Realmuto Earns First Gold Glove

2019 Chachi #70

On Sunday night, J.T. Realmuto was named the Gold Glove award winner for N.L. catchers, edging out Yadier Molina and Austin Hedges.  Aaron Nola and Bryce Harper were also finalists for Gold Gloves, but they finished behind Zack Greinke and Cody Bellinger, respectively.  Realmuto became the third catcher in franchise history to win the award, following Mike Lieberthal in 1999 and Bob Boone in 1978 and 1979.  No Phillies player had won the award since Jimmy Rollins at shortstop back in 2012.

All that remains now for the All-Star catcher on his offseason to-do list is to sign a long-term contract extension with the Phils.

Chachi Gold Glove Cards
2005 - Bobby Abreu
2007 - Jimmy Rollins & Aaron Rowand
2008 - Jimmy Rollins & Shane Victorino
2009 - Jimmy Rollins & Shane Victorino
2010 - Shane Victorino
2011 - Placido Polanco
2012 - Jimmy Rollins
2019 - J.T. Realmuto

2005 Chachi #60

2007 Chachi #71

2008 Chachi #86

2019 Chachi #61 Charlie Manuel CO

#41
Charles Fuqua Manuel
Hitting Coach

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  195
Opening Day Age:  75
Born:  January 4, 1944, Northfork, WV
Signed:  Signed by the Minnesota Twins as an amateur free agent before 1963 season
Teams - As Player:  Minnesota Twins 1969-1972; Los Angeles Dodgers 1974-1975
Teams - As Coach:  Cleveland Indians 1988-1989, 1994-1999; Phillies 2019
Teams - As Manager:  Cleveland Indians 2000-2002; Phillies 2005-2013

1970 Topps #194

2005 Chachi #36

2005 Topps Update #UH87

2006 Chachi #27

2007 Chachi #27

First Topps Flagship Base Card:  1970 Topps #194
First Phillies Card:  2005 Phillies Team Issue #41*
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2005 Phillies Team Issue #41
First Topps Phillies Flagship Base Card:  2005 Topps Update #UH87
Newest Card Added:  2019 Phillies 2009 10th Anniversary Postcards (with David Montgomery and Ruben Amaro, Jr.)

*Manuel also has a card issued in the style of the 2004 Phillies Team Issue, made available during that offseason's winter caravan.

36 - Manuel baseball cards in my collection per The Phillies Room Checklist as of 8/13/19.

2005 Phillies Team Issue #41

Complete Chachi Checklist
2005 Chachi #35 - Team Card
2005 Chachi #36 - with Gary Varsho, Milt Thompson and Rich Dubee
2006 Chachi #26 - Team Card
2006 Chachi #27
2007 Chachi #26 - Team Card
2007 Chachi #27 - with Jimy Williams, Milt Thompson and Rich Dubee
2008 Chachi #26 - Team Card
2008 Chachi #27 - with Jimy Williams, Milt Thompson and Rich Dubee
2008 Chachi #74 HL - Clinch NLCS, with Ryan Howard and Greg Dobbs
2008 Chachi #82 HL - World Series Champs
2008 Chachi #84 HL - World Series Parade
2009 Chachi #26 - Team Card
2009 Chachi #44 AS
2009 Chachi #77 HL - National League Champs, with Brad Lidge, Pedro Martinez and Chan Ho Park
2009 Chachi #84 - World Series Game 6, with Pedro Martinez and Chase Utley
2010 Chachi #27 - with Pete Mackanin, Rich Dubee, Mick Billmeyer and Sam Perlozzo
2010 Chachi #43 AS - with Chase Utley
2011 Chachi #26
2011 Chachi #56 RB - Become all-time winningest Phillies manager
2012 Chachi #26
2013 Chachi #26 - with Mick Billmeyer, Steve Henderson, Rod Nichols and Juan Samuel
2013 Chachi #58 HL - 1,000th Win
2016 Chachi Special Edition #13
2019 Chachi #61

2019 Chachi Set Checklist
Virtual Phillies Wall - Featuring Current Active Roster

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s - #17 Aquilino Lopez

#33
Aquilino Roa Lopez
Relief Pitcher

Right-handed reliever Aquilino Lopez has the dubious distinction of owning my least favorite custom Chachi card of all time.  I absolutely scoured the internet in 2005 looking for a picture of Lopez from one of his 10 games with the Phillies, posting on message boards, e-mailing people and trying every combination of "Aquilino Pitcher Phillies Lopez" in countless searches.  The card you'll see below represents the nadir of Chachi cards, in my opinion, and I couldn't believe it when I found the photo above used for Lopez's Missing Links card so easily last summer.

