Pittsburgh Pirates at Philadelphia Phillies - Bucs in Town for the Weekend

2005 Topps #423

2025 Chachi Series Preview #2

Friday, May 16th - 6:45
Saturday, May 17th - 6:05
Sunday, May 18th - 1:35

Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA
All fans attending tonight's game will receive a great-looking Zack Wheeler bobblehead.  On Sunday, all kids will receive a Phanatic children's book.

Pittsburgh Pirates 15-29
5th Place in the N.L. Central, 10 games behind the Cubs

Pirates Probables
Andrew Heaney (2-3, 3.15)
Carmen Mlodzinski (1-3, 5.20)
Paul Skenes (3-4, 2.63)

Pirates Leaders
Average:  Joey Bart - .281
Runs:  Oneil Cruz - 23
Home Runs:  Oneil Cruz - 8
RBIs:  Bryan Reynolds - 20
Stolen Bases:  Oneil Cruz - 16

Wins:  Paul Skenes - 3
ERA:  Paul Skenes - 2.63

Strikeouts:  Paul Skenes - 53
Saves:  Dennis Santana - 4

Philadelphia Phillies 25-18
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 2 1/2 games behind the Mets

Phillies Probables
Ranger Suarez (1-0, 5.91)
Zack Wheeler (4-1, 2.95)
Cristopher Sanchez (4-1, 2.91)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Trea Turner - .299
Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 31
Home Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 15
RBIs:  Kyle Schwarber - 33
Stolen Bases:  Trea Turner - 10

Wins:  Four tied with - 4
ERA:  Jesus Luzardo - 2.00
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 74
Saves:  Jose Alvarado - 6

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

Pirates at Phillies: April 11th to April 14th

1984 Topps #754

1984 Topps #564

Thursday and Friday 6:40, Saturday 4:05 and Sunday 1:35
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  Weather permitting, the Phillies kick off a four game series against the cross-state rival Pirates tonight.  Tonight is Asian Pacific Heritage night and tomorrow night marks the debut of the team's new City Connect jerseys.  On Sunday, all kids will receive a Phillies sleeveless hoodie.

Pirates 9-3
1st Place in the N.L. Central, 1/2 game ahead of the Brewers

Pirates Probables
Jared Jones (1-1, 3.86)
Bailey Falter (0-0, 5.40)
Marco Gonzales (0-0, 2.45)
Mitch Keller (1-1, 5.29)

Pirates Leaders
Average:  Connor Joe - .324
Runs:  Connor Joe - 11
Home Runs:  Edward Olivares - 3
RBIs:  Bryan Reynolds - 10
Stolen Bases:  Four tied with - 1

Wins:  Nine tied with - 1
ERA:  Martin Perez - 1.89
Strikeouts:  Jared Jones and Mitch Keller - 17
Saves:  Five tied with - 1

Phillies 6-6
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 2 games behind the Braves

Phillies Probables
Ranger Suarez (1-0, 4.09)
Cristopher Sanchez (0-1, 4.82)
Spencer Turnbull (1-0, 0.00)
Zack Wheeler (0-2, 1.89)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Brandon Marsh - .333
Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 8
Home Runs:  Bryce Harper and Brandon Marsh - 3
RBIs:  Three tied with - 7
Stolen Bases:  Trea Turner - 4

Wins:  Aaron Nola - 2
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 1.89
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 20
Saves:  Jose Alvarado - 2

2024 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2024 Season Summary Index / 2024 Chachi Set Checklist

Diamondbacks at Phillies: October 16th to October 17th

2023 Chachi Series Previews #14

2023 Chachi Series Previews #15

Monday and Tuesday 8:07
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  The Phillies have home field advantage for the NLCS given their regular season record was better than the Diamondbacks.  Games 1 and 2 are in Philadelphia, with Games 3, 4 and 5 (if necessary) in Phoenix.

