New York Mets at Philadelphia Phillies: Second Half Begins

2006 Topps #150

2006 Topps #205

Thursday, July 16th - 7:10
Saturday, July 18th - 4:05
Sunday, July 19th - 1:35

Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA
Coming off the high of the All-Star break and hosting the All-Star Game at the ballpark, the Phillies have zero promotions or theme nights for this series.

New York Mets 40-57
5th Place in the N.L. East, 16 games behind the Braves

Mets Probables
Christian Scott (2-1, 3.17)
Sean Manaea (2-4, 4.56)
Nolan McLean (6-6, 3.52)

Mets Leaders
Average:  Juan Soto - .290
Runs:  Carson Benge - 52
Home Runs:  Juan Soto - 21
RBIs:  Bo Bichette and Juan Soto - 51
Stolen Bases:  Carson Benge - 15

Wins:  Nolan McLean - 6
ERA:  Nolan McLean - 3.52

Strikeouts:  Nolan McLean - 125
Saves:  Devin Williams - 13

Philadelphia Phillies 54-43
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 2 games behind the Braves

Phillies Probables
Aaron Nola (3-6, 5.75)
Jesus Luzardo (8-4, 3.51)
Alan Rangel (0-2, 4.19)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Brandon Marsh - .301
Runs:  Trea Turner - 62
Home Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 32
RBIs:  Kyle Schwarber - 59
Stolen Bases:  Bryson Stott - 17

Wins:  Cristopher Sanchez - 11
ERA:  Cristopher Sanchez - 2.62

Strikeouts:  Cristopher Sanchez - 144
Saves:  Jhoan Duran - 24

2026 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2026 Season Summary Index / 2026 Chachi Set Checklist

New York Mets at Philadelphia Phillies - Play-Off Push Continues

2005 Topps #575

2005 Topps #11

Monday, September 8th - 6:45
Tuesday, September 9th - 6:45
Wednesday, September 10th - 6:45
Thursday, September 11th - 7:15

Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA
This is a huge series, so no giveaways are really needed to draw fans.  But there are some theme nights being held - Tuesday is both Strike Out the Stigma and Hello Kitty Night, Wednesday is the annual Goya Latino Community Celebration and Thursday is First Responders Night.

New York Mets 76-67
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 7 games behind the Phillies

Mets Probables
Nolan McLean (4-0, 1.37)
Sean Manaea (1-2, 5.60)
Clay Holmes (11-7, 3.61)
David Peterson (9-5, 3.72)

Mets Leaders
Average:  Francisco Lindor - .268
Runs:  Juan Soto - 109
Home Runs:  Juan Soto - 38
RBIs:  Pete Alonso - 113
Stolen Bases:  Juan Soto - 29

Wins:  Clay Holmes - 11
ERA:  Clay Holmes - 3.61

Strikeouts:  David Peterson - 140
Saves:  Edwin Diaz - 26

Philadelphia Phillies 83-60
1st Place in the N.L. East, 7 games ahead of the Mets

Phillies Probables
Aaron Nola (3-8, 6.78)
Ranger Suarez (11-6, 2.89)
Cristopher Sanchez (12-5, 2.60)
Jesus Luzardo (13-6, 4.01)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Trea Turner - .305
Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 98
Home Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 49
RBIs:  Kyle Schwarber - 120
Stolen Bases:  Trea Turner - 36

Wins:  Jesus Luzardo - 13
ERA:  Cristopher Sanchez - 2.60
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 195
Saves:  Jhoan Duran - 11

2025 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2025 Season Summary Index / 2025 Chachi Set Checklist

Phils Select High School Pitcher Painter as 13th Overall Pick

On the Sunday night before the All-Star Game, Major League Baseball held its annual amateur player draft, purposely moving the draft back to coincide with the All-Star festivities.  With the 13th overall pick in the draft, the Phillies selected right-handed pitcher Andrew Painter from Calvary Christian Academy in Florida.  The hope is that Painter and last year's top draft pick, Mick Abel, also a high schooler, rise through the Phillies minor league system together to form a formidable one-two punch in the Phillies pitching rotation for years to come.

The last time the Phillies selected back-to-back high school pitchers in the draft was 2001 and 2002 when they picked Gavin Floyd followed by Cole Hamels.  Former Phillies pitcher Pedro Martinez had some high praise for Painter on draft night in the video embedded below.

That's some high praise from @45PedroMartinez on our No. 13 overall pick @Andypainterr! #MLBDraft | #RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/s3VBs4JI4z

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 12, 2021

As I've done every year since 2014, I wanted to create a card to commemorate Painter's selection and listed below are links to the prior seven Phillies top draft picks.

Memory Lane
2014 Draft - Aaron Nola (rhp)
2015 Draft - Cornelius Randolph (ss)
2016 Draft - Mickey Moniak (of)
2017 Draft - Adam Haseley (of)
2018 Draft - Alec Bohm (3b)
2019 Draft - Bryson Stott (ss)
2020 Draft - Mick Abel (rhp)

2021 Draft - Andrew Painter (rhp)

Game 111 - Alumni Weekend Continues

White Sox 10, Phillies 5
Game 111 - Sunday Afternoon, August 4th in Philadelphia
Record - 58-53, 3rd place, 7 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  In a game celebrating the 10 year anniversary of the 2009 N.L. Champions, the current version of the Phillies lost to the White Sox, 10-5.

What It Means:  The Phillies lost two out of three to the White Sox, who are not a very good team.  They'll head to the west coast next, opening a three-game series in Phoenix against the Diamondbacks on Monday night.

Alumni and the 2009 Phillies

Pedro Martinez throws to Jayson Werth

What Happened:  One bad inning ruined Drew Smyly's successful start to his Phillies career, as he allowed five runs - including a Leury Garcia grand slam - in the second.  Mike Morin also fared poorly, giving up four more runs in his two innings of work.  Corey Dickerson received his first start, going 2 for 5 with a home run and three RBIs.

Featured Cards/Field Report:  We got to the ballpark early as the Phillies had announced there would be autograph opportunities with alumni before the game.  They didn't announce who or where the autograph tables would be, but we did know there would be a table in the Hall of Fame Club.

Once inside, the four of us divided and conquered with Jenna and Ben waiting in line for Joe Blanton and Brett Myers while Doug and I hustled to the Hall of Fame Club.  (Side story . . . We rode up in the elevator with someone I could have sworn was a former player.  Turns out it was former Phillie Keith Hughes and we blew an opportunity to get his autograph.)  Somehow Doug and I managed to be the first in line for Kyle Kendrick and Jamie Moyer in the Hall of Fame Club, while Jenna and Ben made their way to Bull's BBQ to get in line for Dale Murphy.

Autographs from Blanton, Myers, Kendrick, Moyer and Murphy secured, Doug and I waited in the long line for Mike Lieberthal and Randy Wolf, while Jenna and Ben headed back up to the Hall of Fame Club to try to get Kendrick and Moyer again.  We managed to get Lieberthal and Wolf right before the line cut off while Jenna and Ben were among the last to get Moyer (Kendrick had already departed).

After catching our breath, we enjoyed the fantastic pre-game ceremony honoring alumni and the 2009 team.  It was especially cool to watch Pedro Martinez throw out the first pitch to Jayson Werth.

Transactions:  In a somewhat surprising move, Maikel Franco was optioned to the IronPigs and Brad Miller was activated from the injured list.  Franco has all but lost the starting third baseman's job and the move allows the Phillies to see more of Scott Kingery in the position while also giving more playing time in the outfield to Roman Quinn, Adam Haseley and Corey Dickerson.

Hall of Fame Class of 2015 - Phillies Cards

2002 Fleer Triple Crown Season Crowns #10

Before we get too far away from the announcement of this year's class of Hall of Fame inductees, I wanted to continue a tradition I started a few years ago and see if any of the current year class had any "Phillies" baseball cards.  Obviously, Pedro Martinez has a number of Phillies baseball cards given the half season he played with the club in 2009.

This isn't an exhaustive list, but merely a list of cards currently found within my Phillies collection.

2009 Sweet Spot #44

Pedro Martinez
Not including this awesome 2004 Bazooka 4 on 1 Sticker which includes four pitchers with Phillies connections, I have nine different Phillies cards of Martinez.  His Phillies cards started appearing mid-way through 2009 and he appeared on a few 2010 Phillies cards within the Upper Deck Season Biography insert set.  I also didn't count this 2003 Fleer Tradition Update card in my tally although technically I suppose I could.

2009 Phillies Fan Appreciation Day Postcards - header card with five other Phillies featured
2009 Phillies Team Issue Update #45
2009 SP Authentic #117

2009 Sweet Spot #44

2009 Topps Heritage #563
2009 Topps Update #UH93
2009 Upper Deck Update #U10
2010 Upper Deck Season Biography #SB-148
2010 Upper Deck Season Biography #SB-157

I'm sure he's on many more Phillies cards, but these are the nine currently in my collection.

2003 Topps Heritage Then and Now #TN9

Randy Johnson
Second to Martinez in terms of number of cards in my Phillies collection is Randy Johnson.  Of particular interest is the 2002 Fleer Triple Crown card featured at top of this post which includes Johnson, fellow inductee John Smotlz and potential future inductee Curt Schilling.

2001 Topps Combos #TC17 - with Warren Spahn, Sandy Koufax and Steve Carlton
2002 Fleer Triple Crown Season Crowns #10 - with Curt Schilling and John Smoltz
2002 Topps Heritage Then and Now #TN9 - with Robin Roberts
2003 Topps Heritage Then and Now #TN9 - with Robin Roberts
2004 Bazooka 4 on 1 Sticker #13 - with Randy Wolf, Mark Mulder and Johan Santana

John Smoltz
The only Smoltz card in my collection is the aforementioned Fleer Triple Crown insert card featuring him with Johnson and Schilling.

