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On this week's edition of PhilliesNation TV, I appeared on set with Pat and Corey to chat about several aspects of the Phils' developmental ranks, mainly focused on the third base and catching positions. I addressed the positional conflict that Cody Asche and Maikel Franco might be faced with ( which I also wrote about here ) as well as exciting backstops Cameron Rupp and Tommy Joseph .  To see the full episode, click here , but you can view clips of the topics mentioned above in the media players below. New episodes of PhilliesNation TV debut each Tuesday at 6 PM on The Comcast Network and replay throughout the week on TCN as well as Comcast SportsNet. Your browser does not support iframes. Your browser does not support iframes.

Condolences to the entire Trenton Thunder family, as they lost their internationally loved bat dog Chase That Golden Thunder on Tuesday. The handsome golden retriever made his debut with the Double-A Yankees affiliate in 2002, and went on to entertain countless numbers of baseball fans in the years that followed. Chase had been featured on CNN, the YES Network, ESPN and Japanese television. The dog's passing came just four days after he was honored in a retirement ceremony at Trenton's Arm & Hammer Park, which was attended by Chase's son and successor Derby along with other blood relations, including multiple grandchildren of the veteran bat retriever. Chase had been diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. He was 13 years old. Please see the video player below to view the Thunder's loving tribute video to Chase, which features him in action and visiting the big leagues at Yankee Stadium. Your browser does not support iframes.

Jesse Biddle, image- Jay Floyd The Double-A Reading Fightins will have four representatives in Wednesday's Eastern League All-Star Game, which is set to be played in New Britain, CT. Starting pitchers Jesse Biddle and Seth Rosin will be joined by second baseman Albert Cartwright and first baseman Jim Murphy to make up the foursome of Phillies talents in the annual exhibition. Making their first career All-Star appearances are Cartwright and Rosin, while Biddle and Murphy are each being honored for the second time. Biddle was an All-Star in the Class A Advanced Florida State League last year. Murphy represented Lakewood in the 2011 Class A South Atlantic League game. The contest will feature loads of top talent from around the EL and Biddle, who has a 3-8 record along with a 3.08 ERA and a league leading 102 strike outs through 17 starts this season, is honored to be listed among that collection of players. "To be mentioned with the players I'm playing ...

Recently, Phillies Nation TV headed out to the Class A South Atlantic League All-Star events in Lakewood, NJ to attend the Celebrity Hitting Challenge that was hosted at FirstEnergy Park by the BlueClaws. The "Clawstar Spectacular", as it was called, featured the likes of former players Matt Stairs and Dwight Gooden along with comedian Artie Lange, who were all featured in interviews on a recent edition of the program. All the footage we collect can't always make the final edit of the program, so there are often clips or interviews we don't use. Among the material that ended up on the cutting room floor were segments with former Phils closer and current MLB Network Analyst Mitch Williams as well as comedian and TV host Jim Florentine. Take a look at the media players below for those full interviews and don't miss a brand new edition of Phillies Nation TV, premiering every Tuesday night at 6 PM on The Comcast Network. Replays can be seen on TCN and Comc...

On Sunday, prior to Reading's game in Trenton, I spent some time chatting with Phillies director of player development Joe Jordan regarding as many subjects as I could, before I felt like I might be keeping him from something important on his chiming cell phone.  The topics included the Maikel Franco and Cody Asche 3rd base prospect jam, lefty hurler Adam Morgan 's upcoming return to action, the possibility of moving Brody Colvin out of the Reading rotation, and much more. That interview lies ahead... - Outfielder Kelly Dugan joined the Double-A Reading team this weekend and looks to be very deserving of the promotion.  How about his 2013? Kelly's done really well.  You know, he came- he had a wonderful spring training and had an oblique pull right at the end of camp and so he didn't get to break camp with the club.  But ever since he's gotten back on the field, he's done nothing except hit and he's played good in the outfield.  It's bee...

Occasionally, I hear from people who say things like, "You guys do a really good job (at PhoulBallz.com)!"  I met some people on Sunday at the Reading game in Trenton that were very complimentary of this site and they asserted that same sentiment.  I heard from well-known, and retired, Philadelphia sports columnist Bill Conlin with such a message a few months back.  The usual e-mail from a player's family or ex-teammate typically states that sort of thought.  And now I see a post from SoundofPhilly addressing me as "gentlemen". World, I assure you that I am a lone man.  Of course, the PhoulBallz Podcast has a co-host and producer named Tug Haines, but this site's daily written content is served up by just me. Compliments and plugs for this site are truly appreciated, but, in case there's extensive confusion, misconceptions or just bad assumptions made, I wish to state, once and for all, what you read here is posted by me, Reverend Ballz, AKA the Pal...