Diamondbacks 84-78
Defeated Dodgers in NLDS, 3-0

Diamondbacks Probables
Zac Gallen (2-0, 3.18)
Merrill Kelly (1-0, 0.00)

Diamondbacks Postseason Leaders
Average:  Corbin Carroll - .412
Runs:  Corbin Carroll and Tommy Pham - 6
Home Runs:  Gabriel Moreno - 3
RBIs:  Gabriel Moreno - 6
Stolen Bases:  Three tied with - 2

Wins:  Zac Gallen and Joe Mantiply - 2
ERA:  Merrill Kelly - 0.00
Strikeouts:  Zac Gallen and Kevin Ginkel - 8
Saves:  Paul Sewald - 4

Phillies 90-72
Defeated Braves in NLDS, 3-1

Phillies Probables
Zack Wheeler (1-0, 2.08)
Aaron Nola (2-0, 1.42)

Phillies Postseason Leaders
Average:  Trea Turner - .500
Runs:  Bryce Harper - 7
Home Runs:  Nick Castellanos - 4
RBIs:  Bryson Stott - 7
Stolen Bases:  Trea Turner - 4

Wins:  Aaron Nola - 2
ERA:  Ranger Suarez - 1.04

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

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

Phillies at Pirates: July 28th to July 31st

2022 Chachi 2000 Topps Missing Links #14

2022 Chachi Fan Favorites #12

Thursday and Friday 7:05, Saturday 7:15 and Sunday 1:35
PNC Park - Pittsburgh, PA

At the Ballpark:  It's a dollar dog night at the ballpark tonight and tomorrow night is Yinzerpalooza.  I don't think I can do Yinzerpalooza justice by summarizing it, so clipped below is the full explanation from the Pirates' website.  There's a fireworks show following the game on Saturday and all kids will receive a Pirates poster at Sunday's game.

Phillies 51-47
3rd Place in the N.L. East, 10 games behind the Mets

Phillies Probables
Zach Wheeler (8-5, 2.78)
Bailey Falter (0-3, 5.18)
Ranger Suarez (7-5, 3.84)
Aaron Nola (6-8, 3.32)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Alec Bohm - .293
Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 64
Home Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 31
RBIs:  Kyle Schwarber - 61
Stolen Bases:  J.T. Realmuto - 13

Wins:  Zack Wheeler - 8
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 2.78

Strikeouts:  Aaron Nola - 144
Saves:  Corey Knebel - 12

Pirates 40-58
4th Place in the N.L. Central, 14 1/2 games behind the Brewers

Pirates Probables
Zach Thompson (3-7, 4.64)
Jose Quintana (3-5, 3.70)
Mitch Keller (3-7, 4.55)
JT Brubaker (2-8, 2.96)

Pirates Leaders
Average:  Bryan Reynolds - .254
Runs:  Ke'Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds - 40
Home Runs:  Bryan Reynolds - 15
RBIs:  Daniel Vogelbach - 34
Stolen Bases:  Ke'Bryan Hayes - 11

Wins:  Dillon Peters and Chris Stratton - 5
ERA:  JT Brubaker - 3.96

Strikeouts:  JT Brubaker - 101
Saves:  David Bednar - 17

2022 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2022 Season Summary Index / 2022 Chachi Set Checklist

Meeting Kent Tekulve

Between a morning travel baseball game and the Saturday afternoon Phillies game, Doug and I squeezed in a quick trip to Carl's Cards & Collectibles in Haverford to pick up a few autographs from former Pirates and Phillies reliever Kent Tekulve.  Teke has long been one of my favorite players, and I actively collected his baseball cards as a kid and I may have actually dressed up as him one Halloween.  (Sunglasses, pillbox Pirates hat, Pirates t-shirt, large wad of Big League Chew in my cheek.)

