Minor League Awards

It's time for the monthly awards again starting with the Phillies minor league system. Its been an up and down month for the Phillies farm system. The IronPigs have turned it around and are now playing like a respectable ball club. Another good month like this last one and they'll likely be out of last place. Several top prospects have stumbled including SP Andrew Carpenter who was just demoted from AA Reading down to A+ Clearwater. SP Antonio Bastardo (AA) has been so-so since his promotion to Reading and he no longer appears to be the uber-prospect he seemed in Clearwater. To anyone who knows his stuff, this is not a surprise. Still, there is hope that he will make something of himself and become a contributor at the Major League level in the next few years. At the AAA level, C Jason Jaramillo has turned it around and he is now sporting a much more respectable .240's batting average after a dreadful start. Due to his age, 28 this year, he appears to be trade bait to a team needing a good backup this summer. That said, its time for the awards:

Monthly Awards:

Minor League Player of the Month - C Lou Marson: Marson may have solidified his spot as the top position prospect in the Phillies organization with a truly awesome performance this month. He batted .394 (37 of 94) for the month with 24 RBIs and 2o runs scored. He picked up 10 extra-base hits (8 2Bs, 2 HR) in the process and walked more than he struck out (20BBs vs. 17 SOs). Most impressively, he posted a .500 OBP for the month along with a 1.043 OPS. He is also finally getting national attention appearing on Baseball Prospectus' Hot Sheet this month. At this point, Marson looks to be the catcher of the future for the Phillies and he could turn into a real star.

Minor League Pitcher of the Month - LHP R.J. Swindle: Despite not having a 90 MPH fastball, Swindle continues to post very impressive numbers at every level of the minors and this month was no exception. In 9 appearances, Swindle pitched 12 1/3 innings giving up 1 earned run for a 0.73 ERA. He has allowed just 6 hits for the month and exhibited his trademark of excellent control with 13 Ks and just 1 BB. Despite his unorthodox stuff, the Phillies are running out of excuses of why not to promote Swindle to the Show.

Honorable Mention:

OF Greg Golson (AA): Golson had another strong month in Reading and it appears his projected power is starting to appear. After hitting just 2 HRs in all of April, he hit 5 for the month of May. He also had another strong month with a .336 avg and 8 SBs. He still needs a lot of work on his plate discipline (35 SOs vs. 5 BBs) however and he is not ready for the Show yet. Still, he is showing some very positive signs.

2B Adrian Cardenas (A+): Cardenas had a strong month back from an early season injury. He went 21 of 65 (.323) at the plate along with 10 extra-base hits (3 2Bs, 3 3Bs, 4 HRs). He also showed great plate discipline (11 BBs vs. 9 SOs) and he appears to be another great position prospect in the Phillies system.

SP Drew Naylor (A): The Phillies top Aussie prospect posted another strong month for the Lakewood BlueClaws (A) going 3-0 with a 3.11 ERA. He struck out 39 in 37 1/3 innings pitched. He also exhibited good control walking just 8 batters on the month. Naylor will likely be promoted to Clearwater shortly after the upcoming amateur draft.