Well, it has been an interesting week here around FirstEnergy Stadium.

Things are really starting to look amazing here. We are very close to being done at America’s Classic Ballpark and we can’t wait to share this experience with all of our fans.

On Tuesday, I shared with you some photos of the R-Phils home clubhouse. R-Phils players will arrive into Baseballtown on Sunday night, and, when they get here, they will have a brand-new clubhouse. As you saw in some of the photos, the clubhouse is AWESOME! The players are going to absolutely love it!

On Thursday, the installation process began on the outfield walls. In the offseason, the R-Phils announced that as part of the exciting renovations, the outfield walls would become padded now. Everytime an outfielder crashes into a wall at FirstEnergy Stadium, they will have some padding behind their collision with the wall — making it a bit easier to hit the wall.

The padding is part of the outfield billboards, which went up today as well.

Here is what this process looks like:

I hope you enjoyed another look at the AWESOME renovations here at America’s Classic Ballpark. Please check back in the days to come for more.

Stay tuned for an exciting announcement on the Mitchell & Ness R-Phils Team Store in the coming days. And, on Friday, I will share with you some of the most recent photos of the store. I was inside of it today and all I can say is..WOW!

On Monday, Minor League games were rained out, and on Tuesday, the games were also postponed due to rain.

Note: Tuesday the teams played intersquad games instead.

So, on Wednesday, the Phillies Minor League players were back in action, this time facing the Tigers Minor League squad.

Wednesday’s game for the Double-A team was a positive one, as they beat the Tigers Double-A squad 6-5 to improve to 7-5-2 this spring. Josh Zeid started and allowed two runs on three hits over four innings, while Cody Overbeck launched his team-high third home run of the season.

Let’s take a look at some of the highlights:

Josh Zeid
Zeid allowed his first runs of the spring on Wednesday, after not allowing a run in 9.2 innings pitched this spring. Zeid, a native of New Haven, CT, has now tossed 13.2 innings this spring, and has allowed just two runs on seven hits, while fanning a team-high 14 batters. The 24-year-old spent the entire 2010 season in Lakewood and posted an 8-4 mark with a 2.93 ERA in 43 games (12 starts).

Other pitching performances on Wednesday in the Double-A portion:

Tyler Cloyd allowed just one hit over three shutout innings in relief of Zeid… Cloyd fanned two batters and has now fanned eight batters this spring (8.1 IP)… Gerard Vasquez made his Double-A debut and allowed three runs on two hits over 0.2 IP… Jordan Ellis tossed the final 1.1 innings and allowed one hit and no runs… Ellis fanned three batters.

Offensive Leaders on Wednesday:

Torre Langley – catcher
Langley continued his amazing offensive spring on Wednesday. Langley, 23, went 2-2 with an RBI and a stolen base. The Georgia native is now hitting .550 (11-20) this spring. His 11 hits are tied for team-best with Stephen Susdorf and he has 6 RBIS this spring. He appeared in two games last season with Reading and hit .167 (1-6).

Freddy Galvis – shortstop
Galvis went 0-0 with two runs scored, three walks, two stolen bases and an error on Wednesday for the Double-A squad. The slick-fielding shortstop leads the club with six steals this spring and is now hitting .321 with eight runs scored and six RBIs. The Venezuelan native was an Eastern League All-Star last season.

Cody Overbeck – first base/third base
Overbeck hit cleanup and started at first base on Wednesday. The Tennessee native launched his team-high third home run of the season and added three RBIs. This spring, Overbeck is hitting .256 with the three home runs and seven RBIs.

Other Offensive Notables on Wednesday:

Harold Garcia made his first appearance in a Double-A game this spring and went 0-2 with a strikeout… Matt Rizzotti also made his first Double-A game this spring and went 1-2 with a double and two walks… Yesterday, Rizzotti was outrighted to Reading from Philadelphia… Tuffy Gosewich, who spent the majority of the spring in Major League camp, appeared in his first Double-A game this spring…. He went 0-3 with two strikeouts… Fidel Hernandez went 0-2… He’s hitting .360 this spring in 25 Double-A at-bats.

Other Organizational Notes from Wednesday:

Eddie Bonine tossed six shutout innings for the Triple-A squad in a 5-2 loss… B.J. Rosenberg allowed four runs on three hits in just one inning of work… Chris Frey went 3-4 for the Triple-A team… Michael Spidale struck-out in his only at-bat on Wednesday for the Triple-A team… Joe Savery went 0-4 with an RBI and a stolen base for the Single-A Phils… Trevor May started and allowed five runs on three hits over 4.1 innings pitched… He tossed 84 total pitches.

While things have gotten very busy in the Baseballtown PR Office over the last couple of weeks, I thought it would be a good idea to take a minute to show fans a few new and exciting things around the ballpark.

Of course, by now everyone should already know that this offseason was an important one in Reading Phillies history. After the completion of the 2010 season, big things began happening in Baseballtown — $10 million renovations to be exact.

FirstEnergy Stadium — the same stadium which was completed in 1951, began it’s transformation in September. Each day, things began to change. Walls were knocked down, new walls were put up.

All offseason, the R-Phils gave fans stadium tours to keep them in the loop. On Thursday, April 14 — Opening Night, all fans who come out to the game will get their first official look at the finished product. While the R-Phils game is set for 7:05 p.m., VIST Financial Plaza gates will open at 4:00 p.m. to give fans their first look inside America’s Classic Ballpark.

With all that being said, I thought it was time to give fans a sneak peak at some of the new features. Check back to see pictures and more right here in my blog.

