Spring Training Game 12 - Oh Canada!

Canada	5
Philadelphia Phillies	3

2015 Topps Update #US318

Spring Training Game 12

Wednesday Afternoon, March 4th

BayCare Ballpark - Clearwater, FL

Record - 3-8-1

One Sentence Summary:  Aaron Nola threw three scoreless innings with four strikeouts, but Team Canada took care of the Phillies by a score of 5-3.

What It Means:  I took the photo below of a graphic displayed on a recent Phillies broadcast of all the team's players competing the next few weeks in the World Baseball Classic.  I wish I could get more excited about this exhibition tournament, and I like the concept of it, but I'm still not a huge fan.  Rojas has since been sent home from the Dominican Republic team, but he did make an impressive diving catch as the first out in this game.

What Happened:  There's a theory that Nola only pitches well in even-numbered years, so hopefully that pattern holds true come April.  Jhoan Duran made his spring debut and pitched a scoreless fourth inning.  Canada scored four of its runs off Jonathan Bowlan in the sixth as the reliever didn't retire a batter but gave up three hits and a walk.  Bryan De La Cruz, now suddenly with a potential roster spot if Rojas is suspended, had an RBI single in the second.  Alec Bohm hit a solo home run in the fourth.

Featured Card:  Phillippe Aumont, who pitched for the Phillies in 46 games between 2012 and 2015, relieved for Canada in the sixth inning, shutting down Adolis Garcia, Bryson Stott and De La Cruz.  Aumont is now 37 and last pitched professionally in 2019.  He threw three innings of relief for Canada in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

Camp Head Count:  69

2015 Chachi #43 Phillippe Aumont

#48

Phillippe Aumont

Starting Pitcher

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'7"  Weight:  241

Born:  January 7, 1989, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada

Home:  Clearwater, FL

Drafted:  Selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 1st round of the June 2007 draft

Teams:  Phillies 2012-

Acquired:  Acquired from the Seattle Mariners with Tyson Gillies and J.C. Ramirez for Cliff Lee, December 16, 2009

2010 Multi-Ad Reading Phillies #3

2012 Chachi #52

2013 Phillies Team Issue #48

2013 Topps #646

14 Aumont Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2010 Multi-Ad Reading Phillies #3
First Phillies Card:  2013 Phillies Team Issue #48
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  2013 Topps #646
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2013 Phillies Team Issue #48
Latest Card:  2015 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #1

First Chachi Base Card:  2012 Chachi #52

Aumont Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

Cards and game statistics through 6/21/15.

1970 Topps #186 Rick Joseph

Cardinals 12, Phillies 4
Game 69 - Friday Night, June 19th in Philadelphia
Record - 23-46, 5th Place, 13 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  In his first (and perhaps last) big league start, Phillippe Aumont struggled mightily and the Cardinals notched an easy 12-4 win.

What It Means:  Aumont was making a spot start to give Cole Hamels' hamstring an extra day of rest.  He lasted four innings, allowing six runs on five hits and seven walks.  He most likely will not be starting another game for the Phillies anytime soon.

What Happened:  The Phillies and Cardinals wore retro uniforms from the 1960s in this game.  Other than the cool retro jerseys and an incident with a squirrel on the field, this game should be quickly forgotten.

Featured Card:  The Phillies chose to wear uniforms from their 1969 season, as evidenced by the MLB patch on the left shoulder celebrating the league's 100th year.  I don't think there's a good baseball card from the era showing a Phillies player in a home jersey with the patch, so I went with this card of Rick Joseph in an away jersey which clearly shows it off.

Transaction:  Hector Neris was sent back to Lehigh Valley after just one game to make room on the roster for Aumont.

2014 Stadium Club #39 Chase Utley

Phillies 9, Braves 2
Spring Training Game 30 - Wednesday Afternoon, April 1st in Clearwater
Record - 12-16-2

One Sentence Summary:  Chase Utley hit two more home runs in a 9-2 win against the Braves.

What It Means:  Utley is locked in and ready for the start of the regular season.

What Happened:  Four of Utley's last five plate appearances have resulted in home runs.  That's pretty good.  Freddy Galvis and Rene Garcia also hit back-to-back home runs for the Phillies in the fourth.  Cole Hamels pitched six strong innings, allowing just one earned run.

Featured Cards:  Stadium Club returned in 2014 after a six year absence, but the set arrived in October after the close of the Phillies season.  This is Utley's card from that set and I continue to relish every opportunity I get to post one of Utley's cards in these game summary posts.  I'm going to enjoy it while I still can.

2014 Choice Lehigh Valley
IronPigs #1

Camp Head Count:  34 - 2 = 32.  Prior to the game, pitcher Phillippe Aumont was outrighted and outfielder Brian Bogusevic was reassigned to minor league camp.  Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez was also outrighted, meaning that both he and Aumont had cleared waivers and are no longer on the team's 40-man roster.  Let me be clear about that last sentence . . . the Phillies put both Aumont and Gonzalez on waivers and none of the other 29 teams wanted either of them.

