For the second time this season the IronPigs return from a trip deep into the Western Division of the International League. Around here of course, we’d love to see some of these teams visit us to complete the home-and-home–even over a couple of seasons. We got to see that play out in hockey a couple seasons ago, but it didn’t generate any buzz in the stands or at the box office. Only the zealots like us pay attention to such things it seems. This was our third visit to Omaha–gotta wonder if ownership has some family in the area? Does that area spend a lot on our merch? Do these trips help with online merch sales?
Photo: Jack Mitroka
So the team got a nice break over the All Star week–no more AAA All Stars, which is kind of sad but also completely understandable–and woke up in Nebraska for a three-game weekend set. Omaha (AAA-KCR) swept the mini-series 3-0. Losing pitchers were Davidson, King and Cusick.
Then the team headed due East to face the Indianapolis Indians (AAA-PIT) for the first time in a while. I don’t believe we’ve seen the AAA Pirates home or away since before the pandemic and the MLB takeover. The IronPigs got a split in the standard series in Indy, with two nice starts by Andy Painter.
In the second half, the IronPigs are 13-14 and in 7th place in the International League East. In the league for second half title, they are 6.0 games back, which is still within shouting distance. The top team in the league right now is somewhat surprisingly, Durham, who finished the first half in the basement.
Transactions
Starting when the team went on break following the home series win versus Columbus:
- RHP Seth Johnson called up to Phillies
- RHP Alan Rangel optioned to IronPigs
- OF Bryan De La Cruz called up to Phillies
- C Lou Albrecht activated from the Development List
- C Mark Kolozsvary sent on rehab to Clearwater
- RHP Jackson Rutledge released
- Phillies selected contract of C Payton Henry
- LHP Andrew Walling to the 60-Day Injured List
- RHP Levi Stoudt place on Full-Season Injured List
- Phillies traded for CF Kameron Misner*, optioned to Lehigh Valley
- Phillies selected contract of RHP Brian Keller
- Phillies recalled LHP Kyle Backhus
- Phillies optioned RHP Alex McFarlane** to IronPigs
- Phillies optioned RHP Max Lazar to IronPigs
- RHP Mitch Neunborn to the 7-Day Injured List
- C Jordan Dissin promoted from AA-Reading
- OF Steward Berroa DFA’d by Philadelphia
* – Misner is a lefty-batting outfielder who is listed as a center fielder. He’s had some run in the Majors with Tampa in 2024 and 2025 and with Kansas City in 2026. His line this season over 63 games with Triple-A Omaha: .286/.378/.563/.941 with 14 HRs, 16 2Bs and 3 3Bs. His average is a little higher, but his AAA numbers are consistent with previous time at the level including with Durham. He has expected but not outrageous splits as he struggles versus LHP, and loses some power. Still, it’s a good get for the Phillies on a cash trade. Berroa could be gone via his recent DFA, and Tommy Pham has an opt-out coming up. Pedro Leon is back and playing in Reading–he’s doing well but not forcing the issue for a return to AAA.
** – McFarlane was a starter early in his development as a prospect in the Phillies system. Following Tommy John surgery, he came back as a reliever and did so well that he was put on the 40-man roster in the offseason to fend off Rule 5 suitors. He’s been called up a couple times this season, straight from Reading, when the Phillies needed and arm and didn’t want to make a 40-man move. He did get to make his debut, and the first batter he faced was Shohei Ohtani! He’ll crank it up into the high 90s and follow it with a breaker that he can throw for a strike. Around here, we’ve been calling for him at AAA for quite some time. That time is now.
Printable Roster: 072726 LHV Roster
Photo: Jack Mitroka
Enter Buffalo
We saw Buffalo back in May. They are the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. In the first half, the Bisons finished tied with the IronPigs in the standings, 35-40. In the second half, the visitors are 14-13, one game ahead of the ‘Pigs. They are -9 in run-differential, the only team with a deficit other than the two last place teams Jacksonville (-26) and Norfolk (-32).
Prospects (Pipeline)
The Phillies have been connected with the Blue Jays headed towards Monday’s trade deadline. It would be unlikely that prospects would be coming to the Phillies, but if so, it could be one of these guys:
6. INF Sean Keys
9. OF RJ Schreck
11. RHP Jake Bloss
12. 1B/3B Charles McAdoo
14. 3B/SS Josh Kasevich
19. UTIL Jay Harry
21. LHP Javen Coleman
Painting By Myself
We’ve been entrusted with the continued development of former top pitching prospect Andrew Painter. His struggles at the MLB level this year have been well-documented. And by ‘We’ I mean, we get a front row seat–not necessarily that we’re privy to any information on what they are working on exactly, or what each game plan might entail. Everyone can see the results by looking at the box score, but for those of us who are at the games or watching carefully on video during away starts, there are some clues as to what’s going on and some things to watch for to know what a good outing is for him, and what a really good (read: MLB-ready) outing looks like.
