Phil Disher has retired

Article in the Aiken (SC) Standard this morning tells us that Phil Disher, former 15th Round pick, has retired.

Battling different injuries to his hip since he had a tumor removed from his leg in college, Disher, who missed a good portion of the 2008 season after having his hip almost completely reconstructed, was faced with a decision when the pain came back in spring training. Either he could undergo yet another surgery on his hip -- this time a complete replacement -- or he could put an end to his MLB dreams.

Disher:
"I decided it was time to be done. I didn't want to have it completely replaced...

..."I think everything happens for a reason. Nobody ever wants to get hurt or be done playing, but its panned out pretty nice, and I can't really complain at all. I had a great time playing, and I thank the Astros for giving me a chance. It's just the circle of life."

Best of luck to him.

More Minor-League Cuts

Baseball America is reporting some more minor-league cuts, which will answer some of our questions about particular players.

Confirmation of release:
Steve Brown
Phil Disher
Russell Dixon
Matt Ginter
Mike Hacker
Chris Jackson
Reinaldo Pestana
Philip Rummel
Jon Switzer
Jack Tilghman
Matt Weston

Lexington Legends: Phil Disher

Phil Disher
How did he get here?: Drafted, 15th Round (2008)
Stats: 6'2", 215 lbs, Bats/Throws: R/R
Age as of April 1, 2010: 24





Splits!

Split	ABs	BA/OBP/SLG	K:BB	XBH-RBI
Season	128	.156/.264/.266	51:18	6-17
vs LHP	27	.185/.353/.444	5:7	3-6
vs RHP	101	.149/.237/.218	46:11	3-11
Home	65	.138/.263/.200	29:11	2-5
Away	63	.175/.264/.333	22:7	4-12
Bases Empty	74	.122/.235/.216	29:11	3-2
Runners On	54	.204/.302/.333	22:7	3-15
w/RISP	36	.250/.364/.361	16:6	2-13
April	59	.153/.271/.271	23:10	3-8
May	69	.159/.256/.261	28:8	3-9

Season Totals

Year	K:BB Ratio	K/PA %	K:BB	XBH/H %
2008	2.15	22.3%	71:33	42.4%
2009	2.83	34.4%	51:18	30%

Disher spent most of his time in 2009 at 1B, where he committed five errors for a .984 Fld%.

If you followed Tri-City in 2008, this probably wasn't the Phil Disher you were expecting to see. Disher enjoyed a first-year pro campaign in which he posted a .916 OPS, with 13 HR and 56 RBI in 71 games at Tri-City. So for this to happen, there has to be something else going on, right? Well, yep. Disher had surgery on bad hip, and didn't play after May 25. He was playing the instructional league back in October, so we'll hold off judgment.

The Lexington Legends are younger, faster, and more aggressive - or, The Opposite of the Astros

Great preview in the Lexington paper on the 2009 Lexington Legends, who kick off their season tomorrow.

Manager Tom Lawless said this:
"They're young kids. You've got to be patient with them. But they should attack the strike zone. And, if we catch the baseball, we'll be in a lot of ball games."

"We've got some speed on the bases. We've got speed in the outfield. We've got good catching. So we're pretty solid. It's just a matter of, 'you gotta go out there and play.'"

That seems like a rather strange "if" to me, but whatever.

Six of the Astros' Top 30 prospects are on the Legends' roster:
RHPs Ross Seaton (3) and Jordan Lyles (6), OF Jay Austin (10), LHP Brad Dydalewicz (14), C Federico Hernandez (20) and 1B Phil Disher (27).

Look for minor league updates on Sunday evenings at Astros County - starting...Sunday evening