Victorino Set to Return, Lidge Days Away

On Sunday afternoon, Brad Lidge and Shane Victorino competed for the Double A Reading Phillies for the second straight game against the Trenton Thunder at Waterfront Park, as both men rehabbed from injuries. On consecutive days, both men contributed to a Reading victory, as the R-Phils chase Trenton for the Eastern division Wild Card spot in the Eastern League.

Victorino, batting lead-off and playing center field on Sunday, took highly touted lefty pitching prospect deep, out of the stadium in the 1st inning, and rounded 3rd base before Reading manager Mark Parent, manning the coach's box, informed Victorino that the umpire had called it foul. Victorino then sarcastically thanked the umpires for letting him practically round the bases before informing him of the call. He then returned to the batters box and worked a walk.

Later in the frame, Victorino stole home on the back end of a double steal.

The 30-year-old All-star batted again in the 2nd inning, striking out against Banuelos, who was reaching 94 MPH regularly with his fastball. Another turn at bat against the 20-year-old phenom in the 5th inning produced a single. Victorino was later called out attempting to steal 3rd on a 3-0 count to end the inning, although video showed that he beat the tag on that play. Later in the game, Victorino grounded out against right-handed Chase Whitley.

On the day, Victorino was 1-for-3 with a single, stolen base, caught stealing and a run scored.

Lidge, 34, tossed a scoreless 7th inning to preserve Reading's 4-2 lead. After striking out Yankees Futures Game representative Austin Romine on 3 pitches, he surrendered a sharp single to first baseman Rob Lyerly. Lidge then induced a fielders choice that moved the runner over. The next batter, newly promoted Zoilo Almonte was credited with an infield single on a grounder to first base on which Lidge was late covering the bag. Lidge bounced back, striking out Jose Pirela on a slider for the third out.

The R-Phils team radar gun clocked Lidge's fastball from 87-88 MPH. His final line was 1 inning pitched, 2 hits allowed, no walks, no runs, 2 strike outs. While his slider has been on point throughout his rehab stints with Class A Lakewood and Reading, Lidge and the Phillies are still looking for some increased velocity as he approaches activation on the Major League roster.

"I’ve got another (rehab) game to go and I want to try to get a little more on my fastball," Lidge said, following the game. "I think my slider kind of progressed faster than my fastball."

Lidge is scheduled to pitch for Lakewood on Wednesday at 11:05 AM. After that, he hopes to be activated by the Phillies when they begin a home stand against San Diego on Friday.

The final score in the contest saw Reading edge the Thunder, 4-3, and pull to within 1 game of the Wild Card lead. Right-hander BJ Rosenberg got the win, while reliever Justin Friend notched his 6th save since his promotion from Clearwater in mid-June.

_________________________________________________

You can follow PhoulBallz on Twitter by clicking HERE.

You can also connect with PhoulBallz on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Sunday School: Phillies History Lesson 73

Danny Ozark was the Phillies' manager from 1973-1979. During his tenure as the team's general, Ozark led Philadelphia to three straight division titles. In his playing days, Ozark was a first baseman, who was a career minor leaguer in the Dodgers system. When Ozark took over the team in 1973, the Phillies were fresh off 5 consecutive losing seasons and 3 straight last place finishes. During his first season in charge, the Phillies would again finish in last place, 20 games under .500, but as his core of young talent, like Mike Schmidt and Larry Bowa, developed, the Phillies' win totals rose. Within 2 years, the Phillies were above .500 and in the playoff hunt until late in the season and the most successful era of Phillies history was about to begin. By 1976, the Phillies were headed to the post-season for the first time since 1950. The Phils would enjoy a 10-game lead over their nearest division rival at the midway point of the season. Despite a lul, which saw their lead d...

PhoulBallz Interview: First round pick Bryson Stott

Bryson Stott, image- Jay Floyd Shortstop Bryson Stott , the Phillies' first round draft selection this year, has enjoyed a successful initial pro campaign. En route to being recognized as an All-Star for the Class A short-season Williamsport Crosscutters the 21-year-old UNLV product has tallied a .295 average with six home runs and 25 RBI in 45 minor league contests. Last week I spoke with the lefty hitting Stott to discuss his transition to professional baseball, joining the Phillies organization and plenty more. Read ahead for that interview. -Obviously, your performance and the production on the field is going well, but how do you feel you have adapted to the pro life? It feels good. You hear about the everyday grind, but you don't really believe it till you feel it. I would say that's the difference between college and the pros, is you're not practicing, you're playing games every day. I would say that's the biggest difference. But I...

Velasquez shut down, Eflin on deck?

Eflin with Reading in 2015, image- Jay Floyd Following Vincent Velasquez leaving his start after just two pitches for the Phillies on Wednesday, righty prospect Zach Eflin was pulled from his start for Triple-A Lehigh Valley at Gwinnett. The 22-year-old sports a 5-1 record with a 3.14 ERA and a .210 batting average against in 10 starts for the IronPigs this season. He could take the place of Velasquez if he is required to miss any additional time. Initial word on Velasquez after he threw two fastballs that clocked in the 86-87 MPH range (considerably slower than the 94 MPH he averages) and was swiftly pulled from his outing, is that he has a biceps strain. He'll be further evaluated in the coming days. Prior to the regular season, Eflin got a taste of competing against big leaguers when he was charged with 12 runs (nine earned) on 11 hits while striking out two and walking one with a wild pitch in three innings of work in an intrasquad exhibition that pitted the Phils...

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog