Phillies Nation

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Chase Utley may or may not be able to go by Opening Day.

The picture got no clearer Wednesday, when Charlie Manuel said of Utley potentially playing in a Spring Training game: “It’s coming up pretty soon, it’ll be a few days yet, but then he’ll start pushing his workouts up. He’ll get going pretty soon. We’ll get him some live pitching and see where he’s at.”

But even still, Manuel’s phrasing and several signs Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com points out leave room to believe… maybe Utley won’t be ready.

Sources tell CSNPhilly that the Phillies are looking for infield help. And Salisbury points out that Freddy Galvis has played second base upwards of 30 innings in the Phils’ past five Spring Training games. Galvis figures to see more time there while Michael Martinez heals his bruised elbow.

Galvis is hitting .308 this Spring in 26 at-bats and leads the Phillies with 7 RBI. Two stats you’ll either be impressed by or say “meaningless sample” to.

He’s 22 and has played 33 games at the Triple-A level. Letting him develop offensively is the plan. He hit well, by light-hitting, glove savvy middle infielder standards, last season at Lehigh Valley… .298/.315/.324. But his OPSs from 2007-09 were .507, .588, .568, all at Single-A. In the National League in 2011, the lowest player OPS was .615 by Jason Bartlett.

So a backup plan is likely in order.

And that would be trading for a middle infielder. The name that jumps out at me is Alberto Callaspo.

Continue reading Should Phils Trade Joe Blanton for Alberto Callaspo?

Ty Wigginton provides the versatility and bench power of Michael Cuddyer for a fraction of the cost.

The Phillies have acquired Ty Wigginton from the Colorado Rockies for a player to be named later or cash, according to the Rockies’ official Twitter account.

In Wigginton, the Phils get much of what they wanted from Michael Cuddyer for a fraction of the cost. Wigginton, like Cuddyer, can play first base, third base and both corner outfield positions, and even though Charlie Manuel would never use either player at second base, Wigginton has also played there in the past.

Wigginton is under contract for $4 million in 2012, then has a $4 million club option in 2013 with a $500,000 buyout.

Here is how the deal works: the Phillies and Rockies will split Wigginton’s 2012 salary, each paying $2 million. If the Phillies exercise Wigginton’s 2013 option, they will be forced to send Colorado a second player to be named later (who wouldn’t be a big-time prospect) or $100,000.

This was a good job by Amaro of feeling out the market and playing to others’ weaknesses. The Rockies were looking to shed salary and Dan O’Dowd wasn’t looking for nearly as much as he was in July. To acquire a poor man’s Cuddyer for 1/18th the cost, that’s a nice move.

Continue reading Phillies Trade for Ty Wigginton

Recently, we reviewed the prospects that the Phillies dealt to acquire Roy Halladay.  As a sequel to that piece, this week we’ll take a glance at the minor leaguers that Philadelphia sent to Houston in exchange for Roy Oswalt.

Much like the deal for Halladay, the second of the team’s pair of Roys, Mr. Oswalt, cost the Phillies a three-piece of young talent.

At the time of the July, 2010 deal, Houston was reported to be in the market for a Major League ready contributor to fill Oswalt’s void on the roster. The Phillies obliged and sent 2009′s Sporting News Rookie of the Year, J.A. Happ, over to the National League Central’s current cellar dwellers.

After joining the Astros last season, the left-handed Happ did a respectable job, going 5-4 with a 3.75 ERA in 13 starts. This season, however, was considerably different. After posting a 7.66 ERA in 10 combined June/July starts, Happ was sent down to Triple A Oklahoma City, where he sported a 1.50 ERA through 3 starts and earned a return to the big leagues. Happ may have gotten himself back on track, as he has held opponents to a .226 average in 3 starts with the Astros since the stint in the minors, which is a massive change compared to his .326 batting average against in his previous 10 outings for the Astros. Continue reading Reflecting on the Departed, Part 2

Recently, we took a look at the return the Phillies acquired when they traded Cliff Lee to Seattle in December 2009. So why not take an updated look at the talent the Phillies traded away to obtain Roy Halladay?

The biggest key to the deal with Toronto was righty hurler Kyle Drabek, who made the Blue Jays’ opening day roster this season. The Phillies’ first-round draft selection from 2006, Drabek was a force in the minors after bouncing back from Tommy John surgery in 2008, posting a 13-6 record and a 3.03 ERA in 33 outings from 2008-2009 at four levels of the Phillies’ developmental system.

After joining the Toronto organization, Drabek had a strong 2010 with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, leading the team to the post-season with a 14-9 record and a 2.94 ERA. The 6-foot-1-righty rode that string of success right into a September call-up, making three starts for Toronto, all of which he lost.

In an exclusive interview last August, Drabek stated that he felt he was ready for Major League competition, however this season, he has struggled. He lasted on the Blue Jays’ big league roster until mid-June, but was demoted to Triple-A Las Vegas after getting torched to the tune of a 15.30 ERA and a .404 batting average against in his final 3 starts. Things haven’t gotten better for the 23-year-old as a member of the 51′s in the Pacific Coast League. Through 14 starts at the Triple A level, Drabek has gone 4-4 with a 7.41 ERA and a .361 opponent’s batting average. Continue reading Reflecting on the Departed

Phils acquire Bowker, option Schwimer-

The Phillies have acquired left-handed batting outfielder John Bowker from the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Details released on Wednesday state that the Phillies will send a player to be named or cash considerations to complete the deal at a later date.

