The Phillies minor league headlines have been consumed by the likes of J.P. Crawford, Aaron Nola, Roman Quinn, Maikel Franco, Zach Eflin and others. While the focus remains on how they'll develop, there are plenty of guys contributing to their respective teams outside of the top 10 list and could eventually help the big league club, whether it be during September call-ups or some time further in the future.
Triple-A – Lehigh Valley Ironpigs
- Brian Bogusevic (RF) - The 31-year-old outfielder is by no means a prospect, but if the Phillies end up needing a bench bat, Bogusevic is the guy you want. In 182 at-bats this season, he's hitting .319 with seven doubles, a triple, four home runs, 22 RBI's and 25 runs scored. Over his last 10 games, he's hitting .306 (11-for-36) with two runs scored, a homer and seven RBI's.
- Domonic Brown (OF) - The Phillies embattled outfielder has spent all season in Triple-A after recovering from an injury suffered during spring training. Brown has shown some signs of offense, but he's struggled recently, hitting just .171 (6-for-35) over his last 10 games with five RBI's, five walks and 11 strikeouts. Overall on the season, Brown has a .249 average to go along with eight doubles, a triple, a home run and 24 RBI's.
- Chase d'Arnaud (2B) – Brother of former Phillies prospect Travis d'Arnaud, Chase, the 28-year-old second baseman, finds himself in the midst of a strong season for the Ironpigs. In 118 at-bats, d'Arnaud is hitting .305 with four doubles, a home run and 11 RBI's. Over his last three games, he's tallied five hits, scored three runs and driven in two as well.
- Phillippe Aumont (RHP) - The last remaining member of the 2009 Cliff Lee trade has walked 14 batters over his last two starts, but still holds an impressive 2.17 ERA this year in Triple-A. As a starter, Aumont has surrendered judt 11 earned runs in 47 2/3 innings. The same issue arises with him though, control. He's walked 30 this season, 14 in the last two games. That stat aside, opposing hitters have a .180 average against him. In five of his seven starts, he's allowed two runs or less.
Other Notables: RHP Seth Rosin (28.1 IP, 1-1, 2.22 ERA), LHP Cesar Jimenez (24 IP, 1-3, 2.63 ERA)
Double-A – Reading Fightin Phils
- Jesse Biddle (LHP) - The more Biddle pitches, the more he seems to be settling into what could be a back-end starter role in the Phillies future rotation. In eight of his nine starts this season for Reading, the 23-year-old out of Philadelphia has help opposing teams to three runs or less, despite walking 22 hitters in the process. He's 4-1 with a 4.50 ERA this season and hitters have a .274 average against him. In his last start back on May 31st, Biddle tossed 5 2/3 innings and gave up three runs on four hits while striking out two against Richmond.
- Anthony Vasquez (LHP) - This 28-year-old left-handed reliever has spent time in both Reading and Lehigh Valley this year, posting a combined 3-1 record and a 2.27 ERA in 39 2/3 innings. Surprisingly, left-handed hitters(.200) are hitting better against him than righties (.171), but he seems to be effective against both. He's got a WHIP of 0.96 and as struck out 28 hitters while walking just nine.
- Nefi Ogando - Ogando, a right-handed reliever out of the Dominican, is in his sixth season in the minors and posts a 2.49 ERA in 25 1/3 innings for Reading this season. While opposing hitters have just a .202 average against him, Ogando needs to work on his control, walking 14 hitters in the aforementioned 25 1/3 innings. Over his last 10 games, he's thrown 16 1/3 innings and given up just three runs, good for an ERA of 1.65.
- Brock Stassi (1B) - Selected in the 33rd round of the 2011 draft, Stassi, 25, leads the Eastern League in hitting (.341), RBI (43) and finds himself in second in OPS (.960) and third in both OBP (.421) and slugging (.539). The 25-year-old first baseman has hit .368 (14-for-38) over his last 10 games, scoring seven runs and driving in nine. Though he hasn't hit too many home runs, six to be exact, Stassi to provide the Phillies another Darin Ruf sort player a few years down the road.
- Cam Perkins (OF) - After hitting .342 in Reading last season, Perkins got to try out Triple-A, but hit just .216 in 255 at-bats, prompting the Phillies to start him in Reading again this season. So far, he hasn't recreated the magic he found at the plate like last year just yet. He's hitting .247 with 13 doubles, six home runs and 24 RBI's. He's starting to heat up on offense though, hitting .325 (13-for-40) with nine runs scores, four home runs and 11 RBI's over the last 10 games. Perkins, 24, was the Phillies sixth round selection in the 2012 draft.
