It is no secret that the minor leagues are a way of developing players to pool from to populate the big league team. It is also a way of 'fixing' broken players as was the case the past two weeks with Phillies pitcher Jake Diekman.

The lefty-reliever spent the last three seasons taking the PA Turnpike shuttle between the Phillies and the IronPigs making 73 appearances for the Phillies in 2014. This season, Diekman was supposed to be a stalwart in the bullpen but the season had not gone as planned."There was some mechanical stuff," Diekman said Tuesday night. "I need to keep my front side closed a little longer."As the season progressed, his ERA sat at 10.00 after his outing on April 28. He whittled his ERA down further but it never dipped below 6.52 . For any pitcher, that could spell the end of their days as a big league pitcher."I feel like you have to have confidence in yourself and the second you lose that it is hard to get it back up there," Diekman said.On June 5, Diekman was optioned to Lehigh Valley to figure things out. It did not take long for the Nebraskan native to find his new groove. In his first outing in Durham on June 9, Diekman struck out two in his lone scoreless inning."You can come in here with 'woe is me' and be angry and bitter or you can look yourself in the mirror…and turn it around," Diekman said.During the series in Norfolk, Diekman earned a pair of saves as the IronPigs split the series. This past Tuesday, he followed up Chad Billingsley's rehab outing with two scoreless innings for his third save of the year."He's sticking his chest out a little bit and he has that swagger back that we've all seen and I like," manager Dave Brundage said. "He has some confidence going and the ball is coming out of his hand with great life."Working with pitching coach Ray Burris, Diekman was able to watch film, work on consistency in his delivery as well as improving his mechanics. He now feels that he has a schedule down where the preparation and the work before the outing bring positive results.In his six outings, Diekman did not give up run and only five hits in seven innings of work. He also struck out 7 and walked just one.That work paid off as he was recalled by the Phillies on Thursday after 13-days with Lehigh Valley. He was quickly put to task, entering the game against the Orioles in the 6th inning in relief of starter Sean O'Sullivan. He quickly dumped the three batters he faced and picked up the win in the 2-1 game.Model of ConsistencyBrian Bogusevic has done all he can to be promoted except buy the team and give himself the call, although that is what it might take."He's been our most consistent hitter since day one," Brundage said. "The numbers speak for themselves and it is pretty remarkable."He's come here and done everything that has been asked of him."Through Friday's game, he has hit safely in 53 of the 59 (89.8 percent) of games he has started. He also has not gone hitless in back-to-back games all season. The 31-year old has three double digit hit streaks this season: 10 games (5/28-6/7), 11 games (4/12-4/24), and 12 games (4/26-5/9).The outfielder has not complained or soured on his situation, he has just continued to showcase his worth. He is currently batting .318 with six homers and 29 RBI and in the midst of another hit streak, 7 games through Friday.Bogusevic has a opt out clause in his contract for July 1st so he may not be with the Pigs for long.But with big-league experience with Houston and the Chicago Cubs, it is difficult to believe Brian Bogusevic could not help the Phillies.NotesAaron Nola's combined record is 8-3, 1.76 in 13 starts this season ... Adam Loewen had six strikeouts in relief on Thursday night, the most by a LHV reliever since 2013 ... Infielder Cord Phelps is quietly batting .308 (32-104) since May 16.