An Arizona Fall League primer
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An Arizona Fall League primer
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
Welcome to Citizens Bank Park, where the Phillies will hold a workout day Tuesday in between games of their division series with... oh, wait. Right.
But hey, the Arizona Fall League starts Tuesday and that's something. Maybe? Sure.
The Phillies have seven players on the Peoria Javelinas in this fall's edition of the showcase league. Teams traditionally send top prospects to the AFL, in addition to players requiring a longer look for various reasons. It's a paradise for scouts.
Peoria is managed by Dusty Wathan, who guided double-A Reading to a postseason berth in 2012. Wathan could be a candidate for the open triple-A managerial job. For now, he has the luxury of managing a roster that includes Cincinnati's Billy Hamilton. He's the 22-year-old prospect who stole 155 bases this season.
Here are the Phillies participating:
C Tommy Joseph (21, AA Reading): Joseph was the centerpiece of the Hunter Pence trade. Scouts view him as one of the game's top catching prospects. He hit for power after the trade with a .420 slugging percentage in 28 games. In all, his power numbers hit a sharp decline from the California League a year ago. How he fares in Arizona could help dictate whether he repeats double A or heads to triple A in April.
3B Cody Asche (22, AA Reading): He was far off the radar at the end of last season after hitting .192 in 68 games at short-season, low-A Williamsport. Then the Phillies jumped him to Clearwater to start 2012 and he exploded. In all, between Clearwater and Reading, Asche hit .324 with an .849 OPS. It was a breakout season for the fourth-round pick. Now the Phillies want to see more as they attempt to evaluate their third-base conundrum. The more Asche's stock improves, the less inclined the Phillies are to pursue anything more than a stopgap at third for 2013.
OF Zach Collier (22, A Clearwater): His story is well-documented. Collier, a former first-round pick, had his finest season despite the suspension. He had hit two home runs in three prior seasons before smacking six with Clearwater in 2012. Fall ball is a chance to make up for lost at-bats. The Phillies must make a decision on whether to protect him this winter from Rule 5 draft eligibility.
LHP Jay Johnson (22, AA Reading): He was signed as an undrafted free agent, which in baseball usually means a career bouncing around in the minors. Johnson spent a majority of his time in 2012 with Reading and posted a 5.02 ERA in 28 games, all as a reliever. He's not much of a prospect. But he's lefthanded and has persevered through quite a bit.
RHP Tyler Knigge (23, AA Reading): Knigge, a 12th-round pick in 2010, began 2012 at single-A Clearwater. All he did was allow three earned runs in 44 2/3 innings (a 0.60 ERA). He earned a promotion to double-A Reading in July and maintained a 9.1 strikeout per nine innings rate there. He was more hittable in the Eastern League. Nonetheless, he turned some heads.
RHP Colby Shreve (24, AA Reading): Shreve bounced all over in 2012. He started at single-A Lakewood, moved to Clearwater at the end of April and ultimately spent most of his time in Reading. Shreve is eligible for selection in the Rule 5 draft this winter, so he goes to AFL for a better look. The former sixth-round pick struck out 29 and walked 25 in 43 innings at Reading.
RHP Kyle Simon (22, AA Reading): Simon was acquired in July from Baltimore for Jim Thome, promptly converted to reliever, and flourished. He was a fourth-rounder in 2011, making 2012 his first full professional season. Between Clearwater and Reading, Simon made 20 appearances and posted a 1.36 ERA with 35 strikeouts in 39 2/3 innings. A move to the bullpen dramatically increased his strikeout rate. Definitely someone to watch.
The Arizona Fall League schedule consists of 32 games and ends Nov. 15.
Have a question? Send it to Matt Gelb's Mailbag.
I wouldn't worry too much about Joseph's drop in power numbers - the Cal League is a noted hitter's league, and numbers are always skewed higher there.— Dave14- What about Ruf? I thought he was going to be there boning up on LF.— PhillyPhans10
- Be careful about the AFL. Cloyd and Ruf played there last year and did not stand out. In fact Cloyd and Ruf were not even invited to major league 2012 spring training camp by the experts in Phillies Front Office. Yet in September Cloyd out dueled the Reds Johnny Cueto to pick up a win and Ruf led the Phillies with a 1.079 OPS. as they both had break out 2012 years at the MLB and high minor league levels.— Dull
- Ruf is in Venezuela.— HandNik
- And with Poppa Hugo in power it is Ruf down there.— NewMick314
- I think Ruf will do OK in leftfield, he remind's me of Pat Burrell.I think Frandsden did a good job at third base, he deserves a shot at third.— Mack1945
- @Mack1945 - If Asche looks good in the fall league, you may get Frandsen playing lots of third as a one-year stop gap who platoons with another peripheral starter. But it's hard to know whether he had a breakout season at a late age last year, or simply had his peak year and got really, really hot. If it's the first, next year could be interesting for him. If it's the latter, he'll probably revert to his usual performance, which is as a career minor leaguer/fringe MLB player. If Asche seems a year or less away from the bigs, Fransden is worth the risk.— OutofTownPhillyFan
- @Dull....you are exactly right. The AFL is kind of a funny place. Highly touted players sometimes do well there and transition into fine MLB players and sometimes they don't but the Cloyds and Rufs of the world do. Just another one of the many hurdles a player must get over to make it to The Show, but you can't always take that performance to the bank. It's going to be very interesting to see what Ruf does down in Venezuela this winter. Many American kids go down there and wilt under the culture, pressure, etc. I don't see that happening to Ruf, though. His 10 game audition went so well, he should be flying high off that all winter right into Spring Training. I'll take a few plays ala Luzinski/Burrell if they come with 40 HRs attached. Kinda feel the same way about Frandsen. I'll take 15-20 errors down there at 3rd if it means keeping a .335 hitter with a .400 obp in the lineup every day. Now if he reverts to a .252 hitter next year then it becomes hard to swallow the errors he may make down there. I know nothing about Asche. Is he any kind of glove at all, Dull?— Mark1npt
- Asche's defensive aspects need a little more work. He is not totally lost, but needs fine tuning. Arm is fairly strong and range adequate. Footwork could be smoother. Is he a Scott Rolen? No. But then again he will be a whole lot better then Wiggy. — Romus
- They need two outfielders who can play. Dom Brown, John Mayberry, and Nate Scherholz are backups at best.— Phillip Phan
- MLB teams do not send their best pitching prospects to the AFL....saves their arms from too many IPP, unless they were hurt during the summer and have recovered and now need some innings.— Romus
- If anyone needs more and further details on Phillies prospects check out that great site...phuturephillies.com. Please no trolls.— Romus
- GO JAVELINAS !! They have the dullest caps in the AFL. so I hope they do get to wear their major leagues unis to spice things up. Hopefully they don't play ALL out and get hurt in the process. AFL is dumb, but the other winter leagues play really competitive games. I'd sooner see what our boys are doing in Australia than in Arizona.— ocpizza
