2013 Topps Opening Day #117 Michael Young

Royals 9, Phillies 8
Game 6 - Sunday Afternoon, April 7th in Philadelphia
Record - 2-4, 4th Place, 3 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  A late offensive surge wasn't enough to overcome yet another poor pitching performance, as the Phillies lost the game to the Royals, 9-8.

What It Means:  This definitely wasn't the start to the season we were hoping for.  The hits have come in spurts, but the pitching has been woeful.  The Phils try to get on track with a three-game home series against the Mets next.

What Went Wrong:  Cole Hamels is now 0-2 with a 10.97 ERA after giving up eight runs in 5 2/3 innings.  Chad Durbin, who actually lowered his ERA to 11.57 after his 1 1/3 innings, has now allowed all five runners he's inherited this season to score while allowing seven of the 11 batters he's faced to reach base.  The Royals Billy Butler did the most damage with seven total RBIs, including a grand slam off Hamels.

This game was eerily similar to the home opener on Friday.  The Phillies scored early, with the starting pitcher faltering in the fifth and the bullpen unable to keep the game close.  Jimmy Rollins made it interesting with a three-run home run in the ninth, but Erik Kratz struck out with the winning run on second base to end the ballgame.

2013 Topps Phillies #PHI-9

Featured Cards:  Michael Young had a four-hit game in the losing effort, raising his early season average all the way up to .333.  Young's defense at third was a concern coming into the season, but he's been fine so far.  As of this writing, featured below is Young's complete Phillies baseball card checklist, not including the parallel versions of each card.  His card in the Topps Phillies team set is identical to his Topps Opening Day card, with the exception of the foil for the name and Topps logo.  For Young's card in Topps series two, I'm hoping they go with an actual photo of Young in a Phillies uniform and not a digitally altered photo.

2013 Phillies Team Issue #10
2013 Topps Gypsy Queen #298
2013 Topps Heritage #258
2013 Topps Opening Day #117
2013 Topps Phillies #PHI-9
2013 Topps Stickers #170

Finally, and most importantly, today is our dog Chachi's ninth birthday.  Happy birthday Chachi and I'll make sure you get plenty of treats today!