The 28-year-old Bowker had gone 4-for-17 (.235 avg) in 19 games this year for the Pirates.   In 106 games with Triple A Indianapolis this season, Bowker batted .306 with 15 homeruns and 76 RBI.  Bowker, who has played in parts of five Major League seasons, is a former 3rd round draft pick by the San Francisco Giants.

Bowker’s career Major League batting line (.237/.289/.390) is not an improvement over the numbers produced by current Phils lefty hitting reserve outfielder Ross Gload (.280/.325/.408).

Bowker will wear number 16 for the Phillies and will be eligible for the post-season roster.

In an effort to clear a 25-man roster spot, the Phillies optioned Michael Schwimer to Triple A Lehigh Valley following Tuesday night’s victory over Cincinnati.  The 25-year-old Schwimer is expected to return to the big league roster at some point after the rosters expand on September 1st.  Jose Contreras, out for the year with a right elbow injury, was moved to the 60-day disabled list, to make room on the 40-man roster.

Biddle’s season ends early with knee injury-

In game 1 of the Lakewood BlueClaws’ Tuesday night double header against the Hickory Crawdads, lefty pitching prospect Jesse Biddle left a tied contest in the 5th inning with a right knee injury. Continue reading News and Notes: Bowker, Schwimer, Biddle

On Monday, it was announced that the Astros selected outfielder Domingo Santana as the player to be named later in the late July trade that sent Hunter Pence to the Phillies.

Santana, a Dominican born slugger, posted a .269 average with 7 HR and 32 RBI in 96 games with the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws.

The 19-year-old is regarded as a five tool talent and has been ranked among the Phillies’ top ten prospects by multiple national outlets.

I had the opportunity to speak with Lakewood manager Chris Truby about Santana, the PTBNL list of five Phillies prospects that the Astros had to choose from, as well as other matters pertaining to the BlueClaws, as they enter the final few weeks of their regular season. Check out the media player below to hear the full interview.

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Jay Floyd is PhilliesNation’s minor league insider. You can read more from Jay by visiting his site, PhoulBallz.com.

Prior to Placido Polanco‘s sports hernia diagnosis, the Phillies were a team with few holes. At 75-40 with a first place lead more than twice as large as the next closest division leader, this was a team in no hurry to make a move.

But now Polanco is out, possibly for an extended period of time. He will have an anti-inflammatory injection today, the results of which will be available Friday. If Polanco reacts positively to the shot, he might be back next week. If the shot doesn’t work, Polanco would require corrective surgery that would sideline him for 3-4 weeks.

The 2011 has been a post-April disaster for Polanco. In the opening month, he batted .398/.447/.524 and no major leaguer had tallied more hits. Polanco produced 1.8 WAR in just one month, when 2.0 for the year is considered league average.

Since the 1st of May, however, Polanco has hit .223/.280/.264 and increased his WAR total by only 0.1. A fast start was derailed by an extended slump and several nagging injuries. Polanco’s current hernia, originally diagnosed as a sore hip, has nothing to do with the back injury that sidelined him for 26 days in July. Or so he says.

With the Phillies’ starting third baseman likely out a month, Ruben Amaro could initiate another trade. He said last night that Martinez and Valdez would be his guys if Polanco is out for long, but the Phillies’ GM has a tendency to say one thing and do another. Continue reading Does Polanco’s Injury Mean Another Trade?

It seems like yesterday Jayson Werth sported red pinstripes. Philadelphia has many fond memories of Werth, but he has been placed in the rear view mirror. Losing Werth to free agency left many fans upset, the Phillies were without a strong right-handed bat. In addition, it left a gap in right field and questions as to whether Domonic Brown was ready for the everyday job. Brown got hurt, Ben Francisco did little with the job, and for two of the first three months of the season the Phillies got little from the corner outfield.

A drastic move at the trade deadline was necessary, even despite the Phils having the best record in baseball. Hunter Pence was acquired from the Houston Astros in exchange for top prospects Jonathan Singleton, Jarred Cosart, and two minor leaguers.

The Phillies offense had been streaky all season, but Pence’s addition has immediately improved it. Batting fifth, he enabled Ryan Howard to see more pitches in the strike zone. He initially took over the role that Jayson Werth once had.

In any sport, there are ongoing debates as to which players are superior. Whether using stats or intangibles, there are several ways to measure those similarities and differences. That leads to the question: who is the better option? Hunter Pence or Jayson Werth?

Continue reading Hunter Pence and Jayson Werth

Pence-ylvania Shirt
We’re only printing a limited number of these shirts welcoming Hunter Pence to the 2011 Phillies.

The shirt features a custom design screen print on a 100% cotton preshrunk Gilden t-shirt.

Hunter Pence is a Phillie. And it did not cost Domonic Brown.

The Phillies have traded Jarred Cosart, Jonathan Singleton, Josh Zeid (Double-A reliever) and a player to be named later to Houston for Pence. The player to be named later is not believed to be a top-tier prospect, and the Astros are also including $1MM in the deal.

In Pence, the Phillies get the righthanded fifth batter they wanted so badly. He is under team control for all of next season and the season after. Those are his final arbitration years, and based on his $6.9MM salary this season, an estimate of $23MM over the next two seems fair. Though, Ruben Amaro could do as he usually does and reach a contract extension instead.

Click the link for reaction and analysis. Continue reading Phillies Acquire Hunter Pence