Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Chase Utley, Fenway Park and Scavenger Hunts

2011 Topps Opening Day Spot the Error #4, 2011 Topps Ruby Red #THP7, 2011 Topps Triple Threads #16,
2011 Topps Opening Day #90, 2011 Topps Lineage #30 and 2011 Bowman Platinum #94

The deadline for entering the Fourth Annual Section 36 Scavenger Hunt is just a few short days away.  While I could definitely submit a picture of a Red Sox Player, I'm a little embarrassed to submit only one entrant into the contest.  I'm also the proud owner of several official Section 36 scorecards, but I have yet to use any of them in game action.

I was a little disappointed to see one particular item missing from the list this year.  If one of the items on the list had been - Display as many 2011 Topps baseball cards as possible featuring Chase Utley at Fenway Park on June 13, 2010 - I would have totally nailed that one.  As it is, I'm left to plug this cool contest on my blog and anxiously await the announcement of this year's winner.

And as much as I debated sending a picture of myself in my Red Sox bikini, saner heads prevailed and I'll keep the output from that particular photo shoot to myself, thank you very much.

Monday, January 30, 2012

2001 SP Authentic Chirography #PB Pat Burrell

Fare thee well, Pat the Bat.

Thank you for 2008 and thank you for (almost) having lunch with my Dad and me.  May you enjoy your retirement.

2012 Chachi Transactions #10 Brad Lidge


Former closer and all-around good guy Brad Lidge signed with the Washington Nationals on Thursday, ending any hope the reliever had of returning to the Phillies in a set-up role.  He signed a one-year, $1 million deal with the Nationals and he'll be reunited with his former teammate Jayson Werth.

The Nationals come to town for the first time in late May, and I'll be among the fans giving Lidge a warm welcome back to the Philly.

Moving On
Dane Sardinha (10-11) 10/10/11 - Filed for free agency
Brandon Moss (11) 10/17/11 - Outrighted to Lehigh Valley and filed for free agency (Signed a minor league contract with the Oakland A's)
Brad Lidge (08-11) 10/24/11 - Team option declined (Signed with the Washington Nationals)
Roy Oswalt (10-11) 10/24/11 - Team option declined
Ross Gload (10-11) 10/30/11 - Filed for free agency
Raul Ibanez (09-11) 10/30/11 - Filed for free agency
Ryan Madson (03-11) 10/30/11 - Filed for free agency (Signed with the Cincinnati Reds)
Juan Perez (11) 11/2/11 - Became a minor league free agent (Signed a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers)
Scott Mathieson (06, 10-11) 11/29/11 - Released (Signed with the Yomiuri Giants)
Ben Francisco (09-11) 12/12/11 - Traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for pitcher Frank Gailey
John Bowker (11) 1/10/12 - Released
Wilson Valdez (10-11) 1/25/12 - Traded to the Cincinnati Reds for pitcher Jeremy Horst.

Coming Back
Pete Orr (11) 11/3/11 - Re-signed by the Phillies as a minor league free agent with an invitation to Spring Training
Brian Schneider (10- ) 11/17/11 - Re-signed by the Phillies to a one-year contract
Jimmy Rollins (00- ) 12/19/11 - Re-signed by the Phillies to a three-year contract with a vesting fourth year

New Additions
Jim Thome (03-05) 11/5/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Cleveland Indians
Jonathan Papelbon 11/14/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Boston Red Sox
Ty Wigginton 11/20/11 - Acquired with cash from the Colorado Rockies for a player to be named later or cash
Laynce Nix 12/8/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Washington Nationals
Dontrelle Willis 12/15/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Cincinnati Reds

Sunday, January 29, 2012

1992 Topps Phillies

1992 Topps #244, #30, #383 and #200
1992 was a year of change.  I moved 500 miles away from my hometown and started my freshman year of college.  I left my family, my house and my baseball card collection behind and embarked on a new, exciting and occasionally scary journey.

