Struggling Phillies’ pitcher Brett Myers has agreed to a stint with their AAA affiliate the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.

“I can’t say enough about Brett’s willingness to accept this assignment,” general manager Pat Gillick said. “He understood and is eager to get back on track again. He is struggling right now, but he is a quality major league pitcher who we are going to need in the second half of the season.”

Under Major League Baseball rules, since Myers has five-plus years in the majors, he could have refused the assignment. This truly is an impressive show of character on Myers’ behalf.

“The idea was something that Ruben [Amaro], Charlie [Manuel], Rich [Dubee] and I talked about the last couple of days,” said Gillick. “We just felt it was the best situation for Brett. This way he can continue being a starting pitcher. We discussed it with Brett and his agent and we all came to a meeting of the minds.”

Myers is set to start Wednesday in Allentown against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. How many starts he makes in AAA is still a matter to be determined.

“How many starts he will make there is something we’ll monitor,” said Gillick.

Myers is 3-9 on the season with a 5.84 ERA. He hasn’t won a game since May 30 against the Florida Marlins.

I have to give Myers credit. I have been as tough on him as anyone out there, and I have to give him credit where credit is deserved. He could have very well refused the assignment and tried to work his problems out at the cost of the club. Instead, he swallowed his pride, and did what was best for the team, and ultimately, him. It shows that Myers is really concerned with winning and I hope to see him back in a couple weeks ready to lead this team to the playoffs.