Skip to main content

Phillies minor league hot list: Ortiz, Moniak, Morris, Thompson & more

Here's a quick rundown of the Phillies minor league hot list. Details are up to date prior to game action on Tuesday, July 26th.

Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs (61-41, 2nd place North Div. International League)

Right-handed Jake Thompson continues his tremendous stretch for the IronPigs and remains the top option for a promotion if a vacancy opens up in the Phillies’ rotation. In his last nine starts, the 22-year-old sports a 6-0 record with a 0.58 ERA and a 5.3 K/9 mark. In 19 starts this season, Thompson, who was acquired from Texas as part of last summer’s Cole Hamels trade, has a 9-5 record with a 2.29 ERA and a .224 batting average against.

Righty pitcher David Buchanan has allowed just two earned runs in 22 innings (0.82 ERA) over his last three starts. In 19 games (18 starts) this season for the Pigs, the 27-year-old has a 7-5 record with a 4.05 ERA and a .257 batting average against.

In 11 games since the Triple-A All-Star Break, outfielder Nick Williams is sporting a .318 average with five doubles, two home runs and eight RBI. Williams, another prized acquisition in the Hamels trade, has a .287/.320/.468 slash line in 90 overall games this season. The 22-year-old was originally a 2nd round draft selection of the Rangers in 2012.

Righty reliever Luis Garcia took over the role of closer following the release of Edward Mujica. Garcia, 29, has tossed five scoreless appearances since taking over those duties. Garcia, who has a 3.99 ERA in 111 big league contests, has a 6-3 record with four saves and a 2.76 ERA in 36 games for Lehigh Valley this season.

Double-A Reading Fightin Phils (69-33, 1st place Eastern Div. Eastern League)

Outfielder Andrew Pullin is batting .377 with five home runs and 19 RBI in 19 games since his promotion from Clearwater. Pullin, 22, was a 5th round draft pick of the Phillies in 2012. He missed time earlier this season when he took a leave of absence for personal reasons.

Righty hurler Tyler Viza has a 2-1 record with a 2.25 ERA over his past three starts. In nine starts since his promotion from Clearwater, the 21-year-old has posted a 4-3 record with a 3.67 ERA. Viza was a 32nd round draft choice in 2013.

First baseman Rhys Hoskins launched his minor league leading 29th home run in Reading’s win over Binghamton on Monday. The 23-year-old was the Phils’ 5th round draft choice in 2014. In 96 games this year, Hoskins sports a .286 batting average. His 91 RBI are best in the EL.

Class A Advanced Clearwater Threshers (20-11 in second half, 1st place North Div. Florida State League)

In three starts for the Threshers, right-hander Drew Anderson has allowed one earned run in 14 1/3 innings (0.63 ERA). The 22-year-old missed the entire 2015 campaign after Tommy John surgery. Combined with his time in Lakewood, Anderson has a 2.61 ERA and a 10.1 K/9 mark in 10 starts this season. He was selected by the Phillies in round 21 of the 2012 draft.

In 11 games with Clearwater since the All-Star break, Temple University grad Matt Hockenberry has not allowed an earned run. In 28 games in the FSL this year, the 24-year-old has a 1-1 record with two saves, a 1.13 ERA and a .184 batting average against. Hockenberry, a righty, was a 9th round draft pick in 2014.

Righty pitcher Will Morris has a 4-0 record with a 2.05 ERA in 10 appearances since the FSL All-Star break. The 23-year-old was a 24th round draft choice of the Phils in 2013.

Class A Lakewood BlueClaws (17-13 in second half, 3rd place Northern Div. South Atlantic League)

Middle infielder Grenny Cumana is batting .368 over his past 15 games. Overall, the 20-year-old Venezuelan sports a .289 average with 16 doubles, a homer, 21 RBI and 13 steals in 62 games for the BlueClaws this year.

Lefty reliever Zach Morris has a 0.53 ERA in his last 27 appearances for Lakewood after opening the season with an 8.48 ERA in his initial seven outings. The 23-year-old, who was the Phils’ 24th round draft pick out of Maryland last year, has a 4-1 record with five saves, a 2.56 ERA and a .240 batting average against in 34 overall games this year.

