Tyson Brummett was promoted to Reading (AA) today. Brummett started the season at Lakewood (A), going 3-0 there with a 1.95 ERA in six starts. He made his Clearwater debut in early May and went 2-3, posting a 3.59 ERA in eight starts. The right-handed UCLA product had come on strong of late, winning his last two starts including giving up just two hits in his next to last start against St. Lucie.
Stars from Opening Day (4/3)
Big Night for Reading (AA) as they beat the Altoona Curve 8-3.
Andrew Carpenter (1-0) gave up two runs in five innings.
Jeremy Slayden had three hits, including a triple, and knocked in one RBI.
Jason Donald had two hits, including one double, and knocked in two RBIs.
Lou Marson had two hits and knocked in one RBI.
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.
Greg Golson is on his way up north right now. He will be joining up with the Reading Phillies, the Phillies Double-A affiliate in the Eastern League. Check the Official Site for the full release.
Check back tomorrow for more information on the player(s) that are taking his place on our roster.
The Chesapeake College Athletics web site has this release about Cory Willey's promotion from the Threshers to Reading a few days ago.
Check it out here.
It's been a few days since our last roster update.
Here are the recent transactions:
June 23
Nic Jackson placed on the DL.
June 25
Arlon Quiroz sent to the GCL Phillies.
June 26
Javon Moran sent to Reading.
Cory Willey promoted to Reading.
Alex Concepcion promoted from Lakewood.
Shaun Boyd signed as a minor league free agent.
John Suomi acquired in a trade with Washington.
Some background on our new players:
Alex Concepcion - Concepcion is a 6'1" 180lb right-handed pitcher from the Dominican Republic. He signed with the Phillies in 2003 and spent his first two professional seasons in the Dominican Summer League with Guanuma. He played for the GCL Phillies in Clearwater in 2005 and with Batavia in 2006. Prior to his promotion, he spent the 2007 season coming out of the bullpen for Lakewood. He was 3-1 with a 3.83 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 40 innings.
Shaun Boyd - Boyd is a 5'10" 175lb outfielder from Las Vegas. A former first round pick of the St. Louis Cardinals, Boyd spent seven years in their minor league system starting with Johnson City (Rookie) in 2000 to Memphis (Triple-A) in 2006. The Cardinals released him after the 2006 season. Prior to his signing with the Phillies, he had been playing for the Bridgeport Bluefish of the indepedent Atlantic League. He leaves the Bluefish with a .345 batting average and an active 11-game hitting streak.
John Suomi - Suomi is a 5'11" 199lb catcher from Toronto. He played his college ball in Canada at Caribou University-College in British Columbia. He was drafted by the A's in the 22nd round of the 2000 draft. By 2004, he had risen as high high as Modesto (Single-A) where he was a California League All-Star. His career came to crashing halt when he suffered a major knee injury during a play at the plate during the playoffs. The injury caused him to miss the entire 2005 season. By 2006 he was back in Single-A in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. Prior to the trade between Philadelphia and Washington, he had been splitting the season between Harrisburg (Double-A) and Columbus (Triple-A).
Have some time to recap some of our recent transactions. Reader SF Fan in FL noted one of them (Moran) in a comment from another post.
June 22
PJ Antoniato added from Lakewood.
Jesus Sanchez sent back to GCL Phillies.
Arlon Quiroz added from the GCL Phillies.
June 23
Javon Moran added from GCL Phillies rehab assignment.
Some background on our new players:
PJ Antoniato - Antoniato is a 5'9" 1865lb third baseman from Levittown, NY. He turns 24 one week from today. He split time playing college ball with Briarcliffe College and St. John's University. The Phillies selected him in the 15th round of the 2005 draft. Antoniato should look familiar to Threshers fans, as he did play 16 games for Clearwater in 2006.
Arlon Quiroz - Quiroz is a 6'0" 170lb outfielder from Venezuela. He signed with the Phillies as a free agent before the 2005 season. This is his first professional season outside the Venezuelan Summer League.
Javon Moran - Moran is a 5'11" 175lb outfielder from Valdosta, GA. He played his college ball at Auburn before being selected by the Phillies in the fourth round of the 2003 draft. He was traded to the Reds in 2004 and since then has spent time going betweeen Dayton and Sarasota (Single-A), as well as Chattanooga (Double-A). The Reds sent him back to the Phillies after the 2006 season as part of the Jeff Conine trade. Moran was batting .308 in 42 games with Reading (Double-A) prior to the injury that sent him to Clearwater for a rehab assignment with the GCL club and the Threshers.
Good news keeps rolling for Carlos Carrasco. Not only was he promoted to Reading (Double-A) today, he was also named Phillies Minor League Pitcher of the Week for June 11 through June 17.
You might recall that Carrasco was honored with this same award two weeks ago, but it's hard to pass up a guy who had a three hitter in a complete game shutout during his one start of the week. He also had seven strikeouts that night.
Look for a story on the Official Site shortly.
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.
Patrick Overholt has been promoted to Reading (Double-A). He was scheduled to pitch tonight for the Threshers in Dunedin, but the new plans have him starting for the R-Phils against the Trenton Thunder on Saturday.
Overholt will also miss the 2007 Florida State League All-Star Game this weekend in Daytona. He was originally selected as a member of the West Division All-Star team. No word yet on who the League office has selected to replace him, but it likely will not be another Threshers pitcher.
The Phillies are set to purchase the contract of former Threshers pitcher Kyle Kendrick from the Reading Phillies and have him make his first Major League start against the Chicago White Sox tomorrow.
Kendrick, 22, spent the majority of the 2006 season with the Threshers. He was 9-7 with a 3.53 ERA. FSL batters hit .241 against him and he had a 2.1 : 1.0 strikeout to walk ratio. Kendrick started once for the Threshers in 2005.
