Former Thresher Mike Zagurksi wins 2007 Paul Owens Award

Former Thresher Mike Zagurski has won the Paul Owens Award for best pitcher in the Phillies minor league system in 2007.

Zagurski started the season in Clearwater and made 12 appearances for the Threshers as a reliever. He struck out 30 in 16.1 innings of work holding FSL batters to a .113 average. He gave up just six hits and two earned runs good for a 1.10 ERA. Zagurksi had five saves for the Threshers before his promotion to Reading (Double-A).

He played in just six games for the R-Phils before being brought up to the Major League roster. Over the next few months he spent a majority of his time (25 appearances) with the Phillies, but also spent time (seven appearances) with the Ottawa Lynx (Triple-A). He was on the major league roster when an injury ended his season in late August.

Past winners of the Paul Owens Award include former Threshers Carlos Carrasco, Chris Roberson, and Cole Hamels.

Former Threshers lead Ottawa to Shutout

Former Threshers J.A. Happ and Mike Zagurski combined for eight innings of shutout baseball on Friday, August 3 as the Ottawa Lynx beat the Syracuse Chiefs 5-0.

Happ struck out eight and only allowed one hit in 6.2 innings, while Zagurksi struck out three in just 1.1 innings in relief.

Injuries in Phillies Outfield Good News for Former Thresher

The Phillies placed Shane Victorino and Michael Bourn on the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday. To take their place, they re-instated Jayson Werth from the disabled list and also called up former Thresher Chris Roberson from Ottawa.

Werth played in four games for the Threshers during his rehab assignment.

Roberson spent the 2004 season with the Threshers.

Gear up for Motorcycle Night

Game Time: 6:30pm      Gates Open:5:00pm

Tonight's Lineup
TBA

Tonight's starting pitcher is Cruse. This is his first start since being promoted from Lakewood.

Boom Boom Boom
Fireworks will light up the sky post-game.

Vrrrm Vrrrm Vrrrm
Participate
Motorcycle Night returns to Bright House Networks Field. Ride your motorcycle to the game and take part in the Pre-Game Lap around the Field at 6:00pm and during the National Anthem. Participants receive a voucher for one free draft beer (post-lap), a free ticket, free parking, and drink specials at the Frenchy's Tiki Pavilion. Participants should check in with Dan McDonough near the fountain at the West Gate upon arrival to the ballpark.

There will also be a motorcycle show contest judged by Full Throttle Magazine. The contest is FREE to enter. First prize is $500. Second Prize is $250. Third Prize is $100

Register to Win
Fans can register at the booth behind home plate to win a Harley Davidson Dyna Family motorcycle courtesy of Fletcher's Harley Davidson. A name will be drawn if a Threshers player hits for the cycle. Also, motorcycle-related prizes will be given away between innings.

First Start
Nate Johnson picked up his first win of the year yesterday in his first start since he was a member of the Lakewood BlueClaws in 2005. He gave up four hits and struck out three in five innings of work.

Harman's Hot Bat
Brad Harman was two for four yesterday against Sarasota. He hit his seventh home run of the year last night that bounced off the roof of Frenchy's Tiki Pavilion. He's batting .450 over his last six games.

Headed Across the Border
The Phillies optioned former Thresher Michael Zagurski to Ottawa on Friday, July 27 after they activated Brett Myers from the disabled list.

Happ loses Major League debut

Former Thresher J.A. Happ lost his Major League debut against the New York Mets yesterday. Despite his struggles, he did strike out five.

J.A. Happ's Major League Firsts:

Hit - Jose Reyes (single in the first inning)
Home Run - Paul Lo Duca (2-run shot in first inning)
K - Carlos Beltran (first inning)
Walk - Shawn Green (fourth inning)

Updated at 1:15pm: The Phillies optioned Happ back to Ottawa today.

Update: Former Threshers in Reading

Eleven former Threshers are currently on the Reading Phillies (Double-A) roster.

Here is an update of how they are doing with Reading so far this year.

