Skip to main content

Off-season League Notes: Valle Looking Good, Bastardo Stays Hot

Throughout the fall and winter seasons, our weekly rundown reviews how Phillies players are performing in the various off-season leagues around the globe. Read ahead for the latest on many familiar names, some top prospects and plenty more.


Mexican Winter League...

Sebastian Valle, Image- Jay Floyd
Catcher Sebastian Valle- The righty batting 23-year-old had a big day on Sunday for Los Mochis.  Playing right field, Valle went 3-for-4 with a homer and an RBI.  Overall in 36 games, Valle is batting .286 with with seven doubles, two home runs and seven RBI.  Valle posted a .203 batting average with 12 homers and 41 RBI in 98 games with Double-A Reading this year.

RHP Kevin Munson- The 24-year-old, who was picked up by the Phillies in last week's Rule 5 draft from Arizona, has posted a 1.59 ERA with no decisions in five relief outings with Hermosillo.  Munson was a 4th round draft choice by Arizona in 2010.


Dominican Winter League-

LHP Antonio Bastardo- The 28-year-old has a 1-1 record with a 0.71 ERA ERA in 13 relief outings for the Gigantes.  Through 12 2/3 innings, Bastardo has struck out 22 batters while walking four.  In 48 big league games this year, Bastardo sported a 3-2 record with two saves and a 2.32 ERA.

3B/1B Maikel Franco-  The righty batting 21-year-old went 3-for-14 (.231 avg) with a double, a triple and an RBI in his last five games.  Overall, in 41 games, Franco has tallied a .241 average with two home runs, 13 RBI and three steals for the Gigantes.  Franco became highly touted in 2013 as he collected 31 homers and 103 RBI with a .320 batting average in 134 games with Class Advanced Clearwater and Double-A Reading during the regular season.

Catcher Tommy Joseph- The 22-year-old righty hitter has a .192 average with two doubles and two RBI through nine games for the Estrellas, but hasn't played since November 27th.  Joseph missed considerable time with concussion related issues during the 2013 regular season and batted .179 in 36 minor league games.  Acquired in last year's Hunter Pence trade, Joseph was a 2nd round draft selection by the Giants in 2009.

OF Leandro Castro- The 24-year-old is currently playing in a backup role.  He sports a .254 average with five doubles and eight RBI in 23 games for the Estrellas.  In 117 games for Triple-A Lehigh Valley this year, the righty batting Castro tallied a .256 average with eight home runs and 55 RBI.

RHP Luis Garcia- The 26-year-old has a 1-0 record with a 2.38 ERA and a .176 batting average against through 11 games for the Estrellas.  In 24 games at three levels of the minors this year, Garcia posted a 3.73 ERA and a .237 batting average against.

RHP Hector Neris- The 24-year-old sports a 1-0 record along with a 2.45 ERA while striking out four and walking five in 7 1/3 innings pitched for the Toros.  Neris posted a 6-4 record with a 4.55 ERA and a .241 batting average against in 46 games this year for Double-A Reading.

1B/DH Jim Murphy- The 28-year-old Murphy returned to off-season league action last week, going 2-for-7 with a walk and a run scored for Licey.  The 2013 Double-A All-Star had been released by his Venezuelan League team last month.


Venezuelan Winter League-

Shortstop Freddy Galvis- The 23-year-old is batting .288 with 10 doubles, one triple, two home runs and 20 RBI and four stolen bases in 41 games for Zulia.  The switch-hitting Galvis sported a .234 average with six home runs and 19 RBI in 70 big league games with the Phillies this year.

RHP Severino Gonzalez- The 21-year-old, who was honored as the Phils' Paul Owens Award winner this year, has posted a 0-1 record along with an 8.10 ERA and a .414 batting average against in four appearances for La Guaira.  Gonzalez last pitched on November 22nd.  In the regular season, Gonzalez posted a 7-5 record with a 2.00 ERA and a 10.33 K/9 mark in 25 games at three levels of the minors.

