Spring Training officially opens in two weeks, but that hasn’t stopped several Phillies from getting an early jump on the action.
Roy Halladay, Ryan Howard, Domonic Brown and Kyle Kendrick are among the early arrivals to camp, Tweeted top right-handed prospect Jarred Cosart yesterday. Other noteworthy players include pitchers Michael Schwimer, Justin De Fratus, Mike Zagurski and Scott Mathieson, all of whom will join the big league camp constituency this spring. The Phillies typically announce non-roster invites to several young prospects too, as they did with Tyson Gillies and Phillippe Aumont a season ago; both are already in camp. Cosart himself could receive such a late invitation, as could outfielder Jiwan James, who is also there.
Grilli appears to have finalized deal: Speaking of Twitter, Beerleaguer broke news yesterday of Jason Grilli tipping his status with this Tweet: “This Italian Stallion is fired up about the City of Brotherly Love! Balboa workouts paid off and ready to go!” Follow Grilli's Twitter here.
Door still open for Durbin: CSNPhilly.com’s Jim Salisbury reports that a person close to Chad Durbin says the free-agent reliever continues to mull several offers, including one from the Phillies. "The door is definitely not closed,’” the source told Salisbury. “He wants to go back to Philly.” Durbin is reportedly seeking a two-year deal and an annual raise over last season’s $2.15M figure.
Savery pegged for Double-A first base? Many people thought the Phillies would lose former first-round pick Joe Savery to the Rule 5 draft after he was left unprotected, but the Phils were able to keep him. Last week, Mike Drago of the Reading Eagle caught up with Phillies assistant general manager Benny Looper to get a status update on the pitcher-turned-first baseman. "He's a good-looking hitter," Looper said. "We want to give him a chance." Savery will play first base when minor league camp opens. When asked if he has a shot at Reading’s opening at first, Looper said "That's a spring training question, (but) I wouldn't be surprised."
I hope Grilli's arms fall off after that tweet - or at least his typing fingers.
Posted by: lorecore | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 09:38 AM
As for Savery, please recall that Roy Hobbs was signed as a pitcher. So there is a precedent.
Posted by: Zudok | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 09:42 AM
All the news thats fit to print.
Posted by: MisterZoomer | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 09:57 AM
There goes Joe Savery...the best there ever was.
Posted by: NEPP | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:03 AM
In response to those posting on who or what Raul looks like, I propose Jimminy Cricket.
Posted by: donc | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:06 AM
Why not groom Savery to be a Brooks Kieschnick type bench player. Savery could pitch in long relief/blowouts, and pinch-hit, sub in at 1st or possible corner outfield.
Posted by: GM-Carson | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:17 AM
Zudok/NEPP, great Natural references. Gave me a nice chuckle.
Re: Durbin. I would rather give defrantus, mathieson, or another reliever prospect the opportunity to make the club & log MLB innings.
Posted by: kevmac | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:17 AM
Carson: Nice thought, but Savery isn't groomable because he sucks.
Posted by: J. Weitzel | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:19 AM
JW: Yeah, Savery is a really bad pitcher. Can't strike anyone out, walks a ton of guys, not a big GB pitcher. Basically all the things you look for in a pitcher, he doesn't do.
Sure hope he can hit a ball a mile though. He could be a great Independent League player one day. Like really, really good.
Posted by: Jack | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:22 AM
He could be a great Independent League player one day. Like really, really good.
Are we talking Long Island Ducks? Because I'm not sure one team can carry Joe Savery and Sidney Ponson at the same time.
Let alone the team bus.
Posted by: dlhunter | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:31 AM
Oops. Mondays are for open html tags.
Posted by: dlhunter | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:35 AM
Oh NO! italics.
Posted by: toddzilla | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:35 AM
A bit older:
"Major League Baseball, concerned by an alarming rate of injuries, brought in medical personnel Thursday to speak with Commissioner Bud Selig's special committee."
Teams spent $369.5 million last season in salaries for players on the disabled list, according to MLB. There were 462 players on the DL for 23,682 days. Five teams, led by the Minnesota Twins, spent more than $30 million on inactive players.
"It's not just the big-league salaries you're paying," Chicago White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf said, "but the salaries you're paying for players to replace them. You're also starting their major league service time."
"Many people in attendance at the owners' meetings agreed the problem has become more severe in recent years. But Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia, a member of Selig's 14-person committee for on-field matters, which was formed during last offseason, said there were no easy solutions. The committee did not disclose what was said while meeting with medical personnel."
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2011-01-13-injuries-salary_N.htm
There are actually some interesting RFPs and talks that came out of this meeting to some various Health IT/Employer Benefit consultant folks. Frankly I am kind of surprised at how little teams generally spend on benefits especially for their minor league systems and how little they systematically track the overall health of players beyond the basic medical expense trends.