I remember feeling particularly blue one fall day in '92 and being pleasantly surprised to find the Sundry Shop on the Quad sold packs of baseball cards.  There was nothing too exciting for sale - just a few packs of left-over 1992 Topps and 1992 Fleer packs.  I bought two or three packs that day and I'll admit that I spent money intended for food on more packs in the weeks ahead.  Flipping through my 1992 Phillies binder now, I'm reminded just how comforting those packs of baseball cards were to me.

1992 Topps #30 (Back)
The Set
Number of cards in the set:  For the 11th and final year in a row, there are 792 cards in the base set and 132 cards in the traded set.
My very brief thoughts on the set:  This was the first Topps flagship set since 1980 that I did not hand collate.  As I alluded to at the outset, I took the end of High School fairly hard and I all but ignored baseball cards for a big chunk of the year.  (I think Santa brought the factory set for Christmas that year.)  That being said, it's a nice set.  After years and years of gray cardstock, it was a bit stunning to hold a Topps baseball card produced on thinner, white cardstock.  The panoramic view of Veterans Stadium on the backs of some of the cards was a very cool touch.  And I appreciated the return to horizontal card fronts on some of the cards for the first time since 1974.
Notable competition:  1992 was a good year for baseball cards.  It seems as if each of the manufacturers stepped up their game and tried to bring something new to their customers.  The cards were glossier and more thought went into each set's design.  After the lackluster collecting years of 1990 and 1991, the card companies turned things around and started making product that baseball card collectors wanted to collect.  Unfortunately, the card companies did not know when to say when, and we as collectors would soon be bombarded with an absolute deluge of new product in the years ahead.  This was the year the dam started to crack before the flood of way too many different sets overwhelmed me from 1993 through the mid-2000s.

1992 Topps #587, #52, 1992 Topps Traded #5T and 1992 Topps #14
1992 Phillies
Record and finish:  With a record of 70-92, the Phils finished in last place in the N.L. East, 26 games behind the Pirates.
Key players:  Darren Daulton finally arrived, leading the league with 109 RBIs and hitting 27 home runs.  Dave Hollins matched Dutch's 27 home runs and drove in 93 runs to boot.  He finished second in the league with 104 runs scored.  John Kruk enjoyed a solid season, hitting .323 with 10 home runs and 70 RBIs.  The newly acquired Curt Schilling led the pitching staff with 14 wins and a 2.35 ERA.  Terry Mulholland put together another steady season with a 13-11 record and a 3.81 ERA, while leading the league with 12 complete games.  Closer Mitch Williams saved 29 games.  So what went wrong?
Key events:  What went wrong was that 17 different players spent time on the disabled list, including key contributors such as Lenny Dykstra, Tommy Greene and Dale Murphy.  The active roster consisted of a revolving cast of prospects and suspects throughout the year as 48 different players suited up for the 1992 Phillies.  Mickey Morandini recorded an unassisted triple play in September and reserve catcher Jeff Grotewold became the first player in history to hit three pinch-hit home runs in three consecutive games.

1992 Phillies in 1992 Topps
Cards needed for a complete team set:  There are 32 Phillies cards in the base set and another 3 Phillies cards in the traded set.  Once again, Topps opted to include 26 players from Team USA in the traded set, denying several deserving Major Leaguers their traded cards.
Who’s in:
  • Cards of the eight starting position players - 7 cards
#244 Darren Daulton (c), #30 John Kruk (1b), #587 Mickey Morandini (2b), #383 Dave Hollins (3b), #30T Mariano Duncan (lf), #200 Lenny Dykstra (cf), #5T Ruben Amaro, Jr. (rf)

Shortstop Juan Bell was acquired in August and took over shortstop duties from the struggling Kim Batiste/Dale Sveum combination.
  • Cards of the starting pitching rotation - 3 cards
#100T Curt Schilling, #719 Terry Mulholland, #83 Tommy Greene

Kyle Abbott, who started 19 games, was omitted from the traded set, as was Ben Rivera who started 14 games.  

