2014 Reading Fightin Phils Roster Announced

The Reading Fightin Phils, Double-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies, have announced the organization's 2014 Opening Day roster in conjunction with the Philadelphia Phillies. 20 of the players on Reading's team were originally drafted or signed by the Phillies, and 18 members of the 2014 roster have formerly played in Reading. The roster also features four members of the Phillies 40-man roster. 

The 2014 roster features nine of the Top 30 Philadelphia Phillies Prospects according to Baseball America, including no. 2 prospect Jesse Biddle and no. 9 prospect Severino Gonzalez. 

Top Phillies pitching prospect Biddle returns to Reading after a 2013 season where he went 5-14 with a 3.64 ERA in 138.1 innings pitched. The left-handed pitcher started a league-leading 27 games in the Eastern League last season. A 2013 Futures Game Selection, Biddle was among Eastern League leaders in complete games (T-2nd, 2), strikeouts (3rd, 154), and ERA (9th, 3.64 ERA). He earned Phillies Minor League Player of the Month honors in April after a month that saw him take a perfect game through the 7th inning against Harrisburg while striking out a career-high 16 batters. 

Biddle will be joined in the starting rotation by Paul Owens Award winner Gonzalez. The 22-year old saw time in Clearwater (A+) and Lakewood (A) before making a start for Reading on the final day of the season. In 25 games (14 starts) across the three levels, Gonzalez went 7-5 with a 2.00 ERA with 119 strikeouts and 22 walks. The right-handed pitcher allowed two earned runs or less in 12 of those 14 starts.

Rounding out the Fightins rotation will be returnee Perci Garner along with Double-A newcomers Hoby Milner and Luis Paulino. Garner, who spent the majority of 2013 with Clearwater, made two starts at the conclusion of last season with the Fightins. Milner comes to Baseballtown after going 12-7 with a 3.83 ERA in 25 starts with the Threshers where he tied for first in the Florida State League in wins (12), third in strikeouts (108), and tied for third in innings (143.1). Spending most of his season in Clearwater, Paulino went 7-6 with a 4.56 ERA in 31 appearances.  

The pitching staff will backed up behind home by two returning catchers in Tommy Joseph and Sebastian Valle. Joseph looks to rebound from a concussion-plagued 2013 that saw him sidelined for most of the season. Prior to 2013, the 22-year old was the third-best prospect in the Phillies system according to Baseball America. Valle is coming off a season in Reading that saw him slug 12 home runs and 41 RBIs while recording 17 extra-base hits. 

Three familiar faces will once again patrol the outfield at FirstEnergy Stadium as 40-man roster members Kelly Dugan and Zach Collier are joined by former first round pick Anthony Hewitt. A second round pick in 2009, Dugan slammed a career-high 20 home runs between Clearwater and Reading in 2013. Collier looks to build off his torrid month of August last season where he hit .327 with a .433 OBP, five triples, and 10 RBIs, earning Phillies Minor League Player of the Month honors in the process. Hewitt set a career high in home runs last season with 16 following a stretch in June where he blasted seven homers. 

2013 returnees Albert Cartwright, Edgar Duran, and Matt Tolbert will anchor the Fightin Phils infield in 2014. An Eastern League All-Star second baseman last season, Cartwright hit .254 in 128 games for Reading, bolstered by an April where he hit .326 (28-for-86) in 21 games. Duran comes back a season removed from his Double-A debut where he hit .225 in 117 games with 19 doubles. Former major leaguer Tolbert fills out the veteran members of the infield. In his one month with the Fightins last season, Tolbert reached base safely in 17 of his 25 games played. 

Accompanying the trio of veterans is a trio of first-time Double-A players in Carlos Alonso, Chris Serritella, and Brock Stassi. Alonso spent the past two seasons with Clearwater where the University of Delaware product won the Rawlings Gold Glove Award for minor league second basemen after posting a .996 fielding percentage in 117 games. He also had his most productive year offensively, reaching career highs in at-bats (453), runs (70), hits (118), doubles (24), triples (2), RBIs (43), and walks (59). Drafted in 2012, Serritella hit .244 in his second professional season and recorded an 11-game hitting streak from April 15-26. Stassi joins the Fightins after hitting .295 with Clearwater in 2013. The California native will bring his timely hitting to Baseballtown after hitting .300 (21-for-70) with runners in scoring position. 

Reading franchise single-season saves leader Justin Friend leads the way for the bullpen in 2014. In 2013, the right-handed reliever spent most of his season in Lehigh Valley where he went 5-4 with a 3.79 ERA and one save. 

He will be joined by fellow Fightins veterans Tyler Knigge, Brody Colvin, Jay Johnson and Austin Wright. In 48 games with Reading last season, Knigge set career highs in both strike outs (55) and innings pitched (65.2) while recording a 4.25 ERA for the club. Colvin will once again prove to be a versatile arm after a season where the Louisiana native split time between the starting rotation and bullpen. The southpaw Wright will see his first full season as a reliever after being converted from his starting role midseason in 2013. Johnson adds to the left-handed presence in the bullpen where he'll return after posting a 1.76 ERA over his final 30 games with the Fightins in 2013.

Three Double-A rookies will bolster the bullpen with the veterans as Kenny Giles, Nefi Ogando, and Ryan O'Sullivan start the season at America's Classic Ballpark. Possessing what some scouts call the most powerful arm in the Phillies farm system, Giles averaged 13.89 strikeouts over nine innings in 2013 with Clearwater where he also recorded six saves. Righty O'Sullivan looks to continue his successful 2013 season with the Threshers after setting career highs in innings (75), strikeouts (45), and games played (53). Acquired from the Boston Red Sox for utlity man John McDonald last season, Ogando spent all of 2013 in Salem where he went 2-3 with a 4.09 ERA. 

Pitcher Ryan Demmin and outfielders Aaron Altherr and Jiwan James will begin 2014 on the disabled list. 

Manager Dusty Wathan returns to the club for this third season as Fightins skipper. Joining Wathan will be ptching coach David Lundquist, who is back for his second season in Reading, and new hitting 
coach Rob Ducey. Athletic trainer Jonathan May and strength coach Justin Miloszewski round out the coaching staff. 

Listed below is the roster alphabetically by position:

Catchers: 
Tommy Joseph
Sebastian Valle

Infielders:
Carlos Alonso
Albert Cartwright
Edgar Duran
Chris Serritella
Brock Stassi
Matt Tolbert

Outfielders:
Zach Collier
Kelly Dugan
Anthony Hewitt
Cameron Perkins

Pitchers:
Jesse Biddle
Brody Colvin
Justin Friend
Perci Garner
Kenny Giles
Severino Gonzalez
Jay Johnson
Tyler Knigge
Hoby Milner
Nefi Ogando
Ryan O'Sullivan
Luis Paulino
Austin Wright

DL:
OF Aaron Altherr
OF Jiwan James
P Ryan Demmin