New BlueClaws manager Mark Parent was on with our buddies Joe and Mike over at the Shore Sports Report (website, Twitter) on Wednesday afternoon. You can hear them every weekday, 3pm - 6 pm, on 1160 WOBM-AM and Fox Sports 1310 (the BlueClaws radio home).

Anyway, here are some snippets from Parent…

• Managing with a catcher’s background: You learn how to deal with different personalities, get the best out of them, like a car salesman. You sell what you need to get across, the Phillie way, make it a part of what they believe in and will be successful with. As a catcher, you deal with so many personalities. The shortstop goes and fields a groundball and hits. A catcher works on every hitter, 30 pitchers over the course of the season, and is always thinking a few innings ahead.
• Philosophy: Practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect. Taking 100 ground balls while going through the motions is not going to make you better. Taking 15 or 20 with a purpose will make you successful. That’s something that Cal Ripken, Sr. instilled in me a long time ago.
• Manager that influenced him: Larry Bowa. I came up in AAA with Larry and through the San Diego organization. The thing that always impressed me was that he was thinking two or three innings ahead and never got caught up in the rah-rah stuff. He never missed a pitch and always saw situations. He was a teacher, always had his players ready, and it always seemed to happen just the way he planned out.
• Why return now: I got the itch…I watched my two kids grow up a little bit, they’re kind of getting tired of me. What I do is baseball, so here I am.
• Balance between winning and development: Development is first and foremost. Each organization that I played for had their philosophies. None of them were that much different but they had their philosophies. You try to win the ballgame but the important thing is that they’re learning…get the guy over from 2nd to third with less than two outs…I wasn’t a very good player but I found my niche helping the team win when I played. You have to find a way to help the team when you’re in there.

And my favorite quote, when asked if he has aspirations to coach or manage in the big leagues…

• “I tell the kids, the back of my baseball card is full. We’re doing this to develop you.”

Just a quick heads up…Saturday is the annual Breakfast with Buster holiday food and toy drive here at FirstEnergy Park. Basically as follows:

• Bring an unwrapped toy or non-perishable food item to FirstEnergy Park on Saturday from 9 am - 11 am.
• We’ll have free bagels and coffee (courtesy of Manhattan Bagel of Brick)
• Pictures with Buster and Santa Claus (just six days before Christmas, his busy time)
• Everything goes to the Salvation Army of Ocean County

Photos from last year’s event here

When the dust finally clears out after the deal is officially announced, possibly later today, it looks like the tally will be seven former BlueClaws that in one way or another helped the Phillies land Roy Halladay. In all, four of them were traded for Lee, who was in turn traded to Seattle in the Halladay deal.

Let’s take a look…

The Cliff Lee Deal
Jason Donald: Middle-infielder was with the BlueClaws in 2007, when he hit .310, earning an early June promotion. The Arizona product, drafted in 2006, ended up in AAA this year with the Indians, and has a chance to make their Opening Day roster in 2010. He and Jason Knapp are the only members of the Lee deal to not yet reach the big leagues.

Jason Knapp: He pitched great at times for Lakewood, but his season was unravled on July 10th in Kannapolis when he injured his shoulder, allowing 6 runs in 2/3 of an inning in the process. The BlueClaws scored less than three runs per game for Knapp (hence his 2-7 record) but he throws 95 and fanned 111 in just 85 innings. He’ll likely open 2010 with Hi-A Kinston.

Carlos Carrasco: One of the three aces on the 2006 SAL Champion BlueClaws, when he went 12-6, 2.26, Carrasco made it to Cleveland last year, joining Josh Outman and Matt Maloney from the ‘06 rotation as big leaguers. After going 6-9, 5.19 with Lehigh Valley, after the trade he was 5-1, 3.17 for Columbus in the Indians system.

Lou Marson: An ‘04 draft pick, Marson was the catcher on the ‘06 BlueClaws. Debuting with the Phillies in 2008, he went 11-44 with the Indians and could make the Opening Day roster next year. He hit .277 between Lehigh Valley and Columbus last year.

The Roy Halladay Deal
Kyle Drabek: He spent part of 2007 in Lakewood before getting hurt, but emerged as the top pitching prospect in the organization during a dynamite 2009 which saw him go 13-3 between Clearwater and Reading, with almost a strikeout per inning. Obviously the Phillies were reluctant to give him up (a potential ace), but you have to give something to get something, as they say.

