Phillies minor league thread

[yankeebiscuitfan]

Post anything regarding the Phillies MiLB players or Phillies' MiLB affiliations here.

[DaaBoTownSox]

Jose Contreras (elbow) tossed a hitless inning Monday in his latest rehab appearance with High-A Clearwater.

Contreras struck out two and now has consecutive scoreless appearances under his belt. The veteran right-hander is eligible to come off the disabled list Tuesday, but the Phillies likely want him to pitch on back-to-back days before returning.

[DaaBoTownSox]

Phillies recalled C Erik Kratz from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

He'll take the roster spot of Jimmy Rollins, who was placed on the paternity leave list Tuesday. Kratz went 0-for-3 in a brief stint with the Phillies earlier this month and will function as a third catcher and right-handed bat off the bench.

[RickD]

The Philadelphia Phillies' spring training home - as well as the home of its Florida State League Class A affiliate was struck by Tropical Storm Debby this weekend.

hurricanex-inset-community.jpg

Bright House is the site of the Phillies spring training and home of the Class A Clearwater Threshers.

Looks like a heck of a lot of cleanup will be needed here.

[yankeebiscuitfan]

After 46 years, the Reading Phillies (Class AA; Eastern League) will be changing the team name as part of an offseason rebranding process.

The franchise’s new name, logo, and jerseys will be unveiled at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 17 at the Name Change Announcement to be held at FirstEnergy Stadium. The event will run 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

“Since 1967, the Reading Phillies have been proud affiliates of the Philadelphia Phillies,” said Reading General Manager Scott Hunsicker. “Our relationship is the longest affiliation in the minor leagues and there has never been a better time to be a Phillies affiliate.. Considering the heritage and fun nature of Baseballtown, our entire front office is extremely anxious to unveil and share our new name with everyone on November 17th.”

[yankeebiscuitfan]

It is rumored that the new name of the Phillies AA affiliation will be Reading Fightin' Phillies. This rumor hasn't been confirmed yet.

[yankeebiscuitfan]

Well, the rumor is true. From 2013 the Phillies AA team will be called the Reading Fightin Phils.

Here's the article:

At the end of the day, we're pretty sure the fuss was unwarranted, but that doesn't mean the new look is a success: the Reading Phillies are now the Reading Fightin Phils (Class AA; Eastern League), as the team opts to brand with an ostrich and a moniker ostensibly missing an apostrophe -- while also emphasizing ties with parent Philadelphia.

There may be a reason the ostrich -- as we'll explain in a bit -- but why drop the apostrophe (Fightin' Phils, the correct way to do it) in favor of the Fightin Phils, or Fightins? A Fightin?

At least there's a reason for the ostrich: it's related to Crazy Hot Dog Vendor. But at the end of a day, it's still an ostrich, not exactly the first wingless, flightless bird you think of when you think of sports. (That, sports fans, would be the penguin. The penguin.)

“When we decided to look at our franchise, we felt that we needed a mark the spoke to families since being a family destination has been paramount to our success,” said Fightin Phils General Manager Scott Hunsicker. “Our former mark didn’t speak to those families and kids—something our new mark definitely does. Why an ostrich? Because if we were going to select an animal or creature, we wanted to pick something that spoke to the fun nature of a Fightin Phils baseball game.”

OK.

In addition to the ostrich logo, Reading has rolled out unique symbols of an “F-fist” logo, a historic feathered “R” logo, and several feathered “Fightins” and “Fightin Phils” wording reminiscent of the fun, flightless bird.

The Reading Fightin Phils identity set introduces Phillies Red, Nighttime Navy, Feather Gray, and Ostrich Flesh as the team’s new official colors.

On top of its new name and logo, the team will have the most on-field wear in the minor leagues when they take the field in April.