Craig Biggio
I don't have any Biggio cards in my collection, although according to the Beckett database he appeared on 11 multi-player Upper Deck cards with Chase Utley between 2005 and 2007.

Memory Lane
2012 Inductees - Larkin and Santo
2013 Inductees - O'Day, Ruppert and White
2014 Inductees - Cox, Glavine, LaRussa, Maddux, Thomas and Torre
2015 Inductees - Biggio, Johnson, Martinez and Smoltz

2009 Topps Phillies

2009 Topps #500, #200, #557 and #73

In the latter part of 2008 into the early part of 2009, all was right with the world if you were a Phillies fan.  The team had just been crowned World Champions and we were all living in the afterglow of the magical 2008 season.  My fellow Phillies fans wanted to talk about the team and relive the memorable moments from the championship season.  The Philadelphia Comcast station constantly re-ran the key games from the 2008 postseason, and played interviews with all our new heroes.  For me personally, I wanted to find a way to somehow connect with fellow Phillies fans and baseball card collectors.  I wanted to keep the magic going and show off some of the cool custom baseball cards I was creating.  So on the evening of March 30, 2009, I started this blog.

I tracked every game of the 2009 campaign on this blog, including the team's return to the postseason for the third straight season.  I discovered other baseball card and Phillies-related blogs and I've made some genuine friends along the way.  The 2009 season didn't end the way I wanted it to end, but I definitely enjoyed the ride.

The Set

2009 Topps #525 (Back)

Number of cards in the set:  Remember the good old days, when Topps base sets had 792 cards, and 792 cards only?  There weren't any gimmicks, no short-printed cards sharing the same number in the set as another card and once you had all 792 cards - you stopped?  Topps rolled out two series of 330 cards in 2009 (for a total of 660 cards), but they added 35 short-printed cards of various Hall of Famers and one gimmick card of C.C. Sabathia with his new team, the Yankees.  The update set added 330 regular cards and 25 short-printed cards.
My very brief thoughts on the set:  This set's design has really grown on me.  My one complaint would be that the silver foil text on the front of the cards is a little too difficult to read, particularly on the postseason highlight or league leaders cards.
Notable competition:  Sadly, this was the final year Upper Deck held a MLB license.  They produced some memorable sets in their final year with a license, including the retro (and popular) O-Pee-Chee set and the super-retro Goudey set.  For the record, I'm still trying to complete a 2009 Upper Deck set.

2009 Topps #397, #525, #107 and 2009 Topps Update #UH203

2009 Phillies
Record and finish:  For the first time in franchise history, the Phillies reached the World Series in consecutive seasons.  Their 93-69 record was a game better than their record in 2008, and they finished 6 games ahead of the Marlins in the N.L. East.  The Phillies defeated the Rockies in four games in the N.L.D.S. and they once again took out the Dodgers in five games in the N.L.C.S.  Unfortunately, the Yankees trumped the Phils in six games in the World Series, and a repeat was not to be.  Neither the Phillies or the Yankees have been back to the World Series since.

Key players:  The Phillies had four big bats in the middle of their line-up that carried the offense throughout the season.  Chase Utley batted third most of the season, and he finished with a .282 average, 31 home runs and 93 RBIs.  Batting clean-up, Ryan Howard once again had a huge season, hitting 45 home runs while driving in 141.  Jayson Werth continued his emergence, hitting .268 with 36 home runs and 99 RBIs, while newcomer Raul Ibanez contributed 34 home runs and 93 RBIs.

On the mound, Joe Blanton, J.A. Happ and Jamie Moyer each finished with 12 wins.  Cole Hamels suffered from poor run support (a recurring theme) and finished with a 10-11 record and a 4.32 ERA.  Hamels led the team with 168 strikeouts.  The Phils added two key starting pitchers for the second half of the season.  Cliff Lee (see key events below) went 7-4 with a 3.39 ERA in his 12 starts.  Future Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez joined the rotation in mid-August and went 5-1 with a 3.63 ERA in 9 starts.  Brad Lidge struggled mightily after his perfect 2008, converting 31 of 42 save opportunities and owning an astronomical ERA of 7.21.  Ryan Madson continued to impress with 10 saves.

Key events:  On April 13th, long-time Hall of Fame broadcaster Harry Kalas passed away before the Phillies game at Nationals Park.  The team honored Kalas with several moving memorial ceremonies and the players and coaches wore a black circle bearing the initials "HK" on the fronts of their jerseys for the remainder of the 2009 season.  Howard became the fastest player in Major League history to hit 200 home runs on July 16th, breaking Ralph Kiner's record.  Prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, the Phils pulled off a blockbuster deal, acquiring starting pitcher Lee and outfielder Ben Francisco from the Cleveland Indians for four prospects.

