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Regularly throughout the off-season, we'll take a look at Phillies players who are participating in various winter leagues around the world. As you might suspect, the time has come once again to provide updates on the prospects and big leaguers staying active in foreign professional leagues. - Wilson Valdez , playing with the Gigantes del Cibao in the Dominican League, has posted a weak .213/.255/.301 line in 35 games. In addition, Valdez has slugged 2 homers, driven in 18 runs and stolen 6 bases. The 33-year-old infielder batted .249 in 99 games with the big league Phillies in 2011. -Phillies utility man Michael Martinez has not seen action since December 9th with the Estrellas del Oriente in the Dominican League. Through 19 games, Martinez posted a .113 batting average with just 1 extra base hit, a double. The 29-year-old has been playing shortstop for the Estrellas. Martinez batted .196 in 88 games with the Phillies in his first MLB season in 2011. -Lefty reliever Juan Pe...

Australian native Tim Kennelly has been enjoying some serious success thus far in the 2011-2012 Australian Baseball League season. The righty hitting utility man is tearing up opposing pitching while playing for his hometown club in the second season of this current incarnation of professional baseball down under. In the early going, the 25-year-old leads the ABL with a .529 batting average and has helped his club, the defending ABL champion Perth Heat, to a league-best 11-0 record, including an 8-0 mark on the road. Kennelly's 1.237 OPS is also tops in the league. Kennelly has been a multi-positional player throughout his career in the minors, spending plenty of time at catcher, third base and in the outfield. Such versatility has helped Kennelly earn playing time within the Phillies organization. With the Heat, Kennelly is valuable to his team in the same manner, splitting his time at various spots. Originally signed by the Phillies in 2003 at age 16, Kennelly has posted a .263...

The second season of the revamped Australian Baseball League gets under way this weekend. Over the years, the ABL had previous incarnations that failed. The current version debuted in 2010 as a new entity that is jointly owned by Major League Baseball (75%) and the Australian Baseball Federation (25%). The league features many American players and coaches, plenty of which are employed by MLB affiliated clubs in the United States. The league down under consists of six teams and has the potential to grow in the coming years, provided the fan attention progresses with it. According to former Phillies minor league hurler Mike McGuire , who will pitch for the Canberra Cavalry, he's enjoying the exposure to a different culture and the popularity of the sport is growing greater. "The experience has been great so far," McGuire said. "I'm staying with a great family and the people and Aussie players are so helpful, making sure (American players) are comfortable her...

According to a source in Clearwater, Phillies 2011 top draft pick (supplemental round), Larry Greene Jr. has missed time at the Florida Instructional League with a groin strain. Greene spent time practicing with the Gulf Coast League Phillies before the end of their season, but the slugging outfielder has yet to see any real game action. The 18-year-old Georgia native received a $1 million signing bonus when he signed his first professional contract in August. Sources also confirm that lefty hurler Jesse Biddle , who posted excellent numbers (7-8 record, 2.98 ERA, 25 games) in his first full season as a pro with Class A Lakewood, will make his first instructs appearance on Tuesday, working an inning against the Pirates club. Biddle, 19, injured his right knee in his final start of the 2011 season for the BlueClaws, but has recovered well. Biddle, a Philadelphia native, was the Phillies' 1st round draft choice in 2010. 23-year-old infielder Albert Cartwright , acquired in Janua...

The history of baseball is one of the main drawing points to the greatness of a sport that dates back to the 19th century. Baseball trivia helps drive discussion and interest. Fans and players alike all value the past as much as the present, if not more so. Have you ever wondered how your Phillies knowledge might stack up against the players themselves? I know I have. But I also realize that perhaps the fan possesses an advantage over those guys, since they haven't watched the team all their lives. Upon Scott Eyre 's 2008 arrival in Philadelphia, I recall hearing details of how little he knew about the organization, which initially forced me to think that players couldn't possibly know as much about the team as the fans do. But what if there were individuals that grew up as fans of an organization and later ended up playing for that team? Well, lo and behold, the Phillies have two pitchers in their developmental ranks that used to watch games from the stands at Veter...

Here are a few exclusive insider updates on some players in the Philadelphia developmental system. -The Double A Reading Phillies have made a move with their pitching staff, moving 26-year-old Canadian Chris Kissock into the bullpen this week, after he surrendered 6 earned runs in 3 innings in his last start. Kissock had posted a 1-4 record and a 6.81 ERA in 7 starts this season. Filling the void in the team's rotation will be 25-year-old BJ Rosenberg, who previously helped solidify a strong bullpen for the R-Phils. Rosenberg, had never started as a professional, but Reading manager Mark Parent expressed some confidence in the decision to switch the two righty hurlers' roles. "Well, we want to get Kissock back in a role that is comfortable and that he was real successful in. BJ will be able to throw more innings and continue to improve his secondary stuff, which is improving all the time," Parent said on Friday. In his first start on Friday night, Rosenberg, who was s...