Allen Davis - Given up zero hits in five out of his 10 relief appearances

Julio De La Cruz - Strictly a reliever this year. In 25 appearances he's got a 1-1 record with a 3.78 ERA. He also has three saves. Hitters are batting .224 against him and he's got a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.2 to 1.

Chris Key - 4-0 with a 2.31 ERA in 24 appearances out of the bullpen. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 4 to 1.

Patrick Overholt - Scattered eight hits over five innings in his debut with Reading on Saturday.

Chris Coste - Joined Reading after a month with Ottawa (Triple-A). He is hitting .288 in his 19 games with Reading. Against lefties he is 7 for 17 (.412) with three home runs.

Mike Costanzo - Batting .325 in his last ten games. In five of those games he has gotten two hits. His 13 home runs lead the Eastern League. He has 29 extra-base hits which ranks him tied for fourth in the Eastern League. Leads Reading in walks with 27.

Michael Garciaparra - He is 12 for 36 (.333) with runners in scoring position.

Jesus Merchan - Leading the Eastern League in hitting with a .356 batting average in 48 games. Only struck out eight times in 163 at-bats. Hitting .410 on the road. His on-base percentage of .422 is third best in the Eastern League.

Peeter Ramos - Was three for five with two runs scored in a game on June 7 against Harrisburg. Has nine hits in 22 at-bats (.409) with runners in scoring position.

Branden Florence - Still on the disabled list. Injured in April and missed the entire month of May. Close to missing the whole month of June as well.

Mike Spidale - Was two for four with a stolen base in his second game with Reading (vs. Trenton) on June 15.

Former Thresher Joe Bisenius put on DL

Former Threshers pitcher Joe Bisenius has been put on the DL by the Ottawa Lynx (Triple-A).

Bisenius started the season with the Philadelphia Phillies but was sent to Ottawa after two relief appearances. He's struggled on the road this season with the Lynx, but has a 2.81 ERA at home.

The Ottawa Lynx official site has a story here.

Our friends at the Ottawa Lynx blog have a bit about it here as well.

Recent Transactions

Time to recap some of our recent transactions:

May 19
Daniel Brauer placed on the disabled list

May 20
Jason Wylie activated from the disabled list

May 28
Ron Hill promoted from Lakewood
Nic Jackson signed as a minor league free agent
Eude Brito promoted to Ottawa

Some background on our new players:

Ron Hill - 'Bear' is a 6'3" 225lb relief pitcher from Hawaii. He played his college ball for the University of North Carolina at Wilmington before being selected by the Phillies in the 17th round of the 2005 draft. He should look familiar to Threshers fans, as he did pitch in nine games for us last season during late July and throughout August. While with Lakewood this year he had a 2.63 ERA with 10 saves in 17 appearances. He struck out 22 batters in just 24 innings.

Nic Jackson - Jackson is a 27-year old outfielder who started his career in the Chicago Cub organization as a third round pick in the 2000 draft. He struggled through numerous injuries throughout his career and the Cubs declared him a Minor League free agent in the fall of 2006. He played this season with the Binghamton Mets (AA) before being released. He's at his best late in the game this year, batting .368 in the eighth, ninth, and/or extra innings.

Recent transactions

Time to recap some of our recent transactions

May 13
Michael Zagurski promoted to Reading

May 16
Eude Brito added from Ottawa's disabled list
Nate Johnson added from Reading

Some background on our new players:

Eude Brito - Played in 11 games for the Philadelphia Phillies over the last couple of years. He has only pitched in four games coming out of the bullpen for Ottawa so far this season. He pitched for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic last year. Brito has never suited up for the Clearwater Threshers, but he did play for the old Clearwater team in 2002 and 2003.

Nate Johnson - He had an 8-3 record with a 2.57 ERA in 45 games as a Thresher in 2006. He has appeared in 11 games this season for Reading. He has struck out 10 batters in only 13.1 innings of work for the R-Phils in 2007. His wife Shannon, who worked in our Diamond Outfitters store during his assignment in Clearwater, gave birth to the couple's first child during the off-season.