Travis d’Arnaud: When Marson was traded in July, that stamped d’Arnaud as the catcher of the future in the organization. A polished hitter, apparantly Toronto was going to take him in 2007 but the Phillies jumped in one pick ahead. His numbers weren’t great, .251-13-71 (he hit .211 in the first half), but had a dynamite second half (including 28 doubles). Also, he hit 13 home runs, which would have easily been 20 if he played in a more hitter friendly ballpark. Manager Dusty Wathan gave him a ton of credit not just for bouncing back with a great second half offensively, but also for being a stabalizing force for the entire pitching staff from the first out of the season to the last.

Michael Taylor: Of these seven, he’s clearly the biggest winner. Blocked by Raul Ibanez and Jayson Werth, Taylor, who will be traded to Oakland, probably jumps right into the Athletics Opening Day lineup, not far from where he went to school (Stanford). His .361-10-50 in the first half of 2008 is probably the best half any BlueClaw has ever put together offensively.

Earlier we told you that Mark Parent is the new manager of the BlueClaws, taking over for Clearwater-bound Dusty Wathan. You can read the Q&A with Parent here. But there are a lot more coaches around the entire organization. Here’s the list.

Lakewood

Lehigh Valley

• Mananger: Dave Huppert…the only manager in IronPigs history is back. He managed the BlueClaws to a 2006 Championship with Schrenk as his pitching coach.
• Pitching Coach: Rod Nichols…his 5th straight year in AAA with the Phils, he was Lakewood’s original pitching coach in 2001.
• Hitting Coach: Greg Gross…the 1973 NL Rookie of the Year completes a coaching staff identical to the 2009 version.

Reading

• Manager: Steve Roadcap…Lakewood’s manager in 2007 and 2008 begins his 5th year in the system, and second in BaseballTown.
• Pitching Coach: Bob Milacki…He flips places with Schrenk, and starts his second year in Double-A. He spent one year with Altoona while with the Pirates.
• Hitting Coach: Frank Caccitore…His third year with Reading and in the organization.

Clearwater

• Manager: Dusty Wathan…Lakewood’s manager during the Championship season of 2009, Wathan begins his third season as a Phillies manager after retiring from playing.
• Pitching Coach…Dave Lundquist…With the BlueClaws in 2008, Lundquist begins his second year with Clearwater.
• Hitting Coach…Kevin Jordan…the former Phillie begins his fourth season as a coach in the organization, and his 3rd with Clearwater.

Williamsport

• Manager: Chris Truby…thought he might be coming to Lakewood this year but he’ll return to Williamsport for a second season…Spent four years in the big leagues, this is his second as a manager.
• Pitching Coach…Lance Carter, former big league reliever in his first season as a coach.
• Hitting Coach: Jorge Velandia…utility player spent part of last year with Lehigh Valley…this is his first season as a coach.

—

Two other notes

• Our buddy Ben Hill from MiLB.com (and this blog) tweeted over to us today the following: I once attended a Phils-Marlins DH in which both games went 12 innings. Mark Parent was behind the plate the entire time.
• Mark Parent spent one year as a manager in the Mariners system when Dusty Wathan played for the Mariners organization in 1999.

The Phillies announced today that Mark Parent, former big league catcher, will manage the BlueClaws in 2010, replacing Dusty Wathan, who heads to Hi-A Clearwater. Some notes:

• Played 13 years in the big leagues, mostly with San Diego. Ended his career with Philadelphia (97-98) as Mike Lieberthal’s backup.
• Managed one year in the California League with Seattle (where Phillies AGM Benny Looper was the farm director) before retiring.
• Came out of retirement in 2005 to manage the Chico Outlaws in the Golden Baseball League (indy), winning a championship in 2007, before retiring again.
• Now, he’s back and will manage the BlueClaws in 2010. The connection came in large part from Looper, who is now in charge of player personnel with Philadelphia.

