Wolever led the drafts that landed Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels and Kyle Kendrick, among others. He also helped rebuild the farm system after the current crop of stars landed in the big leagues, putting together a robust talent base that enabled the Phillies to land Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt and Hunter Pence, among others.
His new title: assistant general manager of amateur scouting.
"Marti has played an instrumental role in securing some of our top talent since joining the club," Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said in a statement. "We are pleased to recognize his numerous contributions with this promotion."
Wolever had been the team's director of scouting since 2001.
Who's in left?
Yesterday, veteran offseason acquisitions Laynce Nix and Ty Wigginton took turns fielding ground balls at first base, a position both could get to know well.
Manager Charlie Manuel said he envisions 2011 revelation John Mayberry Jr. spending more time in leftfield than first base, which would leave Wigginton, Nix, and perhaps Jim Thome to fill in as Ryan Howard attempts to get back to the lineup some time in May.
Nix, a lefthanded bat, is primarily a leftfielder, opening up the chance to platoon with Mayberry. But Manuel is a big fan of Mayberry, and used him against right-handed pitchers on many occasions last season, when he hit 15 home runs in just under 300 plate appearances.
"We'll see how much load he can carry," Manuel said.
Philler
The first official full-squad workout is tomorrow morning, although most position players are already in camp.
