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Madison Stokes, image- Jay Floyd Selected in the 10th round of this year's MLB amateur draft, corner infielder Madison Stokes was quick to make an impact in his pro career, helping the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws reach the postseason. The 22-year-old righty hitter enjoyed a swift ascent, playing six games in the rookie level Gulf Coast League before earning a promotion to Class A short-season Williamsport.  As a member of the Crosscutters, Stokes sported a .338/.452/.506 slash line in 22 games. Promoted again to Lakewood in early August, the South Carolina native would posted a .260 average with a homer and 11 RBI in 27 contests. Prior to the end of the season, I chatted with Stokes, a University of South Carolina product, about his transition to the minor leagues, his draft experience and more.  Read ahead for that interview. -What experiences did you have prior to the draft that prepared you most for playing pro ball? I think playing in the ACC in that conf...

Kyle Martin, image- Jay Floyd Saturday's home game in Reading is being billed as Super Hero Night, with the home club slated to wear Captain America inspired jerseys, but first baseman Kyle Martin kicked things off early, as he became the hero of Thursday night's contest.  The 24-year-old lefty batter blasted a two-run walk-off home run that helped the Fightin Phils knock off the visiting Bowie Bay Sox by a score of 4-3. For Martin, the round-tripper was his 11th of the season.  Through 49 games in the Double-A Eastern League, the Phillies' 4th round draft pick from 2015 is batting .191 with 31 RBI. I recently spoke with Martin, who grew up as a Philadelphia sports fan, about his ups and downs this season, working to improve and plenty more.  Read ahead for that full interview. -I wanted to get your thoughts on Eastern League competition and how you're performing in the league so far this year. It's good.  Obviously, as you move up the pitchers get bette...

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...

Kyle Martin, image- Jay Floyd First base prospect Kyle Martin grew up in South Carolina as a Phillies fan, admiring slugger Jim Thome , so it was a dream come true for his entire family when the organization made him their 4th round draft choice this year. A lefty batting power threat, Martin quickly made his professional debut with Class A Lakewood. The transition to the minors seemed easy, as the 23-year-old tallied a .279 average with five home runs and 37 RBI in 65 games for the BlueClaws. I recently spoke with the University of South Carolina product about his remarkable 2015 as a whole and he ranked how playing in the Phillies organization ranks against playing for Team USA in this year's Premiere 12 tournament. Read ahead for that interview and click here for my previous feature on the six-foot-two 240-pounder. -Are you still enjoying downtime right now or have you reached the stage of your off-season where you are back to baseball activities and knocking the ru...

This past week I spoke with Class A Lakewood manager Shawn Williams and the team's pitching coach Aaron Fultz . Below are interview excerpts from both men as we check in on a few familiar names like catching prospect Deivi Grullon , this year's second round draft choice Scott Kingery as well as 2012 first round pick Shane Watson , plus more. Williams... Grullon, image- Jay Floyd - Catcher Deivi Grullon has had some ups and downs at the plate this year. Has he made solid progress and are you pleased with his seeason? I am pleased. I know the numbers aren’t there offensively, but he’s had some tough luck, he’s had some tough outs. But, for me, more importantly, he’s finishing the season strong. His RBI’s and power numbers have come here lately. He’s gotten better, he’s having better at bats, but more importantly for a catcher, that comes first. He’s done an outstanding job all year. He’s done an outstanding job. He’s learning a lot. For me, he’s grown up a l...

On this week's edition of Phillies Nation Ian Riccaboni joined hosts Rachel Micali and Corey Seidman to talk about the Phillies dealing ace hurler Cole Hamels and All-Star closer Jonathan Papelbon . Minor league insider Jay Floyd also joins the panel to talk about the organization's rising prospects like Aaron Altherr , Andrew Knapp and Roman Quinn as well as members of this year's draft class such as Cornelius Randolph and Kyle Martin . Also, Timothy Parker joins the show with a profile piece on the local youth baseball RBI program. Check out this week's episode in the media player below. Look for new episodes each Tuesday at 6PM on The Comcast Network with replays throughout the week on TCN and Comcast Sportsnet.

Kyle Martin, image- Jay Floyd LAKEWOOD, NJ- Drafted by the team he grew up rooting for, first baseman Kyle Martin has found the transition to professional baseball to be an easy one, in the midst of living a dream. Through 15 games with the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws, the left-handed hitting Martin has had early success, sporting a .322 average with seven doubles, a triple and a homer with eight RBI. A lifelong southerner, the six-foot-two 225-pounder followed in his father's footsteps, cheering for the Phillies from far away. "South Carolina born and raised, but my dad's family and my dad was born up around the Philly area, so I kind of grew up following in his steps since there's nobody to pull for down in South Carolina," Martin shared in the FirstEnergy Park home dugout this week. Martin happily described the moment in which his family's favorite team drafted him 114th overall just last month. "I was with my whole family, my mom, my dad...

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...

With their first pick on Tuesday, the Phillies took high school shortstop Luke Williams out of California. The 18-year-old was selected 83rd overall. In his senior season this year, the six-foot-one 185-pounder sported a .315 batting average with four homers, 19 RBI and 26 stolen bases. He is rated as a plus runner and hits to all fields. Williams could remain as a shortstop and is said to have the tools to man center field. An athletic youngster, he also was a varsity wide receiver at Dana Hills High School. Williams, a righty batter, is committed to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, the same school that produced last year's second round pick Matt Imhof. The Phils took Kyle Martin in the 4th round (114th overall) out of South Carolina. As a senior this year with the Gamecocks, the lefty batting first baseman notched a .350 average with 14 homers and 56 RBI in 57 games. Additionally, he earned first-team All-SEC honors and was a second team All-American with his impressinve 1.090 O...