Well, the 2010 season is officially over, which means, its now time to look ahead to the 2011 season. With that being said, it’s time for a little Hot Stove talk, and as the weather begins to get colder, the trade talk begins to heat-up.

During the next few months, I’ll do my best to keep fans up-to-date with the all latest in Philadelphia Phillies and Reading Phillies news. Let’s start with the latest in Phillies news, as the club has already added a player via waivers to their 40-man roster — let the Hot Stove talk begin!

Carlos Rivero, who spent the 2010 season with Double-A Akron, was claimed yesterday by the Phillies, and was added to their 40-man roster. The Phillies 40-man roster is now at 34 players.

Rivero, 22, hit .232 with six home runs and 43 RBIs in 110 games with Akron last year. A native of Barquisimeto, VZ, Rivero was originally signed by the Indians as a nondrafted free agent in 2005. In 2009, Rivero was named as an AFL Rising Star.

Perhaps the main reason the Phils decided to claim Rivero, was the fact that he hit well against the R-Phils this season. The 22-year-old appeared for the Aeros in 20 games against the R-Phils in 2010, and enjoyed success at the dish.He hit four home runs and added 12 RBIs in those 20 games.

It will be interesting to see where Rivero will end up in 2011. Freddy Galvis, who is also from Venezuela and is just 20 (will turn 21 on November 14), is the top shortstop prospect in the organization. Galvis spent the entire 2010 campaign in Reading, and it will be interesting to see if he makes the jump to Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2011. Either way, the Phillies now have two bright young shortstops in the organization — both in their early 20’s and both from Venezuela.

Just as a reminder, Luis Aparicio, Dave Concepción, Ozzie Guillén, Omar Vizquel, Álex González and Carlos Guillén are all greats shortstop who are from Venezuela.