Game 120 - Phils Fall Flat in Canada

2018 Donruss #19

Blue Jays 2, Phillies 1
Game 120 - Tuesday Night, April 15th in Toronto
Record - 65-55, 2nd Place, 12 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Seranthony Dominguez hit Cavan Biggio with the bases loaded in the eighth, giving the Blue Jays a 2-1 advantage and ultimately the win.

What It Means:  Not much at all happened in this ballgame.  The Phillies' offense continued its frustrating streakiness, as they've now scored two runs in their last three games, after beating the Twins 13-2 on Friday night.

What Happened:  Zack Wheeler pitched well enough for the win, giving up one run in his seven-inning outing.  In the eighth, with the bases loaded and two outs, Dominguez hit Biggio with the first pitch off the at-bat, sending the tie-breaking run home.  The Phillies lone run came in the sixth when Johan Rojas doubled home Edmundo Sosa.

Featured Card:  This game gave me little to work with, so here's a card of former Phillies great Jose Bautista, who closed out his 15-year major league career in 2018, playing in 27 games for the Phillies.  Bautista is better known of course for his years with the Blue Jays, and this past weekend he signed a one-day contract with the Blue Jays in order to officially retire with the club.  This card is in my 2018 Phillies binder, given Bautista's time with the team that season.

2023 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2023 Season Summary Index / 2023 Chachi Set Checklist

Blue Jays at Phillies: May 9th to May 10th

2014 Topps Heritage #345

2014 Topps Heritage #17

Tuesday 6:40 and Wednesday 4:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  It's yet another Dollar Dog Night on Tuesday.

Blue Jays 21-14
3rd Place in the A.L. East, 7 games behind the Rays

Blue Jays Probables
Alek Manoah (1-2, 4.71)
Kevin Gausman (2-3, 3.86)

Blue Jays Leaders
Average:  Matt Chapman - .349
Runs:  Bo Bichette - 25
Home Runs:  Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero - 7
RBIs:  Bo Bichette - 22
Stolen Bases:  Whit Merrifield - 7

Wins:  Yusei Kikuchi - 5
ERA:  Yusei Kikuchi - 3.35
Strikeouts:  Kevin Gausman - 58
Saves:  Jordan Romano - 9

Phillies 16-19
4th Place in the N.L. East, 8 games behind the Braves

Phillies Probables
Aaron Nola (2-2, 4.64)
Zack Wheeler (3-2, 4.26)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Brandon Marsh - .314
Runs:  Nick Castellanos - 26
Home Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 8
RBIs:  Alec Bohm - 25
Stolen Bases:  J.T. Realmuto - 5

Wins:  Taijuan Walker and Zack Wheeler - 3
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 4.26

Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 46
Saves:  Jose Alvarado - 5

2023 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2023 Season Summary Index / 2023 Chachi Set Checklist

Final Look at 2017-2018 Phillies Player Moves

2019 Chachi Preview #2

2019 Chachi Preview #3

2019 Chachi Preview #4

2019 Chachi Preview #5

As the season continues for 9 teams (sorry Cubs fans), I wanted to take one last look back at the transactions that shaped the 2018 Phillies.  This is a listing of every player who joined or left the organization between the final pitch of the 2017 season and the final pitch of the 2018 season.  I'm not showing minor league moves here, only players who spent time with the Phillies in 2017 or 2018.  It's an interesting list, but I sincerely hope this coming offseason's list is more impressive.