We had a chance to talk with Parent earlier today:

• What have you been doing the last few years? Nothing other than watch my kids. (One son is 19 and plays baseball at UC-Santa Barbara, another is a 15 year old high school freshman)
• How did this opportunity arise? Ruben (Amaro, Phillies GM) called me up and asked if I was serious about managing. They stressed this was a very important stop for their prospects, said they’d call me back in a few days to talk. Chuck LaMar (assistant GM) called me back in 20 minutes and asked me if I’d do it.
• Your time in the Seattle system? We had a number of prospects. Benny Looper called me and asked if I would take care of guys coming through the Cali League. Don’t baby them, just teach them how to be big league players. It seemed to work.
• Why did you decide to give it up at the time? I played for 20 years, but when you’re away from home for that long, I needed to get home, go camping during the summer. I’d never had a summer off. You’re priorities change when you have kids.
• Favorite part of managing? See people who get it, see them understand what it takes and how to get better. Seeing people who get what it takes to make themselves better, what it takes to win a ballgame. Seeing that is very satisfying.
• What did they tell you about Lakewood? They told me it’s one of the best places in the league, and the organization. They said you won’t regret being there one second. Hearing that from a GM, a big leaguer, that’s pretty good praise for a place.

Welcome back to Countdown 2010, where we ask your help in building a series of top ten lists in advance of 2010, the 10th season in BlueClaws history. We’ll unveil these each week beginning in January and we’d love your help (you can answer using the comments section).

Last week in Countdown 2010: Part One, we asked for your help in selecting some of the top giveaway items, moments, and celebrity appearances in BlueClaws history (click here). This week, we’re moving on to some new items…

• Favorite food items: Anything from the BellyBuster sandwich (pulled pork, beef brisket, cole slaw, onion rings), a straight hot dog, cheeseburger, chicken tenders, something from the Upstairs Club menu, or anything else you have in mind.
• Mascots/entertainers: These include the Phillie Phanatic, Famous Chicken, ZOOperstars, BirdZerk, Myron Noodleman, Reggy, and others.
• Former players: Self explanatory

Thanks for playing. We’ll have another one of these up next week.

In July, the Phillies were linked to Roy Halladay moreso than they were to Cliff Lee. Months later, it appears that Halladay, after all, will be a Phillie. A mega-trade between the Phillies, Blue Jays, and Mariners which would bring Roy Halladay to the Phillies is almost complete, according to multiple media reports.

Basically, as follows, per Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated…

• Phillies get: Roy Halladay from Toronto, prospects from Seattle
• Mariners get: Cliff Lee from Philadelphia
• Blue Jays get: Prospects from Philadelphia

Why make the deal if you’re the Phillies?

• Long-term stability: Halladay is expected to sign a contract with the Phillies which will keep him here long term.
• Lee was probably going to test the market and become a free agent after the 2010 season.

Why would the Phillies trade a Domonic Brown or Kyle Drabek now if they weren’t willing to in July (it is speculation that they are included)?

• Easy. Halladay is now signed long term. Halladay for four or five years is a lot better than either he or Lee for a year and a half. It’s a lot easier to give up those prospects under these conditions.

Early thoughts on the deal?

• Love it. We said in July that we would have given up the chips to get Halladay in July. He was that good. The Phillies didn’t, and it worked out. Lee was fantastic. But now you’re looking at a big picture investment, rather than a year and a half. To pair Halladay and Cole Hamels long term, beyond 2010, means that the Phillies are solidified at the top of their rotation for a long time, and that is always worth a few prospects.

It’s an interesting question, one we posed in our Sunday Links and Coffee blog post yesterday. Our buddy Jay Ballz, from Phoul Ballz, said:

I’ve heard rumors in the past of some interest from the Phils in Wang. I would be all for giving him a shot.

Peter Abraham in Extra Bases, the Boston Globe’s Red Sox blog says he would make a worthy investment for Boston too. Abraham would know too, he used to cover the Yankees for the Journal News.

Wang was one of the best starters in the American League until June 15, 2008 when he tore a tendon and ligament in his right foot while running the bases in Houston. He missed the rest of that season and was just awful when he returned in 2009, going 1-6 with a 9.64 ERA. He suffered a shoulder injury on July 4 that required surgery and hasn’t pitched since. <snip>

Based on my conversations with Wang, I believe the foot injury led to the shoulder injury. When Wang reported to spring training last season, the Yankees would not allow him to run as part of his conditioning. The strength in his legs, which helped him throw a 95-miles-per-hour sinker, vanished and the shoulder injury was the result of trying to compensate.

