PhoulBallz.com

Luke Wertz is a relief pitcher for the Phillies single A affiliate, the Lakewood BlueClaws. Drafted by the Phillies in the 13th round of the 2007 amateur draft, Wertz missed the entire 2008 season after he required shoulder surgery. He bounced back in 2009, spending time at Williamsport, prior to joining the BlueClaws late in the season for their playoff drive that ended in a South Atlantic League title. In 28 games this season, the 24-year-old Wertz has posted a 4-2 record with a 0.82 ERA. I spoke with Luke, a Colorado native, last weekend about his success this season, his outlook toward the 2010 playoffs, his fandom as a youngster and plenty more. Check out the media player below to listen to the full interview. ______________________________________ Follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE .

A 16-5 run helped the Lakewood BlueClaws overcome a 4 1/2 game deficit in the standings to the Hickory Crawdads in the Northern Division standings, since May 30th, and win the first half title for the second straight season. Lakewood led Hickory by a game headed into Sunday's action and needed to win, or for the Crawdads to lose, in order to lock down a spot in the 2010 postseason. Both occurred, as the BlueClaws were led by slugging first baseman "The Boss" Jonathan Singleton and starting pitcher Brody Colvin in a 6-3 defeat of the White Sox affiliate Kannapolis Intimidators and Hickory suffered an 11-8 loss to Greenville. Singleton stretching prior to a game over the weekend The 18-year-old Singleton gave Lakewood an early 4-1 lead with a 3-run homerun, his 8th of the season, in the first inning. He added a nice cushion for the 'Claws when he smashed his second homer of the game in the 5th inning, putting Lakewood up 6-2 at that point. Singleton's home OPS thro...