Gillies Talks Suspension, Playoff Race, Injuries

Following his suspension for an inappropriate confrontation with the team bus driver, outfielder Tyson Gillies returned to the active roster for the Double-A Reading Phillies on Thursday night. Batting lead off, the speedy catalyst, who has missed hefty time due to injuries since being acquired in the December 2009 Cliff Lee trade, went 1-for-4 with a home run and a walk.

Gillies was all smiles and completely overjoyed to be back with his teammates, as the R-Phils hold onto the playoff qualifying second place in the Eastern League's Eastern division, 1/2 game ahead of New Britain in the standings.

Prior to Thursday's contest, I spoke with Tyson to gauge his feelings on the situation that cost him even more crucial time away from the game, a hot playoff race and more. That brief Q&A lies ahead.

-Suspensions are never good, but do you think there is any kind of silver lining or lesson learned from this situation that occurred?

The thing is, baseball can get to be very frustrating and stuff and handling your emotions are a big thing in this game or anywhere in life, so yeah, I guess you can take a lesson from it. I have to learn not to get too excited and handle my emotions better and be able to let a lot of things go. You know, I'm just going to move forward and use that as a learning experience from here on out.

-After this year, is there a possibility that you'll be playing in an off-season league to make up for time missed?

I would love to play winter ball the off-season. Even through a full healthy season, my intentions were still to go there and play and progress and learn a lot more about the game. Yeah, definitely, I'm just waiting to hear and see if I can go play somewhere down there and I'll just have to wait and see.

-Any idea where? One of the Caribbean leagues?

I have no idea where they'd want to send me. I'll just be happy to be playing baseball.

-Talking to some teammates, they definitely seem excited to have you back, as the team is in the thick of playoff contention. What does it mean to have the players fired up behind you like that and appreciative of your return here?

I'm happy. I tried to rush back, just to see the guys. I've been with most of these guys since April and even through spring training. So, you miss the personalities and you miss seeing the guys every day so, it's definitely awesome to be back and I'm just happy to see everybody.

-What's your energy level like here, rejoining the club as they team fights for that playoff spot?

I'm just trying to come back, get on base any way possible and help the team score runs, because we're in the hunt for the playoffs, like you said, and we just want to win and we want to get that championship.

-Clearly, you've had ups and downs in your career, injuries with the hamstring, the foot, the concussion, then the suspension and other things. What has been the biggest hurdle for you in your pro career?

You know, the biggest hurdle was probably just getting over that concussion. That was the first one I've ever had in my life and six and a half weeks of that, you know, trying to come back, coming back too soon and pushing it. You know, it's just a really rough thing to go through and not being able to do anything in that time, I wasn't able to get my lifting in and my body got week and it all just took its toll. It was all connected somehow and I hope next time, hopefully there never is a next time, but you always learn from each injury and you learn how you're able to heel faster.
__________________________________________________________

You can follow PhoulBallz on Twitter by clicking HERE.

Also connect with PhoulBallz on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Jersey Shore clinches playoff berth on final day of regular season

Ottto Kemp, image- Jay Floyd With an extra-inning victory over first-half division champions Hudson Valley on Sunday, the Class A Advanced Jersey Shore BlueClaws clinched the team's first playoff appearance since 2018, winning the second-half division title. Key performers in the BlueClaws' clincher were righty hurler Jason Ruffcorn, who threw three innings of relief to earn the victory and third baseman Otto Kemp, notched three hits, a walk, two stolen bases and plated the game winning run in the 11th inning on a sacrifice fly. On top of that, Kemp, who turned 24-years-old on Saturday, made an absolute game-saving defensive play to help the club hold their lead in the bottom of the 11th frame. One of Jersey Shore's most consistent performers all season long has been right-handed reliever Cam Wynne. The Phillies' 20th round draft pick in 2021 out of Nebraska. In 34 appearances, one start, the 24-year-old tallied a 1-1 record with one save, a 2.44 ERA and a .190 batti

PhoulBallz Interview: BlueClaws OF Justin Crawford

Justin Crawford w/ junior reporter Evan At the age of 19, outfielder Justin Crawford has played his way into the conversation of being considered as one of baseball's top prospects. The son of four-time MLB All-Star Carl Crawford, Justin has looked every bit as impressive as his position as the 17th overall draft selection last year would have most fans thinking he should be. He opened the season with Class A Clearwater where, in 69 games, he notched a .344/.399/.478 slash line. And since mid-August when he was promoted to Class A Advanced Jersey Shore, the younger Crawford has posted a .300/.364/.440 line. He's also stolen 44 bases in 52 attempts overall. And while the BlueClaws enter the final week of the regular season 1/2 game out of first place in their division, I spoke with Justin Crawford about the team's hopes of making the postseason for the first time since 2018. I also asked Justin about the similarities and differences between his skillset and his father'

RHP Pipkin headed to AFL after hot August

After completing what was easily the best month of his career, righty hurler Dominic Pipkin is ready to face the tough competition of the prominent Arizona Fall Leage. Pipkin, who was the Phillies' 9th round draft selection in 2018, has had moderate success in his five years as a pro, posting a 4.93 ERA, a 7.6 K/9 mark and a .260 batting average against mostly at the lower levels on the minors. After missing time this year with an unspecified ailment, the six-foot-four 170-pounder proved to be healthy as he dominated AA competition in nine appearances with the Reading Fightin Phils during August. Pipkin's impressive production resulted in a 1-0 record with a save and a 0.96 ERA while striking out eight and walking three in 9 1/3 innings. The California native says his efforts to improve have helped him touch 100 MPH on the radar gun, while his fastball velocity is mostly around 96 MPH. Pipkin's arsenal includes that improved fastball as well as a slider while his curve

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog