Game 120 - Wednesday Night, August 14th in Philadelphia
Record - 62-58, 3rd place, 9 games behind the Braves
One Sentence Summary: Charlie Manuel and Cole Hamels returned to the dugouts of Citizens Bank Park, with Hamels getting hammered and Manuel getting credit for the 11-1 blow-out Phillies win.
What It Means: Of course Manuel didn't completely turn around a lethargic offense overnight, but it was fun to see the bats come alive with him sitting in the dugout.
What Happened: Hamels was greeted warmly by the home crowd, and not so warmly by the Phillies offense. He lasted into the third inning, allowing eight runs on nine hits. Bryce Harper enjoyed another multi-home run game and J.T. Realmuto hit his second grand slam of the season. Aaron Nola cruised through seven innings, allowing a run on three hits while striking out seven.
In what's now an annual gimmick, the TV broadcasters called the game from seats right behind the dugout and were visited at one point by former broadcaster Chris Wheeler sporting a fresh new (bald) look. Wheels looked good!
Featured Card: New hitting coach Manuel was in the dugout and the crowd broke into chants of "Charlie! Charlie!" following the 10-run offensive outburst in the early innings.
Transactions: It was a busy day for the Phillies. As expected, Jake Arrieta landed on the injured list, no longer able to pitch through the bone spur in his right elbow. Logan Morrison was selected from the IronPigs, where he had hit .289 with three home runs over 18 games. To make room for Morrison on the 40-man roster, Jerad Eickhoff was transferred to the 60-day injured list.
When he pinch-hit in this game in the seventh inning for Nola, Morrison became the 52nd player used by the Phillies so far this season, just two short of the franchise record 56 used in 1996.
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| 2017 Topps Heritage #15 |
- 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.
- Logan Morrison - 1b (7/15/19) - Signed as a minor league free agent formerly with the New York Yankees organization.
- 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.
- Corey Dickerson - of (7/31/19) - Acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates for a player to be named later and international bonus money.
- Aaron Altherr - of (5/12/19) - Selected off waivers by the San Francisco Giants.
- Dylan Cozens - of (8/1/19) - Released and signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Rays, 8/9/19.
- Yacksel Rios - rhp (8/3/19) - Selected off waivers by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
3 comments:
Several years ago a guy on eBay was auctioning off a picture of Wheels without his hairpiece. It was from some 1970s Phillies yearbook, apparently before he started wearing his rug, so it wasn't some secretly snapped picture. You can find a Crossing Broad blog post on it if you Google "Chris Wheeler Bald". Anyway, I missed seeing this game, but I'm glad Chris has embraced the look!
BTW, I sat directly behind Wheels (and next to Larry Andersen) at Andy Musser's memorial service several years ago, and based on my close look, I believe that what Wheels wore was a full wig, not just a piece on top. There was no absolutely difference between the hair in the back and sides and that on top....
There are pictures of Wheels in the back of several Phillies Yearbooks from the early to mid '70s showing him either bald or with a bad combover. (And a mustache if I remember correctly!)
Good for him for finally ditching the rug and just being himself. I can't imagine how time consuming that must have been.
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