Tag Archives: Phillies

One Inning and Miles to Go: Braves vs Phillies Spring Training 2017

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Pitching against the Phillies, spring training 2017.

One of baseball’s quirks is that players have to take everything  — EVERYTHING! — one pitch at a time. Doesn’t matter if you’re hitting, fielding, catching, running the bases, or pitching. That quirk gets its completion in the fact that players are judged over the long haul. Statistics show the results of one pitch at a time over the course of six or seven months. Or even one pitch at a time for years and years and years.

Yesterday, Jesse Biddle came back after 555 days of dealing with a torn elbow ligament — resting, surgery, rehab and extremely patient ramping up — to finally get some time on the mound Continue reading →

The Pitcher’s Elbow: Tommy John Surgery and Life on the Edge of the Knife

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Throwing for the Pigs - July 2015

Throwing for the Pigs – July 2015

Years ago, Jesse heard scouts tell him that the career of all special athletes inevitably means periodically having to deal with serious injury and/or illness. “When you make your living with your body, things happen.” The best advice he was given is not to think or worry about injury, even though you know it’s an inevitability. There are always bumps in the road no matter what you do. You deal with them all the way to the end of your journey. Success will come when success comes.

Jesse got closer in 2015 to his ultimate goal of getting called up to the major leagues. But he had to Continue reading →

Steady As She Goes

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Bacon and Eggs Night at Coca-Cola Park.

Bacon and Eggs Night at Coca-Cola Park.

We’re waiting a bit to report on how competition is going for Jesse. There’s no question he’s figuring out how to pitch as an IronPig now. It’s all about experience and learning … and, of course hard work.

He has his third AAA game tonight (July 22) at Coca-Cola Park against the Toledo Mud Hens. It should be an interesting and somewhat ironic evening. The first team Jesse ever played for in Tee-ball when he was six was called the Mud Hens. He was a star and very concerned about the competition whenever he knew he was facing a team with seven-year-old studs on it.

So, officially, tonight is “Bacon and Eggs Night” at Lehigh Valley. We get to see Jesse decked out in a bacon uniform for the first time. Mmmmm! Bacon!

See you out there.

Working on Stuff: Adding Sinkers and Sliders to the Arsenal

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Green Night at Reading (Credit: Tug Haines)

We note this all the time, but minor league baseball is about working on your game and developing into a well-rounded player. For starting pitchers, that means seeing what you can do with more than just a straight fastball and breaking ball.

After the first few games of the 2015 season, Jesse Biddle gradually went to work on seeing what he could do with two-seam fastballs (sinkers) and the slider that he’s been throwing Continue reading →

2015 Baseball Season Underway in Reading: Finding the Groove and Walk-Off Wins

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Reading Fab Five (l to r): Zach Eflin, Ben Lively, Jesse Biddle, Tom Windle,

Reading Fab Five (l to r): Zach Eflin, Ben Lively, Jesse Biddle, Tom Windle, Aaron Nola (Source: Reading Eagle)

Jesse Biddle’s first 2015 home start was last night (Saturday) in front of a Reading crowd of about 7,000, with a slight breeze and game time temperature in the 70s. It was deemed the match-up of the night by many minor league prognosticators around the country. Biddle was going head-to-head with the Richmond Flying Squirrels’ Kyle Crick, the San Francisco Giants’ #1 prospect. Crick has electric stuff. Continue reading →

Second Post for Spring Training 2015: Biddle Sharp But Still Optioned

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Day 8 Bullpen. Throwing to Andrew Knapp.

Day 8 Bullpen. Throwing to Andrew Knapp.

Jesse Biddle has had a great spring training this year. His game was honed and razor sharp fairly quickly and he reported having quality bullpen sessions from the start. As the photo above shows, by the end of Week 2 the Phillies pitching brain trust was paying close attention to his side work. He got a fair amount of support with positive statements to the press by Ryne Sandburg, Bob McClure, Dan Plesac, and others. Continue reading →

A Report from Clearwater on a Pretty Good Evening

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JTB 2014 Thresher Game 1

On the mound again in Clearwater. (Source: BaseballBetsy.wordpress.com)

This is one of those times it’s far better to read an eye-witness account than our distant musings. Baseball Ross provides personal reports on minor league baseball at his blog written mostly out of Clearwater, Florida. If you want to know what’s really happening in the minor leagues (especially in the Phillies’ organization), this is one of the best sources of information we know of. Baseball Ross calls it as he sees it. Not much supposition and hearsay (like most so-called journalists out there). If you’re a Jesse Biddle fan, you’re going to enjoy reading this one.

Members Of The Phillies Starting Rotation of The Future Jesse Biddle, Aaron Nola And David Buchanan All Pick up Wins Last Night

Posted on August 7, 2014 by Baseball Ross

Jesse Biddle overmatched the Daytona Cubs last night. It was just that simple. He pitched like he belonged at Citizens Bank Park not Clearwater’s Bright House Field. Aaron Nola had a nice debut with Reading but is was not as impressive.

With a low 90’s fastball, the change up and the big curve, Biddle kept the left-handed dominated D-Cubs lineup off balance. He retired 15 of the 16 batters he faced, allowing only a base on balls in the five innings he worked. He struck out …Read The Rest Here…

You should also check out the thoughts of Baseball Ross’s better half, Baseball Betsy. She ran a great piece on Jesse’s Wednesday night herself here.
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Still Lights Out, But Miles to Go

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Thanks to Walt Hilsenbeck for this photo.

Thanks to Walt Hilsenbeck for this photo.

Two weeks ago, Jesse had pitched in three games, registering an ERA of 5.10 and a record of 0 – 2. The pundits speculated that he was struggling. Those of us who know him understood that he was still trying to find his groove on the mound. Statistics are an interesting thing: they tell you very little about what’s going to happen next Tuesday. The numbers are only about what has already happened. It’s never been clear what part probability should play in baseball — and yet, of course, somehow the numbers mean everything to all of us.

In his past two starts Jesse has only allowed one earned run and given Continue reading →

Figuring It Out in Reading

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On the mound in April. (Source: Tug Haines/Reading Fightin Phils)

On the mound in April. (Source: Tug Haines/Reading Fightin Phils)

After struggling some in Harrisburg last Sunday, Jesse was on the mound again Friday night against the Senators, but this time in Reading. And this time he had spent four days working on focus and command. Sometimes at the start of the season it takes a few games for pitcher’s to get the right feel on the mound. It seems that Biddle had the right feel last night.

He has been very quick to point out Friday night’s 6-2 win with 11 strikeouts Continue reading →

Feet Wet and Ready to Throw on Sunday Afternoon

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(Photo Credit: BaseballBetsy.com)

(Photo Credit: BaseballBetsy.com)

Jesse Biddle’s been in Big League Camp for about 2 weeks now. He’s getting advice and support from everyone from Roy Halladay and Ryan Howard to Kevin Frandsen and Cliff Lee. From what we can gather, he’s learning an immense amount about the game and what it means to be in a major league dugout.

On Tuesday, he started and threw two innings in the annual intra-squad Continue reading →