Skip to main content

OF Pullin standing out among stacked Reading lineup

Pullin, image- Jay Floyd
In a lineup that features a pair of sluggers battling it out for the minor leagues' home run title, mild mannered and average framed outfielder Andrew Pullin somehow stands outs.

The Double-A Reading Fightin Phils include the leading home run hitter in the developmental ranks in first baseman Rhys Hoskins, who has mashed 30 round trippers, as well as impact outfielder Dylan Cozens, who is chasing his teammate with 26 dingers of his own. The Fightins also have veteran professional hitter Jake Fox, whose 19 homers are tied for third best in the EL as well as highly touted backstop Jorge Alfaro. Additionally, top prospect J.P. Crawford and promising speedster Roman Quinn have been in this team's lineup this season. For the generously listed six-foot, 190-pound Pullin to garner attention, among that collection of bats, it's remarkable.

Pullin, who was a 5th round draft selection by the Phils in 2012, has impressed many with his ability to drive the ball with considerable gap power and his consistent production. Through 21 games since his promotion from Class A Advanced Clearwater, the Washington state native sports a .365 average with three doubles, five home runs and 19 RBI.

"He’s a tremendous hitter," said Reading manager Dusty Wathan during a recent interview. "If you’re able to hit a fastball, you’re gonna be able to hit at a lot of levels and Andrew can definitely hit a fastball. He stepped right in. We put him in a pretty good spot to hit in front of some pretty good hitters, to give him an opportunity to get some fastballs and he’s taken full advantage of the opportunity."

The players he's been hitting in front of are the aforementioned Alfaro, Hoskins, Cozens and Fox, who have been the core of the lineup that has notched 38 more home runs and plated 120 more runs than any other team in the Eastern League heading into action on Friday.

According to Pullin, the comfort level of hitting in front of that group of mashers has helped him settle in.

"There's no pressure because if you don't (get something done), the next guy will. That's definitely something I've noticed," Pullin stated. "You know, everybody can do something at any time and we can score a lot of runs really fast and it's a lot of fun."

Prior to joining Reading, the 22-year-old lefty batter sported a .293 average with four homers and 19 RBI in 36 games with the Class A Advanced Clearwater.

Pullin's 2016 campaign got off to a late start for the Threshers when, after participating in the Phillies' Futures Series exhibitions in April, Pullin took a leave of absence to address some personal matters.

According to Pullin, the Phillies were accommodating in allowing him the flexibility to take time off, listing him as retired for a stretch, and to later return once matters were taken care of.

"The Phillies were great," Pullin expressed with appreciation. "They were very helpful on everything and I'm very happy to be a part of this organization."

Reading entered the weekend with a team OPS that was 50 points higher than the next best offense in the league. With a collection of top bats and the minor league postseason just about six weeks away, Pullin and the rest of the Fightins are primed to chase the club's first championship series victory since 1995.

"Everybody on this team is real special and has a lot of talent," Pullin stated. "It's fun to be a part of, like I said. It's a fun team and we play really well together."

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

McGwire Stays Phony, Despite Admitting Drug Use

Mark McGwire made an effort to publicly come clean today, admitting to the world that he took performance enhancing drugs during his playing career. Steroids and human growth hormones were among the drugs that McGwire admitted to using. MLB Network featured a one on one interview with Bob Costas and McGwire on Monday evening. The broadcast was virtually garbage, thanks to McGwire. Ahead is a list of quotes from McGwire's interview. McGwire repeatedly stated his point of view that there were no dishonorable intentions involved when taking steroids, and that he was merely using them as a means to recover from varying ailments. When asked if he felt like he cheated... "As I look back now...I can see how people would say that. As far as the talent goes and the hand-eye coordination, the ability, the genetics I was given...I don't see it." "I did not take this for any strength purposes." Denial. Read on for similar B.S. He whined about the abuse he's taken at

Bubby Rossman's long awaited MLB debut

Eight years after he initially signed a professional contract with the Dodgers and a five-year stretch playing away from affiliated ball, Bubby Rossman became a major leaguer on Wednesday. Added as a substitute for pitcher Kyle Gibson, who is restricted from travel to Canada for the Phillies' series in Toronto, due to his medical inability to be vaccinated from COVID-19, Rossman took the mound for the first time in the majors. Rossman, who was a 22nd round draft selection in 2014 had pitched in 200 professional games before his one-inning outing in the Phillies' 8-2 loss to the Blue Jays. In 27 appearances with Double-A Reading this year, the 30-year-old right-hander has performed well, tallying a 2-2 record with a save, a 3.32 ERA and a .200 batting average against.   The embedded video below features a media session with Rossman from prior to opening day this year, in which the California native discusses his journey through independent baseball and back to affiliated ball wi