Skip to main content

Phils add three pitching prospects to 40-man roster

JesseBiddle5
Jesse Biddle, image- Jay Floyd
It was announced on Thursday that the Phillies added three young hurlers to the big league 40-man roster. Lefties Jesse Biddle and Adam Morgan along with righty Nefi Ogando were that trio.

Biddle has been among the Phillies' top prospects since he was selected by them with the 27th overall pick in 2010. This news is a rare positive nugget about the 23-year-old, who had a terribly difficult 2014 after missing a lengthy stretch with a a concussion, sitting out his final start of the regular season with a separate ailment and being shut down with elbow soreness after making two appearance this autumn in off-season ball in Puerto Rico.

Since debuting at the Double-A level to begin last year, Biddle hasn't looked too sharp, posting a 10-24 record along with a 4.02 ERA in 46 appearances over the last two seasons. Additionally, his 9.52 K/9 mark is very exciting, but the 5.14 BB/9 average (evidence of control concerns) that goes along with it is far from appealing.

Morgan, the Phillies' 3rd round draft choice in 2011, missed the 2014 regular season after shoulder surgery last winter. The 24-year-old has tallied a 12-22 record along with a 3.25 ERA in 56 minor league games (55 starts). After making a few appearances at the Florida Instructional League in September, Morgan posted a 1-2 record along with a 6.61 ERA in six games in the Arizona Fall League this off-season.

Ogando, who was acquired from Boston for John McDonald last year, was also among the Phils' representatives in the AFL and had a 1-0 record with three saves and a 3.07 ERA in 12 outings for Scottsdale. The 25-year-old posted a 5-1 record with seven saves, a 6.27 ERA and a 9.16 K/9 mark in 48 relief appearances for Double-A Reading this year.

The Phillies' 40-man roster stands at 38 players.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Lidge Shaky, T-Mac Honored in Trenton

TRENTON, NJ- Brad Lidge made his second rehab appearance for the Double A Reading Phillies on Thursday night and it didn't go as well as the veteran reliever or the team had hoped. Lidge struggled with his command and turned in a rather poor outing for the club that entered the night in a playoff race, 1 game behind division rival Trenton for the Wild Card spot in the Eastern Division. On the disabled list since spring training with a strained right rotator cuff, Lidge experienced an elbow strain when he was working back from that issue in late May. In his outing against the Yankees affiliate in Trenton, Lidge displayed difficulty with his control as he threw three wild pitches, hit two batters, walked another and gave up a single, all while letting up two earned runs on 28 pitches in 2/3 of an inning. After the disappointing performance, Lidge was composed and focused on some positive aspects, having reached 89 and 90 MPH on scouts' radar guns, according to some reports. ...

Q&A with Tim Gradoville

Tim Gradoville is a career minor league catcher, who once, as a September call up, was up with the big club for the proverbial cup of coffee. Slated to be the Phillies bullpen catcher, at a later date, Gradoville is currently assigned as a special instructor with the Lakewood BlueClaws. I had the opportunity to speak with Tim and here's how that went down... What's the atmosphere with the BlueClaws like so far this season? Well, I think we have a good mix of players. We have some veteran guys, and some young guys too, so it makes for an interesting mix. I think the guys like to have a good time, and they're pretty loose and that translates into winning games. They have a good time. With a young team, you never know what you're gonna get, sometimes, but they seem to gel pretty well together, so that helps to build team unity, helps guys get along. They're having fun, they're enjoying baseball. This game can be a grind sometimes, if you're not having fun. What...

Mike McGuire Living a Dream With Favorite Team

LAKEWOOD, NJ- Every young ballplayer grows up wishing he could play for his favorite team. Mike McGuire has an opportunity to do just that after signing with the Phillies organization in July. McGuire was a 43rd round draft pick taken by the Cleveland Indians in the 2008 amateur draft out of the University of Delaware. Early scouting reports liked McGuire's abilities, despite some arm trouble. He advanced as far as High A Level Kinston last season. While there, he posted an 0-3 record with a 5.46 ERA in 9 games, 8 of which were starts. The Indians weren't happy with McGuire's efforts this spring and released him. McGuire caught on with the Sussex Skyhawks of the independent Can-Am League, where he stayed in shape and pitched against other formerly affiliated minor leaguers. As a starter with the Skyhawks, McGuire went 3-4 with a 5.29 ERA in 8 outings. From there, just as all players in those independent leagues hope for, the 24-year-old McGuire got noticed. The Phillies wer...