Lopez was claimed off waivers from the Rockies on August 2nd and recalled from the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons on August 20th, taking the roster spot of Geoff Geary.  He pitched relatively well in late August/September, only allowing runs in 2 of his 10 appearances.  Lopez joined the Phillies in Clearwater in 2006, but with his roster spot needed he was dealt to the Padres on March 28th for a pair of prospects.  Lopez popped back up with the Tigers a few years later, appearing in 58 games over the 2007 and 2008 seasons.

One last Lopez frustration . . . Baseball Reference lists his Phillies uniform number as #33 while the 2006 Phillies Media Guide has him with #40.

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  185
Born:  April 21, 1975, Villa Altagracia, DR
Signed:  Signed by the Seattle Mariners as an amateur free agent, July 3, 1997
Major League Teams:  Toronto Blue Jays 2003-2004; Colorado Rockies 2005; Phillies 2005; Detroit Tigers 2007-2008
Professional Affiliations:  Seattle Mariners 1999-2002; Toronto Blue Jays 2003-2004; Colorado Rockies 2005; Phillies 2005; San Diego Padres 2006; Detroit Tigers 2007-2008; Kia Tigers (KBO) 2009-2011; SK Wyverns (KBO) 2012

Phillies Career
10 games in relief, 0-1, 2.13 ERA, 16 strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings pitched
Acquired:  August 2, 2005 - Selected off waivers from the Colorado Rockies.
Debut:  August 26, 2005 - Relieved Ryan Madson, pitching the final two scoreless innings in an 11-3 win over the Diamondbacks in Phoenix.
Final Game:  September 23, 2005 - Again relieved Madson, allowing back-to-back home runs to Austin Kearns and Ray Olmedo in an eventual 11-10 win over the Reds in Cincinnati.
Departed:  March 28, 2006 - Traded to the San Diego Padres for Trey Johnston and Matt Thayer.

0 Lopez Baseball Cards in My Collection

Complete Chachi Checklist
2005 Chachi #46

2003 Upper Deck #566

2003 Topps Traded #T215

2004 Topps #605

2005 Chachi #46

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  2003 Upper Deck #566
First Topps Base Card:  2003 Topps Traded #T215
Last Mainstream Card:  2004 Upper Deck #466
Other Notable Cards:  1999 Grandstand Everett Aquasox #19, 2004 Topps #605, 2005 Multi-Ad Las Vegas 51s #9

Sources:  Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s
1 Kirk Bullinger
2 Chris Pritchett
3 Bryan Ward
4 Mark Holzemer
5 Turner Ward
6 P.J. Forbes
7 Matt Walbeck
8 Kelly Stinnett
9 Valerio de los Santos
10 Josh Hancock
11 Brian Powell
12 Paul Abbott
13 Todd Jones
14 A.J. Hinch
15 Ramon Martinez
16 Matt Kata
17 Aquilino Lopez

This is a continuing series looking at those players who spent time with the Phillies but possess no baseball card proof of their time in Philadelphia.  In some cases, the First and Last Mainstream cards listed above have been subjectively chosen if multiple cards were released in that year.

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s - #15 Ramon Martinez

#12
Ramon E. Martinez
Infield

Not to be confused with the pitcher Ramon Martinez (Pedro's older brother), Ramon E. Martinez enjoyed a 12-year big league career primarily as a middle infielder.  He played in 33 games for the 2005 Phillies after Placido Polanco was shipped to the Tigers for reliever Ugueth Urbina and Martinez on June 8th.  Urbina ended up with a Phillies card in the 2005 Topps Update set, while Martinez had to settle for a custom-made Chachi card.

Martinez was used primarily as a pinch-hitter during his stint with the club, although he did get six starts at first base and a sole start at third.  His best game came on September 14th when he hit a third-inning grand slam off the Braves Horacio Ramirez in a game the Phillies would eventually win, 12-4.  Following the season, Martinez signed with the Dodgers and he'd play through the 2009 season before retiring at 36.

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  195
Born:  May 15, 1974, Waverly, IA
Drafted:  Drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 3rd round of the amateur player draft, June 22, 1996.
Major League Teams:  Oakland Athletics 1998-2000; Kansas City Royals 2001-2002; Detroit Tigers 2003; Phillies 2004
Professional Affiliations:  Oakland Athletics 1997-2000; Kansas City Royals 2001-2002; Detroit Tigers 2003; Phillies 2004-2005

Phillies Career
33 games as pinch-hitter and infielder, .286 (16 for 56), grand slam, 9 RBIs
Acquired:  June 8, 2005 - Acquired with Ugueth Urbina from the Detroit Tigers for Placido Polanco.
Debut:  June 9, 2005 - Pinch-hit for Vicente Padilla in the 5th inning in a game against the Rangers, grounding out to the pitcher.
Final Game:  September 24, 2005 - Pinch-hit for Aaron Fultz in the 7th inning against the Reds, flying out to left.
Departed:  October 27, 2005 - Granted free agency and signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers, January 31, 2006.

