Phillies Nation

The Arizona Fall League’s Rising Stars Game is set to be played tonight at 8 PM EST. The exhibition contest that features many top prospects from all across baseball will be televised nationally on MLB Network.

Left-handed pitcher Jake Diekman, a 30th round draft choice in 2007, will be the Phillies’ lone representative, as he will be among the relievers for the East division squad.

Thus far in 7 appearances for the Scottsdale Scorpions, the 6-foot-4-inch 190-pound Diekman has not allowed a run or a hit. In 7 1/3 innings, Diekman has struck out 9 opponents and walked 5.

Continue reading Diekman Set to Shine Among AFL Stars

From time to time this off-season, we’ll take a look at young players within the Phillies organization that could impact the big league roster in 2012. In this edition, relievers Justin De Fratus and Phillipe Aumont will be the focus, as they target filling out a Philadelphia bullpen that has multiple potential vacancies.

With the Phillies’ refusal of Brad Lidge‘s option and with free agent Ryan Madson possibly on the move out of town, the club has some openings up for grabs in the coming season. A pair of young fireballers stand a great shot at filling those voids on the roster for the five-time defending National League East division champions.

Righty hurlers Justin De Fratus and Phillippe Aumont are two of the top candidates to make a big splash on the Phillies pitching staff next year. Each of the two relievers looked sharp at two levels of the developmental ranks this year.

De Fratus was drafted in the 11th round of the 2007 amateur draft by the Phillies. Often praised for his control, De Fratus has seen his stock rise based on his improved abilities to get batters to swing and miss. In recent years, the 6-foot-4-inch 220-pounder has seen his K/9 rate go from 8.84 in 2008 and 2009, to 9.83 in 2010, then to 11.86 in 2011.

The California native, De Fratus, has a repertoire that includes a fastball that tops out at 96 MPH, a slider which he improved in the Arizona Fall League last year after working with former Major Leaguer Ricky Bones and a deceptive change up. Continue reading Phillies On Deck, Vol. 2: De Fratus & Aumont

PHOTO: Lehigh Valley Live

GALVIS OUT

According to Philly.com, Freddy Galvis was removed from the lineup of a Venezuelan League game on Tuesday with an injured wrist. The report comes from Gerardo Boscan of Mi Diario newspaper in Maracaibo, Venezuela, who tweeted that Galvis was removed from the lineup after feeling discomfort in his right wrist (throwing hand).

The 21-year-old Venezuelan-native began play last week for the the Aguilas de Zulia of the Venezuelan Winter League.

It’s going to be a very interesting winter for Galvis, depending on what happens with Jimmy Rollins and the contract negotiations between he and the Phillies. If Rollins stays, Galvis will get ample time to shore up his game in the minors and work his way into a top shortstop prospect for the future. If Rollins goes, Galvis may be looked at as a replacement in the nearer future.

No word on the extent of the injury in the reports, but a wrist injury can certainly be damning to a shortstop’s progress, both at the plate and in the field.  We’ll update once more information becomes available.

Continue reading Galvis Injures Wrist; Arizona Fall League Update

Cody Overbeck.

In the coming weeks and months we’ll be taking a look at several young talents within the organization that could make an impact on the Phillies’ big league roster in 2012. With this first edition, we’ll review a couple names that could seize an opportunity due to the Achilles tendon injury that Ryan Howard suffered in the final game of the National League Division Series.

It’s no secret that three-time All-Star first baseman Ryan Howard could possibly miss the start of next season after undergoing surgery on his ruptured left Achilles tendon this past week. While many fans, media members and baseball analysts expect the Phillies to fill the void, next April, with John Mayberry Jr., who played 18 games at first base in 2011, the team will have other in-house options courtesy of a pair of older prospects.

Perhaps the leading option from the minors that could fill in while “The Big Piece” is out of action is 25-year-old Cody Overbeck. The 9th round draft pick from 2008 has been strong on offense in each of the past two seasons, posting a .276 combined average with 48 total homeruns and 154 RBI.

Formerly a third baseman through his first three seasons in the Phillies developmental system, Overbeck dabbled in the outfield and was primarily a first baseman in 2011 with Double-A Reading and Triple-A Lehigh Valley, which clearly increased his versatility.

Continue reading Phillies on Deck, Vol. 1: Rizzotti, Overbeck

Armed with a 2-0 record, 3 saves and a 2.95 ERA in 15 games this season for the Double A Reading Phillies, Justin De Fratus continues to make strides toward his goal of reaching the Major Leagues.

Ranked as a top 10 prospect within the Phillies system last off-season, the 23-year-old De Fratus was in camp with the Phillies during big league spring training. In 3 games with the Phils during the Grapefruit League season, De Fratus allowed 4 earned runs in 4 innings and took a loss. He did strike out an impressive 5 batters in those 4 frames, however.