Other Notables: 2B Brodie Green (.324 avg, seven doubles, nine RBI's), OF Aaron Altherr (.261 avg, 4 HR, 23 RBI's)
Advanced 'A' – Clearwater Threshers
- Mark Leiter (RHP) - Selected in the 22nd round of the 2013 draft, 24-year-old Leiter has been a multi-purpose pitcher for Clearwater. He's appeared in 12 games so far this season, six starts, posting an ERA of 1.75 to go along with a 3-1 record and a 0.86 WHIP. In each of his last four starts, Leiter has gone seven innings or more and allowed two runs or less in three of those outings. Since joining the Phillies organization, the Fort Lauderdale native has a 16-13 record and 3.20 ERA .
- Brandon Leibrandt (LHP) - Drafted in the sixth round in 2014, Leibrandt has been a solid force in the Threshers rotation this season, posting a 2.66 ERA in 64 1/3 innings. He's struck out 56 hitters and walked just 11, but have allowed four or more runs in two of his last four starts this season. Over his first six starts of 2015, the 22-year-old left-hander limited opposing teams to two runs or less and tallied seven or more strikeouts in three of those starts. Last season, he went a combined 3-5 with a 2.82 ERA between WIlliamsport and the Gulf Coast Rookie League.
- Angelo Mora (2B/SS) - Flying under the radar all year, Mora, 22, is hitting .364 with seven doubles, two triples, 11 runs scores and 11 RBI's for Clearwater this season. The 2B/SS has a .340 average against left-handers and a .380 line against righties. Over his last 10 games, he's gone 15-for-39 with three runs scored, five RBI's, a walk and a steal.
- Dylan Cozens (OF) - The powerful right-fielder is only hitting .250 this year, but has driven in a team high 31 runs. He's also struck out a team-high 50 times and has walked just 13 times. The 21-year-old out of Scottsdale Arizona seems to be heating up over his last 10 games, hitting .351 (13-for-37) with seven runs scored, nine RBI's, six walks, eight strikeouts and a steal.
Other Notables: C Willians Astudillo (.307 avg, 11 doubles, 18 RBI's), RHP Edubray Ramos (2-3, 1.71 ERA)
Class 'A' – Lakewood Blueclaws
- Rhys Hoskins (1B) - Hoskins, 22, isn't one of the Phillies top 10 prospects this season, but has had an impressive campaign thus far for Class 'A' Lakewood, slashing .328/.407/.513 with 11 doubles, three triples, six home runs, 31 runs scored and 33 RBI's. Over his last 10 games, Hoskins is hitting .350 (14-for-40) with two doubles, a home run and six RBI's. Selected in the fifth round of the 2014 draft, Hoskins is an alum of Cal State Sacramento and ranks fifth in the South Atlantic League in hitting and first with 97 total bases. He recently earned Minor League Player of the Month for May along with Aaron Nola.
- Ricardo Pinto (RHP) - In his fourth season with the Phillies organization, Pinto sports a 5-1 record to go along with a 2.68 ERA this season through nine starts, spanning 57 innings. The 21-year-old out of Venezuela had his best outing of the season on May 30th, tossing seven shutout innings, scattering seven hits while striking out seven and walking just one. Left-handed hitters have a .203 average against him this season.
- Chris Oliver (RHP) - Another member of the 2014 draft class, Oliver has a 2.93 ERA this season in 46 innings pitched for Clearwater. Over his last two starts, spanning 13 innings, he's allowed three runs on 10 hits, walked six and struck out three. Oliver's biggest issue right now is his walks, dealing out 18 bases on balls this season while striking out 22. That being said, he's still finding ways to keep damage at a minimum despite having a 3-4 record on the year.
- Joey DeNato (LHP) - Selected in the 19th round of the 2014 draft, DeNato has been a very effective left-hander out of the Blueclaws bullpen this season, posting a 1.59 ERA in 22 2/2 innings. He's struck out 24 and walked just five and has a 0.66 ERA in his last 10 games, spanning 13 2/3 innings. At 23 years old, DeNato is at a low level for his age, but his performance will likely warrant a promotion if it continues. Last season, between Williamsport and Lakewood, he went 4-1 with a 1.93 ERA in 37 1/3 innings.
- Herlis Rodriguez (OF) - Another Venezuelan that the Phillies plucked, Rodriguez has been a pleasant surprise for Lakewood this season, hitting a solid .285 with eight doubles, a triple, two home runs and 21 RBI's. Over his last 10 games, he's really flipped the switch though, hitting .457 (16-for-35) with seven runs scored, a double, six RBI's, two walks, five strikeouts and five steals.
Other notables: SS Malquin Canelo (.301 avg, 15 doubles, 11 RBI's, eight steals), RHP Ranfi Casimiro (2-3, 2.96 ERA)
Brandon Apter, Publishing Editor for Philliedelphia.com