Mike McGuire's dream of pitching with the team he grew up rooting for was delayed recently, when a blood clot was discovered in his non-throwing arm. Surgery was required to repair the issue and McGuire has been kept out of spring training until he recovers. The right-handed hurler, whose contract was purchased by the Phillies from the Sussex Skyhawks out of the independent Can-Am League last July, experienced discoloration, with the skin turning purple and blue throughout his left arm, during a routine workout in early February. Phillies team doctor Michael Ciccotti examined McGuire and made the call to direct him toward a vascular surgeon at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia. The procedure, that McGuire endured, involved the removal of the first rib on his left side, which actually pinched a vein and resulted in the clot. The 24-year-old McGuire first noticed a problem in January during a gym session. After raising his heart rate, he noticed multiple blue spot...

As many fans know, not every baseball player gets a huge signing bonus or a large salary. Many minor league players find themselves working in the Autumn and Winter months to supplement their income and to stay busy. A question often wondered by fans: What do prospects do during the off-season? The answer is simple...pretty much anything and everything. Phillies first base prospect Matt Rizzotti is an individual who typically finds himself working during his time away from the baseball diamond. However, Rizzotti is not working this Winter as a result of having spent much of this off-season continuing to play baseball. Following the 2010 regular season, Rizzotti went to instructional ball in Clearwater for a month, then spent another five weeks playing for Mesa in the Arizona Fall League, where he batted .333 with an .865 OPS in 19 games. Last year, however, Rizzotti, who was a physical education major at Manhattan College, went back to his roots and worked as a full-time teachers assis...

On behalf of myself and The Shore Sports Network, I'd like to wish a happy Christmas to all of our readers that celebrate it. In recent weeks I've checked in with a several Phillies minor leaguers from various levels of the organization, as holiday spirit was building, to inquire about some of the players' favorite Christmas things. Check out the list of answers from the players I spoke with below. Santa De Fratus FAVORITE CHRISTMAS FOOD- RHP Jarred Cosart..."Favorite food during Christmas is chicken, ham, turkey, mashed potatoes, okra, salad. Ha ha...you name it, I'll eat it." RHP Justin De Fratus..."My favorite holiday food would have to be tamales. I don't know how many Phillies fans would know what those are, but if you are ever in Southern California during Christmas time, you have to have some." RHP Jake Borup..."Father-in-law makes red chile enchiladas!" LHP Nick Hernandez..."My favorite food, or dessert I should say, now wh...

Each season around this time, PhoulBallz.com calls upon some phriends to predict the winners of the upcoming playoffs. I surveyed a few local sports radio hosts, some popular baseball bloggers and, appropriately for the playoffs, a couple Wild Cards. This year's collection of playoff fortune tellers includes Tyrone Johnson, host of 97.3 ESPN's The Weekend Sports Guide , Joe Giglio & Mike Krenek of 97.3 ESPN's Just a Bit Outside , Chris Jones from TheFightins.com , Bill Baer of Crashburn Alley , Phillies pitching prospect Mike McGuire , play-by-play man for the Lakewood BlueClaws Greg Giombarrese, former ECW and WWE wrestler The Blue Meanie, Dick from the Toronto blog 1BlueJaysWay and yours truly, Jay Ballz of PhoulBallz.com. Check out what each of us had to say about all the upcoming playoff action, as each panelist attempted to predict all of the winners and the Most Valuable Players for the League Championship Series as well as the World Series. ALDS- Twins vs. Yank...

LAKEWOOD, NJ- Every young ballplayer grows up wishing he could play for his favorite team. Mike McGuire has an opportunity to do just that after signing with the Phillies organization in July. McGuire was a 43rd round draft pick taken by the Cleveland Indians in the 2008 amateur draft out of the University of Delaware. Early scouting reports liked McGuire's abilities, despite some arm trouble. He advanced as far as High A Level Kinston last season. While there, he posted an 0-3 record with a 5.46 ERA in 9 games, 8 of which were starts. The Indians weren't happy with McGuire's efforts this spring and released him. McGuire caught on with the Sussex Skyhawks of the independent Can-Am League, where he stayed in shape and pitched against other formerly affiliated minor leaguers. As a starter with the Skyhawks, McGuire went 3-4 with a 5.29 ERA in 8 outings. From there, just as all players in those independent leagues hope for, the 24-year-old McGuire got noticed. The Phillies wer...