Phillies Missing Links of the 1980s - #5 Alejandro Sanchez

#27
Alejandro (Pimental) Sanchez
Right Field

In his profile in the Phillies 1984 Media Guide, it's noted that Alejandro Sanchez "physically resembles Pedro Guerrero."  The outfielder was a September call-up in 1982 and he made the Phillies opening day roster in 1983 due to Von Hayes' thigh injury.  He'd be sent down to Triple-A Portland when Hayes returned in mid-April and he wouldn't return to the Phillies until rosters expanded in September.  On March 24, 1984, Sanchez was traded to the San Francisco Giants for Dave Bergman and the Phils would flip Bergman that same day to the Tigers with Willie Hernandez for Glenn Wilson and John Wockenfuss.

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  185
Born:  February 14, 1959, San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic
Signed:  Signed by the Phillies as an amateur free agent, April 10, 1978
Major League Teams:  Phillies 1982-1983, San Francisco Giants 1984, Detroit Tigers 1985, Minnesota Twins 1986, Oakland Athletics 1987
Professional Affiliations:  Phillies 1978-1983, San Francisco Giants 1984, Detroit Tigers 1985, Minnesota Twins 1986, Oakland Athletics 1987-1988, Mexican League 1989-1994, Independent League 1997-1998

Phillies Career
15 games, .286 (6 for 21), double, 2 home runs and 6 RBIs
Acquired:  Via free agency
Debut:  September 6, 1982 - Pinch-ran for Bo Diaz in the top of the 8th against the Cubs
Final Game:  October 1, 1983
Departed:  Traded to the San Francisco Giants for Dave Bergman, March 24, 1984

1982 TCMA Oklahoma City 89ers #7

1982 Topps #PR11

1985 Donruss #43

1986 Topps #563

2 Sanchez Baseball Card in My Collection
First Card:  1982 TCMA Oklahoma City 89ers #7
Last Card:  1983 TCMA Portland Beavers #22

I had previously created a card for Sanchez using the 1982 Topps design and his picture from the 1982 Phillies Yearbook.

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1985 Donruss #43
First Topps Base Card:  1986 Topps #563
Last Mainstream Card:  1986 Topps #563
Other Notable Cards:  1981 TCMA Reading Phillies #22, 1985 Fleer Update #U-98, 1986 Donruss #415, 1986 Fleer #236

Sources:  Baseball Birthdays, Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

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.  I will make my way through the decade of the 1980s first and then work my way forward.  In some cases, the First and Last Mainstream cards listed above have been subjectively chosen if multiple cards were released in that year.

1983 Phillies - The Missing Links

1983 Topps Traded #72T, 1983 TCMA Portland Beavers #22 and 1983 Fleer #564

The 1983 Phillies, the Wheeze Kids, surprised everyone and made it all the way to the World Series, only to be defeated in five games by the Orioles.  When reviewing the team's roster from that year, and the baseball cards available for 44 members of the team, I was a little surprised there's only one new addition to the Missing Links list.

There are just four members of the 1983 Phillies squad with little to no Phillies cardboard representation.  And one of them has never appeared on a Phillies baseball card.

3 Cards or More
40 Players

2 Cards

1984 Tastykake Phillies

Larry Milbourne (41 games in 1983) - 1983 Tastykake Phillies #18 and 1983 Topps Traded #72T
Tony Ghelfi (3 games in 1983) - 1984 Tastykake Phillies #19 and 1985 Tastykake Phillies #17

Local product Milbourne was purchased from the Indians by the Phillies in December 1982.  During his short time with the club, he hit just .242 serving as Joe Morgan's primary back-up at second base.  The Phils sold him to the Yankees in mid-July, but he still received a Phillies card in the 1983 Topps Traded set.  (I'm still trying to track down a 1983 Tastykake Phillies set at a reasonable price.)

Ghelfi was drafted by the Phillies in 1980 and his three-game appearance in 1983 wasn't enough to merit him a standard issue baseball card.  Fortunately for him, and Phillies baseball card collectors, his status as a pitching prospect earned him inclusion in both the 1984 and 1985 Phillies Tastykake sets.  I created a custom card for Ghelfi using his pictures from the team's 1984 Yearbook and his 1984 Tastykake card.

0 Cards
Alejandro Sanchez (15 games from 1982-1983)
Steve Comer (3 games in 1983)

Comer was released by the Mariners in April, and signed by the Phillies in June 1983.  He pitched in three games for the club, his first being an emergency start in the second game of a double header against the Padres in late August.  He appeared in two games in relief in the Phillies last two regular season games in October.  I've never even seen a picture of Comer in a Phillies uniform.

