? Drew Carpenter? Steven Register? Sergio Escalona?) should be up shortly. A catcher (Tuffy Gosewisch? Paul Hoover?), an outfielder (John Mayberry, Jr.?), and a player with some speed (Rich Thompson? Quintin Berry?) should also get the call. Players have to be on the 40-Man roster to be recalled (Gosewisch, Hoover, Thompson, and Berry are not.), but Joe Bisenius and Jack Taschner are easily DFAable. Rehabbing relievers Brett Myers, Clay Condrey, and Antonio Bastardo are also probable additions.
A look at some of the recent Phillies' transactions should give us an idea of their likely thought process:
Jack Taschner is recalled from Lehigh Valley (AAA). Given that he was a dismal failure with the Phillies this season, didn't think we'd see him on the parent club again. But, he put up some good numbers in AAA, and the Phillies are paying him an MLB salary, so they might as well let him eat some low leverage innings. Besides, maybe having him around the 'Pen will help Chad Durbin.
For the IronPigs, Taschner posted an ERA of 2.18, in 20.2 IP. But we know ERA can be deceptive, especially for relievers. We saw Taschner spend weeks in MLB WHIPping the ERAs of his teammates, by allowing inherited runners to score. Looking deeper at Taschner's AAA numbers, we see a .249 BABIP/81.3 LOB%/4.02 FIP combo. Taschner has been rather fortunate in AAA.
However, the southpaw has been experimenting with a sidearm delivery, when facing left-handed batters. If he could get LHBs out, he might be a satisfactory LOOGY. He did look good in this role, during Wednesday night's loss to the Giants. But don't expect Taschner to make any meaningful appearances, and don't be surprised if he is DFA'd, when a 40-Man spot is needed for a more capable relief option.
Brett Myers pitched in consecutive games for Lehigh Valley, throwing scoreless innings on Tuesday and Wednesday. He needs to start facing MLB hitters, in order to evaluate him for a possible postseason role, as a reliever. An effective Myers could be a force in the seventh/eighth innings. Expect him to be activated this weekend, for the Houston series.
John Ennis was added to the 40-Man roster, and the 25-Man roster, and placed on the 15-Day DL. Brad Harman was designated for assignment, in order to open a spot for Ennis.
Harman had no future with the Phillies, due to his inability to hit.
Ennis probably doesn't have much a Phillies' future either, and is recovering from Tommy John surgery. He should be ready to pitch again around this time, in 2010. Why did the Phillies do this? Flexibility. As long as Ennis is on the DL, he can be replaced on the postseason roster by anyone in the organization on August 31st. So, one of the September callups would be eligible, as a result of this move.
Catcher Tim Gradoville was promoted to Lehigh Valley (AAA), from Reading (AA). Gradoville retired to begin his coaching career, but was activated as a player-coach for Reading. He served as backup catcher, appearing in two games, but not batting. It looks like he may reprise this role with Lehigh Valley, enabling Paul Hoover or Tuffy Gosewisch to be recalled to the parent club, as the third catcher. The veteran Hoover would seem the more likely candidate for an MLB bench role, with Gosewisch starting the majority of Lehigh Valley's remaining games.
Michael Schwimer was promoted to Reading (AA), from Clearwater (A). Schwimer was lights-out (12.3 K/9, 4.32 K/BB, 1.95 FIP) in Clearwater, and picked up two wins (in a doubleheader) on his first day as an R-Phil. He could really help Reading's bullpen, as they try to hold on to a playoff spot.
B.J. Rosenberg was placed on the temporary inactive list, so that he could participate in the World Cup. Any "World Cup" that includes Terry Tiffee and Cedrick Bowers probably isn't worth worrying about. Don't understand why the Phils didn't keep Rosenberg in Reading, to help with their playoff run.
Carlos Monasterios was promoted to Reading (AA), from Clearwater (A). Monasterios, one of the players acquired from the Yankees, in the Bobby Abreu/Cory Lidle trade, has been effective in A ball (7.79 K/9, 2.63 K/BB, 3.27 FIP). But, he is no Rosenberg.
After losing two consecutive games to the New Britain Rock Cats, the Reading Phillies fell into a tie with Erie, for the final playoff spot.
With games against the EL North's top two teams this week, New Britain and first place Connecticut, the R-Phils' playoff hopes are in trouble.
Reliever Chance Chapman will make a spot start for the R-Phils on Thursday. Chapman was an effective starter in 2008, with Lakewood (7.64 K/9, 3.19 K/BB, 2.95 FIP). He has been an effective reliever for Reading (8.24 K/9, 2.35 K/BB, 3.13 FIP), but his arm isn't stretched out. He'll, probably, be good for four innings. Don't understand why the R-Phils didn't recall a starter from Clearwater to make this start. They might make that recall, before the spot in the rotation comes around again.
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