Following Friday's night's 8-0 loss by the Reading Fightins at the division rival Trenton Thunder (Yankees affiliate), I spoke with several players.  Righty starter Brody Colvin , who took the loss in the contest after being charged with eight earned runs over two innings, offered his thoughts on a discouraging season, catcher Tommy Joseph spoke about dealing with and recovering from his third career concussion, outfielder Kelly Dugan shared his thoughts on making his Double-A debut as well as his 2013 success and outfielder Zach Collier gave some feedback on his 3-for-34 (.088 avg) slump in his last nine contests. Read ahead for all the quotes from these Phillies prospects... Brody Colvin: - I wanted to get your thoughts on what would probably be the exact opposite of what you would find to be an ideal outing for you... The best thing to say is, (stuff) like that happens.  You know, I've been pretty inconsistent lately.  Up and down.  I guess tha...

Maikel Franco is on the rise, image- Jay Floyd Third base has been a troublesome offensive spot for the Phillies over the last decade. A homegrown prospect hasn't graced the hot corner for the Fightins since 2002, when the club dealt former second-round pick Scott Rolen . In the years since that swap, Phillies third basemen have lacked the usual power that comes from third base. During a period when the big league team enjoyed five straight division titles and a couple of World Series bids, the void at third base didn't stand out very much because of all the offense posted by nearly every other position on the field. But as players around the diamond have declined, the lack of pop from the hot corner has been more apparent. Over the past decade the Phillies for the most part used Placido Polanco , David Bell and Pedro Feliz -- a group that posted weak stat lines compared to MLB averages from 3B over the same stretch. Since the Phils traded away Rolen, the 29 o...

I sat down with Double-A Reading manager Dusty Wathan on Thursday to chat about several key names in the Phillies' developmental ranks.  Among the topics of discussion were top Phils prospect lefty pitcher Jesse Biddle , fast rising third base prospect Maikel Franco, struggling left-handed starter Austin Wright and outfielder Tyson Gillies , who earned a promotion from Reading to Triple-A Lehigh Valley this week. Read ahead for all the quotes, plus some bonus Fightins related news blurbs at the end... - Lefty pitcher Jesse Biddle has now gone eight straight starts without a win.  As good as Jesse is, can this sort of stretch be disruptive or discouraging for a young player? Well, I think a lot of times, every year you can look and see one guy who pitches well and doesn't get the wins to show for how well he's pitched.  And a lot of it comes down to run support.  It's a difficult situation sometimes, but it's just, every year it seems like one of the...

Lefty pitching prospect Jesse Biddle had another very good outing on Thursday in Trenton, as the 21-year-old allowed just one earned run and three hits while striking out nine batters and walking one in six innings of work to help the Double-A Reading Fightins defeats the Yankees affiliate Thunder by a score of 5-4. The Thunder lineup featured rehabbing big leaguer Eduardo Nunez , who went 0-for-3 with a strike out against Biddle, the Phillies' 1st round draft choice from 2010. Overall in 16 starts for Reading this year, Biddle has a 3-8 record along with a 3.09 ERA and a 9.84 K/9 mark. Check out the video player below for all three of Nunez's at bats against Biddle.  Footage of the second at bat, the strike out, begins with a 0-1 count.

Winners of nine straight games, the Pirates are faced with shuffling their rotation as they were forced to warm up the next guy in their starting rotation, Jeff Locke , before they finalized a 14-inning victory against the Brewers on Sunday. The Pirates (51-30) enter July with the best record in baseball and they'll host the cross-state rival Phillies (39-44) for a three-game series that begins on Tuesday. Pittsburgh will likely push Locke back till later in the series and use Jeanmar Gomez in the opener. The Phils lost two of three to the Bucs at Pittsburgh's PNC Park last season. Read ahead for details on the pitching match ups and other key details on this series. Tuesday, 7:05 PM.  Jonathan Pettibone (3-3, 4.17 ERA) vs. Jeanmar Gomez (2-0, 2.76 ERA). The 22-year-old Pettibone has not won in his last eight starts while posting a 4.67 ERA over that stretch.  In six road starts this year, Pettibone has a 1-2 record along with a 6.39 ERA.  Pettibone mad...

One of the most raved about prospects in the Phillies system is 17-year-old Carlos Tocci . Praised for his superior defense and excellent quickness along with an ability to hit to all fields, the Venezuelan born outfielder opened the season as the youngest player in Lakewood BlueClaws history in the Class A South Atlantic League. Tocci was signed by the Phillies at the age of 16 for a reported $750,000 in August of 2011. Thus far in 73 games with Lakewood, the 6-foot-2 160-pounder has posted a .231 with 13 doubles, 15 RBI and five steals. Those numbers may not seem too impressive, but Tocci has definitely shown offensive improvements, as he has batted .249 since he posted a .192 mark in April. With the help of teammate Willie Carmona , who translated for us, I spoke with Carlos this past weekend. The youngster shared thoughts about his progress this year, what attracted him to signing with the Phillies and plenty more. Read ahead for the full interview. - How has the tra...