Despite being the only reliever on the opening day roster for the Triple-A Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs not to be called up in 2011, Michael Schwimer is not letting that small detail bother him. The 25 year old lefty is dominating the International League going 7-1 with 10 Saves and a 1.73ERA for the Iron Pigs. He’s struck out 81 batters in 62.1 innings. In the story Schwimer talks about waiting his turn in Philadelphia, his dominant season, and playing in the Triple-A All Star Game.
In the 1980’s there was Rob Deer, in the 1990’s, there was John Kruk, and in the 2000’s baseball’s “everyman” was Matt Stairs. The Canadian slugger retired this week after being released by the Washington Nationals. Days later he was back in his hometown of Bangor, Maine playing hockey with his local pals. The Bangor Daily News has posted a great piece on Stairs who talks about his love for hockey, coaching baseball in Mexico, his love for his hometown, and his aspirations to be a manager.
This folks is a good one. The San Francisco Giants and the Philadelphia Phillies got involved in a high quality brawl on Friday night. Shane Victorino who had hit a Home Run earlier in the game was hit in the back by a Ramon Ramirez pitch. Victorino stepped towards the mound, Giants catcher Eli Whiteside whipped off his mask and glove and started bobbing and weaving towards the on coming Phillies bench. From there it was on. After a lot of pushing and shoving and grabbing and clawing, the brawl seemed to be simmering down. That’s when Victorino broke free and dove back into the fray sparking more mayhem. Ramirez, Whiteside, and Victorino were all ejected for their role in the brawl. (Will get the video up on this post once MLB.com lets me embed it.)
This is a Must Watch video coming from our friend Jason Bristol of WHPTV in Harrisburg. Last night Bryce Harper came up in the ninth with a runner on in a scoreless game between his Harrisburg Senators and the Reading Phillies, and blasted a double down the right field line. The ball was misplayed by the right fielder who then overthrew home plate. Harper never stops and dives into home headfirst without a helmet on to score the eventual game winning run. It’s an awesome sequence. Also seen first in the video is the walkoff pickoff that sent Reading to a win over Harrisburg in the completion of a suspended game, a dancing old guy, as well as an awesome catch by Chris Rahl in game two, but the Harper play at the end of the video is the highlight by far.
Here’s a second angle. Fast forward to 1:40 mark in the video.
Players and coaches on the Williamsport Crosscutters, the New York-Penn League affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies are lucky to be alive after a major bus crash Tuesday night on Staten Island. The bus was traveling to the team hotel when the bus collided with an SUV and then crashed through a guard rail on an overpass above the Staten Island Expressway. The bus came within a few feet of falling onto the expressway below. Complete coverage of the crash is found in the story below.
Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg is likely days away from beginning a minor league rehab assignment according to MASNSports.com. The 23 year old Strasburg is coming off Tommy John surgery. He is likely to begin his rehab with the Low-A Hagerstown Suns before progressing to High-A Potomac and moving up from there. The former first overall pick back in 2009 created a frenzy, selling out stadiums across the northeast, as he moved through the minors in 2010, going 7-2 with a 1.30ERA in 11 combined starts for the Double-A Harrisburg Senators and Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs. Strasburg made his major league debut on June 9th against the Pittsburgh Pirates and struck out 14 batters. He went 5-3 with a 2.91ERA in 12 big league starts before he tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow on August 21st, 2010 against the Philadelphia Phillies and had Tommy John surgery on September 3rd. If Strasburg’s rehab assignment runs smoothly it is likely he will be back in the Nationals rotation sometime in early September, a little over a year after the injury occurred.
Since 1993 the Philadelphia Phillies have hosted teams of area high school all star players in a summer baseball tournament called the Carpenter Cup. Back in 1994 one of those all stars was current Phillies catcher Brian Schneider. Since joining the Phillies in 2010 after a decade long big league career with the Montreal Expos, Washington Nationals, and New York Mets, Schneider jumped at the chance to chair the tournament. It so happened that his old Carpenter Cup team Lehigh Valley won the 2011 championship, and as a result they were treated kings by Schneider at Citizens Bank Park. In the story, Schneider’s old Carpenter Cup coach talks about coaching Schneider and the experience had by this year’s Lehigh Valley team. It’s a pretty cool read.
After opening his pro career with two straight seasons posting an ERA under 3.00, Philadelphia Phillies pitching prospect Josh Zeid has found some struggles at the Double-A level with an ERA currently sitting at 5.74 for the Reading Phillies. In the story Zeid, who skipped High-A entirely, talks about adjusting to the Double-A level, moving back and forth between starting and relieving, and his passion for writing.
He may have his path to the big leagues being blocked by Ryan Howard, but that hasn’t stopped Phillies prospect Matt Rizzotti from crushing balls at Double-A Reading this year. The 25 year old 22 Doubles, a career high 18 Home Runs, and is hitting a highly respectable .295 in this his second stint at Double-A. Rizzotti talks about his solid season, what he’s looking to improve upon as he moves up the minor league ladder, and his approach to hitting the baseball.
Fresh off a Derek Jeter appearance at shortstop and a Phil Hughes appearance on the mound, Trenton Thunder fans welcomed Shane Victorino and Brad Lidge who were rehabbing with the visiting Reading Phillies. With Trenton being less than an hour from Philly and about an hour and a couple hours from New York, the team has welcomed droves of Yankees and Phillies fans looking to see their stars up close and personal. In the story below Lidge and Victorino talk about what it’s like to play in the minors in front of the rabid fans.