Makes sense. Here’s where it gets interesting…Wang’s agent, Alan Nero, tells Newsday that he’s heard from six teams. Could be agent-speak (but Wang is very intriguing).

• 29 year old Wang (stats here) was 46-15 with a 3.74 ERA in the American League from 2006-2008, when he broke his foot in Houston.
• You’re not talking about chronic problems over a period of years, just one shoulder injury and one dreadful season.
• Bring him into the National League. That makes everyone more effective.
• He leads or is among the leaders in ground balls every year. That should bode well playing in the smaller, hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park.

Issue: Money, what else? Ben Sheets, who is always injured, is asking for $12 million. Good luck with that. What would be a fair price for Wang? He made $4 million in 2008 and $5 million in 2009.

(more…)

While there will be a lot more promotions to be announced over the coming weeks, we’re going to wet the palette a little bit, with an early look at some of the promotions that we have for the 2010 season.

• 4/17: Buster’s Birthday
• 5/23: Yo Gabba Gabba appearance (Nickelodeon characters…we’ll be joined by Brobee and Plex)
• 6/14: ZOOperstars
• 6/19: Ted DiBiase (see below)
• 7/10: Bruce Springsteen Night
• 8/16: ZOOperstars
• 8/17: Team Card Set giveaway

Plus of course fireworks every Friday plus July 3rd (Saturday) and September 5th (Sunday). And again, we’ll have a lot more promotions in the coming weeks.

Happy Sunday! Some links from around the baseball world…

• Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports has some fascinating speculation that Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay could be included in the same trade, with the Phillies landing Halladay. Basically, Halladay is considered more willing to sign a long-term deal now, so the Phillies could bring him in, and trading Lee means they don’t have to give up nearly as much in terms of prospects.
• Todd Zolecki of MLB.com agrees that a possible deal like this makes some sense, and has a great Cliff Lee quote as to why.
• The Phillies non-tendered Clay Condrey, meaning the right-handed relief pitcher is now a free agent. They did not want to go to arbitration with Condrey, and are still in the market for some help in the bullpen.
• Hall of Fame ballots are in. Bill Madden in the Daily News takes a look at six logical candidates.
• Not satisfied with their latest contract offer, Jason Bay’s agent tells the Boston Globe that his client is “ready to move on” from the Red Sox. The Mets are one team that has made a bid (4 years, $63 million).
• If Bay leaves, expect Boston to jump in on Matt Holliday. St. Louis made an offer to keep the slugger, who cost them game two of the Division Series against the Dodgers by dropping a would-have-ended-the-game line drive in left. Holliday’s agent, Scott Boras, is seeking 8 years, $180 million. Good luck with that.
• Speaking of Boras, Paul Hagen has a great column on the stars of the Winter Meetings, the agents.
• The Yankees non-tendered Chien-Ming Wang, making him a free agent. He has two 19-win seasons on his resume, meaning he probably would have gotten a few million in arbitration despite two injury-shortened seasons (he was 1-6 with a 9.64 ERA in 2009 before another shoulder surgery). Make sense for the Phillies? At the right price, you bet, a veteran starter moving to the National League, who is the sinker-baller you probably want in Citizens Bank Park. Even though he won’t be ready to pitch at all until April, he’s worth a few million bucks, to me anyway.

Phillies top prospect Domonic Brown, a BlueClaw in 2008, was named to the All-Prospect team at the prestigious Arizona Fall League, which wrapped up a few weeks ago.

Brown, who turned 22 in September, hit .229 with 2 HRs and 18 RBIs playing for Scottsdale (he was 0 for his last 20), but prospect status, rather than specific AFL performance, is what gets you onto this team, and Brown is one of the 30 or so best prospects in the game.

Last week we talked to Dave Murphyof the Daily News. He said the following on Brown:

People in the organization we talk to like Domonic Brown. They view him as a future star, a Carl Crawford type impact guy. Michael Taylor, I never get the sense they view him as a 30-100 guy, and there’s not an overwhelming anticipation of him getting to the big leagues. Whereas Brown is “can’t miss,” for lack of a better term, Taylor is more in the Ryan Howard mold, where he was putting up great numbers but they’re still unsure. Howard left little doubt once he arrived but I don’t get the sense that they’re willing to let Werth go because they have Taylor waiting.

