Categories: Minor Leagues

Minor League Mash-up: Pitching on fire and the Alec Bohm Show rolls on

Williams is down at Triple-A getting needed playing time. He could return to Philly soon, or could be used as trade bait. (Brandon Apter/SportsTalkPhilly)

It’s been quite an interesting weekend in Philadelphia sports, with the Phillies offense exploding on Sunday to finally take down the Marlins and big developments with both the 76ers and Flyers.

I’ll try to restore your sanity with good news from the Philadelphia Phillies farm system where some of the club’s top pitching prospects have been performing well, and where their top overall prospects has been prospering at a new level.

Late last week here at Phillies Nation we highlighted the historic appearance at Double-A Reading of four recent Phillies top draft picks in the Fightin’ Phils lineup all at one time: Alec Bohm, Mickey Moniak, Adam Haseley, and Cornelius Randolph.

That piece and this regular “Minor-League Mash-up” feature are representative of the continuous coverage we bring you on the Phillies minor league affiliates, top prospects, and draft picks. Be sure to check our social media feeds each day at Twitter and Facebook (both @PhilliesNation) as well as our home website at philliesnation.com for Larry Shenk’s daily Phillies Minor League Report.

Records

Triple-A Lehigh Valley Ironpigs 38-41
Double-A Reading Fightin’ Phils 47-33 (8-5 in the second half)
High-A Clearwater Threshers 46-33 (10-3 in the second half)
Low-A Lakewood Blue Claws 32-49 (3-8 in the second half)
Short-Season A Williamsport Crosscutters 3-13

Notable Performances

Bohm went 2-3 with a home run and two RBIs on Thursday in his first home game with Reading, then came up clutch again on Friday, delivering in the ninth inning with a two-run walk off single to win the game. The Phillies top prospect then went 2-3 with a home run and three RBIs on Saturday.
Moniak went 2-3 with an RBI and two walks for Reading on Wednesday. He was named to the Double-A All-Star team and has been on fire of late.
Austin Listi went 3-5 with a home run and two RBIs for Lehigh Valley on Monday. Listi then added a two homer game on Friday.
Cole Irvin started that Monday game for Lehigh Valley and went six innings, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk. He struck out three. Irvin continued he’s great week on Saturday with a seven inning, one run performance. He allowed six hits and no walks while striking out six.
Deivy Grullon went 2-3 with two walks for the Ironpigs on Wednesday. Grullon then went 2-3 with a homer and three RBIs on Sunday.
JoJo Romero went five innings, allowing one run on five hits and no walks on Thursday. He struck out five.
David Parkinson went 5.1 innings allowing two runs on five hits and three walks, while striking out four on Friday.
Damon Jones continues to impress. On Saturday, he went six innings, allowing one run on four hits and three walks. He had six strikeouts.
Bailey Falter went seven innings allowing two runs on four hits and a walk for Reading on Sunday. He struck out eight.
Alejandro Requena pitched five innings, allowing one run on two hits and zero walks for Clearwater on Tuesday. He added six strikeouts.
Julian Garcia spun a gem for Clearwater on Thursday. He tossed seven shutout innings, allowing five hits and one walk while adding eight punch-outs.
Simon Muzziotti went 2-3 with two walks for Clearwater on Friday.
Ethan Evanko continued the hot pitching for Clearwater, going seven innings, allowing a run on five hits and a walk on Friday. Evanko had two strikeouts.
Matt Vierling went 2-3 with a double, two runs scored, and two walks for Clearwater on Saturday.
Nick Maton went 3-4 with two runs scored and a double for the Threshers on Sunday.
Colton Eastman pitched well again, tossing six innings of two run ball on Sunday. He allowed seven hits and two walks while adding three strikeouts.
Jhordany Mezquita went five innings allowing two runs on four hits and a walk for Lakewood on Tuesday. He had seven strikeouts.
Francisco Morales had a nice start Wednesday, pitching five innings, surrendering a run on two hits and a walk. He tallied five strikeouts in that one.
Seth Lancaster went 3-5 with a double and an RBI for Lakewood on Thursday.
An encouraging outing for Kevin Gowdy who pitched five innings, allowing an unearned run on Thursday. He gave up four hits and two walks while collecting three strikeouts.
Abrahan Gutierrez went 3-4 with a home run, two runs scored, and two RBIs for Lakewood on Saturday.
Logan O’Hoppe went 3-4 with a double and an RBI for Williamsport on Tuesday.
Carlos Francisco pitched four scoreless innings on Thursday. He allowed only two hits and a walk, but did not record a strikeout.
Hunter Markwardt went 3-6 with an RBI and three runs scored for Williamsport on Friday.
Juan Aparicio went 3-5 with a triple and three RBIs in that same game for Williamsport on Friday.

Williams succeeding at Triple-A Lehigh Valley

The Phillies sent Nick Williams to Triple-A to get at-bats and gain some confidence. I think it’s safe to assume he’s doing both of those things right now. In 14 games with the IronPigs, Williams is hitting .407 with two home runs and seven RBIs.