2009 Phillies in 2009 Topps
Cards needed for a complete team set:  Thanks to appearances on various postseaon highlight and league leaders cards, the complete Phillies team set from 2009 Topps consists of  41 cards.
Who's in:

• Cards of the eight starting position players - 8 cards

#397 Carlos Ruiz (c), #500 Ryan Howard (1b), #200 Chase Utley (2b), #525 Jimmy Rollins (ss), #107 Pedro Feliz (3b), #UH150 Raul Ibanez (lf), #73 Shane Victorino (cf), #557 Jayson Werth

2009 Topps #650, #207, 2009 Topps Update #UH30 and 2009 Topps #428

• Cards of the starting pitching rotation - 5 cards

#207 Joe Blanton, #650 Cole Hamels, #UH30 J.A. Happ, #428 Jamie Moyer, #UH218 Cliff Lee

• Base cards of players who played with the Phillies in 2009 - 12 cards

#12 Drew Carpenter, #20 Brad Lidge, #103 Kyle Kendrick, #186 Ryan Madson, #291 Chris Coste, #632 Brett Myers, #UH72 John Mayberry, Jr., #UH80 Matt Stairs, #UH93 Pedro Martinez, #UH203 Ben Francisco, #UH248 Chan Ho Park, #UH267 Miguel Cairo

• Base cards of players who didn't play with the Phillies in 2009 - 2 cards

#44 Geoff Jenkins, #245 Pat Burrell

• Postseason Highlights cards - 4 cards

#139 Matt Stairs (N.L.C.S. Game 4), #191 Shane Victorino (N.L.D.S. Game 2), #278 Brad Lidge (World Champs), #299 Cole Hamels (World Series Recap)

• 2008 National League Leaders cards - 2 cards

#81 Ryan Howard (Home Run Leaders), #147 Ryan Howard (RBI Leaders)

• Classic Combos cards - 1 card, #601 Ryan Howard & Jimmy Rollins
• 2009 MLB Home Run Derby cards - 1 card, #UH26 Ryan Howard
• 2009 National League All-Star cards - 5 cards

#UH71 Chase Utley, #UH129 Shane Victorino, #UH136 Raul Ibanez, #UH151 Jayson Werth, #UH260 Ryan Howard

• Manager card - 1 card, #496 Charlie Manuel

2009 Topps Update #UH218, #UH93, 2009 Topps #20 and 2009 Topps Phillies #PHI13

Who's out:  Pinch-hitter extraordinaire Greg Dobbs is the biggest Phillies omission from the 2009 Topps set.  Dobbs appeared in 97 games and hit .247 in 154 at-bats.  Back-ups Paul Bako (44 games) and Eric Bruntlett (72 games) should have also appeared on cards.  Bruntlett could have earned a card solely on the important role he played in the 2008 postseason.  (The light-hitting infielder scored the winning run in World Series Game 3.)  Four key relievers also got omitted:  Chad Durbin (4.39 ERA in 59 games), Clay Condrey (3.00 ERA in 45 games), Tyler Walker (3.06 ERA in 32 games) and Scott Eyre (1.50 ERA in 42 games).

Phillies on other teams:  A number of players appearing as Phillies in the update set had cards in the base set with their former teams - Ibanez (#6 with the Mariners), Cairo (#82 with the Mariners), Lee (#180 with the Indians), Park (#272 with the Dodgers) and Francisco (#624 with the Indians).  Bako appears with the Reds on card #491.  (I altered Bako's Topps Heritage card here to give him his sole Phillies Topps card, in virtual form only.)
What's he doing here:  I have no complaints with Topps giving cards to both Jenkins and Burrell.  This would be Burrell's final Phillies card before departing for Tampa Bay, and Jenkins provided a key hit in the clinching World Series Game 5 in '08.
Cards that never were candidates:  There are six players who were on the 2009 Phillies World Series roster who didn't have base or update Topps cards - Bruntlett, Dobbs, Bako, Durbin, Eyre and rookie reliever Antonio Bastardo.
Favorite Phillies card:  Without a doubt, it's card #278, featuring Lidge in the midst of the celebration following the final out of the 2008 World Series.