Moving On - 2017-2018 Offseason

• Henderson Alvarez - rhp (10/4/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed with Tigres de Quintana Roo of the Mexican League, 3/16/18.
• Ty Kelly - 2b-of (10/4/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the New York Mets, 1/22/18.
• Kevin Siegrist - lhp (10/4/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2/24/18.
• Andres Blanco - inf (11/2/17) - Elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the San Francisco Giants, 1/30/18.
• Clay Buchholz - rhp (11/2/17) - Elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent
  with the Kansas City Royals, 3/20/18.
• Hyun Soo Kim - of (11/2/17) - Elected free agency, signed with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization, 12/18/17.
• Daniel Nava - of (11/2/17) - Elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2/6/18.
• Jesen Therrien - rhp (11/6/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster and elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers, 11/29/17.
• Michael Mariot - rhp (11/6/17) - Elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the San Diego Padres, 11/29/17.
• Colton Murray - rhp (11/6/17) - Elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the Tampa Bay Rays, 12/14/17.
• Brock Stassi - 1b (11/6/17) - Elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the Minnesota Twins, 12/7/17.
• Cameron Perkins - of (12/11/17) - Claimed off waivers by the Seattle Mariners.
• Freddy Galvis - ss (12/15/17) - Traded to the San Diego Padres for Enyel De Los Santos.
• Tommy Joseph - 1b (3/19/18) - Claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers.
• Cameron Rupp - c (3/26/18) - Released and signed as a minor league free agent with the Texas Rangers, 4/3/18.
• Ricardo Pinto - rhp (3/27/18) - Traded to the Chicago White Sox for future considerations.

Coming Back - 2017-2018 Offseason

• Pedro Florimon - inf-of (11/13/17) - Signed to a minor league contract.

New Additions - 2017-2018 Offseason

• Pat Neshek - rhp (12/15/17) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Colorado Rockies.
• Tommy Hunter - rhp (12/15/17) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Tampa Bay Rays.
• Enyel De Los Santos - rhp (12/15/17) - Acquired from the San Diego Padres for Freddy Galvis.
• Carlos Santana - 1b (12/20/17) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Cleveland Indians.
• Drew Hutchison - rhp (2/15/18) - Signed as a minor league free agent formerly with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization.
• Jake Arrieta - rhp (3/12/18) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Chicago Cubs.

Arrived During the 2018 Season

• Trevor Plouffe (4/23/18) - Signed as a minor league free agent, formerly with the Texas Rangers organization.
• Asdrubal Cabrera (7/27/18) - Acquired from the New York Mets for Franklyn Kilome.
• Wilson Ramos (7/31/18) - Acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays for a player to be named later or cash.
• Aaron Loup (7/31/18) - Acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays for Jacob Waguespack.
• Justin Bour (8/10/18) - Acquired with cash from the Miami Marlins for McKenzie Mills.
• Luis Avilan (8/22/18) - Acquired from the Chicago White Sox for Felix Paulino.
• Jose Bautista (8/28/18) - Acquired from the New York Mets for a player to be named later or cash.

Departed During the 2018 Season

• Drew Hutchison (6/5/18) - Designated for assignment and elected free agency.
• Hoby Milner (7/15/18) - Sold to the Tampa Bay Rays.
• Zac Curtis (7/31/18) - Designated for assingnment and claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers, 8/7/18.
• Jake Thompson (8/14/18) - Traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for cash considerations.
• Mark Leiter, Jr. (9/1/18) - Claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays.
• Ben Lively (9/5/18) - Claimed off waivers by the Kansas City Royals.

Game 144 - 2018 Phillies Team Issue Update #19 Jose Bautista

Nationals 7, Phillies 6 (Game 2 - 10 Innings)
Game 144 - Tuesday Night, September 11th in Philadelphia
Record - 74-70, 2nd place, 6 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  The 2018 Phillies season unofficially ended for me when the Nationals came from behind to win in extra innings, 7-6.

What It Means:  This loss marked the moment I crossed the threshold from "They still have a chance," to "I can't believe they completely fell apart and blew it."  Granted, the Phillies weren't supposed to compete for a playoff spot this year and the so-called experts, along with the team's own front office, projected them to truly be ready for contention beginning with the 2019 season.

So it was a bit of a pleasant shock when the Phillies took over first place very briefly on May 26th only to lose it the next day.  They kept playing sloppy baseball, they kept getting suspect relief performance and they kept coming up empty when a big hit was needed, but somehow they were back in first place on July 6th.  They were 15 games over .500 on August 7th having held onto the top spot in the division for a month when the bottom dropped out.

The little mistakes became big mistakes.  The offense all but evaporated and the occasional bright spots came from either a pitching performance from Aaron Nola or another home run from Rhys Hoskins.  Since August 5th, the Phillies have gone 11-23 and they're 0-10-1 in their 11 series played since then.  (Meghan Montemurro Tweet.)  The July ascent was unexpected and all too short.  The August/September collapse was quick and has gone on way too long.