Stats and Stuff

Just took a peek at the Overall Minor League Leaders as of this morning and we've got an appearance by a Clearwater Thresher on the list. Jeremy Slayden is tied for third with 27 walks and 15th in on-base percentage (.455). Slayden's .336 batting average puts him at fifth in the FSL, while his 30 RBIs have him tied for first.

The Threshers have the best record (23-13) of the Phillies affiliates. Reading, Ottawa, and Lakewood are all at or near .500.

The Threshers are 20-0 when leading after eight innings, but are 0-10 when trailing after eight innings.

It's 1/2 way to Halloween Night

1/2 way to Halloween Night is tonight. There are some folks already dressed up in the office, but we haven't yet had a guest come in costume to get their half-price ticket. There will be Trick-r-Treat Stations throughout the ballpark and a Costume Contest during the game.

Updated at 2:00pm: Through games of 4/12, the Phillies Minor League Organization is a combined 13-13. The Threshers are in second place in the organization at 4-3, while Ottawa (AAA) is holding down last place (1-4).

Updated at 4:15pm: Pictures are being taken of folks throughout the office who are dressed up. One special picture is already on the front page of the Official Site. Be sure to check it out.

Updated at 5:15pm: Tonight's lineups are in.

For the Flying Tigers:

1. # 24 Justin Justice (RF)
2. # 11 Cameron Maybin (CF)
3. # 18 Wilkin Ramirez (LF)
4. # 13 Michael Hernandez (DH)
5. # 55 Dusty Ryan (C)
6. # 8 Ronnie Rourquin (3B)
7. # 22 Ryan Roberson (1B)
8. # 10 Will Rhymes (2B)
9. # 4 Mark Haske (SS)

Pitching tonight for Lakeland is # 20 Luke French

For the Threshers

1. #10 Michael Spidale (LF)
2. # 2 Greg Golson (CF)
3. # 12 Brad Harman (2B)
4. # 21 Jeremy Slayden (RF)
5. # 25 Clay Harris (3B)
6. # 27 Welinson Baez (DH)
7. # 6 Lou Marson (C)
8. # 9 John Urick (1B)
9. # 13 Fidel Hernandez (SS)

Pitching tonight for Clearwater is Carlos Carrasco

Updated at 7:25pm: Lakeland flys to an early 3-0 lead (2nd inning).

Updated at 7:55pm: Lakeland leads 6-1 in the top of the fourth.

2007 Clearwater Threshers coaching staff has been announced

The Phillies have just released the new coaching arrangements for the 2007 Minor League Season. These are some new faces for us in Clearwater, but most of them will look familiar to the fans of the Lakewood BlueClaws.

Making the jump from Lakewood to Clearwater are Dave Huppert (manager), Steve Schrenk (pitching coach), and Chris Mudd (trainer).

One new face to the Phillies organization will be joining us in Clearwater as well. He is Brad Komminsk (coach). He comes to Clearwater after several years managing and coaching throughout the Cleveland Indians organization.

Some familiar names that have moved around the organization include former manager Greg Legg (now with single-A Williamsport). Joining Legg in Williamsport is former Threshers' coach Ken Dominguez, who spent last season in Lakewood.

Former trainer Shawn Fcasni is now with triple-A Ottawa while Jason Kirkman has moved to double-A Reading. Ichiro Kitano goes to single-A Lakewood.

Updated at 12:54pm: Former coach Greg Gross is now with Reading.

Affiliate Shakeup - Say Goodbye to Batavia and

Hello to Williamsport.

The Phillies announced today a two-year working agreement with the Williamsport Crosscutters in the short-season Class A NY-Penn League. The Phillies had been affiliated with Batavia for nearly 20 years prior to this change.

Steve Noworyta, Director, Minor Leagues comments:

"Relocating our short-season team to Williamsport continues our plan of getting as many of our minor league teams as close as possible to Philadelphia. With AAA moving to the Lehigh Valley in 2008, the lone exception will be Clearwater. The great facilities in Clearwater will continue to be home for the Threshers and the Gulf Coast Rookie League team."

For those who may not be aware, the AAA Phillies affiliate for the 2007 season will be the Ottawa Lynx located in Ontario, Canada. Scranton is now an affiliate of the New York Yankees.