1992 Topps Traded #100T, 1992 Topps #719, #763 and #83
It's a bit jarring seeing the team's new uniform side-by-side with their old uniforms.  When teams update their uniforms now, the Photoshopping gremlins at Topps busily transform players into their new-look uniforms before the cards are released.  As a side note, I always thought it was cool that there were no Phillies cards in the first series of 1992 Leaf.  Leaf waited until they had photos of the Phillies in their new uniforms before dropping every Phillies card into its second series.
  • Base cards of players who played with the Phillies in 1992 - 15 cards
#14 Wes Chamberlain, #103 Ricky Jordan, #258 Jim Lindeman, #331 Steve Lake, #353 Braulio Castillo, #434 Wally Backman, #456 Pat Combs, #484 Mike Hartley, #497 Andy Ashby, #514 Kim Batiste, #544 Cliff Brantley, #599 Steve Searcy, #633 Mitch Williams, #680 Dale Murphy, #791 Danny Cox
  • Base cards of players who didn't play with the Phillies in 1992 - 8 cards (with new teams listed)
#63 Randy Ready (A's), #135 Von Hayes (Angels), #159 Darrin Fletcher (Expos), #307 Bruce Ruffin (Brewers), #471 Jose DeJesus (injured), #557 Dickie Thon (Rangers), #696 Joe Boever (Astros), #754 Charlie Hayes (Yankees)
1992 Topps #633, #484, #361 and #478
Who’s out:  Rivera and Abbott might have appeared in the traded series if not for the Team USA cards.  Relievers Bob Ayrault (30 games) and Wally Ritchie (40 games) were also deserving of cards.
Phillies on other teams:  An entire 9-pocket page (+1) is needed to contain the 1992 Phillies players who had cards in the set featuring them on other teams.  Ruben Amaro, Jr. (#269 with the Angels), Mariano Duncan (#589 with the Reds) and Curt Schilling (#316 with the Astros) all wound up in the traded set as Phillies.  But these 7 players did not:  #52 Juan Bell (Orioles), #85 Jose DeLeon (Cardinals), #361 Barry Jones (Expos), #373 Don Robinson (Giants), #478 Dale Sveum (Brewers), #581 Stan Javier (Dodgers) and #763 Kyle Abbott (Angels).
What’s he doing here:  One of the things I like about the recent Series 1 releases from Topps is that they give us cards of players on their new teams, as long as those players switched teams early in the off-season.  Ready, Von Hayes, Fletcher, Ruffin and Thon were all long gone by Christmas 1991, but they appear as Phillies in the 1992 Topps set.  
Cards that never were candidates:  Grotewold, Bell, Rivera, Abbott, Javier, Sveum, Jones and Don Robinson.  Robinson wrapped up his 15-year career with 8 uneventful starts for the Phillies.
Favorite Phillies card:  There are some great action photos on these cards, but my favorite two are Spring Training shots featuring Greene and Mulholland on the mound.  Greene's card edges Mulholland's due to the blurry ball heading towards the photographer.  My favorite non-Phillies card is Javier's, which features two soon-to-be members of the 1992 Phillies squad on it.

1992 Topps Traded #30T, 1992 Topps #581 and #103
Other Stuff
Recycled:  If Topps has re-used this design for any Phillies cards since 1992, I don't have them in my collection.
Blogs/Websites:  There aren't many people out there writing about the 1992 Topps set, so I'm going to go ahead and link to a few of my prior Scrapbook Sunday posts.  Here's a post featuring the 1948-style uniforms the team wore on its Turn Back the Clock day on June 21, 1992.  My scrapbook page from the 1992 All-Star Game features a rare photo of Kruk wearing a Braves jersey.  And here's a page from the start of the '92 season, when the team first started to realize that things were going very wrong, very quickly.
Did You Know?:  On Opening Day 1992, I skipped school to go to the game and see the team's new uniforms first hand.  This was before the days of internet leaks, so Opening Day 1992 was truly the first time all 60,000+ of us in attendance were witnessing the new look Phillies.  The team went so far as to conduct Spring Training that year wearing their old maroon uniforms.  I seem to recall the Phillie Phanatic blowing up a safe during a pre-game ceremony containing the new uniforms and then proudly displayed the new duds to the excited crowd.  Little did we know that we'd have very little else to cheer throughout the upcoming season.  (However, with the exception of one pitch from Mitch Williams to Joe Carter, 1993 would turn out just fine.)