Tekulve asked Doug how his baseball season was going, what position he played and if he was a better fielder or hitter.  He was gracious with his time, posing for several photos and signing the two items shown below.  The larger square print is from the tough to find 1987 Phillies Great Performers of 1986 set, given out to season ticket holders who paid their balance in full prior to a certain date during the 1987 offseason.  The prints from the set are all from Dick Perez paintings.  The second card signed by Tekulve is from the 1986 Tastykake Phillies set.

It was a great day all around and I was thrilled to meet one of my all-time baseball heroes.

1986 Tastykake Phillies #27

1987 Great Performers of 1986

Series Preview - Pirates at Phillies: September 23rd to September 26th

1986 Topps Traded #120T

1986 Topps #326

Thursday and Friday 7:05, Saturday 4:05, Sunday 1:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  Hard to believe Harry, but this is the final home series of the 2021 season unless the Phillies can somehow squeak their way into the play-off picture.  Sunday is Fan Appreciation Day and the team's website promises "prizes and surprises all game long," as well as a 2022 schedule magnet for all fans.

Pirates 57-94
5th Place in the N.L. Central, 33 1/2 games behind the Brewers

Pirates Probables
Connor Overton (0-0, 0.00)
TBD
Wil Crowe (4-7, 5.77)
Max Kranick (1-3, 7.28)

Pirates Leaders
Average:  Brian Reynolds - .295
Runs:  Brian Reynolds - 85
Home Runs:  Bryan Reynolds - 24
RBIs:  Bryan Reynolds - 88
Stolen Bases:  Ke'Bryan Hayes - 8

Wins:  Chris Stratton - 6
ERA:  N/A

Strikeouts:  JT Brubaker - 129
Saves:  Chris Stratton - 6

Phillies 78-74
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 3 games behind the Braves

Phillies Probables
Aaron Nola (8-8, 4.48)
Kyle Gibson (4-5, 4.76)
Ranger Suarez (6-5, 1.60)
TBD

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Bryce Harper - .314
Runs:  Bryce Harper - 95
Home Runs:  Bryce Harper - 33
RBIs:  Bryce Harper - 80
Stolen Bases:  Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto - 13

Wins:  Zack Wheeler - 14
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 2.79
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 240
Saves:  Hector Neris - 12

2021 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2021 Season Summary Index / 2021 Chachi Set Checklist

Game 74 - 2001 Topps Archives #183 Kent Tekulve

Mets 4, Phillies 3
Game 74 - Saturday Afternoon, June 26th in Flushing
Record - 35-39, Tied for 3rd Place, 6 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  For the third consecutive game, a Phillies reliever couldn't hold a one-run lead in the seventh, nor could they lock down the save when the Phillies somehow scored again, and it's miserable being a Phillies fan.

What It Means:  🤷‍♂️

What Happened:  The positives from this game were Zach Eflin going toe to toe with Jacob deGrom and allowing one less run over six innings, and Nick Maton coming through with clutch RBIs in the second and ninth innings.  Andrew McCutchen also delivered a big sacrifice fly in the sixth to give the Phillies a brief 2-1 lead.  The negatives were, as usual, anything coming out of the Phillies bullpen.  After Maton gave the team a 3-2 lead in the ninth, Hector Neris once again emerged to try for the save.  Only a few minutes into the bottom of the ninth, Rhys Hoskins had booted a ball and Neris had walked the next batter.  It was only a matter of time before the Mets walked-off with the win, this time on a Michael Conforto sacrifice fly.

Featured Card:  Kent Tekulve had nothing to do with this game, but I wanted to cleanse the blog's palate and feature a card of a closer who made me happy more often than sad.

Transactions:  Before the game, Andrew Knapp (c) was activated from the 7-day concussion IL and Enyel De Los Santos (rhp) was recalled from Lehigh Valley.  Rafael Marchan (c) and Matt Vierling (of) were both optioned back down.