What Happened:  The Phillies exploded for five runs in the 5th thanks to four doubles and three singles.  It was the kind of rare outburst the Phillies had been striving towards and hoping for all season.  But in the end, it meant nothing.  The Nationals scored three in the 9th to tie the score, with the tying run coming on a bases-loaded walk from Luis Garcia.  Juan Soto homered off Yacksel Rios in the 10th to send the Nationals to the double header sweep.

Featured Card:  I got an e-mail from fellow collector Rick during the first game alerting me to the presence of new photo cards to be found in the team-issued set.  I've updated the set's listing here with the 8 new cards.

This is Jose Bautista's first (and to date only) Phillies baseball card, found within these updated sets.  Bautista homered in the 8th inning, making him the first player in baseball history to hit a home run with three different teams in the same division in the same season.  (Jayson Stark Tweet.)

Field Report:  It was empty and at one point my wife texted me that I should start screaming to see if she could hear me on TV.

Game 136 - 2018 Chachi Friendly Encounters #15 Scott Franzke

Cubs 8, Phillies 1
Game 136 - Sunday Afternoon, September 2nd in Philadelphia
Record - 72-64, 2nd place, 4 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Aaron Nola struck out 11 but allowed three solo home runs and the offense went 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position on the way to this 8-1 loss to the Cubs.

What It Means:  The Phillies offense scored four runs in the three-game weekend series with the Cubs.  The team absolutely needs to start hitting against the Marlins and Mets this week if there's any hope of a postseason.

What Happened:  Nola departed after 5 2/3 innings with the Cubs ahead 4-0.  Luis Garcia allowed four more Cubs runs in the 8th, putting the game completely out of reach.

Roman Quinn started the game by getting thrown out at third trying to stretch a double into a triple.  That was pretty much the only excitement generated by the Phillies offense all day and it was over in less than 10 seconds.

Transaction:  Justin Bour was activated from the disabled list, giving the Phillies 32 players on their active roster.

Featured Card/Field Report:  For the second time this Labor Day weekend, the four of us made the trip to Citizens Bank Park.  The weather was much different than Friday night, as it was sunny, hot and humid.  Fortunately, we were able to find some shade sitting with Jenna's Mom and brother who were also attending the game.  The boys added Phillies backpack/cooler bags to their ever growing collection of Phillies-related backpacks/bags.

About an hour before first pitch, we met radio broadcaster Scott Franzke on the concourse and he was kind enough to pose for a picture.  It was all downhill from there.  Standing in his usual spot at the end of the Phillies dugout, Doug managed to get an autograph from pitching coach Rick Kranitz before needing to retreat from the sun.

I took a few pictures of new Phillie Jose Bautista on the field as a professional photographer asked him to pose in several classic baseball card poses.  Bautista obliged the photographer with bat on the shoulder, full swing, half swing and kneeling with bat poses.  It will be interesting to see if any of these shots show up in either Topps Update or Topps Heritage High Numbers (my guess).

2018 Chachi #53 Jose Bautista

#19
Jose Antonio Bautista
Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  205
Opening Day Age:  37
Born:  October 19, 1980, Santo Domingo, DR
Drafted:  Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 20th round of the 2000 amateur draft, June 5, 2000
Teams:  Baltimore Orioles 2004; Tampa Bay Devil Rays 2004; Kansas City Royals 2004; Pittsburgh Pirates 2004-2008; Toronto Blue Jays 2008-2017; Atlanta Braves 2018; New York Mets 2018; Phillies 2018
Acquired:  Acquired from the New York Mets for a player to be named later or cash, August 28, 2018

2002 Topps Traded #T180

2018 Topps Heritage #139

2 Bautista Baseball Cards in My Collection per The Phillies Room Checklist
First Topps Flagship Base Card:  2002 Topps Traded #T180
First Card:  2018 Topps Heritage #139
First Phillies Card:  N/A
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  N/A
Newest Card:  2018 Topps Heritage #139

First Mention on The Phillies Room:  July 1, 2011 - Meet the Jays:

Manager - John Farrell is in his first season as manager of the Blue Jays
Starters - J.P. Arencibia (c), Adam Lind (1b), Aaron Hill (2b), Jose Bautista (3b), Yunel Escobar (ss), Juan Rivera (lf), Rajai Davis (cf), Eric Thames (rf), Edwin Encarnacion (dh)
Rotation - Ricky Romero (lhp), Jo-Jo Reyes (lhp), Brandon Morrow (rhp), Carlos Villanueva (rhp)
Bench - Jose Molina (c), John McDonald (inf), Jayson Nix (3b), Corey Patterson (of)
Closer - Frank Francisco (rhp)
Bullpen - Shawn Camp (rhp), Brett Cecil (lhp), Octavio Dotel (rhp), Jason Frasor (rhp), Luis Perez (lhp), Jon Rauch (rhp), Marc Rzepczynski (lhp)
Disabled List - Jesse Carlson (lhp), Casey Janssen (rhp), Jesse Litsch (rhp), Dustin McGowan (rhp)

Complete Chachi Checklist
2018 Chachi #53

Card statistics through 8/29/18.

Game 132 - Another "Worst Loss" of the Season; Phils Add Bautista

2018 Topps Heritage #139

Nationals 5, Phillies 4
Game 132 - Wednesday Night, August 29th in Philadelphia
Record - 70-62, 2nd place, 4 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Aaron Nola's Cy Young-worthy performance was wasted due to poor defense, bullpen issues and a horrendous baserunning blunder.

What It Means:  The Phillies have not been 4 1/2 games out of first place since June 19th when the bullpen duo of Tommy Hunter and Seranthony Dominguez coughed up five runs late to the Cardinals in one of the many heartbreaking losses of the season.  This team is hard to watch.

What Happened:  It seemed as if Nola would win in his battle against Max Scherzer, for the second time in a week.  Nola departed after 7 innings with a 3-2 lead, and the final run scored against him was unearned as a result of Carlos Santana's throwing error.

In the 9th, Tommy Hunter was brought back out to try to record his 4th out but he ended up walking Bryce Harper.  Pat Neshek entered the game and allowed a go-ahead 2-run home run to Anthony Rendon.  Another run scored on a Jorge Alfaro throwing error.  The Nationals led 5-3.

In the bottom of the 9th, Nick Williams doubled and Wilson Ramos doubled him home.  With a depleted bench (Roman Quinn had replaced Rhys Hoskins for defensive purposes in the top of the inning), Vince Velasquez ran for Ramos and was called out when he inexplicably tried to tag up on an Alfaro fly out to center.  Velasquez left too early, the Nationals tagged second and the game ended.

Featured Card/Transaction:  On Tuesday afternoon, the Phillies finalized their deal to acquire Jose Bautista and a player to be named later will eventual head to the Mets.  After a pinch-hit strikeout in this game, Bautista is hitting .196 with the Braves, Mets and now Phillies this season.  Mark Leiter, Jr. was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster and Andrew Knapp was optioned to the IronPigs.

Bautista has a ton of baseball card appearances, especially during his peak years with the Blue Jays between 2010 and 2015.  His 2018 baseball card appearance have been limited, and he appears in both the Topps flagship and Topps Heritage sets with the Blue Jays.  He has a few Topps Now cards featuring him with the Mets, but no baseball card appearances with the Braves.

Arrived During the 2018 Season

Trevor Plouffe (4/23/18) - Signed as a minor league free agent, formerly with the Texas Rangers organization.
Asdrubal Cabrera (7/27/18) - Acquired from the New York Mets for Franklyn Kilome.
Wilson Ramos (7/31/18) - Acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays for a player to be named later or cash.
Aaron Loup (7/31/18) - Acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays for Jacob Waguespack.
Justin Bour (8/10/18) - Acquired with cash from the Miami Marlins for McKenzie Mills.
Luis Avilan (8/22/18) - Acquired from the Chicago White Sox for Felix Paulino.
Jose Bautista (8/28/18) - Acquired from the New York Mets for a player to be named later or cash.

Departed During the 2018 Season
Drew Hutchison (6/5/18) - Designated for assignment and elected free agency.
Hoby Milner (7/15/18) - Sold to the Tampa Bay Rays.
Zac Curtis (7/31/18) - Designated for assingnment and claimed off waivers by the Texas Rangers, 8/7/18.
Jake Thompson (8/14/18) - Traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for cash considerations.