At home, the team will wear an exact replica of the 1950 Whiz Kids cream-colored uniforms with Fightin Phils emblazoned across the chest. With the help of historians, the Fightin Phils will wear a faux-flannel uniform with pinstripes that recreate those worn by Richie Ashburn, Del Ennis and former Reading Phillies skipper Andy Seminick. The Fightin Phils will wear either the navy cap with the feathered “R” logo hat or the navy ostrich hat.

Reading Fightin Phils capThe team will also don an alternate navy jersey at home games with white inserts up the front of the jersey. White script displaying Fightins will read across the chest of this jersey. Fightins players will wear a separate navy cap with the “F-Fist” logo when they wear the alternate jersey.

readingphilscap.jpg

“Even though most of our fans are Phillies fans, not all of them are,” said Hunsicker. “The Fightins is an identity that allows those in Berks County and beyond to celebrate both the Phillies and the Reading franchise independently of the Phillies if they choose to do so.”

The three navy home caps with three uniquely different logos on the front each are specifically designed to reach out to three different fan groups. With its cartoonish appearances, the ostrich cap is targeted toward the youthful at heart. The mighty “F-Fist” hat is aimed at young adult to middle-aged fan. Hearkening back to Reading’s past teams like the Indians and Red Sox, the feathered historic “R” hat is tailored for the baseball fans that have supported Baseballtown for years.

The Fightins will honor the legacy of Baseballtown by wearing a gray faux-flannel uniform on the road, a first for a professional baseball team. The gray jersey will display the Baseballtown script across the chest with a patch of Bunbino on the sleeve. Fightins players will wear a iris blue cap featuring the Bunbino logo.

On the road and at select home games, players will have the option to wear black Baseballtown jerseys with blue inserts up the front. The black uniforms mirror the same jerseys worn by Eastern League All-Stars during the 2012’s Baseballtown All-Star Classic. When at home, the team will wear an iris blue hat with a yellow “B”; while on the road, the team will wear the Bunbino iris blue cap.

The completely different Baseballtown color scheme means that the team will also wear a slew of corresponding on-field wear. With both the home and Baseballtown color schemes, the Reading Fightin Phils will have the most on-field gear of any minor league team in history.

“Our analysis showed us that Baseballtown resonated across all metrics,” said Hunsicker. “Our fans love Baseballtown and what it represents from a historic standpoint. Fans in visiting cities are fascinated by the Baseballtown identity and how it spoke to the baseball history of the entire region.”

The Fightins look was brought to life at Brandiose in San Diego, where Jason Klein and Casey White make teams famous by celebrating their brand stories. Partners Klein and White invented the first glow-in-the-dark on-field cap for the Casper Ghosts and first on-field rally cap for the Altoona Curve. They also have dreamt up some of the most popular logos in baseball including the Richmond Flying Squirrels, Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs, and the Cincinnati Reds, America’s oldest baseball club.

“Jason and Casey are the best in the world at what they do,” said Hunsicker. “Their practice of integrating themselves into the team and town they are designing for has paid dividends for us. Working with two guys of their caliber made our entire rebranding a smooth and exciting process.”

The development process for the rebranding began 18 months ago when Klein and White met with front office staff, community members, and Philadelphia Phillies representatives to discuss how the franchise could further its brand while digging deeper into its heritage. Brandiose developed the logos, uniforms, and other enhancements for the 2013 season.

“Our relationship with the Phillies is stronger than ever and the Fightin Phils is a unique way to enhance our ties with Philadelphia even more,” Hunsicker said. “The Fightin Phils reaffirms our bond with the Phillies in a creative, unique way.”

[The_Guru_93]

The IronPigs are currently sitting in 3rd place in the International League North Division with a 7-8 record. Currently, they are on a 2 game losing streak. Surprisingly their problem has been playing in their home ballpark as they are 2-6 at home, and 5-2 on the road.

Only 4 players have appeared in all 14 games for the IronPigs thus far, Cesar Hernandez, Cody Asche, Darin Ruf, and Leandro Castro.

