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On Saturday, Rangers veteran Michael Young waived his no-trade clause, approving a deal to the Phillies, who sent two righty hurlers to Texas.  The 36-year-old Young has manned third base, first base and second base a considerable amount during his 12-year big league career, all with the Rangers. Slated to be the Phillies' everyday third baseman, the seven-time All-Star and career .301/.347/.444 hitter commanded a quality return, as the Rangers acquired reliever Josh Lindblom and prospect Lisalverto Bonilla . Phillies fans got a sizable sampling of Lindblom last season, after he was acquired from the Dodgers in the Shane Victorino trade.  The 25-year-old posted a 1-3 record with 1 save, a 1.53 WHIP and a 4.63 ERA in 26 games for the Phils.  Often critiqued for being a fly ball pitcher, Lindblom was not seen as being an ideal type to dominate at Philadelphia's Citizens Bank Park. With Justin De Fratus , Phillippe Aumont , Mike Stutes and several other names...

We're back with another edition of the weekly off-season league rundown.  Check it out, as we take a tour around the globe for a look at Phillies talents participating in various autumn and winter league action. Venezuelan League- With La Guaira, righty-handed hurler J.C. Ramirez (pictured, left) has posted a 2-1 record with a 10.80 ERA through 10 outings while walking seven and striking out six in 6 2/3 innings.  The 24-year-old, who was acquired as part of the 2009 Cliff Lee trade with Seattle, pitched exclusively as a reliever in the Phillies system in 2012, sporting a 3-4 record with a 4.01 ERA and a .230 batting average against in 45 games at Double-A and Triple A. Freddy Galvis is batting .291 with six doubles, two triples and five homers in 40 games with Zulia.  Galvis, a 23-year-old shortstop, batted .226 with three home runs and 24 RBI in 58 games with the big league Phillies in 2012. Second baseman Cesar Hernandez has posted a .286 avera...

It's another edition of our weekly off-season league updates.  Check it out, as we take a tour around the globe for a look at Phillies talents participating in various autumn and winter league action.   Mexican League- Catcher Sebastian Valle (pictured, left) is batting .214 with two doubles, two home runs and seven RBI in 17 games with Los Mochis.  The righty hitting Valle, 22, was an All-Star in the Double-A Eastern League in 2012 prior to earning a promotion to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Venezuelan League- Darin Ruf wrapped up his time with the La Guaira last week. The 26-year-old Creighton product posted a .258 batting average with 10 HR and 27 RBI in 32 games for the Tiburones. Ruf, a 20th round draft choice from 2009, made his big league debut with the Phillies in September and batted .333 with two doubles, a triple and three home runs in 12 games. Righty reliever Justin Friend has a 3-1 record along with one save and a 5.19 ERA in 20 outi...

Once again it's time for the weekly off-season league updates.  Check it out, as we take a tour around the globe for a look at Phillies talents participating in various autumn and winter action.  Statistics are current, through action played on Saturday.   Venezuelan League- Freddy Galvis (pictured, left) has a .315 average with four doubles, one triple and three homers while driving in nine runs in 24 contests for Zulia.  Despite recent reports that Galvis, who turns 23-years-old this week, could be a possible solution to the Phillies' vacancy problem at third base, the switch-hitter has played shortstop exclusively in the Venezuelan League.  Tyson Gillies returned to action on Saturday, after sitting out due to undisclosed reasons over the past two weeks.  The outfielder, who has dealt with a steady string of injuries since he was acquired from Seattle in 2009, missed nine days earlier in the Venezuelan League season with a hamstring issue....

With Thursday's 1-0 loss at Trenton, Reading has been shut out for three consecutive games. It is the first such streak since April, 2005. In addition, the R-Phils are just 3-12 in July, after ending June 1.5 games up in first place in the Double-A Eastern League's Eastern division. On the club's offensive struggles of late, manager Dusty Wathan (pictured) had the following to say: "I think (the struggles) would have been (of great concern) if we hadn't seen some adjustments made. I think (Thursday's) ball game, we did a nice job with our bats all the way from top to bottom, for the most part. We gave ourselves some chances to score some runs. It was just one of those things in baseball where you can't get the big hit. I think if you had talked to me a week ago, I would have been a little bit frustrated with the way our approach is at the plate. But, I think we've made some nice adjustments and I think it'll come, with patience. I think we...

It's another edition of the PhoulBallz Minor League Podcast with Jay and Tug. On this week's episode we talk about Double-A pitcher David Buchanan 's injury, the MLB All-Star Futures Game selections, the Williamsport Crosscutters and tales from Lakewood, including the reveal of which BlueClaws player asked pro wrestling legend Bret "the Hitman" Hart the most awkward question ever. We also play the Twitter game and much more. Check out the media player below to listen to the full show, or download it by clicking HERE . Additionally, click HERE to listen to previous episodes of the program. You can also subscribe on iTunes .

