FanPost

A Discussion About Call Ups, Without Demanding Call Ups

Our Beloved Phils are...

on the verge of being unwatchable..

So lets discuss call ups without demanding specific players being called up.

I think the whole "Rushing" a player thing is overblown, to an extent. Every player is different. Some players falter and struggle mightily when they are called up. Some payers flourish and stick with the Major league club for their careers.

Let's say we have players A and B. Both players get called up at the same time and inserted into the lineup right away (On a rebuilding team there is no point to call up a prospect if they will just be sitting on the bench and not get playing time). Player A struggles mightily. Management sees what this player needs to work on against major league pitching, sends him back down to AAA and has him work on those particular things. Player B shines, he hits the ball to all parts of the field and shows that he can stick in the Majors right away. In this particular scenario, most would consider this a win/win. You found out that you have a guy ready for the majors in player B, and you know what player A needs to work on to improve.

AAA pitching can teach you a lot of things. You will face burned out major league pitching, journeymen who cant stick on an MLB roster, and guys who are on the verge of pitching with the big league staff. Most of the time the top young prospects are in AA, that includes pitching. While AAA gets you ready for the Majors, it's still not Major League pitching (obviously). We can tell a good amount about a player from how they perform in AAA, but we will never really be able to get the full grasp of the hitters talent until they face actual major league pitching.

The one unknown in every players is their mental make up and how they will cope with struggling in the majors and being sent down. This could be eye opening and a learning experience for Player A. He could bounce back, learn what his weaknesses are at the major league level and capitalize on the opportunity to improve and become a better player. This could also hurt Player A's confidence, causing him to struggle at AAA which was once easy for him. He just does not have "it" like he once did. This is where mental health and sports psychology coaches can be a major help.

So the big question is when exactly do you know its the right time to call up a prospect?

is it when they are on a hot streak? Does it need to be later in a season when there is a larger sample size at the lower levels?

This is something the Phillies need to figure out in the coming months.