Braves at Phillies: October 11th to October 12th

2023 Chachi Series Previews #12

2023 Chachi Series Previews #13

Wednesday 5:07 and Thursday 6:07
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  The NLDS returns to Philadelphia for Games 3 and 4, and hopefully, with a pair of Phillies wins, there won't be the need to return to Atlanta for Game 5.

Braves 1-1
National League East Champions

Braves Probables
TBD
TBD

Braves Postseason Leaders
Average:  Ozzie Albies - .286
Runs:  Ronald Acuna - 2
Home Runs:  Travis d'Arnaud and Austin Riley - 1
RBIs:  Travis d'Arnaud and Austin Riley - 2
Stolen Bases:  Ronald Acuna - 1

Wins:  A.J. Minter - 1
ERA:  Spencer Strider - 1.29
Strikeouts:  Spencer Strider - 8
Saves:  Raisel Iglesias - 1

Phillies 1-1
Defeated Marlins in NLWCS, 2-0

Phillies Probables
Aaron Nola (1-0, 0.00)
TBD

Phillies Postseason Leaders
Average:  Trea Turner - .375
Runs:  Bryce Harper - 5
Home Runs:  J.T. Realmuto - 2
RBIs:  Bryson Stott - 7
Stolen Bases:  Trea Turner - 4

Wins:  Three tied with - 1
ERA:  Aaron Nola - 0.00

Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 18
Saves:  Craig Kimbrel - 2

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

3rd Annual Doug's Big Night of Autographs (Part 2)

Here are the rest of the cards I created featuring Phillies alumni signing for Doug during Saturday night's Wall of Fame celebration.


Memory Lane - Past Induction Ceremonies/Alumni Weekends

2009 - Harry Kalas

2010 - Darren Daulton

2011 - John Kruk

2012 - Mike Lieberthal

2013 - Curt Schilling

2014 - Charlie Manuel
2015 - Pat Burrell
2016 - Jim Thome
2017 - Tribute to Jim Bunning, Dallas Green and Darren Daulton
2018 - Roy Halladay and Pat Gillick
2019 - Bobby Abreu (Part One and Two)

2013 Chachi #20 Chad Durbin

#45

Chad Griffin Durbin

Relief Pitcher

Bats: Switch  Throws: Right  Height: 6'2"  Weight: 223

Born: December 3, 1977, Spring Valley, IL

Home: Baton Rouge, LA

Drafted: Selected by the Kansas City Royals in the 3rd round of the June 1996 draft

Teams: Kansas City Royals 1999-2002, Cleveland Indians 2003-2004, Arizona Diamondbacks 2004, Detroit Tigers 2006-2007, Phillies 2008-2010, Cleveland Indians 2011, Atlanta Braves 2012, Phillies 2013-

Acquired: Signed as a free agent formerly with the Atlanta Braves, January 29, 2013

Contract Status: Signed through the 2013 season with a club option for 2014

2008 Upper Deck Phillies World Series Champions #PP-23 Chad Durbin

Reds 10, Phillies 0
Game 43 - Saturday Afternoon, May 18th in Philadelphia
Record - 20-23, 3rd Place, 4 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies were shellacked by the Reds, 10-0, and never even had a chance in the middle game of the series.

What It Means:  As I mentioned yesterday - no consistency.  They look great one day, and appear completely lifeless the next.  The Phils can still win the series with a victory this afternoon.

What Went Wrong:  Kyle Kendrick suffered his first rough outing of the year, allowing four runs on eight hits over six innings.  Over the final three innings, the bullpen failed to keep the game even remotely close.  B.J. Rosenberg (3 runs in 1 1/3 innings) and Chad Durbin (2 runs in an inning) were the main offenders.

The offense managed seven hits, while going 0 for 4 with runners in scoring position.

Featured Card:  This loss was by no means Durbin's fault, and the game was well out of hand before he surrendered two meaningless runs in the top of the ninth inning.  But how much longer can the Phils stick with Durbin?  His ERA stands at 8.10 in 13 appearances this year.  There's got to be a better option available at Triple-A.

2009 Upper Deck #800 Chad Durbin

Phillies 7, Yankees 0
Spring Training Game 21 - Saturday Afternoon, March 16th in Tampa
Record - 9-11-1

One Sentence Summary:  Domonic Brown and the Phillies relievers led the team to a shutout victory over the Yankees.

What It Means:  Manager Charlie Manuel wanted to stretch out his bullpen today, and the nine shutout innings prove that the idea was a success.

What Went Right:  Five Phillies relievers combined for the shutout, but the most impressive performances came from Raul Valdes and Chad Durbin who each threw three scoreless innings.  Brown and Steven Lerud both homered for the Phillies and Brown made two great catches in the outfield.

Featured Card:  I'm hoping I have many more opportunities to present Brown's cards throughout the regular season, but a Phillies middle inning/long reliever probably won't realistically have that many chances to "star" in a game.  I have nine Durbin cards in my Phillies collection, and four of them come from team issued sets.  This is one of his few Upper Deck cards.

2013 Chach Transactions #15 Chad Durbin

Earlier this week, the Phillies signed right-hander Chad Durbin to a one-year contract, sparking memories of the now distant 2008 World Championship season.  Durbin was a key part of the Phillies '08 team, serving as a middle reliever and occasional set up guy and pitching to an impressive 2.87 ERA.  He struggled a little over the next three seasons, but had a great season last year with the Braves.  Durbin went 4-1 in 76 games in 2012, with a 3.10 ERA.  He seemed to always pitch especially well against the Phillies.