On Thurs day, Major League Baseball announced the rosters for the 2012 MLB All-Star Futures Game to be held on Sunday, July 8th in Kansas City. Two righty hurlers from Double-A Reading will represent the the Phillies in the 14th annual event that coincides with yearly All-Star festivities. Puerto Rican born Julio Rodriguez and Dominican Republic native Lisalverto Bonilla , have been named to the World team. Rodriguez, the 6-foot-4-inch 230-pounder is the lesser-known of the Phils' group of Baby Aces. Through 13 starts this season, Rodriguez has a 4-1 record with a 2.81 ERA and a .220 batting average against while averaging 8.67 strike outs per 9 innings. He was ranked as the 8th best prospect in the organization by PhilliesNation.com earlier this year. Bonilla, a 6-foot-1-inch 165-pounder who began the season with Class-A Advanced Clearwater, has tallied some impressive stats as well. Combined at the two levels this season, Bonilla has a 3-2 record with 2 saves, a 1.95 ERA ...

In place of our usual weekly minor league review where we glance at statistics of players that are on a roll or ones that are performing in the opposite manner, we'll let an inside man have a go at providing information on some Phillies prospects of importance. Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to sit down with Gorman Heimueller, the Phillies' minor league pitching coordinator. Heimueller, who has been the Phils' minor league pitching coordinator since 2002, pitched 14 seasons as a pro, including parts of two with the Athletics. Prior to his current position, Heimueller was a pitching coach at the Double-A and Triple-A level for the Phillies. On Saturday, Heimueller offered his thoughts on several young hurlers in the organization's developmental system. Those quotes lie ahead. On Class A Lakewood RHP Colin Kleven , who is the team's lone South Atlantic League All-Star representative... "His career, the way he's come, from when we drafted him, he'...

Righty hurler Lisalberto Bonilla was one of the fastest rising prospects in the Phillies organization last season. With an All-Star campaign for Class A Lakewood, the 21-year-old built on an already impressive two seasons as a pro, as he showed the world that it's not just Philadelphia's well-regarded "Baby Aces" that should have folks excited about the organization's developing young arms. The 6-foot-1-inch 170-pounder was signed by the Phillies as an amateur free agent in December 2008. Bonilla began his professional career the following year with the Dominican Summer League team, posting a 6-2 record with a remarkable 1.41 ERA and 2 complete game shutouts in 11 starts. In 2010, Bonilla split his time between the Gulf Coast League Phillies and the short-season Williamsport Crosscutters. As a starter in the GCL, Bonilla went 2-1 with a 1.95 ERA with 38 strike outs and 5 walks in 32 1/3 innings. After flying high, once he took a step upward, the youngster came ba...

Dominican born right-hander Lisalberto Bonilla took great strides in the Phillies developmental system during the 2011 season. As hurlers like Justin De Fratus , Julio Rodriguez , Jesse Biddle and Trevor May excelled on the mound and proved worthy of their high prospect rankings within the organization, they were joined by a fast rising star with great control and a solid repertoire. Bonilla sports a fastball that regularly reaches the mid-90's as well as a great change up and an always-improving slider. Signed by the Phillies in 2008, Bonilla made his professional debut with the Dominican Summer League Phillies the following year, posting a 6-2 record with a 1.41 ERA and a .189 batting average against in 11 games, all starts. In 2010, Bonilla split his season with the Gulf Coast League Phillies and the short season Williamsport Crosscutters. In 16 combined games, Bonilla went 3-4 with a 3.99 ERA. The 6-feet-1-inch 170-pound Bonilla began the 2011 season in extended spri...

On Monday, the annual Florida Instructional League got underway for Phillies minor leaguers at the team's spring training home in Clearwater. Instructs, as they are commonly known, is a month-long off-season league, generally consisting of recently drafted players, those that missed time due to injury, or those that participated in a short-season league, allowing those individuals to refine their skills or add innings/at bats to their season. It also serves as an opportunity for a greater number developmental coaches and managers to see newly signed players in action. Below is a full roster of Phillies minor league players and coaches in attendance for the instructional league. Pitchers: Gabriel Arias , Jesse Biddle , James Birmingham , Lisalberto Bonilla (pictured), Ranfi Casimiro , Lendy Castillo , Brody Colvin , Jesen Dygestile-Therrien, Perci Garner , Kenneth Giles , Steven Inch , Ulises Joaquin, Jay Johnson , Colin Kleven , Ervis Manzanillo , Lino Marti...