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The man known to Philadelphia faithful as “Benny Fresh” is heading north of the border, as the Phillies have dealt outfielder Ben Francisco to the Toronto Blue Jays for minor league left-handed pitcher Frank Gailey . Francisco, was acquired by Philadelphia in a July, 2009 trade that initially brought star hurler Cliff Lee to town in exchange for four prospects. In his time with the Phillies, Francisco batted .260 with 16 HR and 61 RBI in 225 regular season games played. The 30-year-old is likely best known for his homerun in game 3 of the 2011 division series against St. Louis that locked down a win for Philadelphia. In 17 career postseason games, the California native has tallied a .105 batting average. Gailey, a 26-year-old lefty, was born in Philadelphia and attended West Chester University. In 2011, Gailey split time between Class A Advance Dunedin and Double A New Hampshire. In the Florida State League, Gailey was strong, going 4-2 with a 1.84 ERA and a .168 batting average again...

Ben Francisco , who had notched just 1 hit in 20 career postseason plate appearances prior to his pinch hit at bat in game 3 of the National League Division Series, mashed a line drive homerun in the top of the 7th inning to help the Phillies take a 2 games to 1 lead in the best-of-five National League Division Series. The 3-run blast by the man known as " Benny Phresh " provided the Phillies with all the offense they would need, as they downed the Cardinals 3-2. Left-handed hurler Cole Hamels earned the win, as he threw 6 scoreless inning and struck out 8 Cardinals in the process. For Hamels, it was it was his 7th career postseason victory. Veteran reliever Ryan Madson , who has appeared in more postseason games (32) than any other pitcher in Phillies history, allowed a run in 1 2/3 innings but preserved the win and notched a save. The Phillies and Cardinals will face off in game 4 on Wednesday evening at St. Louis' Busch Stadium. ___________________________________...

The Phillies have what can only be described as one of the most promising starting pitching rotations in the history of Major League Baseball. Their potential for greatness—not just in the upcoming season but in the foreseeable future—is as large as the price they paid to be in this position, something few teams can say with a straight face. However, even knowing that great pitching can handily defeat great hitting, the Phillies still have a some hole that needs to be addressed before they can reach that illusive label of greatness. Now, to check in on your local internet casinos , sports book or other gambling hub, you’ll notice instantly that the Phils’ odds of winning the World Series far surpass any other team’s odds at this early juncture. But let’s not allow expectation to tell the tale. Potentially, there’s still a hole out in right field due to Jayson Werth’s decision to abandon the club for division rival—not on the same level, but still a rival—Washington, when he signed with...

Reports out of Clearwater today have Domonic Brown headed back to Philadelphia to meet with team doctors after X-rays showed that he has a fracture of the hamate bone in his right hand. Brown left Saturday's game against the Pirates shortly after he snapped an 0-for-15 slump with his first Grapefruit League hit, a single off Pittsburgh hurler Paul Maholm . According to Phillies.com's Todd Zolecki , surgery is likely for Brown, who is the Phillies' top prospect, and he could return to baseball activities in up to six weeks. These circumstances nearly lock Ben Francisco into the starting right field role for opening day. Francisco, who notched two hits in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Pirates, is batting .421 thus far in spring training action. Update: PhilliesNation.com 's Paul Boye' found this nugget in an ESPN.com chat (scroll down to 1:03), where baseball insider Keith Law states that the typical return to full power following a hamate injury is 12-18 months...

On Monday afternoon, in Dunedin, FL, the Phillies won their second Grapefruit League game, as they defeated the Toronto Blue Jays by a score of 6-3. Read ahead for some key notes from the match up. - Roy Halladay made the start against his former team, earning the win with 2 shut out innings of work. Halladay allowed 2 hits, walked 1 and struck out 1. - Ben Francisco continued to make a firm case to be the Phillies' everyday right fielder to start the season. Through 3 spring games, "Benny Fresh" is batting .571. He collected his fourth RBI in two days with an RBI single off of Jays hurler Carlos Villanueva in the 4th inning. -JC Ramirez, who was named the Phillies' #15 prospect recently by PhoulBallz.com and PhilliesNation, looked tremendous, throwing 2 shut out innings against the Blue Jays starting lineup. Ramirez struck out 4 and walked 1, while allowing a hit and reached 95 MPH with his fastball on the stadium radar gun. - Carlos Ruiz and Placido Polanco ea...