1999 Upper Deck #16

2001 Topps #253

2005 Topps Total #257

2005 Chachi #34

2007 Topps #553

0 Martinez Baseball Card in My Collection

Complete Chachi Checklist
2005 Chachi #34

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1999 Upper Deck #16
First Topps Base Card:  2001 Topps #253
Last Mainstream Card:  2007 Topps #553
Other Notable Cards:  2000 Fleer Tradition #214, 2002 Topps #467, 2003 Topps #79, 2003 Topps Traded #T23, 2004 Topps #455, 2005 Topps Total #257

Sources:  Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s
1 Kirk Bullinger
2 Chris Pritchett
3 Bryan Ward
4 Mark Holzemer
5 Turner Ward
6 P.J. Forbes
7 Matt Walbeck
8 Kelly Stinnett
9 Valerio de los Santos
10 Josh Hancock
11 Brian Powell
12 Paul Abbott
13 Todd Jones
14 A.J. Hinch
15 Ramon Martinez

This is a continuing series looking at those players who spent time with the Phillies but possess no baseball card proof of their time in Philadelphia.  In some cases, the First and Last Mainstream cards listed above have been subjectively chosen if multiple cards were released in that year.

2016 Chachi #71 Leading Firemen - Gomez, Neris, Mariot

Perhaps the hardest thing to watch during the latter part of the Phillies season was the complete implosion of Jeanmar Gomez as the team's closer.  Unofficially removed from the closer's roll during the final weeks of September, Gomez tallied a 19.13 ERA (17 earned runs in 8 innings) over his final 12 games.  The emergence (and dominance) of Hector Neris as an extremely effective late inning reliever means that he's probably one of the few pitchers guaranteed a spot in the team's 2017 bullpen.

Memory Lane - Chachi Leading Firemen Cards
2005 - Billy Wagner, 38
2006 - Tom Gordon, 34
2007 - Brett Myers, 21
2008 - Brad Lidge, 41
2009 - Brad Lidge, 31
2010 - Brad Lidge, 27
2011 - Ryan Madson, 32
2012 - Jonathan Papelbon, 38
2013 - Jonathan Papelbon, 29
2014 - Jonathan Papelbon, 39
2015 - Jonathan Papelbon, 17 (no card created)
2016 - Jeanmar Gomez, 37

2005 Chachi #59

2006 Chachi #68

2007 Chachi #66

2008 Chachi #62

2016 Chachi #70 Strikeout Leaders - Eickhoff, Hellickson, Velasquez

Vince Velasquez and Aaron Nola led the Phillies pitching staff in strikeouts for most of the season, but Jared Eickhoff and Jeremy Hellickson were able to pull ahead late in the season due to Nola's injury and the shut down of Velasquez.

Memory Lane - Chachi Strikeout Leaders Cards
2005 - Brett Myers, 208
2006 - Brett Myers, 189
2007 - Cole Hamels, 177
2008 - Cole Hamels, 196
2009 - Cole Hamels, 168
2010 - Roy Halladay, 219
2011 - Cliff Lee, 238
2012 - Cole Hamels, 216
2013 - Cliff Lee, 222
2014 - Cole Hamels, 198
2015 - Cole Hamels, 137 (no card created)
2016 - Jared Eickhoff, 167

2005 Chachi #58

2006 Chachi #67

2007 Chachi #65

2008 Chachi #60

2016 Chachi #69 Pitching Leaders - Hellickson, Eickhoff, Velasquez

The win is becoming an old school statistic, but it's still impressive to me that Jeremy Hellickson and Jared Eickhoff produced the highest win totals for the Phillies since Cliff Lee's 14 in 2013.  We're taking a step in the right direction here.

