Phillies Minor League Report: Tommy Joseph, J.P. Crawford both record three hits
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Here's how the Phillies' minor league teams fared on Monday, Sept. 7:
Lehigh Valley IronPigs (63-81) – Triple A
The IronPigs ended the 2015 season with a three-game losing streak after suffering an 8-1 defeat at the hands of the Rochester Red Wings at Coca-Cola Park in Allentown.
Lehigh Valley's final loss of the year came after Rochester pounded out 15 hits against its pitching staff, 11 of which came at the expense of starter Severino Gonzalez.
Gonzalez (2-7, 5.11 ERA) struck out five, but allowed four runs (three earned) in six innings. Seth Rosin allowed only one run in 1 2/3 of relief, but Joey DeNato gave up Rochester's three insurance runs in the ninth.
Offensively, Tommy Joseph continued his consistent pace by going 3-for-4 with two doubles. Russ Canzler and Tyler Pastornicky both went 2-for-4.
Canzler was one of two IronPigs to record double digits in homers in 2015. Canzler's 10 was second on the team only to Brian Bogusevic's 12.
Bogusevic's 57 RBI was second on the club, behind only Tyler Henson's 58. Canzler drove in 47 runs.
Jason Berken led the team by pitching 113 1/3 innings in 2015. Berken was second on the team in wins (five) and strikeouts (78). He was behind Anthony Vasquez (eight) and Phillippe Aumont (81) in each category.
Reading Fightin Phils (80-61) – Double-A
Despite three hits from J.P. Crawford, the Fightin Phils dropped their regular season finale, 2-1, to the Richmond Flying Squirrels at The Diamond in Richmond, Va.
Crawford went 3-for-5, but the Fightin Phils compiled only eight hits. Andrew Knapp (2-for-4) was the only other member of the lineup to record multiple hits.
The Fightin Phils utilized five pitchers that surrendered a total of seven hits, four of which came off Joely Rodriguez.
Starter Nick Pivetta had the shortest outing among the pitchers, as he left the game due to injury after only four pitches. Ethan Martin (3-1, 3.14 ERA) suffered the loss after allowing one run on two hits in 1 2/3.
Despite ending the season with back-to-back losses, the Fightin Phils must now gear up for the Eastern League playoffs, and their first-round matchup with the rival Binghamton Mets.
Game 1 of the Fightin Phils' series with the Mets is set for 6:35 p.m. Wednesday at NYSEG Stadium in Binghamton, N.Y. Zach Eflin (8-6, 3.69 ERA) is scheduled to start for Reading.
Clearwater Threshers (79-58) – Class A Advanced
The Threshers enjoyed a day off Monday in order to get ready for the Florida State League North Division championship series against the Daytona Tortugas, which begins at 7:05 p.m. Tuesday.
Ricardo Pinto (9-2, 2.87 ERA) is scheduled to start for Clearwater.
Lakewood BlueClaws (73-65) – Class A
An offensive explosion helped the BlueClaws finish the season with a 12-3 victory over the Delmarva Shorebirds at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, N.J.
The Shorebirds jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first inning, but the BlueCLaws surged ahead by scoring five runs in the second, six more in the third and another in the forth to take a commanding 12-1 lead. The BlueClaws' offensive barrage was thanks in part to 16 hits from the lineup.
Jiandido Tromp hit a three-run homer during the third and was one of three BlueClaws (Drew Stankiewicz and Emmanuel Marrero) to record three hits. The homer was his ninth of the season.
Herlis Rodriguez and Kyle Martin both went 2-for-4. Damek Tomscha only had one hit, but it went for three RBI.
Starter Jairo Munoz (3-0, 2.67 ERA) finished the season with an unblemished record after he allowed only two runs on six hits in five innings. He also struck out four.
Rodriguez led the BlueClaws in homers in 2015 with 10. He also led the team in RBI with 61. Rhys Hoskins finished second in homers with nine while Tomscha and Cord Sandberg were tied for second in RBI with 59.
Tyler Viza pitched the most innings for Lakewood with 143 2/3 and recorded the most strikeouts with 104. However, Ranfi Casimiro led the club in victories with nine.
Williamsport Crosscutters (46-30) – Class A-Short Season
The Crosscutters entered the day with nothing to play for.
Meanwhile, the State College Spikes had everything to play for and showed as much by racking up 11 hits during 5-3 victory over the Crosscutters at Susquehanna Bank Park in Williamsport.
Despite the win, a victory by the West Virginia Black Bears gave them a wildcard spot in the New York-Penn League playoffs, and sent the Spikes home for an early offseason.
What this means for the Crosscutters is that they will open the NYPL postseason against the Black Bears Wednesday. The Crosscutters will host Game 2 of the series at 7:05 p.m. Thursday.
As for the regular season finale, starter Jose Taveras (7-4, 3.88 ERA) was the victim of eight of State College's 11 hits, as he also gave up four runs in six innings. He did manage to record eight strikeouts.
Greg Brodzinski was the only Crosscutter with a productive day from the plate by going 2-for-2 with a pair of RBI.