Game 119 - Suarez Struggles, Phils Can't Solve Singer in Loss

Philadelphia Phillies	1
Cincinnati Reds	6

1976 SSPC #43

Tuesday Night, August 12th

Great American Ball Park - Cincinnati, OH
69-50, 1st Place, 5 games ahead of the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Ranger Suarez continued his struggles and the Phillies offense was punchless in this 6-1 loss to the Reds.

What It Means:  Spoiler alert - an even worse loss was coming up the following day.

What Happened:  Suarez dropped to 8-6.  He allowed six runs on 10 hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings.  In seven starts since the beginning of July, Suarez is 1-4 with a 5.58 ERA in 40 1/3 innings pitched.  Reds' starting pitcher Brady Singer went six innings, allowing three hits while striking out six.  The lone Phillies run came on a solo home run from Bryce Harper in the top of the ninth.

Featured Card:  With absolutely no current Phillie player deserving a card for this game, here's one of my favorite Reds cards in my Phillies Collection.  This is former Phillies player and long-time coach John Vukovich, who played in 31 games for the Reds in 1975.

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

1990 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  45
Card Size:  4 1/8" x 6"

Description:  For the second year in a row, the card fronts feature an action photo with the player's, coach's or manager's name in a red band with white text.  The card backs feature biographical information along with complete career statistics.  The set is sponsor-less, as Tastykake sponsored its final set in 1989 and the Medford Food Company wouldn't come along as the new sponsor until 1991.

How Distributed:  It took me years to track down this set, and I finally found one in September 2014 at The Philly Show.  The dealer I bought the set from told me these cards were never sold in complete set form and he had hand-collated the entire 1990 set.  According to him, the cards were distributed four or five at a time throughout the season at Veterans Stadium.  I don't know if all that's true or not, and I don't know how to verify it, but it would help explain why this photo card set eluded my collection for 24 years.

An eight-card update set was produced very late in the season, featuring what was most likely Dale Murphy's first Phillies baseball card.  Murphy was acquired from the Braves on August 3rd.

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

1. Darrel Akerfelds (#35 - RHP) 2. Rod Booker (#37 - INF) 3. Sil Campusano (#6 - OF) 4. Don Carman (#42 - LHP) 5. Pat Combs (#38 - LHP) 6. Dennis Cook (#39 - No position)    7. Darren Daulton (#10 - C) 8. Lenny Dykstra (#4 - OF) 9. Curt Ford (#27 - OF) 10. Jason Grimsley (#54 - RHP) 11. Charlie Hayes (#8 - 3B) 12. Von Hayes (#9 - OF) 13. Tom Herr (#28 - 2B)

14. Dave Hollins (#15 - INF) 15. Ken Howell (#43 - RHP) 16. Ron Jones (#26 - OF) 17. Ricky Jordan (#17 - 1B) 18. John Kruk (#11 - OF-1B) 19. Steve Lake (#25 - C) 20. Nick Leyva (#16 - MG) 21. Carmelo Martinez (#24 - OF) 22. Roger McDowell (#13 - RHP) 23. Chuck McElroy (#51 - LHP) 24. Terry Mulholland (#45 - LHP)    25. Jeff Parrett (#49 - RHP)

26. Randy Ready (#23 - 3B) 27. Bruce Ruffin (#47 - LHP) 28. Dickie Thon (#21 - SS) 29. Jim Vatcher (#31 - OF) 30. Phillies Coaches 31. Phillie Phanatic 32. Richie Ashburn (#1 - OF) 33. Steve Carlton (#32 - LHP) 34. Robin Roberts (#36 - RHP)    35. Mike Schmidt (#20 - 3B) 36. Phillies Broadcasters 37. PRISM Broadcasters

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

1. Joe Boever (#30 - RHP) 2. Jose DeJesus (#54 - RHP) 3. Marvin Freeman (#48 - RHP)

4. Tommy Greene (#49 - RHP)    5. Chuck Malone (#53 - RHP) 6. Brad Moore (#46 - RHP)

7. Dale Murphy (#3 - OF) 8. Dickie Noles (#34 - P)

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (0):  N/A

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (15):  Akerfelds, Boever, Booker, Campusano, Combs, DeJesus, Freeman, Greene, