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Phillies send promising prospects to minor-league camp

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Big-league camp became a thing of the past for some future Phillies on Saturday. After an ultra-sloppy, 15-7 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays before an overflowing crowd at Bright House Field, the Phillies informed 10 players that their next workouts would be with the minor-leaguers at the Carpenter Complex.

Phillies catching prospect Tommy Joseph. (David Maialetti/Staff Photographer)
Phillies catching prospect Tommy Joseph. (David Maialetti/Staff Photographer)Read more

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Big-league camp became a thing of the past for some future Phillies on Saturday.

After an ultra-sloppy, 15-7 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays before an overflowing crowd at Bright House Field, the Phillies informed 10 players that their next workouts would be with the minor-leaguers at the Carpenter Complex.

The list included pitchers Jonathan Pettibone, Adam Morgan, and Ethan Martin, all three of whom have a chance one day to be in the Phillies' starting rotation.

It also included catcher Tommy Joseph and third baseman Cody Asche, the two young position players with the best chance to make an impact on the major-league club in the near future.

"They came into camp as particularly young players and handled themselves in a very professional manner," general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. "They looked like guys who were comfortable in this setting. The same with Martin, the same with Morgan, the same with Pettibone; they all carried themselves in a way you don't see in a camp all the time."

Performance, of course, also goes a long way, and Asche and Joseph more than held their own during their limited playing time in Grapefruit League games.

Asche, 22 and a fourth-round pick in 2011, completed his first big-league camp Saturday by going 2 for 4 with a double, a walk, and an RBI against the Rays. He batted .375 (5 for 14) in eight games after a sensational second professional season that started at single-A Clearwater and ended at double-A Reading. He hit a combined .324 with 33 doubles, 12 home runs, and 72 RBIs.

Joseph played in six games and batted .462 (6 for 13) with a home run and three RBIs. The 21-year-old catcher was acquired from San Francisco in the trade-deadline deal that sent Hunter Pence to the Giants. This was Joseph's third big-league camp. He spent the first two learning from 2012 National League MVP Buster Posey, the Giants' 25-year-old catcher.

"Being around Buster, I was like: 'All right, he figured it out at a young age. How can he help me to figure it out at a young age?' " Joseph said. "He was great to me. He acted like I was just one of his teammates. He didn't think any different of me because I was competition or whatever. He was an awesome guy.

"Now, I come here and this is my first time being around Chooch [Carlos Ruiz], and he's a great guy who loves throwing out his insight. He loves talking about it. He's talked to me about pitchers I've caught and things that I've learned. To have him around has been great."

Joseph looks ready to be the triple-A catcher, but the team also has Sebastian Valle, who finished last season at Lehigh Valley. Valle, 22, is playing for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic.

The Phillies also sent outfielder Zach Collier; infielder Michael Martinez; and pitchers J.C. Ramirez, Joe Savery, and Kyle Simon to the minors. The Phillies used an option to send out Savery and will officially use options on Collier, Pettibone, and Martin on Monday. The rest of the players were all reassigned.