Lakewood's Watson Shut Down For Season

Last year's top Phillies draft pick Shane Watson has been sidelined with shoulder issues since early July. Following an MRI this past week, the Phils have shut down the righty hurler, who turns 20-years-old on Tuesday.

Initially, the time off was prescribed for the Class A Lakewood hurler without an MRI when the he was experiencing shoulder fatigue, following his July 4th start against Greensboro. Now, after having a complete exam and being diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, the six-foot-four 200-pounder will continue to rehab at the Phillies' spring training facility in Clearwater, FL until the fall instructional league begins in September. Plans are for Watson to take part in "instructs" as an active pitcher, to make up for some innings he'll have missed this season.

Watson is not discouraged by the manner in which his season ended, despite having hoped for another crack at South Atlantic League competition this year.

"I'm not disappointed. I'm really excited to come back stronger than when I left," Watson said on Sunday.

In 16 starts for the BlueClaws this year, Watson, who was selected 40th overall in the 2012 MLB amateur draft, sported a 4-6 record with a 4.75 ERA and a .230 batting average against.

Improvements were made over the course of his abbreviated season, as the youngster who had a 5.25 ERA in his first 11 starts, wrapped up his 2013 campaign with a 3.62 ERA over what ended up being his final five outings.

Comments

Rappers in Phillies Caps

Weekend greetings to you phine pholks out there. Today's post features pictures of rappers wearing Phillies caps. Why rappers in Phillies caps, you ask? Because... Any other questions? We will start things off properly by going with a highly recognizable hip hop star. 50 Cent stays constantly relavant by consistantly creating radio friendly material to help sell (G) units, while he "keeps it real" by still rapping about the thug life he lived before becoming the 2nd highest earning black entertainer in America. 50 is seen here in a recent interview rocking a throw-back Phillies cap. Next up we'll use a throw-back screen cap from what may be the very first major appearance by a rapper wearing Phillies gear. Chuck D, of legendary rap group Public Enemy, wore a Phillies cap in the music video for rap anthem Fight The Power in 1989. The song was the lead single from the soundtrack for Spike Lee's film Do The Right Thing . Next up we'll go with some home grown tal...

PhoulBallz Interview: Off-season check in with 1B Kyle Martin

Kyle Martin, image- Jay Floyd First base prospect Kyle Martin grew up in South Carolina as a Phillies fan, admiring slugger Jim Thome , so it was a dream come true for his entire family when the organization made him their 4th round draft choice this year. A lefty batting power threat, Martin quickly made his professional debut with Class A Lakewood. The transition to the minors seemed easy, as the 23-year-old tallied a .279 average with five home runs and 37 RBI in 65 games for the BlueClaws. I recently spoke with the University of South Carolina product about his remarkable 2015 as a whole and he ranked how playing in the Phillies organization ranks against playing for Team USA in this year's Premiere 12 tournament. Read ahead for that interview and click here for my previous feature on the six-foot-two 240-pounder. -Are you still enjoying downtime right now or have you reached the stage of your off-season where you are back to baseball activities and knocking the ru...

Ibanez Makes Hall of Fame History

It's every player's dream to be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. For Raul Ibanez , who hasn't had the sort of career that would ensure his face would one day be cast in bronze and displayed on the Hall walls, it was necessary to find a less common way to earn a spot in the annals of baseball history. Recently, Ibanez became the very first big league player to spend the night in the plaque gallery at the storied Hall of Fame. As detailed on the National Baseball Hall of Fame's website , Ibanez accompanied his son's Little League travel team to the Hall, where they participated in the Museum's "Extra Innings Overnight", a program that allows groups to travel to Cooperstown, NY in order learn more about the great game of baseball. Ibanez's son, Raul Jr., is 11-years-old and plays baseball in Lower Merion, PA. The article on the Hall of Fame's website quoted Ibanez as being excited to see some recent Phillies milestones represent...

PhoulBallz.com

Search This Blog