TTB staffer Chris Bengel went to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs game last night and will offer a few insights on the Phillies’ AAA affiliate, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
The IronPigs faced the Pawtucket Red Sox last night and came away with an 8-2 victory.
The interesting part about the game was that the Red Sox starting pitcher was none other than former Phillie Brandon Duckworth. That certainly provided me with a stroll down memory lane as Duckworth was a top prospect for the Phillies years ago.
There were a few players that I was looking forward to seeing last night. One was outfielder Delwyn Young.
Young had a very good spring and was in serious consideration to make the Phillies roster. But Young is not having a good season up at Lehigh Valley. Young is hitting .167 on the season. He went 0-for-4 last night against Pawtucket pitching. He did hit two long fly balls to the warning track that were eventually caught.
One guy that really impressed me was outfielder Brandon Moss. Moss spent time with the Boston Red Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates organizations and hasn’t found much success.
But he was very good at the plate last night, going 2-for-3 including a bases-clearing double that gave the IronPigs an 8-1 lead at the time. While he hasn’t been successful at the major league level, it’s nice to know that a guy like Moss is there in case he is needed.
The last guy that I was keeping an eye on was infielder Ronnie Belliard. Belliard has bounced around the major leagues over his career. He is a career .273 hitter in the majors and has caught on with the IronPigs this season.
He is a veteran guy that could fill a need off the bench especially with the injury concerns of Chase Utley. Belliard certainly wasn’t very impressive at the plate last night as he went 0-for-3. He did have one solid at-bat where he took the at-bat into a deep count and made Duckworth work for the out.
Overall Belliard is hitting .258 with a home run and seven RBIs so far this season. If nothing else, he provides nice depth in Lehigh Valley and is there if the Phillies need a veteran replacement.
I wanted to see Vance Worley and Michael Schwimmer pitch but neither made an appearance last night. Worley is a guy that could potentially help the Phillies if the team decides to ship out Joe Blanton to help acquire a bat.
While there isn’t a lot to get excited about on this IronPigs team, there are a few guys that could be serviceable if the injury bug continues to strike the Phillies.
TTB 