Wheels Tupay wrote:

CalvinBall wrote:minor leauge seasons are over soon so he may as well be with the big club.

If he is brought up tomorrow that means he is egible to be on the postseason roster.

After one of his worst nights in the field of his transition from right field to left, Domonic Brown is getting half-a-night off Tuesday night.

Brown, who dropped one routine fly ball that led to four unearned Syracuse runs and misplayed another into a double, is in the line-up against Scranton -- but as the DH.

Brandon Moss takes Brown's spot in left, hitting fourth.

"It's a good spot for him," IronPigs manager Ryne Sandberg. "It's partially a way for him to clear his head after last night."

Brown was unable before the game. He and athletic trainer Jason Kirkman went into the clubhouse after Brown took his turn during batting practice, and Brown was later seen lying on a table in the trainering room.

A spring training hand injury knocked him out of the running for a starting role with the Phillies, but he still looked good when he was rehabbing with the IronPigs early this season. The Phils called him up again, and he showed more flashes of his potential.

Unfortunately, he also became increasingly tentative and unreliable in right field, where his fielding blunders cost the team some runs. When they traded for rightfielder Hunter Pence, he was shipped back to Lehigh Valley to learn to play left field, mostly in preparation for next season.

I don't know if that demotion played with his head or if there are other things going on, but the guy I saw out there Monday night -- and for that matter, ever since his return -- bears little resemblance to the phenom of last season. He's still fast, but his power has disappeared, he's taking a ton of strikes instead of being aggressive and when he does swing, he's not hitting the ball hard.

Worst of all, he has become one of the worst professional outfielders I've ever seen. That talented kid of last season was raw, but you could see the tools he had. Monday night, he couldn't even catch a fly ball.

I missed the first few innings of the doubleheader, but I learned he had misjudged a fly ball in the first inning, and I saw him drop a ball in a diving attempt a couple of innings later. He began the second game by muffing an easy pop up -- leading to unearned four runs -- and then overran another one as it flew over his head. He could easily have had three errors for the night.

At bat, he went hitless in six at bats, never getting the ball out of the infield and striking out four times. The second game, in which he struck out all three times, was particularly awful. Each time he fell behind in the count and then waved feebly at the Syracuse starter's curve ball.

It may have been the worst performance I've ever seen by an IronPigs player, which is saying something, considering how horrible the teams have been until this season. Unfortunately, this coincided with the listless Pigs being swept in the doubleheader at a time when their playoff hopes hang in the balance. They didn't score a single run in 14 innings.

But here's the most shocking part. The crowd, which was pretty sparse by the time the second game began, decided to channel South Philly, booing Brown with increasing enthusiasm from that first dropped fly ball on. Every at bat, every strikeout, every misplayed ball, was greeted with hearty boos, shocking for a guy who once had been worshipped as a hero.

I thought it was appalling. I can only assume the fans felt Brown wasn't trying, which I don't think is the problem. If his real problem is shattered confidence -- and that's my best guess -- the boo-birds will just make things worse.

Then again, I feel the same way about the treatment of some players over the years by Phillies fans. If the goal is to help the team win, booing is not the answer, unless it's targeting a clear lack of effort. I didn't see that Monday night.

FTN wrote:Gelb says it might be Moss.

Brown is getting traded this winter anyway, better to just let him in Lehigh Valley now

5th Round Pick wrote:

FTN wrote:Gelb says it might be Moss.

Brown is getting traded this winter anyway, better to just let him in Lehigh Valley now

Which third baseman are we getting for Brown?

FTN wrote:john bowker.

really?

wtf

CalvinBall wrote:i have never heard of him. hope he gets maybe one hit.