The AL Central leading Twins (38-28) visit the NL East's third place Phillies (34-30) for a three game series starting Friday night. Hoping to win three games in a row for the first time in a month, the Phillies will send Joe Blanton to the mound, hoping he can right his own ship and turn around what has been a weak showing thus far in 2010. The Twins will counter with Nick Blackburn for game 1. The Twins visit Philadelphia for the first time since 2002 and the teams last met in 2004, when the Phillies traveled to Minnesota. Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins and Twins second baseman Orlando Hudson could both be activated from the disabled list during this series. Read ahead for information on the pitching match ups and plenty more stat details from this series. Friday, 7:05pm. Nick Blackburn (6-3, 4.96) vs. Joe Blanton (1-5, 7.28 ERA). In 6 road start this season, Blackburn has a 2-3 record with a 7.31 ERA. In 3 June starts, the right-handed Blackburn has an 8.10 ERA. Ben Francisco...

It's the rematch! Both the Phillies (32-29) and the Yankees (40-23) will have their aces going in the series opener when Roy Halladay and C.C. Sabathia meet up in the collission of last year's World Series opponents. The Yankees won the best-of-seven series in six games. The Yankees enter the series tied for first place in the American League East with the team the Phillies faced in the World Series two seasons ago, the Tampa Bay Rays. The Phillies, however, are struggling to climb back atop the National League East, as they are in third place, 3 1/2 games behind the first place Braves and 1 1/2 games behind the second place Metropolitans. Read ahead for details on the pitching match ups for this series as well as loads more information. Tuesday, 7:05pm. Roy Halladay (8-4, 1.96 ERA) vs CC Sabathia (6-3, 4.01 ERA). In 37 games against the Yankees, Halladay has an 18-6 record with a 2.84 ERA. In 6 road starts this season, Halladay is 4-1 with a 1.52 ERA. Curtis Granderson is 5-f...

It's Roy Halladay bobblehead figurine day at Citizens Bank Park. Poor weather in the forecast aside, phans all over the area are excited that this giveaway and the Phillies' starting rotation worked out to coincide with each other, as Halladay is scheduled to pitch tonight for the defending National League champs against the Pirates. Halladay, who is often regarded as one of baseball's best pitchers, will be honored with his first Phillies bobblehead after just 8 regular season appearances with Philadelphia. This sort of rush service to bestow Halladay souvenirs on the public got me wondering what other souvenirs the Phillies could rush to the public. Here's my list of desired new promotions that should make their way to Citizens Bank Park. #5 "The Phield" Philadelphia blogger first pitch night. Ceremonial first pitches will start at 2:30 pm for a 7:05 pm game as all Phillies bloggers will be allowed to toss a first pitch to a rotating series of irrelevant for...

Dear Charlie Manuel, What has the man they love to call "Benny Fresh" done to draw your ire? Last season after Benny was acquired in July, along with that Cliff Lee guy, he rarely went more than a couple days without an at bat. However, this season, Mr. Francisco just can't seem to get any playing time. Since April 27th, Ben has gotten just 1 at bat. In 2009 with your Phillies, Ben didn't go a calendar week without 6 at bats and had at least 10 at bats per week down the stretch, as your Phils approached the postseason. Are you still upset over that little thing where Ben went 0-for-11 in the postseason last year? Forgiveness is a gift that you can give to yourself, Charlie. I know he's batting .211 with just 1 RBI this season, and yes, and he is struggling mightily compared to last season, but what do you expect from a guy with just 19 at bats since spring training? If Benny suspiciously used binoculars and caused a national controversy, might he gain your support...