Dang Blogger label limitations mean that Stan Javier and Ricky Jordan won't be tagged in this post.  Sorry guys.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

2003 Topps 205 Triple Folder Polar Bear #TF51 Juan Pierre & Jim Thome


Yesterday morning, the Phillies came to terms with outfielder Juan Pierre on a minor league contract that includes an invitation to Spring Training.  Pierre immediately jumped to the top of the list of candidates to break camp as the team's fifth outfielder.  The left-handed hitting Pierre hit .279 last year in 158 games with the White Sox.  His stolen base totals dropped dramatically from 2011 to 2010 (down to 27 from 68), but he's still a threat on the base paths at 34 years old.

This signing brings the number of non-roster invitees to a whopping 18.  And what are the chances Dominic Brown gives up his number 9 so that Pierre can reclaim the number he wore during his best years?

Player (position) - 2011 Organization - Last Major Cardboard Appearance
18.  Juan Pierre (of) - White Sox - 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter #229 (White Sox)

Friday, January 27, 2012

1954 Bowman #95 Robin Roberts

I recently added this wonderful Robin Roberts baseball card to my collection through a recent impulse purchase from Checkoutmycards.com.  The twelve, nine and six-pocket pages within my 1950's Phillies binder are slowly filling up with vintage Bowman cards featuring the Phillies players of my Dad's youth.

Today would have been my Dad's 68th birthday.

The last few months without Dad have not been easy, but our family has managed to rally through the tough times together.  We're going to gather tonight in his honor and I'm sure we'll tell the same old stories and laugh at the same old memories.   

There are dozens of things throughout each day that remind me of my Dad or that make me want to pick up the phone and call him.  One such instance happened recently when my oldest son Doug informed my wife that he was glad we were getting closer to April because "that's when the Phillies start to play again."  He went on to explain to her a promise I had made to him.  I had told him that once he was five, I'd take him to a lot more Phillies games and that we'd get to stay for the whole game.  I had reasoned with him that I was five when my Dad started regularly taking me to Phillies games.  I had said this to Doug in passing, months ago, but my declaration stayed with him and he plans to hold me to it.

That is what it's all about, isn't it?  Fathers and sons and baseball.

"You're a lucky man," my Dad would have told me upon hearing this little story.  I couldn't agree more.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

2011 Chachi Transactions #9 Wilson Valdez


There has been a deal.  Just when I thought the Phillies 25-man roster was all but set, they go ahead and trade utility everywhere guy and fan favorite Wilson Valdez to the Cincinnati Reds for left-handed pitcher Jeremy Horst.  Horst appeared in 12 games for the Reds last season, striking out 9 and walking 6 in 15.1 innings pitched.  He could provide the team with a little more lefty reliever depth behind Dontrelle Willis and Antonio Bastardo.  Horst becomes the 17th non-roster invitee to camp:

Player (position) - 2011 Organization - Last Major Cardboard Appearance
17.  Jeremy Horst (lhp) - Reds - 2011 Bowman Draft #47 (Reds)

Valdez, who will be best remembered for his 19th inning pitching performance last season, joins former teammate Ryan Madson on the Reds.  The Phils are apparently comfortable going with either Michael Martinez or Pete Orr (or even Hector Luna) as their utility infielder option off the bench in 2012.

Moving On
Dane Sardinha (10-11) 10/10/11 - Filed for free agency
Brandon Moss (11) 10/17/11 - Outrighted to Lehigh Valley and filed for free agency (Signed a minor league contract with the Oakland A's)
Brad Lidge (08-11) 10/24/11 - Team option declined
Roy Oswalt (10-11) 10/24/11 - Team option declined
Ross Gload (10-11) 10/30/11 - Filed for free agency
Raul Ibanez (09-11) 10/30/11 - Filed for free agency
Ryan Madson (03-11) 10/30/11 - Filed for free agency (Signed with the Cincinnati Reds)
Juan Perez (11) 11/2/11 - Became a minor league free agent (Signed a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers)
Scott Mathieson (06, 10-11) 11/29/11 - Released (Signed with the Yomiuri Giants)
Ben Francisco (09-11) 12/12/11 - Traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for pitcher Frank Gailey
John Bowker (11) 1/10/12 - Released
Wilson Valdez (10-11) 1/25/12 - Traded to the Cincinnati Reds for pitcher Jeremy Horst.