Memory Lane - Chachi Wins Leaders Cards
2005 - Jon Lieber, 17
2006 - Brett Myers, 12
2007 - Cole Hamels, 15
2008 - Jamie Moyer, 16
2009 - Joe Blanton, J.A. Happ and Jamie Moyer, 12
2010 - Roy Halladay, 21
2011 - Roy Halladay, 19
2012 - Cole Hamels, 17
2013 - Cliff Lee, 14
2014 - Kyle Kendrick, 10
2015 - Ken Giles, Cole Hamels, Aaron Harang and Aaron Nola, 6 (no card created)
2016 - Jeremy Hellickson, 12

2005 Chachi #56

2006 Chachi #65

2007 Chachi #63

2016 Chachi #68 ERA Leaders - Eickhoff & Hellickson

Only two Phillies pitchers threw the amount of requisite innings (162) to qualify this year for the team's ERA title.  Jared Eickhoff barely squeaked by Jeremy Hellickson with his 3.65 ERA to Hellickson's 3.71.

Memory Lane - Chachi ERA Leaders Cards
2005 - Brett Myers, 3.72
2006 - Brett Myers, 3.91
2007 - Cole Hamels, 3.39
2008 - Cole Hamels, 3.09
2009 - J.A. Happ, 2.93
2010 - Roy Halladay, 2.44
2011 - Roy Halladay, 2.35
2012 - Cole Hamels, 3.05
2013 - Cliff Lee, 2.87
2014 - Cole Hamels, 2.46
2015 - Aaron Harang, 4.86 (no card produced)
2016 - Jared Eickhoff, 3.65

The 2005 through 2008 Chachi ERA Leaders cards have never before been featured on this blog.

2005 Chachi #57

2006 Chachi #66

2007 Chachi #64

2008 Chachi #68

2016 Chachi #67 Home Run Leaders - Howard, Franco, Joseph

I toyed with the idea of just having Ryan Howard and Maikel Franco on this team home run leaders card, but I really wanted to also include Tommy Joseph.  Joseph's appearance on this card is made all the more impressive by the fact that he wasn't even on the team's list of non-roster invitees in spring training and he didn't get the call to the Majors until mid-May.

Howard has appeared on his share of Chachi Home Run Leaders cards throughout his career (see below), and this will mark his final appearance.  For those reasons, and because I really like the smiling picture of The Big Piece from his final spring training photo day, he got top billing on the card over Franco.

Memory Lane - Chachi Home Run Leaders Cards
2005 - Pat Burrell, 32
2006 - Ryan Howard, 58
2007 - Ryan Howard, 47
2008 - Ryan Howard, 48
2009 - Ryan Howard, 45
2010 - Ryan Howard, 31
2011 - Ryan Howard, 33
2012 - Jimmy Rollins, 23
2013 - Domonic Brown, 27
2014 - Marlon Byrd, 25
2015 - Ryan Howard, 23 (no card created)
2016 - Maikel Franco & Ryan Howard, 25

Clicking on the years above will take you to the post featuring prior home run leaders cards.  Only the 2005 Home Run Leaders card has never appeared on this blog . . . until now!

2005 Chachi #53

2016 Chachi #66 RBI Leaders - Franco, Galvis, Howard

Despite a late season surge from Freddy Galvis, Maikel Franco held on to lead the team in RBIs for the first time.

Memory Lane - Chachi RBI Leaders Cards
2005 - Pat Burrell, 117
2006 - Ryan Howard, 149
2007 - Ryan Howard, 136
2008 - Ryan Howard, 146
2009 - Ryan Howard, 141
2010 - Ryan Howard, 108
2011 - Ryan Howard, 116
2012 - Jimmy Rollins & Carlos Ruiz, 68
2013 - Domonic Brown, 83
2014 - Ryan Howard, 95
2015 - Ryan Howard, 77 (no card created)
2016 - Maikel Franco, 88

The only prior year Chachi RBI Team Leader card that I haven't posted to date is from the inaugural Chachi set, featuring Pat Burrell and Chase Utley.

2005 Chachi #54

2016 Chachi #65 Batting Leaders - Hernandez, Herrera, Franco

After a year's absence from the Chachi set, team leader cards have returned.  I skipped the process of creating team leader cards last season as I didn't feel like creating a brand new 1985 Topps based template for team leaders with poor to mediocre team leading statistics.  This year's performance was a little better (8 wins better to be exact) so I decided to forge ahead with some team leader cards.

I don't think anyone would have predicted that Cesar Hernandez would lead the team in hitting this season, and if not for the second half swoon of Odubel Herrera, Herrera would have won the title for the second year in a row.

Memory Lane - Chachi Batting Leaders Cards
2005 - Chase Utley, .291
2006 - Ryan Howard, .313
2007 - Chase Utley, .332
2008 - Shane Victorino, .293
2009 - Shane Victorino, .292
2010 - Placido Polanco, .298
2011 - Shane Victorino, .279
2012 - Jimmy Rollins, .250
2013 - Chase Utley, .284
2014 - Ben Revere, .306
2015 - Odubel Herrera, .297 (no card created)
2016 - Cesar Hernandez, .294

Here are the three Batting Leaders cards, from 2005, 2008 and 2010, that have not yet appeared on this blog until now.

