On Tuesday night, the Double-A Reading Fightin Phils will play Game 2 of the Eastern League Championship Series against the Erie SeaWolves. After winning Game 1 in Erie, Reading can secure its first standalone championship since 1995 with a win. The Fightin Phils were co-champions in 2001.
The team will have to do so without last year's first-round pick Gage Wood. During the pregame media scrum, Manager Al Pedrique revealed that Wood would not be available in the series.
"[It's] something that the organization thought that was best for Wood not to pitch right now," said the fourth-year Reading Manager.
There's apparently no injury to the rising pitching prospect. "He's fine," said Pedrique. The decision comes internally from the Phillies' front office. He would not shed any more light on the situation.
The Phillies selected Wood with the 26th overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft. He started the 2026 season in A-ball with Clearwater and got the promotion to Reading by late May.
Overall, Wood has posted a 4.35 ERA over 95 innings pitched at both levels. He's struck out 139 batters, good for a 13.2 K/9. The 95 innings are far and away the most Wood has ever thrown. His second-most was in 2024 when he threw 59.1 innings between Arkansas and the Cape Cod Summer League.
Reading will instead go with U Penn grad Ryan Dromboski to start Game two of the Eastern League Championship. Dromboski has struggled in 2026, posting a 6.67 ERA between High-A Jersey Shore and Reading. He last faced the Seawolves on September 13th, going five innings and allowing four earned runs. He struck out eight in the game.
If Dromboski fails to provide length, Pedrique mentioned he has plenty of options behind him, saying, "Everybody is available."
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