Without sounding too bitter, Aumont and Gonzalez are two of the franchise's biggest pitching flops of the past few years . . . and that's saying something.

2013 Topps #646 Phillippe Aumont

Mets 11, Phillies 2
Game 108 - Wednesday Afternoon, July 30th in Flushing
Record - 47-61

Another Why Even Bother Post-Vacation Massive Catch-Up, Part 5 of 8

One Sentence Summary:  The Mets completely dismantled the Phillies in an 11-2 drubbing.

What It Means:  When we look back on this long, dreadful season, there will be a dozen or so losses that will stand out as much worse than all the other losses.  This will be one of those such losses.

What Happened:  Kyle Kendrick was actually doing well until the fifth, when he allowed the Mets to put up a four-spot.  He was chased after six innings.  The bullpen trio of Mario Hollands, Justin De Fratus and Phillippe Aumont didn't fare much better.  Aumont allowed two more runs in his inning of work and his ERA for the season is now up to 14.73.

Featured Card:  Prior to this game, I listened to the pre-game show on the radio while sitting on the beach. General Manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. was the guest on the pre-game show and he was fielding questions from fans calling in.  One of the callers asked Amaro what one move he'd take back if he could.  I was surprised that Amaro answered the question directly instead of giving a cliche-heavy response.  Without hesitation, he said he wished he hadn't traded Cliff Lee to the Mariners when the team acquired Roy Halladay.

Only Aumont remains in the organization from that miserable trade, and it doesn't appear as if he'll be around long-term.

2014 Chachi #46 Phillippe Aumont

#48

Phillippe Aumont

Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'7"  Weight:  260

Born:  January 7, 1989, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada

Home:  Clearwater, FL

Drafted:  Selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 1st round of the June 2007 draft

Teams:  Phillies 2012-

Acquired:  Acquired from the Seattle Mariners with Tyson Gillies and J.C. Ramirez for Cliff Lee, December 16, 2009

Phillies Cards in My Collection:

#1 - 2013 Phillies Team Issue #48

#4 - 2014 Phillies Team Issue #48

I have 8 minor league cards of Aumont, issued between 2010 and 2014.

First Chachi Card:  2012 Chachi #52

2013 Chachi #22 Phillippe Aumont

#48

Phillippe Aumont

Relief Pitcher

Bats: Left  Throws: Right  Height: 6'7"  Weight: 260

Born: January 7, 1989, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada

Home: Holiday, FL

Drafted: Selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 1st round of the June 2007 draft

Teams: Phillies 2012-

Acquired: Acquired from the Seattle Mariners with Tyson Gillies and J.C. Ramirez for Cliff Lee, December 16, 2009

Contract Status: Pre-arbitration eligible

2012 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs Update #1 Phillippe Aumont

Phillies 10, Yankees 5
Spring Training Game 7 - Friday Afternoon, March 1st in Tampa
Record - 3-3-1

One Sentence Summary:  The Phils downed the Yankees again as Roy Halladay continued his spring tune-up.

What It Means:  The Phillies accomplished back-to-back wins for the first time this spring, on the strength of both good pitching and timely hitting.

What Went Right:  Halladay pitched 2 1/3 innings, allowing a run on three hits while striking out three. It seems most of the chatter after the game surrounded Phillippe Aumont and his inning of scoreless work.  Aumont's velocity was in the mid-90s and he displayed good command.  He, along with Pete Orr and Tyson Gillies, departed camp after the game to report to Team Canada in preparation of the upcoming World Baseball Classic.

Jimmy Rollins had a two-run double and John Mayberry, Jr. knocked in three runs.

2012 Topps Heritage
Minor League Real
One Autographs #ROA-SV

Featured Cards:  My feelings on the World Baseball Classic are similar to my feelings on the annual pre-All Star Game Home Run Derby.  Meh.

Maybe it's different for the fans of other competing countries, but I don't know any American baseball fans who are thrilled with the upcoming tournament.  I suppose its intended purpose is to unify the world through baseball, but the cynical side of me sees it as as nothing more than a money grab by Bud Selig.  And like it or not, we baseball card collectors can expect to see a glut of WBC-themed cards in upcoming Topps products.  Meh again.

For the record, here are the members of the Phillies organization participating in the WBC which kicked off last night in Taiwan.  Selfishly, I'd rather Aumont continue his spring in Clearwater but I wish him well in the tournament.

Australia - Tim Kennelly (c)
Brazil - Lucas Rojo (inf)
Canada - Phillippe Aumont (rhp), Tyson Gillies (of), Jay Johnson (lhp) and Pete Orr (inf)
Dominican Republic - Juan Samuel (coach)
Mexico - Rodrigo Lopez (rhp) and Sebastian Valle (c)
USA - Jimmy Rollins (ss)
Venezuela - Cesar Jimenez (lhp)

Ernie Whitt, the Phillies minor league catching coordinator, is the manager for Team Canada.

2012 Chachi #67 Leading Firemen - Jonathan Papelbon & Phillippe Aumont

For the Phillies and their fans, it's been a slow off-season so far.  In prior Novembers, the Phillies made early splashes by signing big free agents or making an occasional trade.  To date, the only move made by the Phillies has been to sign third baseman Josh Fields (formerly of the White Sox and very briefly, the Royals) to a minor league contract.