Past Missing Link Posts

1980 Phillies - Orlando Isales and Don McCormack

1981 Phillies - Jerry Reed

1982 Phillies - Stan Bahnsen and Alejandro Sanchez

1990 Phillies - Louie Meadows

1991 Phillies - Dave LaPoint

1992 Phillies - Darrin Chapin and Mickey Weston

1993 Phillies - None

1994 Phillies - Tom Edens and Bob Wells

1995 Phillies - Jim Deshaies, Kevin Elster, Omar Olivares, Chuck Ricci and Dennis Springer

1996 Phillies - Glenn Dishman, Bronson Heflin, Manny Martinez and Rafael Quirico

1997 Phillies - Rob Butler and Mike Robertson

1998 Phillies - Robert Dodd and Matt Whiteside

1999 Phillies - Joel Bennett, Domingo Cedeno, Joe Grahe and Torey Lovullo

2000 Phillies - Clemente Alvarez, Kirk Bullinger, Mark Holzemer and Bryan Ward

1982 Phillies - The Missing Links

1983 Donruss #525, 1982 TCMA Oklahoma City 89ers #9 and #7, and 1983 TCMA Portland Beavers #23

The 2012 game summary posts are done, the offseason is upon us and I'm dusting off a few draft posts to fill the Phillies void while other teams battle it out in the postseason.  My last Missing Links post was published way back in June, when I looked at the 1981 Phillies players with little to no cardboard appreciation.  This post examines the 1982 squad, of which all but 3 of the 37 total Phillies that year ended up on a Phillies baseball card.

1982 Fleer #486

3 Cards to More
32 Players

Willie Montanez didn't appear on any Phillies cards during his short 18-game swan song with the Phillies in 1982, but he appeared on plenty of Phillies cards during his initial stint with the club in the early '70s.

Dave Roberts and Bob Molinaro also barely make it onto the "3 Cards or More" list thanks to their inclusion in Phillies Tastykake sets.

1 Card
Julio Franco (16 games in 1982) - 1983 Donruss #525
**Jay Baller (4 games in 1982 and 8 games in 1992) - 1993 Donruss #356

Franco began his 25-year Major League odyssey with 16 games at short and third base for the 1982 Phillies.  In December 1982, he, along with Baller and three other players were shipped to Cleveland in the infamous 5-for-1 Von Hayes deal.  I first posted my attempt at a 1982 Topps cards for Franco back in the blog's infancy.

If I was doing this post back before 1993, which would have been pretty impressive given that only the government was using a version of the internet at the time and all, Baller would have appeared as a Missing Link.  However, Donruss somehow deemed his 8-game performance with the 1992 Phillies as worthy of a Phillies card, despite his 8.18 ERA in his 11 innings pitched.

0 Cards

1982 Topps #PR9

Alejandro Sanchez (15 games from 1982-1983)
Jerry Reed (11 games from 1981-1982)
Stan Bahnsen (8 games in 1982)

All three players had their share of cardboard with other teams - especially Bahnsen - but they've never been featured on a proper Phillies baseball card.  The awesome Cards That Never Were blog created a 1982 Topps Bahnsen card back in June, linked here.

I created a custom 1982 Topps card for Reed using his picture from the 1982 Phillies Yearbook.  Reed was traded to the Indians in September 1982 as part of the John Denny deal, and he'd go on to enjoy a 9-season career in the Majors.  My sole recollection of Reed's tenure with the Phillies was that it forced Ron Reed to add an "R." to the back of his jersey.

Past Missing Link Posts

1980 Phillies - Orlando Isales and Don McCormack

1981 Phillies - Jerry Reed

1990 Phillies - Louie Meadows

1991 Phillies - Dave LaPoint

1992 Phillies - Darrin Chapin and Mickey Weston

1993 Phillies - None

1994 Phillies - Tom Edens and Bob Wells

1995 Phillies - Jim Deshaies, Kevin Elster, Omar Olivares, Chuck Ricci and Dennis Springer

1996 Phillies - Glenn Dishman, Bronson Heflin, Manny Martinez and Rafael Quirico

1997 Phillies - Rob Butler and Mike Robertson

1998 Phillies - Robert Dodd and Matt Whiteside

1999 Phillies - Joel Bennett, Domingo Cedeno, Joe Grahe and Torey Lovullo

2000 Phillies - Clemente Alvarez, Kirk Bullinger, Mark Holzemer and Bryan Ward

**UPDATE (6/19/15) - I know now that Baller had an additional Phillies baseball card in the 1992 Medford Phillies ALS Phillies Phestival/Late Season set.