Saturday, April 16, 2011

2010 Chachi #51 Nate Robertson

With tonight's game against the Marlins postponed due to rain, I thought it was a perfect time to post Nate Robertson's long lost 2010 Chachi card.  If you're keeping score at home, I've almost posted all the cards from this set after taking a computer-issue mandated hiatus.

First, a little history from a September 2010 post on Robertson's season before landing with the Phillies as a free agent on August 24th:
The Phils also recalled pitcher Mike Zagurski from Lehigh Valley today and selected the contract of pitcher Nate Robertson - both leftys. The Phillies are Robertson's 4th organization this year. Late in Spring Training, the Tigers (with whom he pitched for 7 seasons) traded him to the Marlins. He started 18 games for the Marlins going 6-8 with a 5.47 ERA and earning his release on July 27th. (Interestingly enough, his best start of the season came against the Phillies on April 18th, when he pitched 6.1 innings of shutout ball for the win.) The Cardinals signed him to a minor league deal, but it included an opt-out clause if Robertson wasn't with the big club by August 23rd. He wasn't, the Cardinals released him and he signed with the Phillies. He's expected to pitch middle relief for the Phils down the stretch and he'll be card #51 in this year's Chachi set.
I wrote that on the morning of September 6, 2010, and here's what transpired over the next three days:

September 6 - In Game 1 of a double header against the Marlins, Robertson entered with two outs in the ninth inning with the Marlins holding a 6-1 lead and runners on first and third.  He allowed an infield single (plating the Marlins' seventh run) and then got catcher Brad Davis to fly out to deep center.

September 8 - Again facing the Marlins, Robertson allowed six runs on four hits (including a home run and a double) and two walks.  He recorded just two outs before Charlie Manuel mercifully took the ball from him.

September 9 - Robertson was designated for assignment and his 2010 season was over.

In January, he signed with the Seattle Mariners.  He underwent surgery in March to remove loose bodies from his pitching elbow and the Mariners expect him to be ready to go by June.

Without going too far out on a limb, I'd wager this could be Robertson's one and only baseball card with the Phillies, albeit a virtual one.

2 comments:

Mariner1 said...

I liked what I saw out of Nate during the spring. I hope he can come back from the surgery and try to help out our awful bullpen. This Mariners team is already a lost cause 14 games into the season.

Unknown said...

It seemed strange to me last year that he fell off so quickly. He's got good "stuff" so hopefully the surgery was all he needed to get back on track.