Posted by: MG | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:39 AM
Close the damn italics
Posted by: GM-Carson | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:44 AM
did this work
Posted by: GM-Carson | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:45 AM
****Carson: Nice thought, but Savery isn't groomable because he sucks.
Posted by: J. Weitzel | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:19 AM
****
Tell us how you really feel.
Posted by: NEPP | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 10:55 AM
if someone posted this on the last thread, my apologies. RAUL looks exactly like the Mummy.
Posted by: Conshy Matt | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:02 AM
This should work
Posted by: Stop The Italics Guy | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:08 AM
"Other noteworthy players include pitchers Michael Schwimer, Justin De Fratus, Mike Zagurski and Scott Mathieson, all of whom will join the big league camp contingency this spring."
Heh, if you meant that as a little word play, that was nice.
Posted by: Edmundo | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:20 AM
"Nice thought, but Savery isn't groomable because he sucks."
Jason, that was the funniest thing you have ever written. You are usually quite witty, but that takes the cake. I spit out my coffee on that one.
Posted by: R.Billingsly | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:24 AM
donc, my wife says Raul looks like a Martian.
She makes fun of him every time he's on the TV screen.
I tell her she's being mean.
She asks me, "Well, what do you think he looks like, then?"
I shut up.
Posted by: awh | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:25 AM
Italics?
Posted by: R.Billingsly | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:26 AM
GM-Carson - that sounds like Andy Reid's dream player, he can do a lot of different things for you, but none of them well.
Posted by: MisterZoomer | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:34 AM
Ugh. Constituency is what I wanted there.
Posted by: J. Weitzel | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 11:56 AM
As for Grilli and Durbin:
Grilli: More Minor League depth couldn't hurt. Durbin? Yeah, he wants to return (other than Werth, who wouldn't?), but where does he fit on the this roster? Plus he's asking for too much. Because Blanton isn't gone (yet), he probably should consider signing elsewhere. I woudn't mind having him back though.
Posted by: DPatrone | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:01 PM
I don't have italics.
Would our newest acquisition offering tweets about himself best be considered: Stallion on the Grill?
Forget all other images. Raul does indeed look just like the Voldemort that stuck out of Quirrel's head in the first movie. No question. Didn't he use his left hand to grab the wand? No?
Posted by: Andy | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:01 PM
It makes sense to leave a roster spot for one of the younger bullpen guys (i.e., Worley, Mathieson, JC Ramirez, DeFratus, Schwimmer). We need to eventually see what we have with these guys. If we could get a couple decent relievers out of that group, it would really help out on future payroll.
That said, I do think there's room on the roster to have both Chad Durbin & a dedicated young guy's spot. Right now, your bullpen certainties, or near-certainties, are: Lidge, Madson, Contreras, Romero, and Bastardo. Durbin would be a 6th. Unless Baez earns the last spot in spring training, that would leave one more spot to try out one of the younger guys.
There are a lot of moving pieces in a bullepn and it's very easy for something unexpected to go wrong. I'm not a huge Chad Durbin fan but he would definitely give us a little more margin for error in the event of injuries or unexpected down seasons from some of our core group. Banking on young guys sounds great in theory but it fails far more often than it succeeds.
Posted by: bay_area_phan | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:30 PM
There is certainly room for a proven commodity like Durbin. Just no way the Phils will sign him a to multiyear deal at a larger price tag than last year.
I wouldn't be surprised if there are a couple of teams interested in signing Durbin at a higher price tag than last season (say $2.35-2.5M). I just can't imagine there are any teams that are jumping at having to pay that over 2 yrs.
Posted by: MG | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:37 PM
Savery does have some skills with the bat as referenced from his final college statistics:
Year Team Lg Age Pos Org Lvl G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB CS HBP IBB SH SF GDP AVG OBP SLG OPS
2005 Rice WAC 19 - NCAA 57 204 49 78 17 2 5 43 35 35 7 3 0 1 1 8 .382 .471 .559 1030
2006 Rice ConfUSA 20 - NCAA 69 254 61 85 20 1 9 66 50 45 7 1 1 1 3 9 .335 .442 .528 970
2007 Rice ConfUSA 21 - NCAA 70 275 58 98 19 2 6 60 37 50 4 1 3 0 2 9 .356 .435 .505 940
Posted by: T-dub | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:43 PM
Andy - I think he used his right but since he was on the back of his head it is like his left...
Posted by: MisterZoomer | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:48 PM
BREAKING: Greg Dobbs signs minor league deal with Marlins gets invite to major league spring training.
Posted by: CJ | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:52 PM
Dobbs to the Marlins. Pencil him in to rake the Phillies Wes Helms style.
Posted by: Scotch Man | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:52 PM
Greg Dobbs signs minor league deal with Marlins, it is tweeted.
