Phillies invite 19 players to spring training

Pitching prospects Joe Savery and Carlos Carrasco, as well as outfielder Greg Golson, are among 19 players that have been invited to Phillies spring training as non-roster invitees.

Steve Noworyta, the Phillies director of minor leagues,  announced today that the following players have been invited to Clearwater, Fla., for spring training:

* Joe Savery, LHP … Savery was the Phillies' first-round selection in the 2007 draft and will be attending his first major league spring training.  He made seven starts for single-A Williamsport last season and went 2-3 with a 2.73 ERA, while holding opposing hitters to a .214 average.  In five starts for Peoria in the Arizona Fall League, the 22-year-old went 1-1 with a 0.64 ERA, allowing only four hits in 14.0 innings (.091 opponents' batting average).

* Greg Golson, OF … Golson, 22, split the 2007 season between single-A Clearwater and double-A Reading, hitting a combined .273 with 32 doubles, 15 home runs, 68 RBI and 30 stolen bases in 136 games.  A first-round selection by the Phillies in the 2004 draft, Golson played for Peoria in the Arizona Fall League following the season.

* Jason Donald, SS … A third-round selection by the Phillies in the 2006 draft, Donald hit a combined .304 with 31 doubles, eight triples, 12 home runs and 71 RBI between single-A Lakewood and single-A Clearwater.  He finished with the third-best average among the organization's minor leaguers.

* Carlos Carrasco, RHP … At 20 years old, Carrasco went a combined 12-6 with a 3.86 ERA in 26 games (25 starts) for single-A Clearwater and double-A Reading, including two shutouts and a 6.0-inning no-hitter on August 21 against Altoona.  A native of Venezuela, Carrasco held minor league hitters to a .224 average, allowing only 114 hits in 140.0 innings.  In his last two seasons, he is 24-12 with a 3.01 ERA and four complete games in 52 games (51 starts).

* Mike Cervenek, 1B … Cervenek played for triple-A Norfolk in 2007 and led the International League in hits (157), games (140) and at-bats (554).  For the season, he batted .283 with 15 home runs and 78 RBI.  Cervenek, 31, has played in the minor league systems of the Yankees (2000-02), Giants (2003-06) and Orioles (2007).

* Ron Chiavacci, RHP … In 26 games (23 starts) for triple-A Toledo in 2007, Chiavacci went 12-6 with a 3.39 ERA.  He went 11-2 from May 25 through the end of the season and pitched at least 6.0 innings in 18 of his 23 starts.  A native of Scranton, Pa., Chiavacci was originally selected by the Expos in the 44th round of the 1998 draft.

* Vic Darensbourg, LHP … Darensbourg, 37, spent the 2007 season with triple-A Toledo and went 6-2 with a 1.72 ERA in 50 games.  In 52.1 innings, he did not allow a home run.  During the off-season, he pitched for Magnalles of the Venezuelan Winter League and went 1-0 with a 2.53 ERA in 17 appearances.  Darensbourg has spent eight seasons in the major leagues with the Marlins (1998-2002), Rockies (2003), Expos (2003), White Sox (2004), Mets (2004) and Tigers (2005), going 8-17 with two saves and a 4.96 ERA in 309 appearances, all in relief.  In his last season in the major leagues, he posted a 2.82 ERA in 22 games for Detroit.

* Tuffy Gosewisch, C … An 11th-round selection by the Phillies in the 2005 draft, Gosewisch played for single-A Lakewood this past season and hit .224 with five home runs and 45 RBI in 92 games.  In the Arizona Fall League, he batted .250 with a homer and six RBI in 14 games for Peoria.

* Tim Gradoville, C … Gradoville, 27, appeared in a combined 54 games for double-A Reading and triple-A Ottawa in 2007.

* Paul Hoover, C … Selected in the 23rd round of the 1997 draft by Tampa Bay, Hoover has spent 11 seasons in professional baseball.  He has appeared in 15 major league games with Tampa Bay (2001-02) and Florida (2006-07).  In the Marlins' minor league system this past season, Hoover, 31, hit .322 with four home runs and 25 RBI in 38 games and .375 (3-8) in three major league games.

* Brennan King, 3B … King will be in camp with the Phillies for the second year in a row.  The 26-year-old spent 2007 with triple-A Ottawa, where he hit .277 with 10 home runs and 59 RBI in 122 games.

* Gary Knotts, RHP … Knotts, 30, was signed by the Phillies as a minor league free agent last August and pitched at double-A and triple-A for the organization.  He went a combined 2-4 with a 3.20 ERA in six starts, including three complete games and two shutouts, one of which was a one-hitter.  In 86 career major league games (38 starts), Knotts is 13-16 with a 5.45 ERA for Florida (2001-02) and Detroit (2003-04).

* Lou Marson, C … Marson spent the entire 2007 season with single-A Clearwater, batting .288 with 24 doubles, seven home runs and 63 RBI in 111 games.

* Brian Mazone, LHP … Mazone began the 2007 season with the Phillies' organization at triple-A Ottawa and made six starts (3-2, 2.21 ERA) before having his contract sold to the Samsung Lions of the Korean League.  In 2006, he led the International League with a 2.03 ERA for the Phillies' triple-A affiliate in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

* Josh Outman, LHP … Outman, 23, split the 2007 between single-A Clearwater and double-A Reading.  Overall, he went 12-7 with a 2.99 ERA in 27 games (25 starts), including a 6.0-inning no-hitter for Clearwater on July 7.  He led all Phillies minor leaguers with 151 strikeouts.  Following the season, Outman pitched for both Peoria in the Arizona Fall League and the World Cup-winning Team U.S.A., going a combined 1-1 with a 3.95 ERA in five games (three starts).  He had 13 strikeouts in 13.2 innings.

* Valentino Pascucci, OF/1B … Pascucci finished third among all minor leaguers in 2007 with 34 home runs for triple-A Albuquerque.  In addition to the homers, he hit .284 with 27 doubles and 98 RBI in 132 games.  Pascucci, 29, appeared in 32 major league games for Montreal in 2004.

* Casey Smith, INF … For triple-A Salt Lake, the 28-year-old Smith hit .290 with two home runs, 53 RBI and 13 stolen bases in 109 games.  He batted .379 (36-95) in his final 25 games of the season.

* Andy Tracy, 1B/3B … Tracy, 34, spent parts of three seasons in the major leagues with the Expos (2000-01) and Rockies (2004).  In his rookie season of 2000, he hit .260 with 11 home runs and 32 RBI for Montreal.  Last season, Tracy, a left-handed hitter, played for triple-A New Orleans and hit .271 with 23 home runs and 87 RBI in 135 games.  He is currently playing for Licey in the Dominican Winter League.

* Brandon Watson, OF … Watson made news in 2007 with his 43-game hitting streak for triple-A Columbus.  For the season, he hit .313 with two home runs, 29 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 103 games.  The 26-year-old had a brief call-up with Washington in June, when he batted .278 in five games.  Originally a ninth-round selection by Montreal in the 1999 draft, Watson has appeared in 24 major league games over parts of three seasons (2005-07) with Washington and Cincinnati.