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Steve Susdorf Named Player of the Week

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009

BlueClaws outfielder Steve Susdorf has been named as the Phillies Minor League Player of the Week along with Clearwater Threshers pitcher Yohan Flande.

A 19th round pick in the 2008 draft, Susdorf came to the Phillies organization after winning a NCAA Baseball championship with Fresno State.

Susdorf  joined the BlueClaws on May 25th from Extended spring training and had an instant impact in the middle of the lineup. On the season, he is hitting .305 in 17 games and had a tremendous week from June 8th to 16th…Here are the notes:

Outfielder Stephen Susdorf, Lakewood BlueClaws. Hit .346 in 7 games, 5 runs, 9 hits, 2 homers, 4 RBI. Ended week riding a 5-game hitting streak. Hitting .342 in last 10 games. For the season, .304 in 16 games (began year in extended spring training).

The other award winner, pitcher Yohan Flande, is receiving his second Player of the Week honor of the season.

Other Pharm Notes for June 8-16:

Lehigh Valley IronPigs
3-3; 5th place, International League North Division … C Lou Marson went on the DL Friday (right foot contusion) … SS Jason Donald had surgery on Monday (meniscus tear, left knee) and will be out 3-4 weeks … INF Mike Cervenak returned from the DL (broken wrist) on Thursday after missing 23 games; in first 4 games back, 6 hits, 4 RBI … INF Miguel Cairo, 6 hits, 5 runs; he’s hit in 19 of 23 games since joining LV … RHP Andrew Carpenter (5-0) won his 4th in his last 4 starts on Thursday, 7 innings, 6 hits, 1 run, 4 strikeouts. He’s allowed 3 earned runs in last 34.1 innings … LHP Cedrick Bowers, 3 outings, 1 save, 9 strikeouts in 4 innings. He’s allowed 1 run in last 10 appearances.

Reading Phillies
4-2; 2nd place, Eastern League Southern Division … OF Jeremy Slayden hit a walk-off grand slam as a pinch hitter on Thursday in his first at-bat since joining Reading from LV; in his first 4 AA games, 5-for-6, 7 RBI …Brad Harman capped the week with a walk-off double on Sunday … RHP Kyle Drabek (2-0) won on Tuesday; no decision on Sunday … 3B Neil Sellers, 7 hits, 6 runs, 2 homers, 5 RBI; led organization with 71 hits for the season … CF Quintin Berry, 6 hits, 4 steals (20 total) … LHP Joe Savery (7-1) was a Wednesday winner, his first start in which he didn’t issue a walk, 6.2 innings, 4 hits, 1 run, 5 strikeouts; he’s won each of his last 4 starts … RHP Tyson Brummett, a no decision on Saturday, 7 innings, 6 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, 6 strikeouts … RHP Jason Anderson picked up 3rd and 4th saves and was promoted to AAA.

Clearwater Threshers
4-3; 3rd place, Florida State League North Division … C Joel Naughton, 6 RBI in 5 games … C Javis Diaz ended the week riding an 8-game hitting streak … 3B Cody Overbeck, 7 hits, 3 RBI … RHP Michael Cisco (2-0) went 6 shutout innings on Monday for a win; left the game (no decision) with a blister on his right ring finger after 5 scoreless innings on Saturday.

Williamsport Crosscutters
New York-Penn League Pinckney Division, 14 teams … 76-game season begins June 19.

Gulf Coast League Phillies - Defending Champions
Gulf Coast Rookie League, 16 teams … 60-game season begins June 23; ends August 31.

Posted in 2009 BlueClaws, Clearwater Threshers, Jason Donald, Joel Naughton, Kyle Drabek, Lehigh Valley IronPigs, Lou Marson, Quintin Berry, Reading Phillies, Steve Susdorf, Yohan Flande | No Comments »

Rough Day for Phils; Drabek Note

Sunday, May 24th, 2009

It was his first start of the season, and it came against the red hot Yankees in the new Yankee Stadium on national television. And JA Happ threw a fine ballgame, certainly good enough to win. He left with a 4-2 lead after allowing two runs over six innings, but Brad Lidge gave up a two-run homer to Alex Rodriguez in the 9th and then a walk-off singel by Melky Cabrera to complete a 5-4 Yankees win. Happ, nonetheless, was satisfied with his outing.

“I’m definitely pleased,” said Happ, who threw 75 pitches, 50 for strikes. “From the get-go, I was hoping to give four or five solid innings and keep the pitch count down by throwing strikes and letting them put the ball in play. I went six, so I’m definitely happy with it. I’ll try to build on this.”

To make matters worse, the Mets got a 9th inning home run from somebody named Omir Santos off of Jonathan Papelbon to beat the Red Sox 3-2.

–

Kyle Drabek threw five hitless innings for Clearwater but gave up four in the sixth and took the loss. Joel Naughton hit his fifth home run of the season for the Threshers…Antonio Bastardo, in his first start with Triple-A Lehigh Valley, gave up three runs (all in the fifth) over six innings, with a 11 Ks, for a very solid AAA debut. The IronPigs did blow a 4-0 lead and lost 5-4.