2021 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2021 Season Summary Index / 2021 Chachi Set Checklist

1988 Tastykake Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  39
Card Size:  4 7/8" x 6 1/4"
Description:  The Phillies broke the mold for their 1988 photo card set and went with a set of supersized cards.  The fronts of the cards feature full color action photos while the backs contain biographical information and complete minor and Major League statistics.  The nine photo cards found in the update set have blank backs.  I've always thought this was one of the more impressive team-issued sets released by the Phillies, but I guess the larger size may have indirectly led to less cards in the set.  This is seventh year in a row the set was sponsored by Tastykake.

How Distributed:  Saturday, April 9, 1988, the first Saturday night home game of the season, was Tastykake Photo Card day with all fans receiving the original 30-card set.  (The Phillies won the game, 9-3 over the Mets, behind a complete game effort from Don Carman and 5 RBIs from Lance Parrish.)  The set was comprised of the entire opening day roster, 1987 Cy Young Award winner Steve Bedrosian, who opened the season on the disabled list, manager Lee Elia and cards for the coaches, top prospects, a team photo and the Phillie Phanatic.

The nine-card update set was released later in the season, and I believe was sold at various vendor stands throughout Veterans Stadium.  The update set checklist would have been finalized in mid-July as Larry Bowa took over for the fired Dave Bristol on July 15th and Ricky Jordan was recalled on July 16th.

Complete Standard Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically with uniform number and position from the front of cards): 

1. Luis Aguayo (#16 - INF) 2. Bill Almon (#15 - INF) 3. Steve Bedrosian (#40 - P) 4. Phil Bradley (#29 - OF) 5. Jeff Calhoun (#31 - P) 6. Don Carman (#42 - P) 7. Darren Daulton (#10 - C) 8. Bob Dernier (#22 - OF) 9. Lee Elia (#4 - MG, Vertical)       10. Todd Frohwirth (#52 - P)

11. Greg Gross (#21 - OF-1B)       12. Kevin Gross (#46 - P) 13. Von Hayes (#9 - 1B) 14. Chris James (#18 - OF) 15. Steve Jeltz (#30 - SS) 16. Mike Maddux (#44 - P) 17. David Palmer (#45 - P) 18. Lance Parrish (#13 - C) 19. Shane Rawley (#28 - P) 20. Wally Ritchie (#38 - P)

21. Bruce Ruffin (#47 - P) 22. Juan Samuel (#8 - 2B) 23. Mike Schmidt (#20 - 3B) 24. Kent Tekulve (#27 - P) 25. Milt Thompson (#24 - CF) 26. Mike Young (#19 - OF) 27. Phillies Coaches 28. Phillies Prospects 29. Team Card 30. Phillie Phanatic

Complete Update Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically with uniform number and position from the front of cards):

1. Larry Bowa (#16 - CO) 2. Lee Elia (#4 - MG, Horizontal)       3. Jackie Gutierrez (#15 - INF)

4. Greg Harris (#33 - P) 5. Ricky Jordan (#17 - 1B) 6. Keith Miller (#11 - INF-OF)

7. John Russell (#6 - C) 8. John Vukovich (#7 - CO) 9. Phillies Broadcasters

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (1):  Almon

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (7):  Bradley, Gutierrez, Harris, Jordan, Miller, Palmer, Young
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (22):  Aguayo, Bedrosian, Calhoun, Carman, Daulton, Dernier, Frohwirth, G. Gross, K. Gross, Hayes, James, Jeltz, Maddux, Parrish, Rawley, Ritchie, Ruffin, Russell, Samuel, Schmidt,  Tekulve, Thompson

Managers (2):  Elia (2)
Coaches (3):  The coaches card in the base set includes Dave Bristol, Claude Osteen, Mike Ryan, Tony Taylor, Del Unser and John Vukovich.  Bowa and Vukovich get solo cards in the update set.

Phillie Phanatic (1):  The Phanatic is once again pictured atop his ATV.

