Sunday, July 22, 2012

2012 Phillies Team Issue 2 #8 Shane Victorino

Giants 6, Phillies 5 (10 Innings)
Game 95 - Saturday Afternoon, July 21st in Philadelphia
Record - 41-54, 5th Place, 14 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  Jonathan Papelbon let another one get away, as the Phils lost again in extras, 6-5.

What It Means:  So much for momentum.  Coming off the feel-good four-game win streak, the Phillies have lost three in row following this game.

What Went Wrong:  Cole Hamels, with trade rumors swirling, gutted his way through 7 2/3 innings, allowing five runs on ten hits while striking out six.  He also hit his first career home run, paying back Matt Cain who had just hit a home run off Hamels.  Chase Utley hit a solo home run in the first and Ryan Howard hit a three-run home run in the sixth to give the Phillies a 5-4 lead.

But Hamels allowed his third home run of the day in the eighth to the smoking hot Melky Cabrera, and the game was tied.  Papelbon pitched a scoreless ninth, but couldn't escape the tenth.

2012 Phillies Team
Issue 2 #47
Featured Cards:  The Phillies have outdone themselves with the release of a 40-card second series of their team issued photo cards.  Similar to the prior two years, the 2012 second series features an entirely new design, new photos and new players.  I'm very impressed with the player selection here, and with the exception of B.J. Rosenberg, who appeared in three games in June, every member of the 2012 squad (to date) now has a Phillies card.  Here's the break-down when compared to the first series:

Cards Subracted (8) - Michael Martinez, Domonic Brown, Scott Podsednik, Jim Thome, Michael Stutes, Chad Qualls, Jose Contreras, David Herndon
Cards Added (10) - Jason Pridie, Mike Fontenot, Hector Luna, Erik Kratz, Raul Valdes, Jeremy Horst, Brian Sanches, Joe Savery, Jake Diekman, Announcers card

I've featured Shane Victorino's card at the top of this post because his name is coming up in a bunch of trade rumors these days too.  Victorino collected his 1,000th career hit in this game and sadly, it appears as if his time as a Phil could be coming to an end.

Field Report:  I was able to pick up the new photo card set since Jenna and I were at this game as part of the largest regular-season crowd in Citizens Bank Park history.  I sincerely hope it's not the last time I get to see Hamels in his home Phillies uniform.  The Phillies are now 3-5 in games I've attended this season.

1 comment:

Steve F. said...

A question and two comments:

Q) Last year the Phils started with a 36-card set (IIRC) then added two players (Pete Orr and someone else). Did you ever see whether there was a Set 1.1 like last year? I suspect not, and that they just went to this second series. Remember to watch later in the season for a set 2.1, especially if they add someone at the trade deadline. But if it is like last year when they added Pence to the set, they will probably pull one or more other cards (including the announcer card and three other players) when they insert the new one.

C1) It is a good-looking set. I'll have it with me for the ALS Carnival for guys for whom I have nothing else to get signed. Why do I know that somehow B.J. Rosenberg will be recalled this week and I will get a ticket for his booth?

C2) The Phils are 3-5 with you in attendance? Lucky you. They are 0-8 for me at CBP, and only because I drove to Pittsburgh for the opener have I seen in person a Phillies win at all this year!