2009 Topps Update #UH150, 2009 Topps #278 and 2009 Topps Update #UH248

Other Stuff
Recycled:  Until flipping through my 2009 Phillies binder in preparation for this post, I had completely forgotten that Topps didn't issue an Opening Day set in 2009.  The set debuted in 2005, took the year off in 2009, and came back in 2010.  It's worth noting that the 15-card Topps Phillies retail set contains nine cards with player pictures different from what ended up in the flagship set.  I was happy to see this when I bought the set, and I wish they'd make this a regular occurrence.
Memory Lane:  In the early spring of 2009, I booked a trip to Walt Disney World for our family beginning on Halloween.  I picked that arrival date figuring the World Series would be over and I could even attend the World Series parade if the Phillies were lucky enough to repeat.  However, thanks to the money grab that is the World Baseball Classic, the whole season got pushed back a week and we arrived in Disney just in time to for me to watch Games 3 through 6 while on vacation.  I chronicled the 2009 World Series, and our Disney trip, in a series of November 2009 posts:

Game 1 - Phillies 6, Yankees 1 - Chase & Cliff Bomb Bombers
Game 2 - Yankees 3, Phillies 1 - Phils, Pedro Drop Game 2
Game 3 - Yankees 8, Phillies 5 - Werth's 2 Homers Not Enough
Game 4 - Yankees 7, Phillies 4 - Excruciating Loss: Yanks Up 3-1
Game 5 - Phillies 8, Yankees 6 - Chase Utley, You are the Man!
Game 6 - Yankees 7, Phillies 3 - Repeat Bid Falls Short

2004 Bazooka 4 on 1 Stickers #4 Halladay/Martinez/Schilling/Myers

I was flipping through my sparsely populated 2004 Phillies binder recently and this card caught my eye.  I added the card to my collection back in '04 solely due to the fact that Brett Myers appears in the lower right quadrant.  However, the 4-on-1 sticker card also includes former Phillie Curt Schilling and future Phillies Pedro Martinez and Roy Halladay.

I wonder if there are any other instances where through pure luck a card features a former, a current and at least one future Phillie?

1960 Topps Phillies

1960 Topps #264, #130, #17

I never gave much thought to the 1960 Topps set until Topps released its 2009 Heritage set borrowing the design from its 49-year-old predecessor.  I only recently realized how innovative the set truly is, especially in light of the lifeless set (in my opinion) that would follow in 1961.  Topps was rolling out the subsets in earnest now, including Sport Magazine Rookie Stars, manager cards, team cards, multi-player cards, Topps All-Star Rookies, World Series cards, floating head coaches cards, and Sport Magazine All-Stars.

1960 Topps #103, #302, #366

The Set
Number of cards in the set:  Similar to the prior year, there are 572 cards in a complete set.
My very brief thoughts on the set:  It's horizontal.  This was the first time Topps had used a horizontal design for its entire base set since 1955, and (to date) it's also the last time.  The design features a full color portrait next to a black and white posed action shot.  In a way, it's kind of like the 1994 Upper Deck set's hip father.
Notable competition:  Leaf released a 144-card set, it's first baseball card release since 1948.  And Fleer released a 79-card set of Baseball Greats.

1960 Topps #226 and #466

1960 Phillies
Record and finish:  The team's 59-95 finish landed them in the basement of the National League for the second year in a row.
Key players:  Robin Roberts was 12-16 with a 4.02 ERA and closer Turk Farrell was 10-6 with a team leading 11 saves.  Tony Taylor, acquired from the Cubs in May, led the team with a .287 average.  Pancho Herrera hit 17 home runs with 71 RBIS, but he also set a National League record (at the time) with 136 strikeouts.  New Phillies Johnny Callison (.260 in 99 games) and Art Mahaffey (7-3 with a 2.31 ERA) also showed some promise.
Key events:  As famously reported, manager Eddie Sawyer quit after the Phillies dropped their first game of the season against the Reds, quipping, "I'm 49 years old and I want to live to be 50."  Coach Andy Cohen took over for the second game, and the Phillies hired Gene Mauch to manage the third game through the remainder of the season.  Mauch definitely would see his share of heartache during his tenure as Phillies manager.  Curt Simmons was released by the team in May only to be signed by the Cardinals a few days later.

1960 Phillies in 1960 Topps

1960 Topps #264 (Back)

Cards needed for a complete team set:  There are 35 Phillies cards in a complete 1960 Topps Phillies team set.  For a master set of Phillies Topps cards from 1951 through 1960, we're up to 208 cards.
Who’s in:  40 players suited up for the 1960 Phillies, and 30 of them are featured as Phillies in the 1960 Topps set.  The remaining five cards consist of a team card, a coaches card, a card for manager Sawyer, and cards for Sparky Anderson and Valmy Thomas who did not play for the Phillies in 1960.
Who’s out:  Regular shortstop Ruben Amaro was featured in the 1959 set, but he's not in the 1960 set.  The only other notable omission is pitcher Chris Short, who appeared in 42 games with the team.  Short would have to wait until 1967 for his rookie card as, I'm guessing, he just never signed a contract with Topps.  It would have also been nice to see a card for rookie Bobby Wine, who made it into four games in 1960.
Phillies on other teams:  Regular second baseman Taylor (#294) and catcher Cal Neeman (#337) were acquired from the Cubs in May for Ed Bouchee and Don Cardwell.  While center fielder Tony Gonzalez (#518) and third baseman Lee Walls (#506) were acquired from the Reds in June for Harry Anderson, Wally Post and Fred Hopke.  Future Red Sox manager Joe Morgan appears on card #229 with the Athletics.  He was purchased from the Atheltics by the Braves in August 1959 and then shipped back to the Braves in April 1960.  In June 1960, the Braves traded him to the Phillies for Al Dark.  The Phils kept him for a few months before selling him to the Indians in August.
What’s he doing here:  I don't know the timing of when Topps released each series of its baseball cards in 1960, so I'm guessing they didn't have enough time to update the Phillies manager card to Mauch in time for card #226.
Cards that never were candidates: Mauch, Taylor, Amaro, Short and Wine.
Favorite Phillies card:  None of the player cards really stand out, so I'll go with the Dallas Green rookie card as my favorite.  Green pitched in 23 games (starting 10), going 3-6 with a 4.10 in his rookie season. The coaches' floating heads card is a close runner-up.