The 6-foot-3-inch, 220-pound De Fratus stood out as a force in relief last year for both the High A Clearwater Threshers and the R-Phils. In 49 combined games at the two levels, De Fratus posted a 3-0 record with 21 saves and a 1.94 ERA.

De Fratus continued his excellent 2011 by pitching for Team USA in the Pan-American qualifiers held in Puerto Rico, helping the Americans finish with a 9-1 record. He also posted outstanding statistics for the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League, holding opponents to a .125 batting average in 7 scoreless outings.

I spoke with Justin recently about his Reading teammates, his well regarded command, Twitter and much more. Check out the media player below to listen to excerpts from the interview.

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Jay Floyd is PhilliesNation’s minor league contributor.  You can check out more solid content from Jay by visiting his site, PhoulBallz.com.

With loads of updates coming out of Clearwater on the big league Phillies, it’s about time we took a glance at some of the organization’s prospects and their performances in developmental level Grapefruit League action thus far.

24-year-old Josh Zeid, who helped the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws win their second consecutive South Atlantic League title in 2010, then went on to shine the Arizona Fall League as a member of the Mesa Solar Sox. Thus far in 2 spring starts, the 10th round pick from the 2009 amateur draft, has tossed 5 shutout innings for the Double A Reading Phillies club. Zeid has allowed 4 hits and just 1 walk, while striking out 7 batters.

With Lakewood last year, Zeid sported an 8-4 record and a 2.93 ERA for Lakewood. He fanned 111 batters over 107.1 IP as both a reliever and a starter. In the AFL, Zeid started 4 games, going 3-0 with a 3.86 ERA while holding opponents to a .206 batting average.

Justin Friend, who was selected in the minor league phase of last December’s Rule 5 draft out of the Athletics’ system, has thrown 4 scoreless innings in 2 appearances with the Phils’ Double A club. A 13th round pick in the 2007 draft, the right-handed Friend went 3-3 with a 3.70 ERA in 36 games with Double A Midland last season. Friend is 24 years old.

Jesse Biddle has thrown 5 2/3 scoreless innings in 2 appearance thus far with the Class A Lakewood team. Biddle, a lefty hurler and native Philadelphian, was last year’s top draft pick and posted a 4-1 record with a 3.92 ERA in 12 games combined with the Gulf Coast League Phillies and short season Williamsport in 2010.

Jarred Cosart threw 3 shut out innings and allowed just 1 hit in his lone spring appearance for the High A level Clearwater team thus far. Cosart, the Phillies’ 20-year-old top pitching prospect who sports a high-90′s fastball, posted a 7-3 record and a 3.79 ERA before having his 2010 season shortened due to an elbow injury.

Joe Savery has had a strong start at the plate. The former top draft pick out of Rice University has converted to an everyday player, after pitching in the Phillies’ system for four years. In his first three spring games, Savery, now a designated hitter and first baseman, had 5 hits and has continued to be successful as the exhibition season has rolled on. Continue reading Minor League Exhibition Updates

Right-handed pitcher Justin De Fratus, a California native, who was drafted in the 11th round in the 2007 amateur draft, has shown steady progression since signing his first professional contract with the Phillies.

In 2007, as a member of the rookie level Gulf Coast League Phillies, De Fratus posted a 2-3 record with a 4.30 ERA and a .273 batting average against in 10 games, 8 of which were starts.

The following season, De Fratus pitched with the short season Low A Williamsport Crosscutters. In 14 games as a starter, the man known to his brothers and friends as J-Bone went 6-5 with a 3.67 ERA and a .260 batting average against.

In 2009, De Fratus was a key piece of the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws pitching staff, taking on both starting and relief duties. In 36 games (12 starts) that season, De Fratus went 5-6 with 3 saves, a 3.19 ERA and a .258 batting average against.

After beginning the 2010 regular season with High-A level Clearwater and posting a 2-0 record with 15 saves and a 1.79 ERA in 29 games, De Fratus was promoted to Double A Reading in early July. Over the last two months of the season, as a member of the R-Phils, he went 1-0 with 6 saves and a 2.19 ERA in 20 games. Combined at the two levels and pitching exclusively out of the bullpen, opponents batted .208 against De Fratus.

De Fratus stayed hot throughout the off-season, pitching for Team USA in the Pan-American qualifiers held in Puerto Rico, helping the Americans finish with a 9-1 record. He also posted exceptional statistics for the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League Continue reading ProspectNation 2011: #5 Justin De Fratus- RHP

Phillies first base prospect Matt Rizzotti turned a lot of heads this year, as he shined at multiple levels, earning two promotions on his way up to Triple A Lehigh Valley. In 125 combined games at High-A level Clearwater, Double A Reading and Lehigh, Rizzotti posted an impressive .343 batting average and slammed 17 homers while driving in 76 runs. Rizzotti then spent time at instructional ball in Florida until the Arizona Fall League began, where he continued his outstanding 2010 with a .333 average in 19 games for the Mesa Solar Sox.