Posted in Antonio Bastardo, Clearwater Threshers, General Baseball, JA Happ, Joel Naughton, Kyle Drabek, Lehigh Valley IronPigs, Past BlueClaws, Phillies | No Comments »

Around the Farm (UPDATED-Lehigh Valley Roster Announced)

Sunday, April 5th, 2009

You can take a look at the Reading Phillies roster here, with several former BlueClaws featured, including a few 2008 BlueClaws. The Reading Eagle takes a good look.

“We’ve got a chance to have some real good young arms,” said former BlueClaws manager Steve Roadcap, set to begin his first season in Reading. “We’ll get to look at some of the people we’ve drafted over the past couple of years.”

These include Vance Worley and Michael Stutes, both of whom were drafted in 2008 and spent part of the year with the BlueClaws. They are the first players to start their first full season in Reading since Pat Burrell in 1999.

The Clearwater roster is available here. It includes former ‘Claws Kyle Drabek, Joel Naughton, Dominic Brown, Julian Sampson, Drew Naylor, and a few others.

[ironpigs.jpg]3:20: Lehigh Valley has announced their roster. Click here.

Included are former ‘Claws Jason Donald, who will play shortstop, catcher Lou Marson, pitchers Carlos Carrasco and Kyle Kendrick, and outfielder Jeremy Slayden, among others. Slayden is on the DL and will stay back in Clearwater until he is ready.

Posted in Around the Farm, Carlos Carrasco, Clearwater Threshers, Domonic Brown, Drew Naylor, Jason Donald, Joel Naughton, Kyle Drabek, Kyle Kendrick, Lehigh Valley IronPigs, Lou Marson, Michael Stutes, Michael Taylor, Past BlueClaws, Reading Phillies, Vance Worley | No Comments »

70 in 70: Number 16

Tuesday, March 24th, 2009

Tracking Travis…Today, just 16 days away from Opening Day, 70 in 70 takes a look at 2008 BlueClaws catcher Travis D’Arnaud, who after being drafted in 2007, was ranked 16th by Baseball America in their Phillies prospect rankings. This year, D’Arnaud has moved up to seventh on the list.

He’s from Lakewood (Lakewood, California) and hit .309 with four home runs with Williamsport last year, playing for 2009 BlueClaws manager Dusty Wathan. After Joel Naughton broke his toe in August, D’Arnaud was promoted to Lakewood, where he hit .297 over 16 games.

From the 2009 Prospect Handbook: He’s athletic with premium catch-and-throw tools, such as soft hands, quick feet, and plenty of arm strength…Some club officials now believe his offense will be as good or better than his defense. He has a line drive swing with a willingness to use the opposite field.

D’Arnaud is an interesting case for several reasons…

1) Where will he go this year? He might be ready for Clearwater, but if he goes there, he would likely split time with Joel Naughton. That said, the Phillies have several young catchers, such as Sebastian Valle, who could also be in Lakewood. For what it’s worth, D’Arnaud has been playing spring games with the Hi-A team.

2) Long-term. Lou Marson is the catcher of the future. Will D’Arnaud hit with enough power to be able to move from behind the plate? That remains to be seen, though power is not considered one of his top tools. He’s still a few years away from the big leagues, and so much can happen so quickly, but he’ll be interesting to keep an eye on.

Other Baseball America movers, from 2008-2009: Michael Taylor (not ranked to 6), Drew Naylor (29 to 13), Jason Donald (from 15 to 4), Dominic Brown (6 to 1)

[Photos: www.crosscutterboosters.org & www.crosscutters.com]

Posted in 70 in 70, Around the Farm, Baseball America, Domonic Brown, Drew Naylor, Jason Donald, Joel Naughton, Lou Marson, Michael Taylor, Past BlueClaws, Travis d'Arnaud | No Comments »

70 in 70: Number 27

Friday, March 13th, 2009

Just 27 days to go until the BlueClaws opener. Let’s look at those that have been BlueClaws All-Stars in the past, the 27 of them, in the team’s first eight years of operation.

2001: Hickory, NC…P Trevor Bullock, P George Rodriguez

2002: Lakewood, NJ…C Ben Margalski, IF Danny Gonzalez, IF Ryan Howard, Coach Jeff Manto

2003: Lexington, KY…C GG Sato, IF Jeremy Isenhower

2004: Charleston, SC…OF Jake Blalock

2005: Augusta, GA…C Jason Jaramillo, OF Ryan Frith, DH Samuel Orr

2006: Eastlake, OH…P Matt Maloney, P Carlos Carrasco

2007: Rome, GA…P Kyle Drabek, P Garet Hill, P Ben Pfinsgraff, C Tuffy Gosewisch, IF Jason Donald, IF Adrian Cardenas, OF Quintin Berry, Coach Steve Roadcap, Coach Ed Hodge

2008: Greensboro, NC…OF Michael Taylor, P Drew Naylor, C Joel Naughton, DH Mike Durant

Posted in 70 in 70, Adrian Cardenas, Drew Naylor, Jason Donald, Joel Naughton, Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor, Past BlueClaws, Quintin Berry, Ryan Howard, Tuffy Gosewisch | No Comments »

Former BlueClaws Notebook

Thursday, March 12th, 2009

Some quick-hitters from around the baseball world as relating to some former BlueClaws…

JA Happ continued his strong spring today, allowing just a Gabe Kapler solo home run in three otherwise solid innings. His spring sits at 2.45.