Posted by: EastFallowfield | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:52 PM
Any news on Dobbs?
Posted by: EastFallowfield | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:53 PM
That makes three pitchers that were first round draft picks taken on as reclamation projects: Dan Meyer, Matt Anderson and Jason Grilli.
Joining these three on the farm:
Brian Bass
Brian Gordon
Juan Perez
Justin Friend
Ryan Feierabend
Eddie Bonine
They'll be joining our existing AA/AAA/MLB bubble bullpen:
Bastardo, Zagurski, Mathieson, Carpenter, Herndon and Baez.
And our trifecta of #5 starters: Blanton, Kendrick, Worley
So, any bets on who will be in the pen when the team leaves Clearwater?
Posted by: Will Schweitzer | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 12:59 PM
Dobbs to the Marlins? And we thought clout overrated the Marlins before.
Posted by: lorecore | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:11 PM
New philly killer Greg Dobbs. ugh
Posted by: johnnysanz3 | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:16 PM
Helms numbers against the Phils as a member of the Fish (2008-10):
(89 ABs) - .213/.276/.315 with 2 HRs and 15 RBIs. Yeah he has had his share of RBIs but his .591 OPS isn't exactly 'raking.'
It is part of his crazy splits though the past 3 years. Helms turns into an All-Star with guys in scoring position:
.338/.394/.528 with 93?! RBIs in 195 ABs
With nobody on base:
.195/.257/.276 with 5 RBIs in 370 ABs
Posted by: MG | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:19 PM
Do Anderson, Grilli, and Meyer count as 'Value Village' acquisitions and if they do what department would you find them in?
Posted by: MG | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:21 PM
I think all 3 were actually working at a KMart when they were signed.
Posted by: NEPP | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:29 PM
Clean-up in aisles 7-8-9.
Posted by: Meyer | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:41 PM
Excuse me, I'm searching for information on Gregory Dobbs, does anyone have an update? Thank you in advance.
Posted by: Bedrosian's Beard | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:46 PM
Interesting post over at ReclinerGM ranking the players in the Phils org. by trade value (like Bill Simmons does with the NBA). Takes into account age, contract, performance, etc...
Nice overview of the organization (and how ridiculously crazy good it is right now)
http://www.reclinergm.com/phillies-organization-trade-value-rankings/
Posted by: Pete | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 01:59 PM
I always like players who report early to Spring Training. Good job, guys.
Now all we need is for the Phillies to sign Barry Bonds to work with Howard's strike zone recognition... hey, it worked once before, right?
Posted by: TheTheory | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 02:04 PM
Pete: I hope you paid JW for that ad.
Posted by: clout | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 02:19 PM
re: "sign barry bonds to work with Howard's strike zone recognition"
I wouldn't call it an overall success, but not sure it can be mocked:
year ABs k's ab/k
2006 581 181 3.21
2007 529 199 2.66
2008 610 199 3.07
2009 616 186 3.31
2010 550 157 3.50
career high AB per K in 2010. Obviously his other stats all suffered in 2010 compared to other years, and many could point to his focus on overly correcting that AB/K number.
Hopefully the AB/K number can continue to improve without hurting his PA/BB and power numbers again.
Posted by: lorecore | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 02:23 PM
In case you missed this blip from a Verducci column:
"
Charlie Manuel: The Phillies manager, who was there to see Halladay pick up his Cy Young Award, said he is going to play rookie rightfielder Domonic Brown "a lot" in spring training -- which sounds like the plan Braves manager Bobby Cox used with his rookie rightfielder last year, Jason Heyward. "You have to remember that he really hasn't played that much baseball," said Manuel of Brown, who turned down a college football scholarship to sign out of the 20th round with Philadelphia.
Manuel also wants to work with Brown on keeping his hands lower as he loads to hit. "I think when he got around the big leagues, he wanted to put on a show and impress people," Manuel said. "That's natural with a young player. But from what I know, he didn't have his hands quite that high in the minor leagues. He's going to play a lot this spring."
Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/tom_verducci/01/25/bbwaa.dinner/index.html#ixzz1CdvefglO
Posted by: awh | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 02:30 PM
Sad thing is, Dobbs might actually make the Marlins bench, which is extremely weak.
Posted by: GM-Carson | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 02:31 PM
Fastforward to April 2011:
"Greg Dobbs Named starting 3B for the Florida Marlins following Strong Spring!"
Posted by: NEPP | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 02:57 PM
NEPP: I'm not sure if you're kidding or not, but that wouldn't shock me all that much. Given steady at bats in s/t, the motivation that he's playing for his career at this point and the fact that he's competing with Wes Helms, I say he has a fairly decent shot.
Posted by: Will Schweitzer | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 03:03 PM
Yo, new thread
Posted by: EastFallowfield | Monday, January 31, 2011 at 03:16 PM