Game 106 - Smyly Shines; Phils Acquire Vargas and Parker

2018 Topps Heritage #455

Phillies 4, Giants 2
Game 106 - Tuesday Night, July 30th in Philadelphia
Record - 56-50, 3rd place, 6 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Drew Smyly pitched seven shutout innings as the Phillies took the series opener against the Giants, 4-2.

What It Means:  I'm not going to get carried away here, but the last Phillies left-handed pitcher before Smyly to pitch at least seven innings and not allow a run was Cole Hamels in his no-hitter on July 25, 2015.  (Per Jayson Stark Tweet.)

What Happened:  Smyly allowed four hits while striking out five.  Nick Pivetta entered in the eighth in his new set-up role and promptly allowed two home runs.  Hector Neris pitched a scoreless ninth to record his 19th save.  The big hits came from Adam Haseley (RBI double in the fourth) and Rhys Hoskins (two-run home run in the fifth).

Featured Card:  Smyly's best bet for a Phillies card this season is in the Topps Update set or if the Phillies issue an updated photo card set.  For now, here's his card from the 2018 Topps Heritage set, showing him with the Cubs.  Smyly never actually threw a pitch for the Cubs as he missed the entire 2018 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

2019 Topps #418

2019 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils #18

2019 Topps Heritage #132

Transactions:  On Monday afternoon, the Phillies acquired left-handed starting pitcher Jason Vargas from the Mets for Double-A catcher Austin Bossart.  Vargas is a 14-year veteran and a one-time All-Star with the Royals in 2017.  With the Mets this year, he was 6-5 in 18 starts with a 4.01 ERA, and even though the move isn't that major, it immediately provides an upgrade to the Phillies' starting rotation.  Yacksel Rios was designated for assignment to make room for Vargas on the 40-man roster.

Vargas' latest baseball cards can be found in Topps Series 2 and the Topps Total online set.  Bossart has been in the Phillies' system for five years, appearing in a number of minor league team sets.  He was one of the Reading players who signed for Doug during our trip to Harrisburg back in late May.

On Tuesday afternoon, reliever Blake Parker was also added to the mix.  Parker is a seven year veteran and he started the season as the closer for the Twins.  In 37 games this season, he was 1-2 with a 4.21 ERA and 10 saves with 34 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings.  He elected free agency after declining a minor league assignment and the Phillies quickly nabbed him.  Edgar Garcia was optioned back to Lehigh Valley and Mitch Walding was designated for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot for Parker.

From a baseball card perspective, Parker returned to mainstream cardboard in 2019 after a five year absence.  Before his cards in the 2019 Topps flagship and Heritage sets, his last major appearance came in the 2014 Topps set.

Arrived During the 2019 Season

• Jay Bruce - of (6/2/19) - Acquired from the Seattle Mariners with cash considerations for Jake Scheiner.
• Brad Miller - inf (6/13/19) - Purchased from the New York Yankees.
• Fernando Salas - rhp (6/13/19) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League.
• Mike Morin - rhp (7/20/19) - Acquired from the Minnesota Twins for cash considerations.
• Drew Smyly - lhp (7/21/19) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Milwaukee Brewers organization.
• Jason Vargas - lhp (7/29/19) - Acquired with cash from the New York Mets for Austin Bossart.
• Blake Parker - rhp (7/30/19) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Minnesota Twins.

Departed During the 2019 Season

• Aaron Altherr - of (5/12/19) - Selected off waivers by the San Francisco Giants.