Durbin is one of two Phillies relievers from the 2008 World Series roster still active.  Here's a brief rundown of what happened to the rest of his bullpen mates:

J.C. Romero (lhp) - Romero was released by the Phillies in June 2011.  Since then, he's appeared in 28 games for the Rockies, Cardinals and Orioles with an ERA of 7.08.  The Orioles released him in August and he's currently looking for employment.

Scott Eyre (lhp) - Eyre rode into the sunset after an impressive 2009 season (1.50 ERA in 42 games) with the Phillies.  He was publishing a blog, Traveling the Country in an RV, up until July 2011.

Brad Lidge (rhp) - Lidge announced his retirement in early December.  A true class act, Lidge's performance went south after his perfect 2008 season.  Froom 2009 to 2012 with the Phils and Nationals, Lidge went 1-12 with a 5.08 ERA.

Clay Condrey (rhp) - Condrey left the Phillies following the 2009 season and signed with the Twins.  His one-year deal with the Twins was the biggest contract he'd ever sign at $900,000.  Unfortunately, elbow problems derailed his career and he never actually pitched for Minnesota.

Ryan Madson (rhp) - Madson assumed the closer's role for the Phillies in 2011, converting 32 saves.  He signed a one-year deal with the Reds prior to the 2012 season, but needed Tommy John surgery to repair his right arm.  The Angels took a chance on him this past offseason, and Madson hopes to get his career back on track in 2013.

Technically, J.A. Happ could be added to this list as he was on the World Series roster but never appeared in a game.  Happ was shipped to the Astros in July 2010 for Roy Oswalt.  Two years later, he was part of another deadline deal sending him to the Blue Jays.

2009 O-Pee-Chee #146 Chad Durbin

Braves 12, Phillies 6
Game 111 - Wednesday Night, August 8th in Philadelphia
Record - 50-61, 5th Place, 18 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  Kyle Kendrick is not a very good starting pitcher.

What It Means:  The Phillies were going for their third series win in a row, but it was not to be.  After a brief visit to fourth place, they're now back in last.

What Went Wrong:  Kendrick allowed six runs in his 3+ innings of work before getting yanked.  The Phillies tied it up, 6-6, behind Ryan Howard's three-run home run in the fifth.  But the Phillies bullpen failed again, allowing six unanswered Braves runs in the seventh and eighth innings.

Featured Card:  Former Phillie Chad Durbin picked up the win in this ballgame, pitching a scoreless sixth inning.  Durbin is having a nice little year as a set-up guy in the Braves bullpen, compiling a 4-1 record and a 3.07 ERA.

The Phils could use a reliable reliever like Durbin these days.

Where the Ex-Phillies Are - N.L. East

2008 Upper Deck Phillies World Series Champions #PP-39, #PP-29, #PP-23 and #PP-34

I pay fairly close attention to the transaction wire throughout the off-season, but I still get surprised every spring when I find out where some ex-Phillies have ended up.  One of my rituals of spring is to scan each and every team's 40-man roster and non-roster invitee list and pick out the number of ex-Phillies populating each team's roster.  I used to complete this exercise with the help of The Sporting News or the wonderful, but short-lived Baseball Weekly, but now, through the wonder of technology, I have every team's roster a few clicks away.

I'm going to take a look at each the ex-Phillies warming up this week in Florida and Arizona, starting with the N.L. East.

Atlanta Braves
Pitching Coach Roger McDowell (1989-1991), Special Assistant Lee Elia (coach 1980-1981; 1985-1987 and manager 1987-1988), Outfielder Michael Bourn (2006-2007)

Miami Marlins
Infielder Greg Dobbs (2007-2010), Outfielder Aaron Rowand* (2006-2007)

New York Mets
I noticed a few former Phillies farmhands on the roster, but no ex-Phillies.

Washington Nationals
Manager Davey Johnson (1977-1978), Hitting Coordinator Rick Schu (1984-1987; 1991), Pitchers Brad Lidge (2008-2011) and Chad Durbin* (2008-2010), Outfielders Jayson Werth (2007-2010) and Jason Michaels* (2001-2005)

* Non-Roster Invitee

2010 Chachi #22 Chad Durbin

Chad Durbin has been one of the Phillies' most reliable relievers since he signed as a free agent prior to the 2008 season. Primarliy a middle reliever, he's been pushed into high pressure late inning situations over the past few seasons with varying degrees of success. He's been on the DL for the past few weeks with a strained right hamstring. He's also card #22 in this year's Chachi set.

Phillies debut: March 31, 2008

Major League debut: September 26, 1999

How acquired: Signed as a free agent formerly with the Detroit Tigers, December 20, 2007

Others wearing #37 in the 2000s: Bryan Ward 2000, Omar Daal 2000-2001, Rheal Cormier 2002-2006, Zack Segovia 2007, Kyle Lohse 2007, Chad Durbin 2008-2009

2009 Postseason: Durbin was perfect in the NLDS and NLCS, but he got hit around a bit by the Yankees in Games 3 and 6 of the World Series.

Pictured: World Series, Game 3 on October 31st - Durbin pitches in the 7th inning.

2009 Chachi #21 Chad Durbin

In 2008, only Brad Lidge (72), Ryan Madson (76) and J.C. Romero (81) appeared in more games than Chad Durbin (71). It honestly seemed as if Chad pitched in every single game last season. When Chad's not pitching, he's Tweeting.

Phillies debut: March 31, 2008
Major League debut: September 26, 1999
Former teams: Kansas City Royals 1999-2002, Cleveland Indians 2003-2004, Arizona Diamondbacks 2004, Detroit Tigers 2006-2007
How acquired: Signed as a free agent formerly with the Detroit Tigers, December 20, 2007
2008 Postseason: Pitched in 6 games throughout the Postseason, compiling a 2.70 ERA.
Pictured: October 26, 2008 - World Series Game 4