LHP Mario Hollands- In six games (two starts), the 25-year-old has a 1.26 ERA with no decisions for La Guaira. Hollands has struck out 12 batters and walked five in 14 1/3 innings. Hollands, the Phils' 10th round draft selection out of UC Santa Barbara in 2010, went 7-3 with a 2.86 ERA in 27 combined games with Clearwater and Reading this year.

LHP Cesar Jimenez- The 29-year-old has tallied a 0-2 record and a 3.55 ERA in 11 appearances for Lara. Jimenez has struck out 11 and walked five in 12 2/3 innings.  In 19 big league games this year, Jimenez posted a 1-1 record along with a 3.71 ERA and a .226 batting average against.

C Gabriel Lino- In a reserve role, Lino has been getting at bats sparingly for Lara.  The 20-year-old is 0-for-4 this month and is 0-for-6 overall in seven games played.  The right-handed hitting Lino was acquired from Baltimore in the 2012 Jim Thome trade.

Infielder Andres Blanco- The 29-year-old is batting .214 with a double in 10 games for Magallanes. Blanco, who played with the Triple-A Iron Pigs in 2012, is a .255 hitter in 235 big league games.  The switch-hitting Blanco was re-signed by the Phillies this off-season.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Diekman a Late Addition to Mesa AFL Roster

On Wednesday, Phillies lefty pitching prospect Jacob Diekman made his Arizona Fall League debut. Diekman, who was drafted in the 30th round of the 2007 amateur draft, was assigned to Mesa late, in order to increase his 2010 innings total, according to Mesa hitting coach Mark Parent, who managed Diekman in Lakewood this past season. Diekman, 23, posted a 2-0 record with 1.90 ERA in 21 games with Class A Lakewood before being promoted to High-A Clearwater on June 24th. In 24 games with the Threshers, Diekman went 0-2 with a 3.66 ERA. Combined, Diekman tossed 55 2/3 innings and held opponents to a .187 batting average against at two levels in 2010. However, after not pitching in an official game since he threw a shutout inning to wrap up the Clearwater season on September 5th, Diekman was unable to record an out as all seven batters he faced reached base, six with hits, one on an error. Diekman was charged with 5 earned runs in the outing. Diekman had spent time at instructional ball from

2022 Phillies Top Prospects Countdown: #24 RHP Cristian Hernandez

Venezuelan born right-hander Cristian Hernandez has begun to earn recognition as one of the Phillies most promising pitching prospects. Signed as a 16-year-old in 2017 for a reported $120,000, Hernandez got his professional career started the following summer as a starter for the Phillies' Red Dominican Summer League club.  There, in 13 starts, Hernandez tallied a 2-3 record with 2.57 ERA, a 1.14 WHIP as well as a 7.0 K/9 mark. An injury sidelined Hernandez in 2019 and the 2020 season was cancelled due to the global pandemic. In 2021, Hernandez saw his first regular season action in the United States, starting his season in Florida Complex League.  After two appearances there, the six-foot-three 185-pounder was promoted to the Class A Clearwater Threshers.  In 20 combined outings (17 starts), Hernandez notched a 2-7 record with a 3.57 ERA, a .228 batting average against and an 11.2 K/9 mark. Projectability is something that baseball folks like about Hernandez.  His size, consistent

Who is Your Favorite Willie 'Mays' Hayes?

PhoulBallz.com is wondering which individual who has portrayed Willie "Mays" Hayes is the favorite of the public. Hayes, of course, is the character made famous in the Major League motion picture series. In Major League , Willie "Mays" Hayes was portrayed by budding Hollywood actor Wesley Snipes, who would go on to action movie superstardom. Snipes has starred in major motion pictures like the Blade trilogy, Passenger 57 , Undisputed and many more. Snipes remains an impact Hollywood actor, despite legal troubles related to income tax evasion. Snipes was replaced for the sequel, Major League II when his busy career, and possibly the film's budget, would not allow him to return, by Omar Epps. Another budding actor, Epps had previously worked with director David S. Ward, on the film The Program , and landed the role of Hayes, who had become a Hollywood action star over the off-season that occured between the two films. Epps' career portraying athletes rolle