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Dylan Cozens, image- Jay Floyd Please consider supporting my work and subscribe to  my Patreon page .  Your patronage will get you exclusive interviews and other prospect related material as well as early access to all of my other content such as this post.  Thank you. Last week, as he rang in his 26th birthday, Dylan Cozens wasn't celebrating.  Instead, he took to the streets in the midst of rioting to protect local businesses in his native Scottsdale, AZ. After 1:00 AM, Cozens, a former Phillies outfield prospect and current Rays minor leaguer, caught a glimpse of some rowdy happening on Facebook Live.  Posts showed violence and thievery and the former second round draft selection wasn't going to let it continue.  "When I saw what they were doing and the reason behind it, I decided to try and stop it because it wasn't right. It had nothing to do with Black Lives Matter.  It was a hate crime to go and try to destroy businesses and lo...

Last month I sat down with Reading skipper Shawn Williams to talk about several of his players.  Some of the quotes from that interview remained unpublished since that time.  Among the topics of discussion for the Double-A Fightin Phils were slugging first baseman Darick Hall, infielder Arquimedes Gamboa, starting pitcher Adonis Medina and more. Read ahead for those exclusive interview excerpts... -You've got a power hitting prospect on this team in Darick Hall .  I know he had a battle in spring training with Dylan Cozens going head to head.  What was that like?  Was it fun for everyone? It was fun watching both of them  They squared off in a home run derby.  That's two guys that have big time power.  They do it in the game and they can really do it in (batting practice).  But, to see both of them squaring off, it was fun to watch.  And even (Deivi) Grullon was part of that too and Grullon put on a show.  So, it was just...

Dylan Cozens, image- Jay Floyd Exclusively for Patrons, I've got a brand new interview with Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs masher Dylan Cozens .... Slugging Phillies OF prospect, Cozens, sat down with me this week to answer nine silly-ass questions. Check out the audio of my interview with the 24-year-old lefty batter to hear his thoughts on junk food, animals, super powers and plenty more. Please help to support the coverage this web site offers by becoming a patron over on Patreon.com/PhoulBallz !  Last year I lost money to keep the site running and providing exclusive news, player features as well as updates that Phillies fans can't get any place else.  As a perk for becoming a patron, you will have access to content that won't be offered otherwise. 

Drew Anderson w/ Reading in 2017, image- Jay Floyd For those waiting to see where their favorite Phillies prospects will land and which teams they'll be headed to see in the early going this season, roster announcements have begun to come out. As always, the Class A Advanced Clearwater Threshers are the last of the bunch to release their players, but we'll get to some speculating in a bit. To start, here is who you'll see in Class A Lakewood next week, highlighted by last year's first round draft selection Alec Bohm , a big masher that plenty of people speculated could skip this level completely. From BlueClaws.com... Pitchers - Tyler Carr , Colton Eastman, Ethan Evanko , Kevin Gowdy, Ethan Lindow, Oscar Marcelino , Robinson Martinez , James McArthur, Tyler McKay , Jhordany Mezquita , Francisco Morales, Jack Perkins , Dominic Pipkin , Victor Santos, Gilmael Troya Catchers - Abrahan Gutierrez , Rafael Marchan Infielders - Alec Bohm, Luis Garcia, Jonathan G...

Dylan Cozens, image- Jay Floyd Powerful outfield prospect Dylan Cozens hopes to shake the reputation of a free swinger and become a more complete hitter in order to fulfill his dream of reaching the major leagues. At six feet six inches tall and weighing 245 pounds, Cozens has an imposing frame that was well-suited for the grid iron, as he was a two-sport star in his high school days.  After he was chosen in the 2nd round of the 2012 draft, Cozens debuted in the minors with the rookie level Gulf Coast Phillies. In 50 games there, he notched 15 doubles, two triples, five homers and 24 RBI. Cozens also participated in the Florida Instructional League in 2012. Following a productive spring in 2013, Cozens was retained in extended spring training and made his official season debut with the Class A short-season Williamsport Crosscutters when they began playing in June. Cozens was among the league leaders in many categories that year, ...

Nick Rickles, image- Jay Floyd Backstop Nick Rickles has been a key contributor this season for the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, not only at the plate, but also by helping to lead a promising pitching staff. Through 42 games, the 28-year-old righty hitter sports a .239 average with five home runs and 16 RBI. In his pro career, Rickles has played in the Athletics and Nationals organizations.  He joined the Phillies last season as part of a trade from the Nats. Last week I talked with Rickles about a pair of IronPigs All-Star hurlers, being a new father, his hockey fandom, a particular big name NBA standout and more.  Read ahead for that full interview... -Hey, how's fatherhood for ya? So far so good.  Sleep's kind of a reward at this point, but at the same time it's all new, so there's really no patterns.  She's five months old now.  You know, my wife's been the back bone for sure.  She's definitely taken the lead in (parenting), which...