1960 Topps #34, #138, #451

Other Stuff
Recycled:  Topps used this design for its 2009 Topps Heritage set - the first Heritage set since 2001 that I did not attempt to collect.  A year before, Topps used the 1960 Topps All-Star Rookies subset design for its insert set, 2008 Topps 50th Anniversary All-Rookie Team.
Blogs/Websites:  He's been quiet recently, but fellow Phillies fan Jim from Downington runs a blog detailing his "ramblings" on 1960s Baseball.
Did You Know?:  We've seen examples of this here and there so far with the Topps Phillies cards, but there are two Phillies cards in the 1960 set where Topps doesn't even try to cover up the fact the player is appearing is his previous team's uniform - Callison appears in his White Sox uniform and Ted Lepcio appears as a Tiger.

2009 Topps Heritage #334, #415, #563

2009 Chachi #84 World Series Game 6/Defeated

World Series Game 6 - November 4, 2009
Yankees 7, Phillies 3

This is not a game I particularly care to remember or to recap. Suffice it to say, it was not an enjoyable game. The Yankees soundly defeated the Phillies in Game 6, winning their 27th World Championship.

The Damn Yankees took a 2-0 lead in the 2nd when Hideki Matsui golfed a Pedro Martinez fastball into deep right. In total, the eventual World Series MVP would explode for 6 RBIs on three hits in the game. The Phils got a run back in the 3rd when Chooch tripled and Jimmy Rollins drove him in with a sac fly. But that was pretty much the extent of the Game 6 excitement for a Phillies' fan.

In the bottom of the 3rd, the Yankees started another rally when Shane Victorino misplayed a Derek Jeter fly ball, resulting in a single for the Yankees' captain. Matsui knocked in two more with the bases loaded in the inning, making in 4-1 Yankees. After the Yanks scored three more in the 5th, to give them a commanding 7-1 lead, it was all but over. Ryan Howard hit a 2-run homer in the 6th, but it wouldn't be enough.

Yankees closer Mariano Rivera recorded the last five outs of the game for the save. I watched the first two outs of the top of the 9th inning, but as of this writing I have yet to see the final out. I saw Shane Victorino send a weak grounder to second and I turned off the TV and went to bed.

Down and Out: This was also the day I started figuring out I was sick. What I thought was a simple cold turned out to be the flu, and our Disney trip took a significant detour. Doug caught it too and we spent the final days of our trip in various stages of grumpiness and/or slumber. I beat it first and then Doug beat it and thankfully Jenna never caught it.

Best Tweet: From beat writer Andy Martino at phillieszone - Robin Roberts in clubhouse. Would be fully rested for a potential Game 7.

Mission Accomplished: The Phillies didn't accomplish their mission, but Doug certainly did. He informed us prior to leaving for "Mickey's House" that he wanted to say hello to Buzz and Woody during his visit. Not only did he get to tell them hello, he also gave them hugs and high fives and informed Woody, "There's a snake in my boots!" Woody seemed amused. And for the record, by my unofficial tally, there were many, many more Phillies fans in Disney than Yankees fans.

2010 Chachi Ex-Phillies

2010 Chachi Ex-Phillies #X1 Brett Myers

2010 Chachi Ex-Phillies #X2 Pedro Martinez

Twenty-eight people cast their votes in the poll to help decide which Topps set should be used as the basis for the 2010 Chachi set. Amazingly enough, the results fell in line with how I was hoping the poll would turn out (voters could vote more than once):

1974 Topps - 11 votes

1983 Topps - 10 votes

1971 Topps - 8 votes

1982 Topps - 2 votes

To commemorate the 1974 Topps set's victory, I'm featuring the first two ex-Phillies of the offseason. Brett Myers and Pedro Martinez filed for free agency on Friday, and they join Miguel Cairo and Pedro Feliz as members of the 2009 NL Champs who most likely won't return next year. I thought Brett Myers had pitched his final game as a Phillie back in May, but to his credit, he worked his way back from injury. It was a fun ride with Pedro, although I'm not convinced he was the right choice to start Game 6.

There's still some unfinished business with the 2009 Chachi set - I need to complete the World Series cards (unfortunately) and a checklist is needed. The 2010 Chachi set will debut on Opening Day, April 5, 2010.

2009 Chachi #80 World Series Game 2/Pedro Martinez

World Series Game 2 - October 29, 2009
Yankees 3, Phillies 1
Exactly one year after the Phillies won Game 5B of the 2008 World Series, they dropped Game 2 of the 2009 World Series to the Yankees, 3-1. If you had told me going into these first two games the Phils would split before heading back to Philly for three, I would have been happy with that outcome. Still, it would have been nice to head home with a 2-0 series lead.

Pedro Martinez was back in the Bronx - the location of a few infamous incidents he'd probably prefer to forget. He and Yankees starter A.J. Burnett threw a lot of pitches early, but after 5 innings each pitcher had allowed only a run a piece.

The Phils struck first in the 2nd inning. Raul Ibañez doubled to left and came around to score when a sharp grounder from Matt Stairs eluded Alex Rodriguez' glove for a single. The Yanks tied things up in the 4th when Mark Teixeira hit a Pedro Martinez change-up for a solo home run to right-center. In the 6th, Pedro struck out Teixeria and A-Rod before Hideki Matsui lofted a home run into the short porch in right giving the Yankees a 2-1 lead. By this point, A.J. Burnett had settled in and the Phillies' offense wasn't able to get anything going.

Entering the 7th, Pedro had allowed just four hits and struck out eight. He gave up a few singles to start the 7th, and his night was done. Chan Ho Park entered the game and promptly allowed an inherited runner to score, making it 3-1 Yankees. All in all, Pedro pitched a good ballgame but A.J. Burnett pitched better, and a sweep in New York was not to be. Although he allowed a few base runners, Mariano Rivera entered in the 8th for a 2-inning save and shut the door on the Phils.

The series shifts to Philadelphia for a Halloween night Game 3. Hakuna Matata.

2009 Chachi #77 National League Champs HL

Other Game 5 thoughts . . .

First Pitch: Prior to Game 5, the only two managers to guide the Phillies to World Championships took the field. Charlie Manuel caught the ceremonial first pitch thrown by Dallas Green. The Phils have always maintained a reverent connection to their past and this was just a very cool moment.

Going to Disneyland: It appears more and more likely Game 1 of the World Series will be played in the Bronx. If that’s the case, Charlie Manuel and his coaching staff can at least look forward to a visit to Anaheim for the 2010 All-Star Game on July 13th. (Although the Angels just took the Game 5 lead in the 8th.)

Thank you Ruben: Ed Wade laid the foundation, Pat Gillick made a few repairs, but current general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. made all the right moves to help the Phillies return to the World Series in 2009. His offseason signing of Raul Ibañez was key in fortifying an already potent line-up, despite Raul’s mid-season decline. Ruben pulled the trigger on the Cliff Lee trade, bringing the team a legitimate World Series Game 1 starter, made all the more necessary by Cole Hamels' recent struggles. Finally, he brought in Pedro Martinez. It was still a little surreal seeing Pedro (in a Phillies uniform) spray champagne all over the field and into the stands following last night’s victory. But he stabilized the rotation when they needed it the most and who’s not looking forward to seeing him start a World Series game against the Yankees? (Probably the Yankees.)

2009 Chachi #73 NLCS Game 2/Pedro Martinez

NLCS Game 2 - October 16, 2009

Dodgers 2, Phillies 1

Pedro Martinez pitched a masterful seven innings this afternoon, but shoddy 8th inning defense and a bases loaded walk gave the Dodgers a draining Game 2 victory.

In his seven shutout innings of work, Pedro allowed only two hits, walked none and threw just 87 pitches. He turned the game over to the bullpen in the 8th. It took five Phillie relievers to record three outs in the inning and before it was over, the Dodgers had taken a 2-1 lead. The 8th inning train wreck was made possible by Chan Ho Park's failed attempt to field a sacrifice bunt, a wildly errant throw from Chase Utley on an apparent double play and a bases loaded walk by J.A. Happ.

Vicente Padilla pitched incredibly well too, which will teach me to post a baseball card of the opposing pitcher on game day. (Don't expect to see any Randy Wolf cards on Sunday.) He pitched into the 8th and allowed just four Phillies hits. Padilla's only blemish was allowing a solo home run to Ryan Howard in 4th.

Looking on the bright side of things, the team heads back to Philly for three games with the series tied 1-1 and Cliff Lee taking the mound on Sunday night.

2009 Chachi Originals #2 Pedro Martinez

Phillies 1, Mets 0 (Game 2)

It was an absolute pleasure to watch Pedro Martinez pitch tonight. The future Hall of Famer pitched 8 shutout innings while throwing 130 pitches - the most pitches he's thrown in a game since May 1, 2001. He struck out seven while walking only two and allowing six hits. When Pedro was signed by the Phils back on July 15th, no one could have predicted his Phillies tenure would be this successful to this point. Pedro improved his record to 5-0 with a 2.87 ERA, and the team is now 7-0 in the games Pedro has started.

The Phils manufactured their lone run in the 1st inning when Jimmy Rollins scored on a Chase Utley single. Jimmy had walked to start the game and he advanced to second on a Shane Victorino single. In the 9th, manager Charlie Manuel spun the closer wheel and Ryan Madson's name came up. Fortunately, Madson was able to shut down the Mets for his 8th save of the season.

With the victory resulting from Pedro's masterpiece, the magic number to clinch the division drops to 14, and the Mets have been officially eliminated from the NL East. The Phils' lead is back to 6½ games over the Marlins. It was a very, very good day.

2009 Phillies Team Issue Update #45 Pedro Martinez

Phillies 2, Giants 1

Phillies announcer Chris Wheeler called tonight's game a "belly burner," which is Wheels-speak for a game that could have easily induced indigestion. Pedro Martinez, Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge shut down the Giants tonight to win the game and take the series. Pedro's only mistake came on his first pitch of the game, which Eugenio Velez hit for a lead-off home run. He settled in after that, pitching seven strong innings and striking out nine.

Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge did their jobs tonight, closing down the Giants in the eighth and ninth innings. Lidge earned his 28th save.

The Phillies runs were provided by Jayson Werth's 30th home run of the year (a solo shot in the second) and Ryan Howard's RBI-double in the sixth.

The Newest Phil: Catcher Paul Hoover joined the team today as their third catcher. Paul will be happy to know he'll eventually be card #56 in the 2009 Chachi set.

To Hit, or Not to Hit, that is the Question: Todd Zolecki tweeted last night that Raul Ibañez actually said this when approached about his struggles at the plate: "I think it was Shakespeare who said, 'My head is bloodied, but unbowed.' Keep fighting." Pat Burrell definitely never provided post-game quotes like that. (The quote is actually from William Ernest Henley.)

2009 Chachi #54 Pedro Martinez

And so the Pedro Martinez era begins for the Phillies. In his debut, the future Hall of Famer pitched five innings, allowing three runs on seven hits and a walk. He struck out five as his fastball topped out at 93. The quote of night in our household, which I must have said at least seven times, "I can't believe Pedro is a Phillie."

Phillies debut: August 12, 2009

Major League debut: September 24, 1992

Former teams: Los Angeles Dodgers 1992-1993, Montreal Expos 1994-1997, Boston Red Sox 1998-2004, New York Mets 2005-2008

How acquired: Signed as a free agent formerly with the New York Mets, July 15, 2009
Pictured: Pedro pitches against the Chicago Cubs in his Phillies debut, August 12, 2009

2009 Chachi Special Edition #PM Pedro Martinez

It's finally official . . .

The Phillies signed pitcher Pedro Martinez to a pro-rated one-year deal today, and then promptly placed him on the disabled list so he could rehab his strained shoulder in the minors. I watched parts of the press conference, and I'm honestly a little more excited about the Pedro signing than I thought I would be. However, I was a little bothered by his continuing professed "love" of the Mets' organization. That's just not going to fly in these parts.

In any event, bench coach Pete Mackanin (who will now wear #22) graciously surrendered his #45 so the future Hall of Famer could wear his familiar number. Pedro doesn't get a Chachi base card yet since he's not officially a Phillie until he takes the mound, but I thought today's signing at least merited a Chachi insert card.

2003 Fleer Tradition Update #U260 Jim Thome & Pedro Martinez

So let's assume the various news reports are true, and the Phillies are thisclose to signing Pedro Martinez . . . I think the first time I see Pedro Martinez in a Phillies uniform, I'll have the same reaction as when I first saw Fernando Valenzuela in a Phillies uniform: "Whoa. This doesn't look right."

My initial thought after hearing the rumors this afternoon was that I'd take Pedro over Rodrigo Lopez any day, nothing against Rodrigo. My second (and more optimistic) thought was that this potential signing doesn't preclude the team from trading for Roy Halladay. If the Halladay deal does go down, perhaps the Pedro signing would indicate that J.A. Happ would be part of the contingent sent to Toronto.

Other random thoughts:

- If this happens, I could also compare it to the 1989 Lenny Dykstra deal. I couldn't stand Nails when he was with the Mets, and I've never really cared for Pedro. Now that he's almost a Phillie, and if he pitches well, I guess he becomes one of "us"?

- The Phillies could be the last team listed on Pedro's Hall of Fame plaque.

- We're going to a AAA Lehigh Valley IronPigs game on July 18th. How cool would it be if Pedro is pitching in a "rehab" game that night?

- Would current bench coach Pete Mackanin give up his #45 to Pedro?