Class A short-season Williamsport Crosscutters (22-14, 2nd place Pinckney Div. New York-Penn League)

Righty pitcher Adonis Medina has a 4-0 record with a 1.14 ERA through seven starts this season. The 19-year-old Dominican has held opponents to a .143 batting average for the Crosscutters.

Lefty starter Ranger Suarez has a 3-0 record with a 2.56 ERA in six starts for Williamsport. The 20-year-old Venezuelan has tossed five innings or more in each of his outings.

Right-hander Bailey Falter is boasting big strike out numbers for the Cutters with a 10.9 K/9 mark (and a 2.3 BB/9 mark) over six starts. The 19-year-old, the Phillies’ 5th round draft pick from last year, is 1-3 with a 3.21 ERA.

Rookie level Gulf Coast League Phillies (20-7, 2nd place Northwest Div. Gulf Coast League)

Left-handed hurler Nick Fanti has a 3-0 record with a 1.63 ERA and a .178 batting average against in six appearances (four starts) this season. Fanti, 19, was the Phils’ 31st round draft pick last year.

Outfielder Mickey Moniak has a .312/.372/.416 slash line through his first 20 professional games. The 18-year-old lefty batter was the 1st overall draft pick in this year’s MLB draft. He is batting .350 against righty pitchers, while posting a .176 average against lefties.

Outfielder Jhailyn Ortiz leads the GCL in home runs with six. The 17-year-old Dominican has a .296/.400/.593 slash line through 22 games played this season. The Phillies signed Ortiz last year for a reported $4 million.

This post originally appeared on PhilliesNation.com.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Eric B Needs to be Cut (and My Name is Rakim)

While the Phillies are on a hot streak this month, one player on the team is not. Eric Bruntlett is 1-for-12 in July. Since the start of May, Bruntlett's apex in batting average has been .167 on June 14th. Bruntlett's ineptitude can be tolerated no longer. Get rid of this guy NOW! Eric B. is the 2009 Endy Chavez. Remember Endy...the guy who in 2005 managed just 2 hits in his final 42 games played as a Phillie? That is about the sort of output the Phillies are getting from Bruntlett, and it's time to fix this void. Julio Lugo was designated for assignment last week by the Red Sox and is expected to become a free agent. The Metropolitans are rumored to be interested. Why wouldn't the Phillies be interested in a guy who could surely outhit Bruntlett? Lugo was hitting .284 through 37 games played this season with Boston. Suspended Lehigh Valley IronPig Pablo Ozuna is eligible to return next Wednesday. Ozuna is batting .294 through 51 games at triple A. Miguel Cairo is also...

5th spot, Wall, Old timers, Links

The race for the Phillies' fifth starter spot is still on. While it's not fully fair to compare Grapefruit League stats, when some of the pitchers have had "B game" and scrimmage outings mixed in, Kyle Kendrick and Carlos Carrasco look to be falling behind Chan Ho Park and "Jay" Happ. Happ added to his solid Grapefruit League stats (2.45 ERA, 1.09 WHIP in 4 games) today against the Rays. Pitching coach Rich Dubee had been displeased with Kendrick even before he surrendered 8 earned runs in 3 innings of work yesterday against the Braves. Park has been working on improving his change up, with (Coach) Jamie Moyer. Park noticed Moyer's location control on his change, so he sought out Moyer to teach him the grip and positioning of the ball. Moyer, of course, feels good about helping anyone on the Phils' staff. Park has been coached by greats like Nolan Ryan with the Rangers and Sandy Koufax with the Dodgers, so Moyer is in great company. Park is working h...

Yankees Fans Misled By Pepsi Promotion

**** Today, New York Yankees fans attended a Pepsi promotion in Times Square hoping for chances to win opening day tickets to the new stadium, but the tickets, which were difficult to track down due to poor organization on Pepsi's part, were actually for a game in June. Furthermore, the 250 pairs that were promised were actually only 100 pairs. The fans, who were made to sprint through traffic over multiple city blocks when locations for the promotion changed, quickly turned against the soda brand by pooring out their beverages and chanting anti-Pepsi phrases. Yankees fans are even threatening a boycott of Pepsi. An appearance by Yankee great Goose Gossage could not even settle the angry mob, as he had to be whisked away, as a precaution, according to the Daily News . Ooo , I'd hate to see what "the worst fans in sports" (Philadelphia fans) would have done to their free Pepsi cans and beloved reliever in that situation. Because this happened in a non-Philly city, th...