Broadcasters (1):  Features Richie Ashburn, Harry Kalas, Garry Maddox, Andy Musser and Chris Wheeler
Phillies Prospects (1):  Features eight prospects on one card - Tom Barrett, Brad Brink, Steve DeAngelis, Ron Jones, Keith Miller, Brad Moore, Howard Nichols and Shane Turner.  DeAngelis and Nichols never played for the Phillies.
Other Cards (1):  Team card

Surprises:  The original 30-card set doesn't have many surprises, although there are a few omissions - see below.  The update set surprises me somewhat as I'm not sure why the Phillies decided we needed a second card of manager Elia and a stand-alone card of coach John Vukovich.  For some background here, the Phillies fired third base coach Bristol and hitting coach Del Unser on July 15th.  Vukovich, who had been serving as Elia's bench coach, moved over to third for a few games before the Phillies hired old friend Bowa who had recently been let go as the Padres manager.  Vukovich would switch jobs again on September 23rd, taking over as interim manager when Elia was fired.  Bowa wore #16 in his first stint as a Phillies coach, before switching to #2 at the start of the 1989 season.

Vukovich and Elia aren't the only two to appear in the set twice.  Prospect Keith Miller is one of eight prospects on the multi-player Phillies Prospects card and then he received his own card in the update set.  Five of the eight players on the Prospects card appeared with the Phillies in 1988 - Tom Barrett, Ron Jones, Miller, Brad Moore and Shane Turner.

Omissions:  If we use July 16th as a cut-off date for the update set, there are a few more deserving candidates.  The oft-injured pitcher Bill Dawley was recalled from Maine on April 22nd but was on the disabled list between May 11th and August 18th.  Reliever Danny Clay was recalled on April 30th and had three different stints with the Phillies in between trips back to Maine.  The only other possibility is pitcher Bill Scherrer who joined the team on July 5th but was gone less than a month later on August 2nd.  Wild speculation on my part here, but maybe one or more of those three pitchers were slated to receive cards in the update set only to be replaced by second cards for Elia and Vukovich.

Variations/Rarities:  As fellow collector Rick e-mailed me, there's also a smaller-sized Mike Schmidt card available, featuring the same photo as his regular 1988 Tastykake photo card, but on a smaller scale.

Smaller Sized Variation 1. Mike Schmidt (#20 - 3B)

Also See:  1988 Topps Phillies - Missing Links

Resources:  Beckett.com; Phillies collector Rick G.

This set was originally featured in a post back in October 2014, and I'm going through these older team-issued set posts to update them with new information learned (if any) over the past six years.

1987 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards / 1989 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards

1980-1999 Phillies Team-Issued Photo Cards Want List / Phillies Team Issued Sets Index Page

1986 Tastykake Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  49
Card Size:  3 1/2" x 5 1/4"
Description:  With the exception of the copyright date on the bottom right, these photo cards are identical in design to the set issued in 1985.  Fronts feature a full color picture and the backs include brief biographical notes on each player, coach or manager.  The multi-player Future Phillies cards return for a second year in a row and each of the four National League pennant winning teams from the franchise's past get their own team cards.

How Distributed:  The set's entry in the 2001 Standard Catalog Baseball Cards notes the "cards were given away at the Phillies' annual baseball card promotion."  Double checking the team's promotional schedule for the season, there's no actual mention of a photo card giveaway day.  My best guess is that these sets were available for sale at Veterans Stadium throughout the season.

Complete Standard Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically with uniform number and position from the front of cards): 

1. Luis Aguayo (#16 - INF) 2. Larry Andersen (#47 - RHP) 3. Steve Bedrosian (#40 - RHP) 4. Steve Carlton (#32 - LHP) 5. Don Carman (#42 - LHP) 6. Rocky Childress (#50 - RHP)           7. Darren Daulton (#10 - C) 8. Jim Davenport (#2 - CO) 9. Lee Elia (#4 - CO) 10. John Felske (#7 - MG) 11. Tom Foley (#11 - SS) 12. Greg Gross (#21 - OF-1B) 13. Kevin Gross (#46 - RHP) 14. Von Hayes (#9 - 1B) 15. Charles Hudson (#49 - RHP) 16. Tom Hume (#41 - RHP) 17. Chris James (#26 - OF)

