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Mickey Moniak with Lakewood in 2017 Almost daily I am engaged via Twitter or email or text messages or in person about Phillies prospects. It comes with the gig.  The player that scores the most inquiries is, as should be expected, 2016 top overall draft selection Mickey Moniak . Questions from fans that don't want to seem overly judgmental will ask, “Should we be concerned?” Others, living up to the more stereotypical Philadelphia sports fan reputation, will assert the notion, “He’s a bust!  Somebody didn't do his job right!” For the most part I have responded in defense of Moniak and others, letting people know that the youngster’s skills are real and his coaches stand by them. I’d caution fans that he was young, still a teenager, among the five youngest position players in the Class A Advanced Florida State League (per his team the Clearwater Threshers, as of the end of April), and he just needed time to catch up to the older, more mature pitching at that level....

Cameron Rupp, image- Jay Floyd Phillies backstop Cameron Rupp is having quite a month. The righty batting Texan sports a .327 average with seven home runs and 17 RBI in 16 August games. Informed by reporters following Sunday's game that he is the first Phils rookie catcher to hit seven home runs in a calendar month since 1922, the 26-year-old responded in a noteworthy manner. According to reports, Rupp replied , "Ah, that's pretty cool.  Is that when they were the A's?" Say what now? Clearly, the Phillies were never the Athletics.  That team, used to play in Philadelphia though, before relocating to Kansas City back in the 1950's.  The Phils have been around dating back to the 1880's. Rupp, who is an avid Dallas Cowboys fan, can tend to rub some Philadelphia sports fans the wrong way when it comes to his alligience regarding football, but shouldn't he possess at least basic historical knowledge of the team he plays for? Persona...

Jay and Tug return with episode 49 of the PhoulBallz Minor League Podcast and are joined by Phillies catcher Cameron Rupp , who chats about the Phillies' heavy amount of activity at the backstop position this off-season, debuting in the big leagues this year, Carlos Ruiz as a mentor and leader as well as the NFC East rivalry between the Eagles and the Cowboys.  The guys also talk about recent transactions involving Sebastian Valle and Lou Marson , Roy Halladay 's retirement plus much more. Use the media player below to stream the full episode, or simply download it by clicking HERE . You can also check out previous episodes and subscribe on iTunes .

Ladies and gentlemen, pictured above is Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard enjoying some tailgate festivities prior to Sunday's Eagles/Cowboys game outside Lincoln Financial Field. Howard, who recently underwent surgery to repair his ruptured left Achilles tendon, was spotted partying, with crutches in tow. This week the Phillies announced that Howard had progressed to partial weight bearing status. The three-time All-Star has begun a rehabilitation program in Philadelphia. ________________________________________ Picture courtesy of friend of Mrs. Ballz, Deanna. You can follow PhoulBallz on Twitter by clicking HERE . Also connect with PhoulBallz on Facebook by clicking HERE

This week I spoke with the voice of Philadelphia sports, Dan Baker, who is, of course, the public address announcer for the Phillies and the Eagles. The interview was lengthy and was split into multiple segments. In this second portion of the interview, Dan Baker speaks about his family's close connections with his work, meeting fans and more. Use the media player below to listen to part 2 of my interview with Dan Baker. To listen to part 1 of this interview, click here . _______________________________________________________________________ You can follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter by clicking HERE . Connect with PhoulBallz.com on Facebook by clicking HERE .

This week I spoke with the voice of Philadelphia sports, Dan Baker, who is, of course, the public address announcer at Citizens Bank Park and Lincoln Financial Field. The interview was lengthy and will be featured here in multiple parts. In the first portion, Dan Baker speaks about getting his start in professional sports, including time as a substitute ring announcer for the World Wrestling Federation, as well as how he spends his time between professional sports seasons. Use the media player below to listen to part 1 of my interview with Dan Baker and check back in the coming days for additional exclusive comments from Dan. ________________________________________________________ You can follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter by clicking HERE . Connect with PhoulBallz.com on Facebook by clicking HERE .

Ryan Howard on the Lincoln Financial Field sidelines with Phillies representative Scott Palmer Just 14 hours, or so, after his Phillies fell behind the Giants 1-0 in the best-of-seven National League Championship Series, first baseman Ryan Howard took in the Eagles/Falcons game and appeared as a sideline guest of FOX analyst Tony Siragusa on Sunday. Internet phan buzz criticized Howard's presence across the street from the home of the Phillies, Citizens Bank Park. Much critique seemed to take on the same notions of, "Shouldn't he be watching film on Giants' pitcher?" or "He could be using this time to take some extra batting practice." However, not many will argue that if the Phillies had won Saturday night's NLCS opener that many folks would have had a sweeter taste on their tongues and very likely would not have greeted the situation with such an abrupt disapproval. Falling behind in a postseason series is not something the Phillies phaithful are a...

Special to PhoulBallz.com...written by Kelly Bloor and Johnny Bloor Benjamin Franklin once said, "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Had Mr. Franklin lived in his beloved Philadelphia today, he might add one more thing to the list: The national media's neverending stream of negative coverage about Philadelphia sports fans. Philadelphia fans are all too familiar with the Mad Libs-type paragraph that is tacked on to each and every article discussing an incident that took place within a mile radius of Broad and Pattison: "Once again, Philadelphia [Phillies/Eagles/Flyers] fans proved they are among the most [classless/rude/obnoxious] in [MLB/NFL/NHL] as [drunk/unruly/disorderly] fans [fought with/cursed at/spit on] opposing [players/coaches/fans]. Such [reprehensible/boorish/juvenile] behavior is [expected/common/customary] from the league's most [vulgar/uncivil/ill-behaved] fans. After all, these are the same people that [booed San...

This is an entry by guest blogger Allen Schatz. Allen may be familiar to some of you as "raschatz" on twitter and Facebook. Allen is a fiction writer and is currently shopping a murder mystery set on a baseball canvas. Those in the business may wish to click here , to find out more about Allen's work. Much has been said and written about how the Phillies have turned a corner in recent years, how they finally seem to "get it." I was reminded of that after another day of Eagles football came and went with a hauntingly familiar result. The Birds have taken over as Philadelphia's -- hell, maybe ALL of professional sport's -- Groundhog Day Team. You know, they do the same thing over and over and expect something different to result. Phil Sheridan of the Philly Inquirer hit on it in his assessment of their latest loss... "The veteran head coach has to take some of the heat for the way some very good drives fizzled..." "The Eagles' inabilit...

Are the Eagles trying to lure Pat Burrell and Cole Hamels to "the Linc" in order to bring a championship across the street? Maybe not. But softening them up with cheerleaders couldn't hurt. When reached for comment about the meeting, my girl Alex (pictured center) said that Colbert's and Patrick's only game is on the baseball diamond. ;)