Tops on the Phillies’ developmental hot list is Double-A Reading Ace Jesse Biddle, who, in his last two outings, has thrown 13 scoreless innings, while allowing just two total hits and striking out 26 batters. Overall this season, Biddle, who was the Phils’ 1st round draft selection in 2010, has a 2-1 record with a 1.74 ERA and a .114 batting average against.
Last week, Biddle locked down a win against Harrisburg, when he struck out 16 and allowed only one hit and no runs over seven innings.
On Sunday, in Reading’s 2-1 win over New Hampshire, the left-handed 21-year-old fanned 10 New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Toronto affiliate). The video clip below features Biddle striking out the side in the 5th inning and speaking to the media following his second consecutive tremendous effort.
Also performing extremely well lately is Class A Advanced Clearwater third baseman Maikel Franco, who notched a two homer/seven RBI game on Friday and smacked another home run on Sunday. In 23 games this season, Franco has posted a .296 average with 11 doubles, five homers and 25 RBI.
Triple-A Lehigh Valley slugger Darin Ruf collected four hits in five at bats on Sunday, including two doubles and two home runs while driving in five runs. The big effort raised Ruf’s batting average 39 points to .244 on the season. It was a nice turnaround for the 26-year-old, who had gone hitless in his previous four games.
Who’s cold-
Clearwater reliever Colby Shreve let up five earned runs in 2/3 of an inning on Sunday. In six outings this season, the 25-year-old right-hander has a 0-1 record with a 6.19 ERA while walking 12 and striking out 12 in 16 innings pitched. Shreve was the Phillies 6th round draft choice in 2008.
Reading shortstop Edgar Duran is 0-for-25 in his last six games. This weak stretch has lowered the 22-year-old’s batting average by 127 points. Duran, a native of Venezuela, was signed by the Phillies as an international free agent in 2007 at the age of 16.
Injury notes-
RHP Brody Colvin, is slated to return from the disabled list on Tuesday, when he’ll return to the mound for Reading. The 22-year-old has been sidelined since April 14th with a groin strain. Through two starts this season, Colvin, who was the Phils’ 7th round draft choice in 2009, posted a 1-0 record with a 3.97 ERA.
Reading left-hander Austin Wright began a throwing program on Thursday in Clearwater, after being sidelined with shoulder discomfort. Wright, the Phillies’ 8th round pick in 2011 out of the University of Mississippi, was 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA in two starts this year. There is no precise time frame for a return, but the goal is to build Wright’s pitch count up and make sure his shoulder is pain free before he faces hitters again.
Latest Comments