Morning Call: Schuler: Swindle using all the angles to swipe spot on major-league roster

So far in his career it seems the better R.J. Swindle does, the worse his chance of keeping his job.

Swindle was 5-1 with a 1.94 ERA in his first pro season after Boston took him in the 14th round of the 2004 draft. The following spring the Red Sox let Swindle go, unwilling to deal with a back injury he developed late in the season.

Two years later, after surgery repaired his herniated disc and the Yankees signed him out of the independent Northern League, the left hander was 4-2 with an 0.61 ERA in 21 appearances at Class A Charleston, then earned a save for Triple-A Columbus with two scoreless innings on the last day of the season at Toledo.

Swindle’s ERAs have been consistently impressive in the minors, and his K/BB ratios have been off the charts.

So far he has 309 K’s and 56 walks in five professional seasons.  If you count just the affiliated minors, it’s 186 K’s and 18 walks.

In two years with the Phillies, Swindle, who comes at you anywhere from sidearm to straight over the top, has risen up four levels, from low-A Lakewood to Lehigh Valley. And despite his less than overpowering stuff, all he’s done is get people out—he has a 1.72 ERA in 621/3 innings, allowing only 41 hits in his two seasons in the Phillies system.

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Swindle’s secret, besides his unorthodox pitching style, is control. He’s walked one—intentionally—all year, eight in 44 innings last year, and only 18 in 1592/3 innings in affiliated ball. But despite his success so far, Swindle realizes he has little margin of error.

‘’I know if I didn’t get people out I’d be released pretty quick, so I know I’ve got to keep changing speeds and hitting corners because I know if I don’t perform, throwing like I do, I wouldn’t last very long,’’ Swindle said. ‘’But I’ve done that every step of the way, from high school to college to here.’’

Seeking another lefty in their bullpen, the Phillies recently shifted Double-A starters Fabio Castro and Josh Outman to the Reading bullpen, a move Swindle could have interpreted as another lack of confidence in his abilities.

His ability to befuddle minor leaguers without throwing above the low 80s may not translate to the NL, but I’d like to see a Bastardo-Swindle bullpen in Philadelphia one of these days.

He would be the first player from Charleston Southern University to make it to the major leagues.