The Phillies continued to accumulate pieces that could potentially help the Phillies in 2016. These come in the form of minor league contracts, with invitations to Spring Training. This is far from a guarantee of a job, but each of the players probably have an opportunity to show the Phillies something. With little depth at the Major League level, the Phillies added the first of probably many 2016 Spring Training invites.
Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inqurier reports:
#Phillies have invited INFs Emmanuel Burriss & Ryan Jackson and RHPs Frank Herrmann, Chris Leroux & Reinier Roibal to spring training
— Matt Breen (@matt_breen) November 18, 2015
All of the players have experience in the Major Leagues.
A second baseman, Burriss was once a top 10 prospect in the San Francisco Giants system, who drafted Burriss at the later part of the first round in 2006. Burriss made his Major League debut in 2008, batting .283 in 95 games. He appeared in every season from 2008 through 2012 with the Giants. After spending 2013 in the Cincinnati Reds organization, Burriss spent 2014 and 2015 with the Washington Nationals, getting a big league opportunity in 2015. Lifetime, Burriss is a .245 hitter in 723 at bats.
A shortstop, Jackson made his Major League Debut against the Phillies in 2012 while with the Saint Louis Cardinals. Jackson has played in the majors with the Cardinals and the Los Angeles Angels of Anahiem. However, Jackson has spent time as a member of the Houston Astros, the San Diego Padres, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Kansas City Royals, and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, with whom Jackson appeared in 22 games in 2015. Jackson was hitless in nine at bats in 2015.
Frank Herrmann has pitched 95 games in the Major Leagues during his career, all with the Cleveland Indians in relief from 2010 through 2012. Hermann missed 2013 after undergoing "Tommy John" surgery and pitched one more year in the Indians system. In 2015, Hermann split time between the Angels AAA affiliate, the Salt Lake City Bees, before moving on to the Indianapolis Indians, the Pittsburgh Pirates AAA affiliate. In 2015, Hermmann appeared in 44 games in relief, pitching to a 4-2 record and 3.76 ERA with one save.
Chris Leroux is a familiar face to those who follow the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs. The Phillies acquired Leroux in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers last May. Leroux has appeared in the Major Leagues with three Major League teams: the Marlins from 2009 through 2010, the Pirates from 2010 through 2013, and briefly in 2014 with the New York Yankees. Leroux has never started a game in the Major Leagues, pitching to a 1-3 record with a 6.03 ERA. Leroux was 3-3 with a 2.82 ERA with the IronPigs in 2015 in 22 games that included three starts.
Roibal is a 26 year-old reliever/starter who was already in the Phillies system in 2015. From Santiago, Cuba, Roibal originally was signed by the San Francisco Giants. Roibal missed the entire 2013 and 2014 team, making a comeback for San Juan in the Puerto Rican Winter League. The Phillies signed Roibal after liking what they saw. Roibal pitched for Class A Clearwater and AA Reading in the Phillies system in 2015, combining to pitch to a 7-2 record with a 1.64 earned run average.
Of the 2015 Spring Training invitees, the Phillies saw outfielder Jeff Francoeur, pitcher Jeanmar Gomez, and infielder Andres Blanco spend the whole season with the big club. Outfielder Brian Bogusevic and pitchers Elvis Araujo and Sean O'Sullivan also made appearances with the Phillies.