It’s unclear what the Phillies plan to do with Williams long term. They can try to trade him or call him back up and have him platoon in the outfield or come off the bench. With Jay Bruce also being left-handed, the former option is not likely barring injuries. Either way, Williams’ success is good for both him and the Phillies.

Season Stats – Hitters

Bohm already has three home runs in Double-A, his average hasn’t caught up yet at only .250, but overall he is a monster this year. In 71 games that span from Low-A to Double-A, the third baseman is slashing .330/.402/.538 with 10 home runs, 21 doubles, 47 RBIs, 45 runs scored, and a walk to strikeout ratio of 34-44. Over the course of 162 games, Bohm is on pace for 23 homers, 48 doubles, and 108 RBIs. Even though it’s the Minor Leagues, that’s pretty good and demonstrates why he is this organization’s top prospect.
Haseley has returned from the IL and was sent back to Triple-A to get consistent playing time. He’s done well in Lehigh Valley, hitting .324 in eight games. Between there and Double-A, he’s hitting .276 with eight home runs, 12 doubles, and 27 RBI.
Moniak is hitting .266 with 19 doubles, nine triples, and four home runs for Reading in 75 games. Moniak hit .300 in June and walked 15 times after combining to walk only eight times in April and May. Another thing to note about Moniak, he’s only had two at bats against pitchers younger than him. He was pulled from Reading’s game on Sunday, but the reasoning is unkown.

Grullon is slashing .307/.371/.510 with 12 home runs, 15 doubles, and 48 RBIs in 67 games for Lehigh Valley.
After struggling in Double-A, Listi is finding success in Triple-A, that usually isn’t the case. Listi hit .220 in Reading with seven home runs in 62 games, but in 10 games with Lehigh Valley he’s hitting .325 with five home runs.
Maton does a little bit of everything with a .284 average and a .369 OBP to go along with 16 extra base hits, 34 RBIs, 29 runs scored, 30 walks, and 10 stolen bases in 63 games.
Luis Garcia just cannot get going. His average sits at .196 and he’s only slugging .281, 73 games into the year now, this isn’t just a slow start anymore. Luckily for Garcia, he’s only 18 years old.
Jhailyn Ortiz is still working on becoming a more complete hitter, as he’s only hitting .223 with 83 strikeouts, but his power is impressive with 10 doubles and 13 homers in 63 games. Putting him close to on pace for a 35 homer, 25 double season over 162 games.
Rafael Marchan is hitting .262 with 12 doubles in 45 games for Lakewood. He has only struck out 21 times in that span, which is impressive for a young hitter. He has a long way to go in his development, but the plate discipline is there.

Season Stats – Pitchers

Adonis Medina has a 4.02 ERA and is having another up and down year. He’s pitched 65 innings in his 13 starts and a has a WHIP of 1.29 along with only 45 strikeouts.
Welcome back Spencer Howard. Howard pitched in a rehab game with the Rookie Ball team earlier this week, going three scoreless innings, striking out five. He’ll proabaly get another start or two before returning to High-A where he was pitching well before his injury.
Kyle Glogoski has a 1.46 ERA in 10 starts between Low-A and High-A this season. He has 55 strikeouts in 37.1 innings and has only walked 11 batters, which give him a five strikeout per walk ratio, that’s really good. He’s only 20 years old, so remember his name.
Morales continues to pitch well and his ERA has dropped to 3.88 on the year The 19 year old has 78 strikeouts in 51 innings compared to only 24 walks. This kid is becoming a star in the system.
Parkinson continues to be consistent in Reading. He has a 3.31 ERA and a WHIP of 1.19 in 13 starts. Unlike the Phillies, Parkinson keeps the ball in the park too, allowing only five long balls this season.
Despite the fact that he has a walk to strikeout ratio of 30-31, Gowdy is getting outs. He has a 3.59 ERA to go with a 1.57 WHIP- those numbers don’t usually matchup. The reason may be that Gowdy has only allowed two home runs in 42.2 innings.
After posting a 1.54 ERA in 11 starts for Clearwater, Jones has posted a 1.00 ERA in three starts for Reading. He’s gone 18 innings in Reading, allowing only two runs, which isn’t easy to do playing in First Energy Stadium. He has great strikeout numbers too with 113 in 76.1 innings between Clearwater and Reading. He’s definitely starting to make a name for himself.
Eastman is also finding more success the higher up the ladder he goes. After posting a 6.00 ERA in five starts with Lakewood, he has a 3.00 ERA in 10 starts with Clearwater. On the season, he has a 3.81 ERA with 92 strikeouts in 78 innings, comapred to only 20 walks.
It’s a small sample size, but Seth Lancaster is 10-24 in Lakewood this season. He started the year in Williamsport, but was quickly promoted after going 5-6 there(he played there last year so this wasn’t rushed). Lancaster has a home run, five doubles, and seven RBIs in his short time between short-season ball and Low-A.