Skip to main content

PhoulBallz Interview: Phillies OF prospect Mark Laird

laird
Mark Laird, image- Jay Floyd

On Wednesday, four Phillies minor league affiliates took part in postseason play with only Class A Lakewood coming out as winners. Prior to the contest that saw the BlueClaws take a 1-0 lead in the South Atlantic League division series, I chatted with Lakewood outfielder and lead-off man Mark Laird.

The 23-year-old 9th round draft selection from last year shared insight on his season, which didn't get rolling until July due to a back injury, the BlueClaws second-half title, the team's pitching staff and more. Read ahead for that full interview.

-What is your level of excitement, entering the postseason, the BlueClaws' first time in the playoffs in six years?

When I got here, it was kind of a long shot at making the playoffs and I think everyone did a good job staying positive and we really finished strong. I don't know how many games we won out of the last 30 games or so, but it seemed like we hardly ever lost. That has to do with our pitching. Our pitching has been lights out, out starters and our bullpen and then we've been getting hits when we needed them.  Even one-run games, we seemed to win and I think that made the difference.

-You've been batting lead-off for the club in recent weeks. What does it mean to you to have your manager's confidence to be at the top of the order?

It means a lot that he trusts me to get things going and be a table setter and that's kind of what I see myself as is someone that's going to battle in the count-- not afraid to get deep in the count and put balls in play and try to get on base for the heart of our order.

-What are your overall feelings on the type of season you've had?


It's really kind of a shock 'cause I didn't really expect it to go the way I wanted to after being out with an injury for half of the year, but I felt like I came back and did kind of what I wanted to. I felt like in Williamsport I did pretty well and here, I kind of transitioned that over. I had a lot of confidence and I've been keeping that confidence and staying positive, building off past performances and continuing to move forward.

-What details can you share on the injury?

I hurt my lower back in spring training. 

-Was there any procedure needed or was it all rest and rehab?

No procedures, just rehab and rest. I was getting ready to come back and had a set back, so it was a grinding process I had to be patient with, but the trainers did a good job of getting me back.

-You spoke of the pitching staff performing great and they've gotten a lot of credit. The team still can't win without scoring runs, so is there anyone in the lineup you'd say should be getting some recognition also?

I feel like it's not just one guy doing all the work. One through nine, everyone's been battling at the plate and having good plate appearances, not giving at bats away. It only takes a couple runs to get a W with the way (our pitchers) have been throwing.

This interview originally appeared on PhillyLongDrive.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

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...

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. ...

Harry's Plaque Has Misprint

At the ballpark today for the first time since Harry Kalas was inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame on Friday, I noticed an error in the text on his plaque. Verbage on the plaque reads like this... Voice of Phillies baseball on radio and TV for 39 seasons. Teamed with Richie Ashburn from 1971 until 1997. Harry was on the air for all of Mike Schmidt's 548 home runs, five Phillies no-hitters, seven National League Championship Series, three World Series, the first and final games at Veterans Stadium and the Citizens Bank Park 2004 opener. Received the prestigious Ford C. Frick Award in 2002 for "Major Contributions to Baseball" and was inducted into the broadcasters' wing at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. His calls were legendary, especially his signature home run call, "Outta heeere." On October 29, 2008, he brought utmost joy to Phillies fans: "The 0-2 pitch, swing and miss , struck him out. The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 Worl...