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Kyle Martin as Santa, edit- Eric Floyd Everybody loves the holidays and, of course, baseball players are no exception. Each year at Christmas time, I survey a group of Phillies prospects about what they get excited for during the holiday season. Players taking part in this year's sixth annual questionnaire include 4th round draft pick first baseman Kyle Martin , 2nd round pick second baseman Scott Kingery , slugging outfielders Nick Williams and Dylan Cozens , righty relievers Matt Hockenberry , Jason Zgardowski and Stephen Shackleford as well as lefty reliever Joey DeNato . Questions and answers detailing each player’s holly jolly holiday favorites are ahead… -What is your favorite Christmas movie or TV special? Martin: I love comedies, so I gotta go with National Lampoons' Christmas Vacation. Kingery: A Christmas Story. That was one of my dad's favorites and we watched that one every year, growing up. I see a couple times each year. Williams: Fav...

LAKEWOOD, NJ- Left-handed reliever Joey DeNato has had an exceptional season to date with the Lakewood BlueClaws, but couldn't seem to earn a promotion despite dominating Class A competition. Until now. DeNato, a 19th round draft selection by the Phillies last year out of Indiana University, will jump three levels, as he joins the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs on Saturday. Honored as a South Atlantic League mid-season All-Star, DeNato sports a 2-3 record with 10 saves and a 1.24 ERA through 43 appearances this season. The move may be overdue, but DeNato has kept a solid frame of mind, fending off discouragement in favor of determination. "There is some frustration because I think this is the best I've ever pitched. Then again, I don't let the frustration get to me," DeNato stated with a look of empowerment during the BlueClaws' homestand this week. "If anything, I can kind of use it as a chip on my shoulder and that's what I've kind ...

This week I chatted with Class A Lakewood manager Shawn Williams and pitching coach Aaron Fultz about several young players currently in the thick of things with the BlueClaws. Williams, in his first season with Lakewood, spoke about new additions and 2015 Phillies draft picks Scott Kingery and Kyle Martin along with June's Sally League player of the month Herlis Rodriguez . Fultz took time to comment on hurlers Elniery Garcia , Ranfi Casimiro , Alexis Rivero plus more. Read ahead for comments from both coaches. Shawn Williams: -Speaking on 2nd round draft choice Scott Kingery and his impressions of the youngster thus far... He's an exciting player. He's a baseball player. He fits in with the rest of us here and he's an exciting player out there, especially defensively. He's outstanding at second, turning double plays. He can run. He puts together great at bats every game. He's had some tough luck where he's had a lot of hard outs. Jut lo...

LAKEWOOD, NJ- Five Phillies prospects, including top performers Carlos Tocci and Rhys Hoskins will represent the Lakewood BlueClaws in the Class A South Atlantic League All-Star game in Asheville, NC on June 23rd. Tocci, a 19-year-old center fielder, is batting .324 with a home run, 23 RBI and 13 stolen bases in 54 games with Lakewood. According to a press release from the BlueClaws, Tocci received more votes than any other player in the SAL, marking the second straight year that the team has had the leading vote-getter, following shortstop J.P. Crawford in 2014. Rhys Hoskin, image- Jay Floyd Last year's 5th round draft pick by the Phillies, Hoskins, has a league leading .335 batting average with seven home runs and 40 RBI. The 22-year-old first baseman was recently honored as the Phillies' minor league player of the month for May, after posting a .342 average with two homers and 23 RBI in 29 games. The righty batting slugger has been a bit reserved in regards to...

On the 72nd edition of the PhoulBallz Minor League Podcast, Tug and Jay are joined by cerebral slugger Jake Fox , who talks about his time in the Phillies' organization this year, his transition to playing with the Somerset Patriots this year, his possible future destination, having a plan at the plate and plenty more. The guys also discuss the postseason success of the Kansas City Royals as well as Phillies playing in off-season leagues. Use the media player below to stream the full episode, or simply download it by clicking HERE . You can also check out previous episodes and subscribe on iTunes .

Sliding into a key role at the back end of the Class A Lakewood bullpen late in the season, Phillies 19th round draft pick Joe DeNato has notched his first two pro saves in recent days. Through 22 pro games combined at short-season A level Williamsport and with Lakewood, the Indiana product has tallied a 3-1 record with a 1.78 ERA and a 9.68 K/9 mark. I spoke with Joe this weekend about his first minor league save, being drafted by the Phillies and more. -DeNato commented on his initial professional save against Hickory in a 3-0 win in Lakewood on Thursday... We had the shutout going, so I just really wanted that pitchers' BP, but I mean, I just went out there, knowing that I needed to throw strikes. I kind of struggled with that with the first batter. Luckily, I didn't walk him. He ended up getting on base though, but overall I just wanted to get the job done. -I asked DeNato if the Phillies were on his radar among teams interested in drafting him after posted ...

Willians Astudillo, image- Jay Floyd As Class A Lakewood standout Willians Astudillo continues his quest toward a South Atlantic League batting title, entering the final weekend of the season, his team is backing him . The 22-year-old missed all of last season with a left knee injury, but has clearly bounced back nicely. Astudillo is 40-for-85 (.471 avg) in his last 23 games, helping to boost his league leading season average to .340. I spoke with BlueClaws personnel about Astudillo's exciting batting crown chase. Read ahead for those quotes... Manager Greg Legg - "He's played the same all year, with the same energy and intensity. I never saw him have a lull. He loves baseball. I think that's the reason he gets up in the morning is to hit. But it has added some excitement to (our final week of the season). It's definitely interesting and if we can do anything to help him, we will." "It's neat, we got Cozens, who set a franchise r...

Astudillo, image- Jay Floyd The last place Lakewood BlueClaws have been out of the playoff hunt for months, but there's another chase that the entire team is focused on that's set to go down to the wire. With the regular season winding down, blossoming star Willians Astudillo is battling to clinch the Class A South Atlantic League batting title with his entire team behind him. Following a 3-for-4 effort in the BlueClaws' home schedule finale on Thursday night, Astudillo sports a .340 average, holding a six point lead on the league's next best hitter, Delmarva's Chance Sisco . The more you watch the exciting and fun-loving Venezuela native, Astudillo, the easier it is to see why his team has his back. Behind the scenes, Astudillo keeps things loose, is a constant cheerleader in the dugout and is always the one to offer a teammate a boost, when it's needed. His teammates love him for it. "We're all on his back. He's great! We want him t...