24-year old righty starting pitcher Vance Worley will be moving to the bullpen for the playoffs for the Phillies. He has pitched in 24 games (21 starts) for the Phillies so far this year and he is 11-3 with a 3.03 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. Worley has now pitched in 29 games (23 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 12-4 with a 2.88 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. Worley has been a huge asset to the Phillies this year as he really stepped up when Roy Oswalt and Joe Blanton went down to injury. I have a feeling that he is going to really help the Phillies out of the pen.

33-year old lefty starting pitcher Cliff Lee is saving his best for last. Since August 1st, Lee has started 8 games in which he is 6-0 with a 0.56 ERA and a 0.76 WHIP. He has only given up 39 hits and walked 10 batters while whiffing 64 batters in his last 64 2/3 innings! He appears well tuned for the playoffs and the Phillies hope he keeps up the good work. Lee has now pitched in 31 games (all starts) for the Phillies this year and he is 16-8 with a 2.38 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. The Phillies’ front office looks like they made a super decision in bringing Lee back into the fold last winter.

The Phillies have designated 28-year old lefty reliever Mike Zagurski for assignment. Zagurski pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Phillies this year and he was 0-0 with a 5.40 ERA and a 2.10 WHIP. He pitched in 37 games (0 starts) in his three years with the Phillies and he is 1-0 with a 6.82 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP. This is no loss for the Phillies.

UPDATE: (9/23/2011) - The Phillies have dealt Mike Zagurski to the Diamondbacks for a player to be named later.

The Phillies have designated 33-year old lefty reliever Juan Perez for assignment. Perez pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Phillies this year and he was 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. He has now pitched in 32 games (0 starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 1-1 with a 4.79 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. The Phillies shouldn’t miss him too much going forward.

UPDATE: (9/26/2011) - Juan Perez has accepted a outright assignment to AAA from the Phillies.

With Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins gimpy, 33-year old righty swinging infielder Wilson Valdez has stepped up. Since August 1st, Valdez has played in 25 games in which he is 23 for 80 (.288 avg) with 15 runs scored, 1 homer, 13 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Valdez has now played in 94 games this year for the Phillies and he is 65 for 261 (.249 avg, .638 OPS) with 38 runs scored, 1 homer, 29 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. The Phillies need Valdez to keep up the good work until Utley and Rollins are ready to return to action.