Here is a quick run down of how the Phillies' minor league clubs have fared through the first two weeks or so of the 2018 regular season. Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs (7-7 record, 4th place in International League North Division)- Mitch Walding with Reading last season, image- Jay Floyd Third baseman Mitch Walding is off to a strong start for the 'Pigs.  The 25-year-old is batting .300 with four doubles, two home runs, six RBI and and eight walks through 14 games played.  The lefty batter was a 5th round draft selection by the Phils in 2011. Hurler Enyel De Los Santos, acquired last off-season from San Diego in a trade for Freddy Galvis, has been very solid in the IronPigs' rotation.  Through three starts, the right-hander has tallied a 1-0 record with a 1.98 ERA while striking out 22 and walking five in 13 2/3 innings pitched. Outfielder Dylan Cozens entered action on Saturday batting .273, but an 0-for-4 night dropped the average to .250.  In 14 ga...

Dylan Cozens, image- Jay Floyd Powerful outfield prospect Dylan Cozens hopes to shake the reputation of a free swinger and become a more complete hitter in order to fulfill his dream of reaching the major leagues. At six feet six inches tall and weighing 235 pounds, Cozens has an imposing frame that was well-suited for the grid iron, as he was a two-sport star in his high school days.  After he was chosen in the 2nd round of the 2012 draft, Cozens debuted in the minors with the rookie level Gulf Coast Phillies. In 50 games there, he notched 15 doubles, two triples, five homers and 24 RBI. Cozens also participated in the Florida Instructional League in 2012. Following a productive spring in 2013, Cozens was retained in extended spring training and made his official season debut with the Class A short-season Williamsport Crosscutters when they began playing in June. Cozens was among the league leaders in many categories that year, placing seco...

ALLENTOWN, PA-- It already seemed like a regular thing at Coca-Cola Park on Thursday as buzz-worthy prospects Rhys Hoskins and Scott Kingery each slammed a home run for the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs.  Both players continue to fuel Phillies fans' desire to see them playing at the top level of the sport with similarly explosive offensive production. Invitations for Hoskins and Kingery to play on a big league field came this week, but it wasn't precisely what the home faithful were hoping for, as the duo was chosen to play in the MLB All-Star Futures Game. The annual exhibition, which began in 1999, features top prospects from all around professional baseball.  It is slated to be played at Marlins Park in Miami on Sunday, July 9th as part of Major League Baseball's All-Star festivities.  The game pits talents from the United States against players from the rest of the World. The pair of Phils prospects has somewhat paralleled one another on their paths up t...

I haven't delivered my usual semi-weekly hot lists this year, as I have in previous season.  I hope to bring these back more often, so here's a note book on top prospect performers throughout the Phillies' organization... Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs (37-18 record, 1st place IL North Division)- Hoskins, image- Jay Floyd No player in the Phils' system has been as consistent as first base prospect Rhys Hoskins .  The 24-year-old righty batter's 1.005 OPS leads the International League.  Hoskins, who was the Phillies' 5th round draft selection in 2014 is batting .302 with 13 home runs and 41 RBI in 55 games this season. Outfielder Cam Perkins is batting .385 over his last seven games.  Perkins, a 26-year-old, has posted a .289/393/.480 slash line through 48 games this year.  The righty batter was a 6th round draft selection by the Phils in 2012. Outfielder Nick Williams was 0-for-3 on Saturday night, but prior to that contest, the 23-year-old had g...

Occasionally, Phillies director of player development Joe Jordan takes time to chat with me about the organization's rising prospects and he was generous once again this week to offer his insight.  With some top names like J.P. Crawford and Dylan Cozens struggling out of the gate and other well-regarded prospects like Nick Pivetta and the talented pitchers at Class A and High-A doing great jobs, Jordan discussed those players as well as first round draft picks outfielder Cornelius Randolph and RHP Shane Watson . Outfielders Jose Pujols and Andrew Pullin , lefty pitcher Austin Davis and others were also among the topics. Read ahead for all the exclusive comments. Franklyn Kilome, image- Jay Floyd -Joe, thus far this season the Threshers pitching staff was been excellent, with great ERA's at 2.28 or under from Franklyn Kilome , Jose Taveras, Alberto Tirado, Seranthony Dominguez and company. How pleased are you with the production from this group? They're of...

Dylan Cozens, image- Jay Floyd One of the Phillies' most promising prospects is slugging outfielder Dylan Cozens .  After leading the Double-A Eastern League in both home runs (40) and RBI (125) last year, the 22-year-old lefty batter is set to be an offensive threat for the Triple-A Lehigh Valey IronPigs. Last week I sat down with Dylan, who discussed his time in big league spring training this year, a conflict with teammate Boog Powell in last off-season's Dominican Winter League, his confidence level in his team and plenty more.  Read ahead for the full interview. -What can you share about your success in the Grapefruit League this year? It was a lot of fun. I wouldn’t say that it was extremely successful, but I feel like I was successful in showing, you know, who I am as a person and a player. So, that was a lot fun, kind of showing what I can do and stuff like that. It’s hard to show off in a short amount of time like that, but it was tons of fun, being ar...