18. Steve Jeltz (#30 - SS) 19. Joe Lefebvre (#23 - OF) 20. Randy Lerch (#35 - LHP) 21. Garry Maddox (#31 - OF) 22. Claude Osteen (#3 - CO) 23. Shane Rawley (#28 - LHP) 24. Gary Redus (#22 - LF) 25. Ronn Reynolds (#29 - C) 26. Robin Roberts (#36 - HOF)           27. Dave Rucker (#39 - LHP) 28. John Russell (#6 - C) 29. Mike Ryan (#5 - CO) 30. Juan Samuel (#8 - 2B) 31. Mike Schmidt (#20 - 3B) 32. Rick Schu (#15 - INF) 33. Dave Shipanoff (#33 - RHP)

34. Dave Stewart (#48 - RHP) 35. Jeff Stone (#14 - OF) 36. Kent Tekulve (#27 - RHP) 37. Milt Thompson (#24 - CF) 38. Fred Toliver (#43 - RHP) 39. Del Unser (#25 - CO) 40. Glenn Wilson (#12 - RF) 41. Ramon Carabello / Joe Cipolloni 42. Arturo Gonzalez / Mike Maddux 43. Francisco Melendez / Ricky Jordan 44. Kevin Ward / Randy Day 45. 1915 Phillies Team 46. 1950 Phillies Team 47. 1980 Phillies Team 48. 1983 Phillies Team 49. June 11, 1985 - A Night to Remember

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (0)

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (11):  Bedrosian, Foley, Hume, Redus, Reynolds, Rucker, Shipanoff, Stewart, Tekulve, Thompson, Toliver
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (22):  Aguayo, Andersen, Carman, Carlton, Childress, Daulton, G. Gross, K. Gross, Hayes, Hudson, James, Jeltz, Lefebvre, Lerch, Maddox, Rawley, Russell, Samuel, Schmidt, Schu, Stone, Wilson

Manager (1):  Felske
Coaches (5):  Davenport, Elia, Osteen, Ryan, Unser

Commemorative Cards (1):  Roberts
Other Cards (5):  Four pennant winning team cards; June 11, 1985 commemorative card

The "Night to Remember" photo card commemorates the night the Phillies defeated the Mets 26-7, thanks in part to two first inning home runs from Von Hayes.  Hayes, Glenn Wilson, Juan Samuel, Mike Schmidt, Garry Maddox and Bo Diaz are all featured on the card in a Dick Perez painting.

Surprises:  Robin Roberts was presumably a guest instructor during spring training 1986, hence his inclusion in the set.  I always think it's odd seeing former Phillies wear current uniforms they themselves didn't wear during their playing days.  Seeing Roberts in maroon pinstriped jersey is just strange.  Dave Shipanoff is the only player to receive his own solo card not to appear in a game with the Phillies in 1986.

Omissions:  This is a very comprehensive set, featuring the entire 25-man opening day roster, the two players who started the season on the disabled list (Tom Foley and Tom Hume) and solo photo cards for six players who started the season at Triple-A Portland - Jeff Stone, Chris James, Ronn Reynolds, Randy Lerch, Fred Toliver and Rocky Childress.  The checklist creators missed out on five players who would start the season in the minors and make an appearance with the Phillies during 1986 - Greg Legg, Michael Jackson, Jeff Bittiger, Bruce Ruffin and Marvin Freeman.  Legg was the first one up, getting recalled on April 14th when Samuel landed on the disabled list.

Variations/Rarities:  Surprisingly, none.

Also See:  Scrapbook Sunday: February 21, 1986

Resources:  Beckett.com

This set was originally featured in a post back in October 2014, and I'm going through these older team-issued set posts to update them with new information learned (if any) over the past six years.