Coming Back
Pete Orr (11) 11/3/11 - Re-signed by the Phillies as a minor league free agent with an invitation to Spring Training
Brian Schneider (10- ) 11/17/11 - Re-signed by the Phillies to a one-year contract
Jimmy Rollins (00- ) 12/19/11 - Re-signed by the Phillies to a three-year contract with a vesting fourth year

New Additions
Jim Thome (03-05) 11/5/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Cleveland Indians
Jonathan Papelbon 11/14/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Boston Red Sox
Ty Wigginton 11/20/11 - Acquired with cash from the Colorado Rockies for a player to be named later or cash
Laynce Nix 12/8/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Washington Nationals
Dontrelle Willis 12/15/11 - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Cincinnati Reds

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

2011 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions #112 Mike Schmidt

I recently acquired a nice-sized lot of 2011 Phillies cards from Checkoutmycards.com for several reasons:

1.  I wanted to clear out the easier to find (cheap) base and insert cards from my 2011 Phillies Wantlist before the 2012 cards starting hitting the shelves in a few weeks.

2.  I got the itch.  I haven't added many "new" Phillies cards to my collection since the fall and I was anxious to sample some of the cards I missed from the Topps Tier One, Marquee and Finest releases.  I'd never buy packs of these brands, but I'll admit I'm kind of impressed with the quality of these cards.

3.  I absolutely, positively had to add the card featured here to my collection.  This card goes squarely into the so bad, it's good category.  Upper Deck no longer holds a license from Major League baseball and so it is not allowed to feature team logos or team names on its cards.  So in lieu of a shot of Michael Jack Schmidt swinging a bat or fielding a grounder, we get this shot of him doing his best 1970's Mike Brady impersonation.  Far out.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

1984 Tastykake Phillies - Phillies Broadcasters


I learned on Monday night that long-time Phillies announcer Andy Musser passed away over the weekend at the age of 74.  Along with every other baseball fan in the Delaware Valley, I spent countless hours listening to Musser, Harry and Whitey call the games for the better part of two decades.  I very rarely feature cards on this blog that I've previously posted, but I'm willing to make an exception today.

I can only imagine the conversations those three fine gentlemen are having now.  Rest in peace, Andy.

Monday, January 23, 2012

2011 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #29 Mickey Morandini

Over the weekend, I featured a card of Mickey Morandini that doesn't actually feature the former Phillies second baseman.  In fact, the player featured on the Morandini card bears an uncanny resemblance to former Phillies catcher Darren Daulton.

Rest assured, the card featured here is actually Morandini, as advertised on the card's front.  As Phungo points out in the comments section of this weekend's post, Morandini was recently named the new manager of the Class-A Lakewood BlueClaws.  It's a promotion based on his performance in 2011 with the Low-A Williamsport Crosscutters, in which the first year skipper led his team to a second place finish with a 43-33 record.

As is typical for a lot of teams, the Phillies tend to bring back their own when filling the ranks of their minor league field staffs.  There are quite a few former big leaguers and Phillies career minor leaguers on these staffs, but here's the list of former Phillies who will be riding the minor league buses during the upcoming baseball season:

Player (Years with Phillies) - 2012 Position
Ryne Sandberg (1981) - Manager, Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs
Mickey Morandini (1990-1997; 2000) - Manager, Single-A Lakewood BlueClaws
Greg Legg (1986-1987) - Coach, Single-A Lakewood BlueClaws
Andy Tracy (2008) - Manager, Low-A Williamsport Crosscutters
Aaron Fultz (2005-2006) - Coach, Low-A Williamsport Crosscutters
Kevin Jordan (1995-2001) - Coach, Gulf Coast League Phillies
Steve Schrenk (1999-2000) - Coach, Gulf Coast League Phillies
Mike Compton (1970) - Minor League Field Coordinator

This will be Legg's 31st season with the Phillies organization.

