Phils have growing list of third baseman prospects

1. Add Zach Green to the ever-growing list of Phillies third-base prospects. The team's third-round pick last year out of Jesuit High School in Sacramento, Calif., opened his rookie-ball season at Williamsport by hitting .342 in his first 11 games. Green, 19, entered Saturday leading the New York-Penn League in doubles (6), home runs (4), RBIs (13), and OPS (1.329).

"He's a big strong kid and he has some thunder in his bat," said director of player development Joe Jordan. "He can leave the ballpark to a lot of different fields. His offense is ahead of his defense right now." Green is listed at 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds.

2. Severino Gonzalez posted a 1.65 ERA in 271/3 innings at high-A Clearwater, but was sent last week to low-A Lakewood, which is still higher than his anticipated destination of Williamsport when the season opened. The reason for the move was that the Phillies wanted Gonzalez pitching as a starter.

"The plan was to start him all along," Jordan said. "We wanted him to be able to work on his secondary pitches and get into that starter routine. This kid has no fear whatsoever."

Gonzalez, 20, made his debut at Lakewood Thursday by pitching four scoreless innings against Pittsburgh's West Virginia affiliate. He struck out the side in the first inning and finished with six strikeouts while allowing just two hits. His fastball topped out at 91 m.p.h., but scouts in attendance were impressed by his ability to change speeds and throw a variety of breaking pitches.

3. One of the more intriguing stories to watch is that of Luis Garcia, a 26-year-old righthander the Phillies signed as a free agent near the end of spring training. Garcia pitched last year with the Newark (N.J.) Bears of the independent CanAm League and did not pitch particularly well. With the Phillies organization, however, he has a 1.93 ERA and eight saves in 26 games this season. He opened the season in Clearwater, moved to double-A Reading at the end of May, and was promoted to triple-A Lehigh Valley last week.

4. Catcher Tommy Joseph was activated from the disabled list last week and assigned to Clearwater. Assistant general manager Benny Looper said there was no timetable for moving Joseph to a higher level after he missed nearly two months because of a concussion. Meanwhile, Lakewood shortstop Roman Quinn is expected to miss four to six weeks after suffering a hairline fracture of his left wrist when he was hit by a pitch.

5. Bryce Harper's rehab assignment with Washington's high-A Potomac club last week served as a remarkable reminder of just how rare it is for a player of his age to be in the big leagues. Harper, who does not turn 21 until October, was more than 16 months younger than any player in Potomac's lineup Wednesday night.

- Bob Brookover