Phillies Notes | Bisenius added to 25-man roster
Phillies Notes Righthander Joe Bisenius received official word early yesterday that he was the 25th man to make the Phillies' roster.
Phillies Notes
Righthander
Joe Bisenius
received official word early yesterday that he was the 25th man to make the Phillies' roster.
Bisenius, the team's 12th-round pick in 2004, has never pitched higher than the double-A level, but he went 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA in nine appearances this spring to prove to the Phillies he deserved a chance.
"I made three or four phone calls to family and friends, but I'll probably make a few more after the game," Bisenius said before yesterday's 5-3 loss in 10 innings to the Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park. "I thought I was starting in triple A. They told me a week and a half ago that I was going to Ottawa, but that I would still come up for the exhibition games. I still thought that was cool. But then I hung around another day and another day, and I figured something was going on."
The Phillies said they submitted a 24-man roster Sunday because they wanted to keep their options open. They said there was a possibility to pick up a player from outside the organization.
That obviously didn't happen.
"Honestly, it really hasn't hit me yet," said Bisenius, a 24-year-old who pitched mostly as a reliever in the minors. ". . . Things happened to work out. I don't know how long I'll be up here, but I'll enjoy it."
Vukovich honored
Vince Vukovich,
the son of the late
John Vukovich,
threw out the first ball yesterday. John Vukovich, the longest tenured coach in Phillies history, died last month from a brain tumor. The Phillies held a moment of silence for Vukovich and other members of the Phillies family who died since last season: organist
Paul Richardson,
pitcher
Cory Lidle,
outfielder
Johnny Callison
and pitching coach
Vern Ruhle
.
Extra bases
Lefthander
Cole Hamels
will face Atlanta righthander
Tim Hudson
in Game 2 of the series tomorrow night. . . . This was the 12th time the Phillies played extra innings on opening day. They are 4-6-2. (They played to ties in 1923 and '24.) . . . The Phils released triple-A first baseman
Randall Simon
. They also released second baseman
Tim Moss,
a third-round pick in 2003.
- Todd Zolecki