The early part of the baseball schedule has not been kind to the Phillies, nor has it been kind to their minor league teams.

The four farm teams have a combined record of 14-27 with three of the four – Lehigh Valley, Reading, and Jersey Shore – being in last place. Only the Low-A Clearwater Threshers have a winning record of 5-4. Several key players are off to slow starts, so if the Phillies are looking for help from below, they are not likely to find it.

The IronPigs are 5-9, and tied with the Rochester Red Wings for last place in the International League East with both teams five games behind Norfolk, who stand at 10-4, with Syracuse at 10-5. The ‘Pigs have lost five straight games - the second longest skid in the league next to the Gwinnett Stripers - who have lost 10 straight and are 2-12 on the season.

So far, offense has not been the issue for Lehigh Valley. Dalton Guthrie is hitting .333 in 12 games, Simon Muzziotti is at .298 and Jordan Qsar is batting .278 and has a team-leading 11 RBIs. He is also tied for the team lead in home runs with Weston Wilson at three.

Pitching is another issue. Michael Plassmeyer - a highly-touted prospect and was given a shot to make the Phillies out of spring training - has a 7.94 ERA in three starts, while prospect, James McArthur has a 17.36 ERA in two starts. Nick Allgeyer (4.26 ERA) and Noah Skirrow (4.15) have pitched well, but Allguyer has pitched just six innings in two starts. Skirrow has thrown eight innings in one start and one relief appearance, but was suddenly transferred to the Developmental List to make room on the roster for reliever Louis Head.

Among relievers, Francisco Morales (6.35) and Jakob Hernandez (4.50) have struggled late in games, while Trey Cobb (7.36), Jeff Hoffman (6.00), and Jake Jewell (5.40) have also had a tough start with Lehigh Valley.

STARWATCH ... The top three prospects in the organization are all pitchers, and two of them are hurt. Top prospect Andrew Painter was shut down early in spring training. He has started a throwing regimen at the Phillies complex in Clearwater, Florida. Number-two prospect Mick Abel has made two starts for Reading and is 0-1 with a 5.79 ERA, but much of that came from his first outing when he lasted just two-thirds of an inning and allowed two earned runs. In his next outing, he went four innings, giving up one run. Meanwhile, Griff McGarry is still not throwing due to tightness in his side.

CANCEL THE HARPER WATCH ... Bryce Harper played for Lehigh Valley last season during a rehab assignment, and there has been hope that he would return this year to rehab from Tommy John surgery. But it appears he is now planning to skip a rehab assignment and just return to the Phillies when he is activated. Harper’s rehab work has gone better than expected, causing the Phillies to move his return up to as early as next month.

DID YOU KNOW? ... The International League season is being divided into a first- and second-half season format. That means the winner of the first half will play the winner of the second half to determine the division championship. If the same team wins both halves, the team with the next best full-season winning percentage will advance. The team winning the first half will host the three-game series Sept. 26-28, with the winner advancing to play the Pacific Coast League champion September 30th in a one-game championship to determine the Triple-A champion.

FORMER PIG WATCH ... Former IronPigs catcher Austin Wynns was designated for assignment early last week by the San Francisco Giants, but it worked out well for him. On Saturday, the Dodgers put catcher Will Smith on the seven-day concussion list and signed Wynns to a major league deal ... Remember first baseman Brock Stassi? Stassi, 33, made it to the Phillies for 51 games in 2017 and played for Minnesota, San Francisco, and Philadelphia after that before retiring following the 2021 season. He is now the assistant hitting coach/hitting and recruiting coordinator for Jessup University in Rocklin, California.