1985 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards / 1987 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards

1980-1999 Phillies Team-Issued Photo Cards Want List / Phillies Team Issued Sets Index Page

Series Preview - Yankees at Phillies: August 5th to August 6th

2020 Chachi Fan Favorites #24

2020 Chachi Fan Favorites #5

Wednesday Double Header 4:05, Thursday 6:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  The strangeness of 2020 continues.  Tuesday night's game was postponed due to Hurricane Isaias, to be made up as Game 1 of a double header at Citizens Bank Park on Wednesday afternoon.  The Yankees will be the home team for Game 1, with the Phillies as the home team for Game 2.

Yankees 8-1
1st Place in the A.L. East, 3 games ahead of the Orioles

Yankees Probables
Jordan Montgomery (1-0, 1.59)
TBD
Masahiro Tanaka (0-0, 3.38)

Yankees Leaders
Average:  DJ LeMahieu - .412
Runs:  Aaron Judge - 11
Home Runs:  Aaron Judge - 6
RBIs:  Aaron Judge - 14
Stolen Bases:  Mike Tauchman - 3

Wins:  Gerrit Cole - 3
ERA:  Gerrit Cole - 2.55
Strikeouts:  Gerrit Cole - 16
Saves:  Zack Britton - 4

Phillies 1-3
4th Place in the N.L. East, 3 games behind the Braves

Phillies Probables
Zack Wheeler (1-0, 1.29)
Aaron Nola (0-1, 6.75)
Zach Eflin (0-0, 0.00)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Didi Gregorius - .333
Runs:  Phil Gosselin and Did Gregorius - 3
Home Runs:  Phil Gosselin and Didi Gregorius - 2
RBIs:  Three tied with - 3
Stolen Bases:  N/A

Wins:  Zack Wheeler - 1
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 1.29

Strikeouts:  Aaron Nola - 7
Saves:  N/A

1985 Game 74 - 1985 Fleer #263 Shane Rawley

Phillies 11, Cubs 2
Game 74 - Tuesday Night, July 2nd in Philadelphia
Record - 33-41, 5th Place, 11 games behind the Cardinals

One Sentence Summary:  After a quiet game the day before, the Phillies offense exploded for 11 runs on 12 hits in this 11-2 walloping of Rick Sutcliffe and the Cubs.

What It Means:  Sutcliffe came back down to earth following his 1984 Cy Young Award winning performance.  Still, it's impressive he was able to battle through five innings after the Phillies had quickly scored four in the first.  He departed having allowed seven runs on eight hits, including a pair of home runs.

What Happened:  The home runs allowed came from Glenn Wilson in the first with three on (not surprising) and Derrel Thomas in the fifth with one on (surprising).  Greg Gross kept the scoring going after Sutcliffe departed, with an RBI-triple in the sixth off former teammate Warren Brusstar.  Steve Jeltz added a two-run triple in the eighth.  I'm curious as to why Jeltz was in the game at that point.  The official record shows he entered the game as a defensive replacement for Thomas in the sixth right after Thomas had hit his home run.  Was Jeltz really that much of a defensive upgrade over Thomas, or had Thomas perhaps hurt himself rounding the bases?

Ozzie Virgil quietly scored twice and added two hits to improve his average to .282.

Featured Card:  Shane Rawley pitched his first complete game of the season, giving up two runs on eight hits.  As the beneficiary of the offensive outburst, Rawley evened his record at 6-6.

1985 Virtual Phillies Wall / 1985 Season Summary Index

1985 Game 58 - 1985 Fleer Update #U-117 Kent Tekulve

Pirates 3, Phillies 2
Game 58 - Friday Night, June 14th in Pittsburgh
Record - 22-36, 5th Place, 13 1/2 games behind the Cubs

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies bullpen allowed this game to get away as the Pirates eked out a win, 3-2.

What It Means:  I never questioned the box score headlines 35 years ago, but "Pirates Deck Phils" doesn't seem to describe the outcome of this game at all.  I would have gone with "Pirates Edge Phils" if the Atlantic City Press sports page editor had asked 11-year-old me back then.

