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Ellis says he's excited to be a Phillie

NEW YORK - A.J. Ellis departed Los Angeles devastated after he was traded to the Phillies on Thursday as part of the trade that sent Carlos Ruiz to the Dodgers. Both catchers left the only franchises they had ever known.

NEW YORK - A.J. Ellis departed Los Angeles devastated after he was traded to the Phillies on Thursday as part of the trade that sent Carlos Ruiz to the Dodgers. Both catchers left the only franchises they had ever known.

It was hard to say goodbye, Ellis said. He even cried with longtime teammate Clayton Kershaw. But those waves of emotions, he said, are "getting farther and farther apart." Ellis, 35, joined the Phillies on Saturday afternoon and is expected to start Sunday. Ellis met with Pete Mackanin and the manager told the nine-year veteran to try to leave a mark on the team's young players.

"I'm starting to feel reenergized. Refilled with a sense of purpose as to why I've been placed here, and why this is where I need to be at this time," Ellis said. "I'm excited about that. I know I have huge shoes to fill. I know that. Carlos Ruiz is such a fixture in the Phillies organization, the work that he's done here behind the plate, you can't fill. This guy is a world champion catcher who has been back there for so many great baseball memories. So it's up to me to do my part to fill the void."

Ellis started 42 games this season and batted .194 with a .285 on-base percentage in 139 at-bats. Ruiz started 46 times at catcher for the Phillies, batting .261 with a .368 on-base percentage in 165 at-bats. Ellis will back up Cameron Rupp, but Mackanin has not determined how he will distribute playing time when the team adds a third catcher in September.

Mackanin used Ellis on Saturday afternoon for a meeting with the hitters. Ellis had faced the Phillies six times in 10 days earlier this month and the manager saw a trove of information. Ellis was able to tell the team how the Dodgers wanted to pitch to them, offering the Phillies a view into how an opponent sees them.

"Kind of letting our hitters know what their plan was against us, weaknesses, for example," Mackanin said. "We like to show you in hard early and get you away soft. We stay away from you and throw you a lot of breaking balls. I think it would be good for our hitters to hear that from an outside source."

Ellis left a team that is in first place in the National League West for a team that is 16 games out of first in the National League East. He will not be a part of L.A.'s playoff quest, but will instead play out the final stretch of the season as a backup catcher with the Phillies. But all is not lost, Ellis said.

"Guys are playing for things. Guys are playing for their careers. Guys are playing to make their mark in this game and building on the building blocks to create a winning franchise once again in Philadelphia," Ellis said. "And you just start to see the talent, you see their desire to learn, their desire to get better. You just know the youth on this staff, the talent level on this staff. And if I can in some short time here impart some wisdom on those guys, share some of the wisdom along the way that I've picked up from some great mentors I've had in my time in the game, I need to pay it back, from what all has been given to me."

Extra bases

Vince Velasquez (8-6, 4.31 ERA) will start Sunday against righthander Robert Gsellman, who will make his first major-league start after pitching 32/3 scoreless innings of relief Tuesday in his major-league debut. Mackanin said Velasquez and Jake Thompson would be shut down before the season ends, but did not yet know when.