Pitching coach Rich Dubee says that Happ needs to ”just keep doing what he’s doing.”

Meanwhile, Kyle Kendrick was forced to channel his inner-Bill Belichick after allowing six runs on ten hits last night. “It is what it is today,” Kendrick said afterward.

Dubee added “It’s easier to get up here than it is to get up here and stay here.”

Jason Donald, after a 2-15 start, has his average up to .355. John Mayberry, acquired in an off-season trade for Greg Golson, is also hitting the ball very well, with a team leading 10 RBIs to go with three home runs. The question, however, is what is best for the player and team, a big league reserve role or daily minor league games?

“When it comes right down to it, it’s how much they [Donald, Mayberry] are going to get to play,” Charlie Manuel said. “For them to be productive, they’ve got to play some. They never did that. I remember when I was 23 years old and I became a pinch-hitter, that was a tough job for me. That was real tough.”

Australia got routed last night in the WBC, losing to Mexico 16-1. Drew Naylor gave up three runs and got one out, while Joel Naughton went 0-1 after pinch-hitting. The Aussies have been eliminated.

In A’s camp, it appears Vin Mazzaro (of Rutherford, NJ) is the front-runner for their fifth-starter spot, a battle which Josh Outman is a part of. Also, Adrian Cardenas was sent to minor-league camp.

Posted in Adrian Cardenas, Drew Naylor, JA Happ, Jason Donald, Joel Naughton, Josh Outman, Kyle Kendrick, Past BlueClaws, Phillies, Spring Training | No Comments »

World Baseball Classic Notes

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009

Couple of things as we build up to the World Baseball Classic opening up its second edition on Thursday morning (4:30 am EST, Japan v China).

 - Great job by the decision makers switching from pool play (three-game round-robin) to a straight double elimination in 2009. It makes the early games far more exciting and important, especially if one of the favorites is down early in their first game.

 - Here is the full schedule.

 - The US takes on Canada on Saturday at 2 pm. You can watch the game on our big board here at FirstEnergy Park as part of our 2009 FanFest.

 - Up to nine former BlueClaws:

  • USA: Shane Victorino (rehab assignment)
  • Australia: Joel Naughton, Drew Naylor, Brad Harman 
  • Italy: Jack Santora
  • Panama: Carlos Ruiz, Avellino Asprilla
  • Venezuela: Victor Moreno, Francisco Butto

 - Thought this was interesting, though not entirely surprising…From Peter Abraham of the Journal News: “It’s popular in Asia, which is probably good enough for the MLB marketing people. A Japanese reporter I know said his paper has nine staffers covering the semifinals. Nine.”

 - Finally, here is Team USA’s starting lineup for their game today against the Yankees:

Dustin Pedroia 2B, Red Sox
Derek Jeter SS, Yankees
Chipper Jones DH, Braves
David Wright 3B, Mets
Adam Dunn RF, Reds
Kevin Youkilis 1B, Red Sox
Ryan Braun LF, Brewers
Brian McCann C, Braves
Curtis Granderson CF, Tigers

Posted in BlueClaws Events, Carlos Ruiz, Drew Naylor, FanFest, Joel Naughton, Past BlueClaws, World Baseball Classic | No Comments »

70 in 70: Number 40

Saturday, February 28th, 2009

Just 40 days to go until Opening Day, and fortunately in baseball, we have a great designation. It’s called the 40-man roster.

From Wikipedia: The 40-man roster comprises all of the players on the 25-man roster, plus anyone who is on the 15-day disabled list, and contracted players on “optional assignment” in the minor leagues.

The important difference between the 25-man roster and 40-man roster is obviously that the 25-man roster members are the active players on gameday. The others are either in the minors or on the disabled list.

But what then is the importance of the 40-man roster? It comes later in the calendar year. Players, after being drafted, have three or four years of exemption (depending on if they were drafted out of college or high school / signed as a free agent). After that period, if they are not on the 40-man roster, they are eligible to be selected in the Rule-5 Draft at the Winter Meetings. It was through this process the Phillies acquired Shane Victorino.

The BlueClaws have several former players (13) on the 40-man roster of the Phillies, including recent additions Joel Naughton, Sergio Escalona and Drew Naylor. Ex-BlueClaws on other rosters include Gavin Floyd (White Sox), Matt Maloney (Reds) and Josh Outman (A’s).

Posted in 70 in 70, Gavin Floyd, General Baseball, Joel Naughton, Josh Outman, Matt Maloney, Past BlueClaws, Phillies, Sergio Escalona | No Comments »

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