What Happened:  The seventh was the key inning in this game.  With the Pirates holding a 1-0 lead, pinch-hitter Tim Corcoran hit a two-run triple off Pirates reliever and future Phillie Jose DeLeon to score Greg Gross and Steve Jeltz.  Don Carman entered the game in the bottom of the seventh and promptly allowed a solo home run to former Phillie Sixto Lezcano to tie the game at two.  Carman loaded the bases after that, yielded to Larry Andersen and Andersen allowed an RBI-single to Bill Madlock to give the Pirates a 3-2 lead.

Kevin Gross started for the Phillies and allowed a run, a Johnny Ray solo homer in the fifth, over his six innings of work.

Featured Card:  There were only 10,211 people in attendance at Three Rivers Stadium, but I'm hoping Kent Tekulve got a nice ovation when he entered the game for the Phillies in the eighth.  The long-time Pirates closer pitched a perfect inning in his return to Pittsburgh, retiring Tony Pena, Lezcano and Doug Frobel on three consecutive groundouts.

1985 Virtual Phillies Wall / 1985 Season Summary Index

1985 Game 10 - 1985 Donruss #624 Jeff Stone

Phillies 7, Mets 6
Game 10 - Saturday Afternoon, April 20th in Philadelphia
Record - 2-8, 6th Place, 6 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Jeff Stone drove in five runs as the Phillies squeaked by the first place Mets, 7-6.

What It Means:  This was the Phillies' second win in their first 10 games, and they nearly gave it away.  With the tying run on first base and nobody out in the top of the ninth, Larry Andersen induced a ground ball out and then struck out Wally Backman and Mookie Wilson to end the game.

What Happened:  Stone and Von Hayes hit back-to-back home runs off Ed Lynch in the third to tie the game at three.  Stone struck again with a three-run home run in the fourth followed by an RBI double from Mike Schmidt a few batters later.  John Denny pitched into the ninth before running into trouble and getting relieved by Andersen.

Featured Card:  Stone went 3 for 4 with 5 RBIS and two runs scored in his big game.  As the Phillies regular left fielder, Stone was batting .314 through the first 10 games of the season.

Transaction:  In a transaction that absolutely thrilled me, and as announced shortly after this game ended, the Phillies traded reliever Al Holland and minor leaguer Frankie Griffin to the Pirates for their long-time closer Kent Tekulve.  Tekulve had always been one of my favorite players, and the thought of him in maroon pinstripes had me giddy at the time.  Tekulve was excited for the deal, but Holland was not according to media reports.

In announcing the trade, club President Bill Giles noted that Holland was in the last year of his contract and the team had decided not to extend him.  When asked if he was bitter about the trade, Holland's quote was, "No comment."

Tekulve would be a fantastic reliever for the Phillies for 3 1/2 seasons, departing following the 1988 season for the Reds.  Holland would appear in 38 games for the Pirates, pitching relatively well, before being dealt in August with John Candelaria and George Hendrick to the Angels.

1985 Topps Traded #117T

1985 Topps Traded #55T

1983 TCMA Reading Phillies #6

Here's the updated 25-man Phillies roster following the trade:

Starting pitchers (4) - Steve Carlton, John Denny, Jerry Koosman, Shane Rawley
Relief pitchers (6) - Larry Andersen, Don Carman, Kevin Gross, Charles Hudson, Kent Tekulve, Pat Zachry
Catchers (3) - Darren Daulton, Ozzie Virgil, John Wockenfuss
Infielders (6) - Luis Aguayo, Kiko Garcia, Steve Jeltz, John Russell, Juan Samuel, Mike Schmidt
Outfielders (6) - Tim Corcoran, Greg Gross, Von Hayes, Garry Maddox, Jeff Stone, Glenn Wilson
Disabled List (2) - Bo Diaz, Joe Lefebvre