Others of note on the team…

• Jose Tabata (Pirates)…former Yankees farmhand was a part of the 2008 Xavier Nady trade
• Buster Posey (Giants)…Top catching prospect in baseball
• Stephen Strasburg (Nationals)…uber-prospect was first player drafted last year
• Drew Storen (Nationals)…10th player drafted last year gave up a home run to Travis d’Arnaud at Hagerstown on the first pitch he threw as a professional

Carlos Monasterios’ time as a Met didn’t last long. Not long after the Mets took him in the Rule 5 Draft, he was traded to the Dodgers, where the same rules apply (he must be on the 25-man roster all year or be offered back to the Phillies).

Through the beauties of the internet, we can find that the Dodgers had been looking at him for a little while, scouting him down in the Venezuelan League. Here is a story in a Venezuelan paper (I think).

Dodgers preguntan por Monasterio
Los Dodgers de Los Ángeles observarán este miércoles al novel Carlos Monasterio, cuando lance contra Magallanes en el estadio “Nueva Esparta”. Uno de sus scouts preguntó por su próxima salida. “Queremos observarlo”, expresó el cazatalentos. 

Run that through a translator and you get a rough equivilent (though the point is made)…

Dodgers ask for Monastery The Dodgers of The Angels will observe this Wednesday to the new one Carlos Monastery, when throw against Magellan in the stadium “New Sparta”. One of its scouts asked for its next exit. “We want to observe it”, expressed the cazatalentos.

Some quick-hitters on the Rule 5 Draft…

Carlos Monasterios, a BlueClaw in 2007, was selected by the Mets. You may remember Carlos, who gave up seven runs in the first inning on Opening Day 2007, about 10 minutes after we raised the 2006 SAL Championship Banner.

But he really settled in from there, and had a decent 11-11 season after an awful start (he had a 5.60 ERA on May 11th), and was mid 3 after that. He was with Clearwater in 08 and again in 09, and made some progress this year, with a 3.73 ERA and a late-season promotion to Reading. 

Monasterios will be 24 in March, but didn’t start playing baseball until he turned 17 in Venezuela.

We wish him the best, he’s one of the nicest guys we’ve had here in Lakewood, and was frequently at the autograph table that year. He’ll have a chance to make the Mets 25-man roster (that’s the point of a selection). And if he doesn’t last the whole year, he’ll be offered back to the Phillies (which seems likely, but at least he’s got a shot).

–

The Phillies selected RHP Kenneth Herndon from the Angels. A 5th round pick in 2006 (Gulf Coast Community College), Herndon had a 3.03 ERA with Arkansas (Double-A) this past season. Only 35 Ks in 65 innings for what that’s worth.

Dave Murphy of the Daily News tweets this about Herndon: Early report on Herndon: Big (6 foot 5) sinker baller who offsets fastball with a slider.

Herndon was voted “Best Control” in the Angels system heading into last year.

This morning is the annual Rule 5 Draft, which basically wraps up the Winter Meetings. Basically:

Players who signed at age 19 and older in 2006 (i.e., most college 2006 draft picks) or 18 and younger in 2005 (most 2005 high school picks and international signees), had to be protected on 40-man rosters or be subject to the draft. Selected players cost $50,000 and have to stick on a major league 25-man roster (or disabled list) for the entire 2010 season or be offered back to the original organization at half the price.  

You can follow along here.

Last month, the Phillies added three players (OF Quintin Berry, RHP Jesus Sanchez, and LHP Yohan Flande) to the 40-man roster to protect them from being picked today.

We were surprised Sanchez was on the list, less so with Berry and Flande, particularly Berry, who has stolen over 150 bases in the last three years and is very good defensively. No question he would have been able to hang on the back of a big league roster.

Who could be taken?

Tim Kennelly…Useful utility guy can play multiple positions, which is valuable if he’s going to be the 25th man on the roster.

Edgar Garcia…Once-promising right-hander missed some time this year (visa problems) but sometimes an organization just falls in love with a guy and a few years later they have a chance to get him.

Harold Garcia…Mentioned by Baseball America. Still, he’s never been above Low-A, but the BlueClaws starting 2B this year did get positive reviews from several scouts we talked to.

Update: Here’s last year’s Rule 5 post…remember, both Brett Harker and Andy Barb, who combined for 35 saves on the ‘06 BlueClaws were taken in the minor league portion.