Skip to content
Phillies
Link copied to clipboard

With Taylor Featherston to majors, promotions for some Phillies prospects

Andres Blanco's fractured left index finger spawned a slew of Phillies transactions, including promotions for two minor-league players.

MIAMI — Andres Blanco's fractured left index finger spawned a slew of Phillies transactions, including promotions for two minor-league players.

Taylor Featherston, a 26-year-old infielder acquired in a trade last February, replaced Blanco on the Phillies roster. That allowed Jesmuel Valentin and Scott Kingery to ascend a level in the minors, to triple-A Lehigh Valley and double-A Reading, respectively.

Kingery, a second-round pick last summer, is constantly lauded by Phillies officials for his baseball acumen. He mastered single-A Clearwater with a .293 batting average, .360 on-base percentage and .411 slugging percentage. The 22-year-old second baseman stole 26 bases in 31 attempts. Now, he will join a powerhouse Reading team for its postseason push.

Valentin, son of former big-leaguer Jose, posted a .745 OPS in 89 games with Reading. Also 22, he was acquired from Los Angeles in the Roberto Hernandez trade.

Blanco's injury could require surgery, and it is an opportunity for Featherston, who spent all of last season on the Los Angeles Angels' roster as a Rule 5 pick. He is known for his bat, and not his glove — Featherston bashed 12 homers with 16 errors at Lehigh Valley.

He mostly played third base at triple A, but he has experience at second and shortstop, too.

>>> Roman Quinn, who had played just one game since June 4, returned to game action Monday with a five-inning appearance in the Gulf Coast League. Quinn has been sidelined by a strained muscle in his rib cage.

A player much closer to the majors, Aaron Altherr, had his official rehab assignment transferred to triple-A Lehigh Valley. He is expected to return to the Phillies on Thursday in Atlanta.