PG does a great job with this type of pickup. Guys with upside at no risk. It's when he has spent significant money that the rrsult has not been there. I think he has fallen into the Phils budget-limited, gambling, desperation moves based on fan pressure and big holes to fill, with very few affordable options under out budget.

Meet your AAA team.

Philadelphia Phillies
Signed: RHP Ron Chiavacci, RHP Matt Childers, RHP Kris Wilson, C Casey Smith, 1B Andy Tracy, OF Michael Restovich, OF Brandon Watson[/quote]

Chiavacci is a Scranton native who pitched for Kutztown U.  A 30 year old Expo draftee who's pitched for Pittsburgh and Detroit, he both started and relieved, although he was a full-time starter for Toledo last year.  he has a career 3.96 ERA in the minors with a 1.36 WHIP.  His career K-rate is 8/9IP which is really outstanding, and it was still 7.5 as of last year.  Should be a bulwark of the Allentown rotation, and might also help the big club.  Local ties will make him popular with the Iron Pigs fans.

Looks like he was injured in 2005 and missed almost all of '05 and half of '06 recovering.  Can't find the nature of the injury from googling, but it's probably out there somewhere.  he had shoulder soreness last spring, started the season in the "Hens bullpen, then became a starter and posted the 5th best ERA in the IL.

Good signing.

Matt Childers pitched for Ottawa (Phillies) last year and was a consistent starter posting a 7-4 record with a fairly high ERA and a sky-high WHIP. Low K-rate but good control. Strictly minor league roster filler. Likely not even a winning AAA pitcher next year, but could be a decent middle reliever I'd think--he's relieved before, even closing some in 2002 and 2003.

Kris Wilson:

Wilson is a 30-year-old control pitcher with 10 minor league seasons and parts of 5 seasons in the big leagues (95 games). Wilson is not a real GB pitcher, strikes out a little over 6 batters per 9 IP, but walks very few. His minor league ERA and WHIP (1.26) are good, but he's never been able to make the jump to the show effectively--in 2006 he was hit around in 5 games for the Yanks, but had a nice year for the Clippers. Drafted by KC, he's only played for the Royals' and Yankees' organizations. Pitched overseas (Korea) last year.

Should be a very good pitcher for Allentown and could step in for the Phils.

Nice signing.

Casey Smith

OK, the only Casey Smith in the minors who is a MiLFA is a 2B who played for Anaheim's AAA team in Edmonton last year--utility-type guy who hits .280-ish with few walks and no power, and has played 2B, SS, and 3B at most of his minor league stops.

Roster filler--did he decide to become a catcher?

(from Savior):Brandon Watson, OF

He spent the entire season (except for 5 games with the Nationals) in AAA last year. As a 25-year-old in AAA last year, he hit .313 with a .347 OBP and a .386 SLG. Essentially, he's got some speed and defensive capabilities. But he just seems to lack power. 19XBH in 399 AB last year in AAA. But nonetheless, seems like a quality signing. He should provide some depth and skill to the AAA team.

(my addition):He's really never hit for any power, and never really drawn enough walks. A .303 career hitter in the minors with only a .350 OBP. Gets an extra-base hit once every month or so.

A classic 2-hole hitter for the Iron Pigs. I never liked the classics....

Andy Tracy

34 year old AAA player who walks a LOT and has some power. Had a nice year for the Mets in N.O. last season (do I remember their park is an extreme hitter's park?) and has played a lot of places in AAA. Played a full season for Montreal in 2000 and played well, but stunk for 40 ABs the next year and has been buried in AAA ever since. Baseball Cube says he's a LH hitter and thrower, but he has a lot of 3B playing time on his resume, so either they're wrong or he's a really interesting story. BBREF has him as a righty thrower, so the story angle isn't going to pan out. Had an MVP-type year for Harrisburg in the EL in 1999.

Should help Allentown--is Burnham gone?

"The 25-year-old Watson had the longest hitting streak in IL history from May 1-June 17. He eclipsed the old mark, a 42-game streak set by Jack Lelivelt of the Rochester Hustlers in 1912, and had the ninth-longest streak in minor league history, according to the Society for American Baseball Research. Watson is a slap-hitting speedy outfielder, but he only has value in the deepest of NL-only leagues when active and getting regular at-bats in the majors. Don't count on that much in 2008."

I have no clue about the knowledge of the analyst.