Sunday, January 22, 2012

1991 Topps Phillies

1991 Topps #689, #545, #345 and #603B
There was a lot of change going down in 1991.  It was the last year the Phillies would wear their maroon pin-striped uniforms with the big bubble "P" that is still synonymous with the team's success in the late '70s and their first World Championship in 1980.  It was also the last year Topps would issue its baseball card set on the gray cardboard of my youth.  In 1992, Topps would switch to a leaner, whiter cardboard that is still in use today for their base set.  1991 was my last full year in High School as I was set to graduate in the Spring of '92 and venture out on my own.  And as a few readers reminded me in the comments of my post on the 1988 Topps set, 1991 was, in my opinion, the last truly classic Topps baseball card set.

1991 Topps #345 (Back)
The Set
Number of cards in the set:  Once again, there are 792 cards in the base set and 132 in the traded series.
My very brief thoughts on the set:  Topps did a nice job of redeeming itself after the debacle that was the 1990 Topps set.  The front of the cards feature a special "40 Years of Baseball" logo to celebrate the ruby anniversary of the Red Backs and Blue Backs released in 1951.  Topps made an effort to coordinate the colors featured on the fronts with the actual colors of the player's team, and the logo of the team name is a nice touch as well.  So what say you?  Is this the last truly classic Topps base set?
Notable competition:  I think the Topps set is the best baseball card set of the year.  Honorable mention goes to Score's set and the first ever Fleer Ultra set.  The Donruss, Fleer and Upper Deck sets were all fairly forgettable.  However, Donruss gets an honorable mention for the awesome Dr. Dirt and Mr. Clean card in its set featuring Lenny Dykstra and Dale Murphy - two completely polar opposites on the field and in life.

1991 Topps #89, #342, #439 and #312
1991 Phillies
Record and finish:  The Phils took a slight baby-step forward, winning one more game than they did in 1990.  They went 78-84 to finish in third place behind the Pirates in the East.
Key players:  This is the year John Kruk started growing out the mullet and came into his own as a big-league hitter.  He hit .294 with 21 home runs and 92 RBIs while splitting time between first base and the corner outfield positions.  Murphy enjoyed a solid season (.252, 18 home runs, 81 RBIs) in his first full year in Philly and Dykstra hit .297 in a season abbreviated by self-inflicted injuries.  Terry Mulholland led the pitching staff with 16 wins, followed by Tommy Greene's 13.  Mitch Williams, acquired from the Cubs right before the start of the season, saved 30 games.
Key events:  In events that would foreshadow his troubles in the future, Dykstra was placed on a year's probation by commissioner Fay Vincent for his involvement in a gambling ring.  Thirteen games into the season, with the team at 4-9, manager Nick Leyva was fired and replaced with Jim Fregosi.  In May, Dykstra and Darren Daulton were seriously injured when Dykstra wrapped his car around a tree following a night of drinking at Kruk's bachelor party.  In happier news, Greene pitched a no-hitter in Montreal on May 23rd and Murphy tallied his 2,000th career hit on May 29th.