The Fastball: Oh, you’ll hear the critics pro and amateur bemoan that his fastball doesn’t move enough. Perhaps a change in grip or the addition of a more prominent sinker or splitter can help with that–but those are more things for the off-season. For now, the fact is, he can’t locate it. The four-seam is often wild-high–many times arm-side but occasionally glove-side. This has to do with his delivery and his release. Those are hard things for us to notice in the park, but where the ball ends up is a nice clue. They want his arm-slot in a certain place and they want him to get better extension given the size of his frame. What to watch: Watch to see if he can hit his spots with the fastball and avoid wasted pitches well-high and center-cut meatballs.
The Velocity: It hasn’t been a huge concern, but coming off elbow surgery last season we’d see 97-98 mph in the first inning, followed by 95-96 in the next inning or two, and by the end of the outing he’s 92-93. Slow and straight is no way to throw a fastball, son. This season it has been a bit less of a problem. What to watch: Watch to see initial and subsequent velocities over his outing, including where he ends up in his last inning. If he’s having trouble locating (see above) it could also happen that he’s taking something off in order to hit his spot; that can be a double-edged sword.
The Secondaries: He’s got a slider, change and curve. In the past he was able to throw them all for strikes. The slider can be a sweeper sometimes. What to watch: Watch to see which secondary he features first and how he can command these pitches. More important is usage (below).
Strategy and Game Plan: We can somewhat infer from pitch usage and strategy, what they are working on with each start. His last home outing, it was a ton of fastballs, as they were working on the things we talked about above. Columbus was able to sit on it a bit and put some barrels out there. There was some loud contact, but also some weak liners hit into the outfield grass. But it was a lot, and that led to a very bad outing on paper. Perhaps they were able to get some things on tape and review the mechanical and location things they were working on. What to watch: How soon does he go to secondary pitches? Does the pitch mix make sense? Is the result effective and efficient (see below)? Does a third or fourth pitch become more prominent later in the outing when he’s been through the lineup once or twice? Or, does it feel like you’re watching a practice game?
Efficiency: This is the big one for me. Even if he’s got a no-hitter through three innings, if it takes him 68 pitches to get there then that’s not an MLB-ready outing. There can be other positives, to be sure, but when he’s ready to go back to the big leagues and stake his claim to a rotation spot, you’ll see better efficiency. Walks, of course, are an obvious thing here, but he has been pretty good this season about not completely losing the strike zone. What to watch: How many pitches is it taking him to get through an inning? How many non-competitive pitches and meatballs is he throwing? Look at walks and strikeouts, of course, but weak contact is your friend. It’s going to take all of the above to get here: Locate the fastball, mix in the secondaries to his advantage, generate weak contact and miss barrels when you’re not missing bats.
Sunday at the park with Andy: So what did his most recent outing look like? I was able to catch part of it on video as well as watching the statcast. First inning he went Line Out, Pop Out, weak grounder. He was driving the fastball down in the zone. Good start. Second inning he gave up a single to center, got a strike out swinging, picked off the runner, and got another strikeout looking to end the inning. Third inning went strikeout on a foul tip, strike out looking and a fly out. By the fourth inning, the IronPigs are up 5-0 and he’s cruising. Fly out, ground out, ground out. In the fifth, things get a little sticky. First batter flies out. Second batter lines a single to left. Painter bad throw on a pick-off attempt. Another single to center and we have first and third with one out. A swinging strikeout and a fly out get him out of Dodge with no runs. By the bottom of the sixth, the Pigs are up 8-0 and the efficiency and accuracy are starting to suffer. He used a bunch of pitches this inning, making the final efficiency seem somewhat worse than it really was. Leadoff batter struck out swinging. Second batter solo HR. Third batter single, advance to second on a throwing error by Rob Moore. Ground out, runner advances to third. Ground out to get out of the inning. Final line: 6.0 IP / 5 H / 1 R-ER / 0 BB / 6 K. 90 pitches, 61 strikes. He used a lot of pitches in the fifth and sixth innings. That’s when the ball started to go wild-high again. He was able to drop in a slider here and a curve there to keep batters honest, but it was still a fastball heavy mix. Some good news: He held 98+ all the way into the sixth inning despite some loss of control.
It looks like his next start will likely be on Saturday this series. If the Phillies are even more impressed than me, it could be as soon as Friday. Or, if we’ve got other arms that need work they could push him back to Sunday again. We’ll see when the rotation comes out.
Photo: Jack Mitroka
At The Park This Week
Tuesday: Christmas in July; Santa in the Board Room; Knit Cap Giveaway (Adults); Tail Waggin’ Day
Wednesday: Festers Night; Festers Cap Giveaway (Adults); Tacos & Tallboys
Thursday: USA 250 Night; Twisted Thursday Happy Hour
Friday: Rhyme All The Time; Green Eggs and Hambone; Girl Scout Night; Fireworks
Saturday: Paranormal Patrol Night (Ghostbusters Characters); Fireworks
Sunday: “Pigs And Rigs” Pre-game motorcycle parade; post-game kids run bases
Weather
Tuesday: Scattered Thunderstorms, wind and hail possible
Wednesday: Evening Showers possible
Thursday: Sunny and Nice
Friday: A bit warmer
Saturday: A bit warmer yet
Sunday: 50% showers
See you at the park,
@Kram207
Featured Image of RHP Nolan Hoffman by Jack Mitroka
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