Continuing with a historical review of the Phillies Minor League affiliations ... before I jump ahead to the full season associations I wanted to highlight three previous short season affiliations that were important in previous Phillies player development ...Pulaski, Helena and Martinsburg ... they were classified as “Rookie” level leagues by Baseball Reference but in essence also fall under the classification of “Short Season”
Pulaski, VA - Pulaski Phillies : 1969 to 1975 - Appalachian League :
1969 - Dallas Green - MGR - 38-28 - League Champions
18 year old outfielder Mike Anderson hit .364 in playing in 64 games ( 231 AB’s ) with 10 home runs and 60 RBIs - he also pounded 18 doubles - good stuff eh - I would have pegged him as “One to watch” for sure if I was an “observer” back in the day 🤓
1970 - Brandy Davis - MGR - 27-28
19 year old catcher Jim Essian and 18 year old infielder Fred Andrews were the stars, each hit over .300 ... Andrews .309 in 194 AB’s and Essian .303 in 119 AB’s
1971 - Harry Lloyd - MGR - 36-32
22 year old Jerry Martin hit .314 in 40 games ( 156 AB’s ) with 6 taters and 28 RBIs
1972 - Harry Lloyd - MGR - 31-39
18 year old RHP Larry Christenson went 4-2 in 8 games ( 38 IP) with a 2.84 ERA
1973 - Bob Wren - MGR - 32-38
18 year old RHP Jim Wright started 10 games and posted a 3.13 ERA in 72 IP
1974 - Bob Wren - MGR - 18-50
17 year old LHP Kevin Saucier made 12 starts and tossed 80 innings in his pro debut
1975 - Bob Wren - MGR - 27-41
18 year old C/1B Orlando Sanchez hit 7 home runs and had 46 RBIs in 167 AB’s - he went on to play with the Cardinals, Orioles and Royals in the major leagues from 1981 to 1984
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Helena, MT - Helena Phillies : - 1978 to 1983 - Pioneer League :
1978 - Larry Rojas - MGR - 30-38
18 year old Ryan Sandberg hit .311 in 190 AB’s ... another 18 year old, George Bell also hit .311 in 106 AB’s ... 21 year old Bob Dernier hit .301 in 186 AB’s
1979 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 43-26
17 year old RHP Roy Smith went 5-0 with a 2.50 ERA in 5 starts ( 36 IP) - he would later play in the majors for the Indians, Twins and Orioles from 1984 to 1991 ... 21 year old infielder Rusty Hamric would have the best year offensively of his 7 year minor league career - he hit .358 in 243 AB’s ... Rusty reached the AAA level in 1982
1980 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 32-38
18 year old catcher Darren Daulton played in 37 games and got 125 plate appearances - he hit just .200 but we all know he turned out to be pretty special 👍👊🏻
1981 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 26-44
22 year old RHP Charlie Hudson went 5-5 in 14 starts posting a 3.83 ERA in 87 IP
1982 - Ronald Smith - MGR - 29-41
19 year old infielder Johny Paredes hit .305 in 105 AB’s - he later played in the majors with Montreal and Detroit from 1988 to 1991 before heading over to Japan to play for Yakult in 1992
1983 - PJ Carey - MGR - 16-54
18 year old first baseman Ricky Jordan hit .296 in 247 AB’s with 5 homers and 33 RBIs
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Martinsville, VA - Martinsville Phillies : - 1988 to 1998 - Appalachian League :
1988 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 29-41
19 year old RHP Toby Borland appeared in 34 games recording 12 saves in 49 IP
1989 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 29-38
20 year old RHP Jeff Patterson appeared in 7 games before being moved to Battavia - he later played in the majors in 3 games for the Yankees in the 1995 season
1990 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 25-44
18 year old catcher Mike Lieberthal appeared in 49 games accumulating 197 plate appearances ... fellow 18 year old catcher Gary Bennett appeared in 16 games and got 57 PA’s
1991 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 27-41
21 year old RHP Ricky Bottalico pitched in 7 games ( 6 starts ) amassing 33 IP - his ERA was 4.09 ... he was promoted to Spartanburg to finish the season
1992 - Roly De Armas - MGR - 22-43
20 year old RHP Tony Fiore appeared in 17 games ( 32 1/3 IP ) - he later played in the majors for parts of 4 seasons with the Twins from 2000 to 2003
1993 - Ramon Henderson - MGR - 22-46
18 year old Scott Rolen hit .313 in 25 games ( 80 AB’s ) with 5 doubles - he also stole 3 bases 😳
1994 - Ramon Henderson - MGR - 32-36
19 year old RHP Rich Hunter appeared in 18 games in his second year at Martinsville - he later pitched in the show with the Phillies making 14 starts for the 1996 club as a 21 year old
1995 - Ramon Henderson - MGR - 30-37
18 year old outfielder Reggie Taylor stole 18 bases in 64 games - he hit .222 in 239 AB’s ... 21 yr old IF Zach Elliott hit .358 in 151 AB’s - he was out of pro baseball after playing the 1997 season with Clearwater ... 22 yr old infielder Kevin Hooker hit .335 in 179 AB’s with 9 homers - he was out of baseball after the 1996 season 😳
1996 - Ramon Henderson - MGR - 20-47
17 year old Jimmy Rollins played in 49 games getting 203 plate appearances - he hit .238 and had 11 stolen bases
1997 - Kelly Heath - MGR - 29-39
18 year old RHP Carlos Silva went 2-2 in 11 starts with a 5.15 ERA in 57 2/3 IP - Carlos later pitched in the major leagues for the Phillies, Twins, Mariners and Cubs for 9 seasons from 2002 to 2010 amassing a 70-70 record with 1,241 2/3 IP in 316 appearances
1998 - Greg Legg - MGR - 32-36
17 year old RHP Ryan Madson went 3-3 in 12 games ( 10 starts ) amassing 54 IP - my daughter Kristen would serve as the Madson’s maternity ward nurse years later as they welcomed one of their children into the world at Chester County Hospital in West Chester, PA 👏😁 ... btw she’s still there ... one of our nursing heroes that support and keep us safe 👍
Till tomorrow - Happy Day, Happy Baseball ⚾️