1991 Phillies in 1991 Topps
Cards needed for a complete team set:  There are 29 Phillies cards in the base Topps set, but 30 if you include both Wes Chamberlain variations, which I am.  There are 4 more Phillies cards in the traded set.
Who’s in:
  • Cards of the eight starting position players - 8 cards
#89 Darren Daulton (c), #689 John Kruk (1b), #342 Mickey Morandini (2b), #439 Dickie Thon (ss), #312 Charlie Hayes (3b), #603B Wes Chamberlain (lf), #345 Lenny Dykstra (cf), #545 Dale Murphy (rf)
  • Cards of the starting pitching rotation - 5 cards
#413 Terry Mulholland, #486 Tommy Greene, #232 Jose DeJesus, #25T Danny Cox, #637 Bruce Ruffin
1991 Topps #413, #486, #232 and #637
  • Base cards of players who played with the Phillies in 1991 - 15 cards
#9 Darrin Fletcher, #15 Von Hayes, #43 Roger McDowell, #137 Randy Ready, #159 Joe Boever, #173 Jason Grimsley, #186 Rod Booker, #264 Dave Hollins, #524 Darrel Akerfelds, #571 Pat Combs, #618 Sil Campusano, #661 Steve Lake, #712 Ricky Jordan, #3T Wally Backman, #127T Mitch Williams
  • Base cards of players who didn't play with the Phillies in 1991 - 3 cards (with new teams listed)
#209 Ken Howell (Injured), #282 Don Carman (Reds), #603A Louie Meadows (Phillies Triple-A)

I'm counting the Chamberlain/Meadows variation in the official tally.  Card #603 can be found in a corrected version (with Chamerlain's picture) and an error version (with Meadows' picture).  Meadows appeared in 15 games with the 1990 Phillies and he never actually appeared on a Phillies card of his own.
  • #1 Draft Pick card - 1 card, #471 Mike Lieberthal
  • Manager cards - 2 cards, #141 Nick Leyva and #43T Jim Fregosi
1991 Topps Traded #127T, 1991 Topps #15, #712 and #264
Who’s out:  Topps made the decision to include 26 Team USA cards in its traded set, in lieu of giving 26 more cards to actual Major Leaguers with their new teams.  Arguments could be made for either John Morris (85 games) or Jim Lindeman (65 games, .337 average) getting a card with the Phillies in the traded set.  Wally Ritchie (39 games in relief, 2.50 ERA) also could have had a card in the traded set.  
Phillies on other teams:  Backman (#722 with the Pirates) and Williams (#335 with the Cubs) are in the base set with their former teams, but in the traded set as Phillies.  There are three more players who appeared with the 1991 Phillies with cards in the set - Mike Hartley (#199 with the Dodgers), Steve Searcy (#369 with the Tigers) and Dave LaPoint (#484 with the Yankees).
1991 Topps #603A
What’s he doing here:  Really the only questionable selections are Carman and Lieberthal.  Carman became a free agent after the 1990 season and Lieby didn't make his debut until 1994.  Overall, Topps did a really nice job with the Phillies player selection.
Cards that never were candidates:  Morris, Lindeman and Ritchie are deserving.  And how about a card for Rick Schu, who returned to the Phillies after a three-year absence and appeared in 17 games.  (Although he'd hit .091).
Favorite Phillies card:  The Dude edges out Dale Murphy.  I was very excited to finally have a Topps card featuring Murphy as a Phillie, but the shot of Dykstra, asking for time in his dirt-stained uniform is baesball card greatness.  It's sad that Dykstra has allowed his life to completely self-destruct.

Other Stuff
Recycled:  The cards of Dale Murphy and John Kruk in the 2004 and 2005 Topps All-Time Fan Favorites set use the 1991 Topps design.  Also, for the second year in a row, Topps produced a Debut set, featuring the 1991 Topps design and cards of every player who made his big league debut during the 1990 season.  (Hat tip to 14,000 Phillies for the reminder.  And I wish they'd bring this set back.)
Blogs/Websites:  To date, I don't own any 1991 Topps Desert Shield cards, but I've always been fascinated by this rare parallel set.  Here's a comprehensive article on the card set, including a primer on how to spot counterfeit Desert Shield cards.
Did You Know?:  At the outset of this post, I referenced the team's maroon 1970's and 1980's uniforms with the big bubble "P," in use for the last time during the 1991 season.  The team wore those uniforms for 21 full seasons, beginning in 1971.  (The uniforms made their debuts at the tail-end of the 1970 season.)  This may be hard to believe, but the team is now entering its 21st season wearing the uniform set first introduced in 1992.  If the team wears the same uniforms in 2013, and there is no indication that they won't, the 1992 to present day uniforms will surpass the 1971 to 1991 uniforms in terms of longevity.  Crazy, isn't it?