First Sneak Peak — R-Phils Home Clubhouse (photos of home clubhouse only)
Reading Phillies players will have a new place to stay this season at FirstEnergy Stadium. Brand-new clubhouses for both the R-Phils and opponents were constructed this offseason. The R-Phils clubhouse has expanded in size by 45%, while the visiting clubhouse has expanded by 80%. Both clubhouses still lead out to the concourse, which means both the R-Phils players and the visiting players will cross the concourse and go to the field — a hallmark of the R-Phils experience.

Here is the overall square footage for the clubhouses:

Home Team:
New Clubhouse: 2636 square ft.
Old Clubhouse: 1816 square ft. 

Visting Team
New Clubhouse: 1792 square ft.
Old Clubhouse: 993 square ft.

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The Phils Double-A squad faced the Blue Jays Double-A team on Saturday afternoon and lost by a score of 5-1. Starter Ryan Edell allowed four of Toronto’s five runs. Let’s take a look at the game:

Ryan Edell
Edell started for the club but struggled on the hill, as he allowed four runs on six hits over 4.2 IP. Edell began the day with a 0.00 ERA over 7.2 IP, but ended up taking the loss on Saturday after pitching ineffectively for the first-time all spring. The 27-year-old was signed as a Minor League free agent this offseason. He posted an 11-5 mark with a 3.73 ERA between two Double-A teams in 2010 (Midland and Akron).

Other Pitching Performances on Saturday:

Joe Esposito relieved Edell and tossed 1.1 scoreless innings pitched… Esposito has now tossed 3.1 innings this spring and has struck-out four hitters… Ebelin Lugo did not allow a run in one inning of work… Lugo has made two appearances for the Double-A Phils this spring and has not allowed a run (two innings)… Eric Massingham allowed one run on two hits in one inning.

Offensive Stars on Saturday:

Joe Savery
The Texas native continued his offensive inslaught this spring, this time, the new full-time hitter homered for the club’s only run of the game. Savery, a product of Rice University also had two of the team’s five hits. Savery is now hitting .375 with one home run and four RBIs in 27 at-bats for the Double-A Phils this season. While it was his first home run in a Double-A game this spring, Savery has gone yard for the Single-A team this spring.

Derrick Mitchell had two hits on Saturday as well. Mitchell hit in the leadoff spot and played center field… He hit .264 with 13 home runs and 51 RBIs for the Clearwater Threshers last season… Michael Dabbs had the only other hit of the afternoon… Jeremy Slayden went 0-4.

Other Highlights From Around Spring Training on Saturday:

Matt Rizzotti went 1-3 with a run and two walks for the Triple-A Phils… They lost to the Jays 8-1… Michael Spidale hit in the leadoff spot in the lineup and went 1-4… Matt Anderson tossed a scoreless inning of work… Brody Colvin allowed three runs on five hits over four innings for Single-A team on Saturday… Colvin tossed 69 pitches and walked a spring-high 6 batters… Scott Mathieson, who was optioned to Minor League camp, also threw in the game… Mathieson, a former R-Phils pitcher, allowed just one walk over two hitless innings… He fanned four batters… Jonathan Singleton went 1-3 in that game… Mike Zagurski, who was also optioned to Minor League camp, tossed 1.2 scoreless frames in other Single-A game… He struck-out three and tossed 21 total pitches.

Note: Sunday is a “Camp Day” and there are no games.

On Friday, the Phillies Double-A faced-off against the Blue Jays Double-A team and the game ended in a 7-7 tie. With that, the club is now 6-3-2 this spring. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights from Friday afternoon.

Mike Cisco
Cisco, a native of South Carolina, started and tossed four solid innings for the Double-A Phils. The 23-year-old allowed just one run on three hits. This spring Cisco has allowed just one run over seven innings pitched. He’s fanned three batters over that span.

Last season, Cisco made 16 starts for the R-Phils and posted a 4-11 mark with a 4.73 ERA. Over his career, he’s 16-19 with a 3.55 ERA (three Minor League seasons). He was originally drafted by the Phillies in the 36th round of the 2008 draft.

Other pitching performances from Friday for the Double-A Phillies:

Jordan Whattcott threw two no-hit innings. He fanned one batter and did not allow a walk or run… Heitor Correa struggled on the hill as he allowed four runs in just in just one inning of work… Jacob Diekman allowed two runs over two innings… Before Friday’s game, Diekman had gone four shutout innings for the Double-A Phils this spring.

Offensively for the Double-A Phils on Friday:

Fidel Hernandez
Hernandez led the way offensively for the Double-A Phils, who belted out 11 hits on Friday. Hernandez, 25, went 2-2 with a double, a run, two RBIs, and a stolen base. The Venezuelan middle infielder is now hitting .450 (9-20) this spring with the Double-A squad with two doubles and a triple. He has also swiped two bags and has scored six runs.

Cody Overbeck
Overbeck ripped two hits for the Double-A Phils on Friday and also had an RBI. Overbeck, a native of Tennesee, leads the club with two home runs this spring. He played third base on Friday, but has also played some first this spring as well. The 24-year-old combined to hit 24 home runs last season (13 with Reading and 11 with Clearwater).

Other Offensive Leaders on Friday for Double-A Phils:

Freddy Galvis upped his spring Double-A average to .360 with another hit on Friday… He finished 1-4 on the afternoon… Galvis leads the club with three stolen bases… Darin Ruf, Stephen Susdorf, and Derrick Mitchell each had an RBI… Ruf has five RBIs this spring.

Other Spring Games on Friday:

Phillippe Aumont tossed two scoreless innings for the Triple-A Phils on Friday… Aumont has allowed two runs on four hits over four innings this spring for the Double-A squad…. Michael Spidale went 1-4 with an RBI for the Triple-A squad… Jonathan Singleton 0-4 with an error in left field for the Single-A Phils on Friday.