When I spoke with Rizzotti recently, he had plenty to say about all the accolades he had received this season, including being named to Eastern League All-star team and being honored as Phillies minor league player of the month for May. However, there was one event from his remarkable 2010 that stood out to Rizzotti as premiere aspect. Faced with the pressure of being the Reading cleanup batter, Rizzotti had the weight of thousands of baseball fans’ hunger on his shoulders, on a nightly basis. The R-Phils’ Arby’s RBI Guy has much to answer for, as Rizzotti shares in this exclusive interview.

Check out the media players below to hear Rizz discuss his season highlight as well as the actual product of his own imagination.

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Jay Floyd is PhilliesNation’s minor league contributor. You can read more from Jay on his site, PhoulBallz.com.

Right-handed pitcher Justin De Fratus has been a fast mover up the Phillies prospect rankings over the past couple of years, thanks to a deep determination and a goal-oriented outlook.

As a player in his youth, Justin wanted to be the best pitcher he could be, so he worked countless hours under the watchful eye of his father, Terry. The focus was always on throwing strikes, which helped De Fratus stand out and continue pitching beyond high school.

While pitching for Ventura College, De Fratus set his sights on becoming a professional pitcher. He signed his first pro contract after being drafted by the Phillies in the 11th round of the 2007 amateur draft.

As he spent the 2008 season with the Williamsport Crosscutters, De Fratus set out to reach Class A ball in 2009 and did so by helping the Lakewood BlueClaws lock down their first of two consecutive South Atlantic League championships.

In 2010, De Fratus focused on three more potential accomplishments to strive for. Certainly, every minor leaguer’s goal each season is to reach the big leagues, but with more sensible targets in mind, such as reaching Double A, successfully pitching in the Arizona Fall League and representing the United States in the Pan-Am qualifiers, De Fratus’ list of objectives for this year were attainable.

“I accomplish every goal that I set out for myself…and then more. Outside of going the the big leagues, this season was really just a dream come true,” De Fratus said in an exclusive interview.

After beginning the 2010 regular season with High-A level Clearwater and posting a 2-0 record with 15 saves and a 1.79 ERA in 29 games, De Fratus was promoted to Double A Reading in July. Over the last two months of the season, he went 1-0 with 6 saves and a 2.19 ERA in 20 games. Other impressive stats collected by De Fratus during the regular season included his strike out total of 71, compared to his walk total of 16 in 65 innings pitched, between the two levels of the minors.

De Fratus, a 6’5″ 215-pounder, followed up his exceptional regular season campaign by pitching for Team USA in the Pan American qualifying tournament held in Puerto Rico. De Fratus pitched well in relief and helped the Americans clinch a tie for third place (9-1 overall record) and earn a spot in next year’s Pan American games in Mexico.

“After I saw (former teammate of De Fratus in Lakewood, BJ Rosenberg) do it last year, I thought it would be really cool to pitch for my country like that,” De Fratus said of his aspirations of pitching for Team USA. “That’s really the best word to describe it. Other than speaking about how proud you are to put on that USA uniform, the one word to describe (the experience) is just ‘cool’. I’m grateful that I am one of the few who got to do that.”

Following the time representing his country, De Fratus ventured to the Arizona Fall League, where he was not scored upon in 7 appearances and held opponents to a .125 batting average.

As a member of the AFL’s Mesa Solar Sox, De Fratus set out to improve his slider, which he felt he had lost the feel for this year. Former Major League hurler Ricky Bones worked closely with De Fratus to help with the adjustments. “He changed the grip by literally a quarter of an inch and it made a world of difference,” De Fratus stated.

De Fratus’ pitching repertoire also includes a change up as well as a mid-90′s fastball.

Aside from building bonds with his Autumn teammates, De Fratus feels the advantages that he will take away from pitching with two extra teams for an additional two months, following the minor league regular season wrapping up, will be his strength. “My season lasted longer than the big league season does. I know I have the stamina to go start to finish in a full season,” De Fratus said.

Moving toward 2011, De Fratus has a single goal in mind: to reach the Major Leagues. This month, the Phillies added De Fratus, who spent a couple games with the big league team in spring training in 2010, to their Major League 40-man roster, in order to protect him from the MLB Rule 5 draft.

“I’m really excited, with being put on the 40-man. I’m excited to get to show what I can do (this coming spring) in front of Charlie Manuel and Rich Dubee. Whether I make it to the big leagues or not, it’s just an exciting opportunity to get to pitch in front of them.

“I know in my heart and I feel that I have a good shot at, hopefully, making the team out of spring training. That’s all I’m concerned about right now, is putting myself in the best possible position to make the Major League club, and if I don’t, I want to be the first person they call,” De Fratus said.

The commitment that De Fratus possesses will undoubtedly lead to a call up to the big club, and if his track record is any indication, that should happen as soon as De Fratus wants it to.

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