2005 Chachi #52

2008 Chachi #55

2010 Chachi #53

2016 Chachi #4 Ryan Howard

#6

Ryan James Howard

First Base

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  250

Born:  November 19, 1979, St. Louis, MO

Home:  Tampa, FL

Drafted:  Selected by the Phillies in the 5th round of the June 2001 draft

Teams:  Phillies 2004-

Acquired:  Via draft

2001 Batavia Muckdogs Team Issue #26

2001 Upper Deck Prospect Premieres #62

2005 Chachi #29

2005 Topps #689

507 Howard Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2001 Batavia Muckdogs Team Issue #26
First Phillies Card:  2001 Upper Deck Prospect Premieres #62
First Topps Flagship Base Card:  2005 Topps #689 (with Cole Hamels)
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2006 Phillies Team Issue #6
Latest Card:  2016 Topps Heritage #290

2005 Chachi #62

2006 Chachi #45

2006 Chachi #60

2006 Chachi #61

2006 Chachi #63

2006 Chachi #70

2007 Chachi #3

2007 Chachi #60

2008 Chachi #4

2008 Chachi #56

2008 Chachi #57

These 11 Chachi cards represent the only Howard Chachi cards to have never appeared on this blog before now.

Complete Chachi Checklist
2005 Chachi #29
2005 Chachi #62 - Rookie of the Year HL
2006 Chachi #6
2006 Chachi #45 - All-Star
2006 Chachi #47 - Home Run Derby HL
2006 Chachi #60 - Single Season HR Record HL
2006 Chachi #61 - Batting Leaders (with Chase Utley)
2006 Chachi #62 - Home Run Leaders (with Chase Utley)
2006 Chachi #63 - RBI Leaders (with Chase Utley)
2006 Chachi #70 - MVP HL
2007 Chachi #3
2007 Chachi #39 - Fastest Player to 100 Home Runs HL
2007 Chachi #44 - Rain Delay HL
2007 Chachi #54 - Phils Sweep Mets HL
2007 Chachi #60 - Home Run Leaders (with Pat Burrell and Jimmy Rollins)
2007 Chachi #61 - RBI Leaders (with Chase Utley and Pat Burrell)
2008 Chachi #4
2008 Chachi #54 - Phils Clinch N.L. East HL
2008 Chachi #56 - Home Run Leaders (with Pat Burrell and Chase Utley)
2008 Chachi #57 - RBI Leaders (with Chase Utley)
2008 Chachi #74 - Phils Clinch NLCS HL
2008 Chachi #79 - World Series Game 4
2009 Chachi #4
2009 Chachi #30 - World Series Rings HL
2009 Chachi #47 - All-Star
2009 Chachi #50 - Fastest Player to 200 Home Runs HL
2009 Chachi #60 - Home Run Leaders (with Jayson Werth)
2009 Chachi #61 - RBI Leaders (with Jayson Werth)
2009 Chachi #70 - NLDS Game 4
2009 Chachi #74 - NLCS Game 3
2009 Chachi #78 - NLCS MVP HL
2010 Chachi #4
2010 Chachi #44 - All-Star (with Roy Halladay)
2010 Chachi #54 - Home Run Leaders (with Jayson Werth)
2010 Chachi #55 - RBI Leaders (with Jayson Werth)
2010 Chachi #65 - NLCS Game 1 (with Raul Ibanez)
2010 Chachi #70 - NLCS Game 6
2011 Chachi #4
2011 Chachi #34 - 2nd Place on Franchise HR List HL
2011 Chachi #58 - Home Run Leaders (with Raul Ibanez)
2011 Chachi #59 - RBI Leaders (with Raul Ibanez)
2011 Chachi #65 - NLDS Game 1 (with Roy Halladay)
2011 Chachi #68 - NLDS Game 4 (with Roy Oswalt)
2011 Chachi #69 - NLDS Game 5 (with Roy Halladay)
2012 Chachi #43
2012 Chachi #58 - 300th Home Run HL
2013 Chachi #4
2014 Chachi #4
2014 Chachi #45 - 1,000th RBI HL
2014 Chachi #66 - Home Run Leaders (with Marlon Byrd)
2014 Chachi #67 - RBI Leaders (with Marlon Byrd)
2015 Chachi #4
2016 Chachi #4

Card statistics through 4/9/16.