Saturday, January 21, 2012

1991 Classic Game #187 Mickey Morandini

I've been spending a lot of time with my 1991 Phillies binder recently, and I thought this card perfectly summed up this past week for me:  Not that bad, but just a little off.

Friday, January 20, 2012

2012 Chachi Transactions #8 Jamie Moyer


We here at (in?) the Phillies Room certainly want to wish Jamie Moyer well in his quest to pitch in his 25th season at the age of 49.  Moyer recently signed a minor league contract with the Rockies and received an invitation to spring training.  Moyer missed the entire 2011 season while he recovered from Tommy John surgery.

Everything I've read indicates that Moyer could be a long-shot to crack the Rockies pitching rotation.  However, I'll definitely be rooting for him throughout the spring.  The Rockies will visit Philadelphia twice in 2012, with their first visit coming in mid-June.  If Moyer makes the team, and if he just happens to pitch during that series, he should be prepared for a very, very warm welcome from the fans at Citizens Bank Park.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

2003 E-X Behind the Numbers #BTNGU-JT Jim Thome

Tuesday night marked the passage of an important milestone on the off-season calendar.  On Tuesday night, the Phillies updated the roster section of their website to include new uniform numbers for all off-season acquisitions and non-roster invitees.  Per my review of the new numerology, there were also several players who decided to switch to new numbers for the upcoming 2012 season.  I say without a tinge of sarcasm that this type of thing truly excites me.  We're getting closer to baseball again.  Here's a run-down of the number happenings:

New Players
#7 Laynce Nix - Nix assumes the number of the departed Ross Gload.
#24 Ty Wigginton - Brandon Moss wore #24 in 2011.  Wigginton has most frequently worn #21 throughout his career, but Wilson Valdez currently owns that number for the Phils.
#25 Jim Thome - No surprise here.
#53 Dontrelle Willis - How many people remember Juan Perez wearing #53 in 2011?  Anyone?  This is the inverse of the number (#35) Willis wore during the most successful phase of his career with the Marlins.  Cole Hamels, the $15 million man, will hopefully be wearing #35 for the Phillies for years to come.
#58 Jonathan Papelbon - No surprise here either.

New Numbers
#4 Pete Orr - This was Dane Sardinha's number during his two-year stay with the Phillies in 2010 and 2011.
#5 Pete Mackanin (bench coach) - And this was Orr's old number.  It appears as if Mackanin gave up his #22 to non-roster invitee Scott Podsednik.  I find this one a little odd as I can't recall an established Phillies coach ever surrendering his number to someone who has at best a 50-50 shot at making the team.  Or maybe Mackanin just really wanted #5.
#37 Antonio Bastardo - Switched from #58 which is now worn by Papelbon.
#44 Michael Schwimer - He jumped from #39 up to #44, which belonged to Roy Oswalt the past few years.
#78 Justin De Fratus - This one confuses me.  De Fratus wore #37 with the Phils last year and it appears as if he surrendered the number to the slightly more veteran Bastardo.  But why go with #78?

2010 Topps #183
Other Stuff

- From 1 to 60, the following non-retired numbers are still up for grabs - #13, #29, #45 and #54.

- The Phillies have long had an unwritten rule of not assigning the number of a recently departed significant player for at least a year following his departure.  I'm guessing that's the reason why no one was assigned #54, the former number of the departing Brad Lidge.  And it also could be the reason no one has #29, which was worn by Raul Ibanez.  But it's a little surprising to see #46 assigned to non-roster invitee Raul Valdes.  #46 was the number worn by former Phillie Ryan Madson since he switched from #63 following the 2008 season.

- The low numbers assigned to some of the non-roster invitees surprise me.  (See the sidebar at left.)  Only the back-up catchers received high numbers.

- Non-roster invitee Brian Sanches was given the same number (#48) he had during his first stint with the team back in 2006 and 2007.

- Austin Hyatt and B.J. Rosenberg aren't listed on the team's non-roster invitee listing, despite their invitations to Spring Training.  I'll go ahead and predict these guys will end up with #65, #67 or #68.