By this time last year, Jonathan Papelbon had already been a Phillie for a few weeks.  Signed on November 14, 2011, Papelbon was inked to be the team's closer through at least the 2015 season.  He did a decent job in 2012, saving 38 of 42 chances and making the National League All-Star team.  The knock against Papelbon, other than his bizarre Cinco Ocho alter ego, is that he can't pitch effectively when the team is trailing or when the ballgame is tied up.

Only four Phillies recorded saves in 2012, which is less a testament to Papelbon's season as it is to the overall ineffectiveness of the rest of the team's bullpen.  This is one area in dire need of improvement for 2013.  I'm all for reuniting with our old friend Ryan Madson, if he'd be willing to serve as Papelbon's set-up guy.

1.  Jonathan Papelbon - 38 saves
2.  Phillippe Aumont - 2 saves
3.  Antonio Bastardo - 1 save
4.  Josh Lindblom - 1 save

2012 Chachi #52 Phillippe Aumont

#48

Phillippe Aumont

Relief Pitcher

Bats: Left  Throws: Right  Height: 6'7"  Weight: 260

Born: January 7, 1989, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada

Home: Redmond, WA

Drafted: Selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 1st round of June 2007 draft

Teams: Phillies 2012

Acquired: Acquired from the Seattle Mariners with Tyson Gillies and J.C. Ramirez for Cliff Lee, December 16, 2009

Contract Status: Pre-arbitration eligible

2011 Topps Heritage Minor League #54 Phillippe Aumont

Phillies 4, Reds 3 (11 Innings)
Game 125 - Thursday Night, August 23rd in Philadelphia
Record 58-67, 3rd Place, 19 1/2 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  It was a very, very long game, but the Phillies prevailed in the 11th on John Mayberry, Jr.'s walk-off single.

What It Means:  The Phillies are nine games under .500 and only 10 1/2 games behind in the Wild Card race.  All it would take is a nice 15-game winning streak from the Phils to get back into this thing.  And for the Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Pirates and Cardinals to completely collapse.  And for the Brewers and Mets to keep playing poorly.  And for the offense to have more timely clutch hitting.  And for our starting pitching to be more consistent.  And for the bullpen to get their acts together.  That's all it would take.

What Went Right:  Mayberry singled home Chase Utley with the winning run in the 11th.  The biggest reason the Phillies were still playing in the 11th was the five scoreless innings thrown by B.J. Rosenberg, Phillippe Aumont (in his big league debut), Jonathan Papelbon, Jeremy Horst and Raul Valdes.

Featured Card:  Welcome to the big leagues Phillippe Aumont!  Aumont was one of three prospects acquired from the Mariners when the Phillies made their ill-advised trade of Cliff Lee back in December 2009.  Aumont joins the growing list of members of the 2012 Phillies squad without a proper Phillies baseball card to date.  Although in Aumont's case, I have a feeling his inclusion on the Missing Links list won't last long.  This is his most recent widely-released card, from last year's Topps Heritage Minor Leagues set.

New to the 40-Man Roster

2010 Topps Pro Debut #424, 2010 Bowman Prospects #BP19,
2010 Bowman Sterling Prospects #BSP-SV and 2011 Multi-Ad Reading Phillies #7

The Phillies added four players to their 40-man roster yesterday, protecting them from the upcoming Rule 5 draft, to be held next month - righty Phillippe Aumont, lefty Jake Diekman, catcher Sebastian Valle and outfielder Tyson Gillies.

Aumont and Gillies comprise two-thirds of the return on the ill-fated Cliff Lee deal with the Mariners.  The decision to trade away Lee, who would come back to the Phils as a free-agent, was made to free up cash and re-stock the farm system.  If either Aumont and Gillies end up playing a key role with the Phillies, maybe, just maybe, the Lee deal will be considered to have been somewhat worthwhile.

Aumont split 2011 between Double-A and Triple-A, pitching 43 games in relief with a 2.68 ERA.  He struck out 78 while walking only 25 and he allowed just 2 home runs over 53 2/3 innings pitched.  Aumont was recently ranked the 5th best prospect in the Phillies system by Baseball America and he's got a real shot at breaking camp with the Phils in March.  Gillies missed all but three games of the 2011 season with a combination hamstring/groin/hip injury.

Catcher Sebastian Valle, number three on the Baseball America list, has been in the Phillies system for five seasons, but he has yet to play above Single-A.  In just 91 games at Clearwater last year, he hit .284 with 5 home runs.

Left-hander Jake Diekman has emerged pretty much out of nowhere.  He spent 2011 with Double-A Reading, pitching to a 3.05 ERA over 53 relief appearances.  His strikeout to walk ratio was too high (83 to 44), but he's had a fairly successful campaign in the Arizona Fall League.  As of yesterday, Diekman had appeared in 11 games for the Scottsdale Scorpions where he has a 0.79 ERA and 2 saves.