The Phillies selected Kendrick in the seventh round of the 2003 draft.
Updated at 4:30pm:
Media Reaction
Phillies.com, Philly.com, Cherry Hill Courier Post
Unfortunately it appears that we won't get the game broadcast here, unless you subscribe to MLB.TV.
Former Threshers infielder Mike Costanzo was just named Phillies Minor League Player of the Week for June 4 - June 10. Costanzo is currently with the Reading Phillies (Double-A).
He hit safely in all seven games during the week which was good for a .370 batting average. He had two hits in three of the games. Five of his 10 hits on the week were doubles.
He is tied for second in the Eastern League with 11 home runs on the season.
Clearwater Threshers of the future will be drafted starting tomorrow (Thursday, June 7) and Friday at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando.
The draft starts at 2pm and the first round will be televised for the first time ever on ESPN2. MLB.com will have the entire draft. Look for Lee McDaniel (Assistant Director, Minor League Operations/Florida) to man the phone for the Phillies at Disney.
The Phillies have the 19th pick in the first round.
Last Five Phillies Top Picks
2006 - Kyle Drabek (Lakewood)
2005 - Former Thresher Mike Costanzo (now with Reading)
2004 - Current Thresher Greg Golson
2003 - Former Thresher Tim Moss
2002 - Former Thresher Cole Hamels (now with Philadelphia Phillies)
Who do you think the Phillies should take with their first pick?
How long do you think it will take this first pick to make it to the Threshers roster?
Wanted to give thanks again to readers Steve and SF Fan in FL for their comments about Michael Zagurski in the post about Slayden below. Also thanks to Who's on First? for their comment from Phuture Phillies. In case you missed their comments, they mentioned that Zagurksi has gone from the Threshers to the Majors in just two weeks.
Zagurski's contract was purchased by the Philadelphia Phillies from Reading on Friday, May 25 after Brett Myers was put on the 15-day disabled list. He made his Major League debut that night at Turner Field against the Atlanta Braves. He needed only 10 pitches to get three outs. He took the mound in another relief appearance the next day where he did give up his first hit to a Major Leauge batter. However, after Braves second baseman Kelly Johnson singled up the middle, he settled down and it took him just eight total pitches to get four outs. Despite his success on the mound so far, he is still looking for his first Major League strikeout.
Last season, Threshers and Mets met up at St. Lucie in the second half of the FSL season for a four-game series. The teams split the series with Clearwater taking the first two games, and St. Lucie bouncing back to win the last two games.
The Threshers had 25 hits in the first two games, but were held to just six hits over the last two games. In the two wins, Threshers OF/DH Branden Florence had seven hits in his nine at-bats. He also had three RBIs in the Game 2 win. Patrick Overholt and Derek Griffith both picked up wins, and Brian Reed picked up a save in the Game 1 win.
Branden Florence is now with Reading (AA), but he's currently injured. Before the injury he was batting .350. He has been out since mid-to-late April and is expected to return in late May or early June.
Patrick Overholt is still with the Threshers. His 3.46 ERA and 40 strikeouts puts him near the top of the Threshers starting rotation.
Derek Griffith was 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA coming out of the bullpen for the Threshers earlier this season before being released. Last I heard he was trying out for several teams.
I don't have any information as to what Brian Reed is doing this year.
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.
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.
Time to recap some of our recent transactions
May 4
Kevin Howard sent to Lakewood
Michael Garciaparra added from Extended Spring Training
May 5
Allen Davis promoted to Reading
May 6
Victor Hall released
Carlos Pena added from Extended Spring Training
May 7
Michael Garciaparra added from Extended Spring Training
Pete Shier added from Reading
Some information about our new players:
Carlos Pena is a right-hander who has been both a starter and a reliever during his time in the Phillies minor league system. He played last season with the GCL Phillies, where he came out of the bullpen 15 times. He was 1-2 with a 2.96 ERA and picked up two saves.
Pete Shier started the season with the Threshers, but only played in two games at shortstop before being promoted to Reading. He played second base, shortstop, and third base in his 6 games with the R-Phillies.
For whatever reason, blogger wouldn't let me update my previous post...
Updated at Noon: After splitting yesterday's doubleheader with Tampa, the Threshers record sits at 3-3 which ties them for second place in the FSL West with Dunedin and Tampa. Sarasota leads the division with a 5-1 record. Sarasota and Dunedin play tonight in Sarasota, while Clearwater and Tampa finish off the series tonight. Gates open at 6:00pm for the 7:00pm game.
The Threshers are currently the hottest hitting team in the FSL with a team batting average of .289. Jeremy Slayden and Greg Golson are leading the team and are still in the FSL Top 10 in batting average. Slayden is batting .400 with six RBIs and Golson is batting .375 with four RBIs through their first six games. Golson's five extra-base hits so far put him in second place in the league.
Clay Harris is tied for the FSL league lead in home runs with two.
We had a couple transactions on our roster yesterday. Pete Shier was promoted to Reading, and Freddy Garcia has officially completed his rehab assignment.
Looking outside of Clearwater, former Notre Dame wide receiver Jeff Samardzija is scheduled to start tonight for the Daytona Cubs in their game at Vero Beach.
Updated at 2:15pm 
Just caught a picture (above) of our hat for our give-a-way tomorrow.
The first 1,000 guests receive a hat. The give-a-way is sponsored by Richard's Charter.
Former Thresher Zack Segovia is scheduled to make his Major League debut tomorrow against the Florida Marlins.
Charlie Nobles from MLB.com has a story about it that can be found at Phillies.com
Segovia pitched for the Threshers for the entire 2005 season. He started the 2006 season in Clearwater but quickly moved up to Reading (AA).
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