The Good:
Josh Fields(3B)- 11 G, 13-33, 8 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 5/9 BB/K, 1/1 SB, .394/.474/.697
Steve Susdorf(RF)- 6 G, 6-17, 4 R, 2 2B, 1/1 BB/K, .353/.389/.471
Cesar Hernandez(2B)- 14 G, 20-58, 3 2B, 1 3B, 1/1 SB, .345/.367/.431
Michael Martinez(SS)- 10 G, 11-33, 5 RBI, 3/6 BB/K, .333/.378/.364
Cody Overbeck(1B)- 11 G, 12-39, 8 R, 4 HR, 9 RBI, .308/.372/.641
Tommy Joseph(C)- 10 G, 2 HR, 12 RBI

Adam Morgan(SP)- 3 GS, 1-0, 1.42 ERA, 19 IP, 0.84 WHIP
Cesar Jimenez(P)- 4 G, 1.74 ERA, 10.1 IP, 1/7 BB/K, 0.87 WHIP
Justin De Fratus(P)- 6 G, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 9 IP, 3/8 BB/K, 1.11 WHIP
Joe Savery(P)- 5 G, 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.2 IP, 0/11 BB/K, 0.26 WHIP, 1 SV, 1 HLD


The Bad:
Josh Fields(3B)- 11 G, 3 Errors
Cesar Hernandez(2B)- 14 G, 2 Errors
Michael Martinez(SS)- 10 G, 2 Errors, 1/3 SB
Cody Asche(3B)- 14 G, 2 Errors, 53 AB, 14 SO
Steven Lerud(C)- 5 G, 2 Errors
Cody Overbeck(1B)- 11 G, 39 AB, 13 SO
Darin Ruf(LF)- 14 G, 53 AB, 14 SO
Tommy Joseph(C)- 10 G, 37 AB, 12 SO, .189 AVG
Steven Lerud(C)- 5 G, .176 AVG
Pete Orr(3B)- 10 G, .167 AVG
Tyson Gillies(CF)- 12 G, .163 AVG
Jermaine Mitchell(CF)- 11 G, .200 AVG
Leandro Castro(RF)- 14 G, .226 AVG

Tyler Cloyd(SP)- 3 GS, 0-2, 7.07 ERA, 14 IP, 8/15 BB/SO, 1.93 WHIP
Ethan Martin(SP)- 3 GS, 8.10 ERA, 13.1 IP, 10/15 BB/SO, 1.58 WHIP
Zach Miner(P)- 5 G, 0-1, 6.97 ERA, 10.1 IP, 8/4 BB/SO, 1.65 WHIP
Michael Stutes(P)- 7 G, 1-2, 7.71 ERA, 9.1 IP, 7/9 BB/SO, 1.82 WHIP
Justin Friend(P)- 4 G, 5.79 ERA, 9.1 IP, 8/7 BB/SO, 2.14 WHIP
Jonathan Pettibone(SP)- 2 GS, 0-1, 9.64 ERA, 9.1 IP, 5/8 BB/SO, 2.14 WHIP
B.J. Rosenberg(SP)- 2 GS, 6.00 ERA, 9.0 IP, 4/7 BB/SO, 1.67 WHIP

It seems that on top of being bad at home, errors and walks are killing the IronPigs. Only one member of the Starting Rotation has been good so far, while the rest have been terrible. The infield, including catcher have accounted for 14 Errors so far through 14 games. If the pitchers can get on track and the fielders can stop committing errors the IronPigs have enough talent to make a run at the postseason, as well as have a few September call-ups.

[yankeebiscuitfan]

The Williamsport Crosscutters have sold the naming rights of their (historic) Bowman Field to a company to be named later.

The buyer and the new name haven't been disclosed, but the city of Williamsport has sold naming rights to Historic Bowman Field, home of the Williamsport Crosscutters (short season A; NY-Penn League).

The new name will be "______ Park at Bowman Field." The sale price: $150,000 over five years. The new name won't be officially unveiled until June.

I hope that the stadium will remain in tact and that no bells and whistles will be added.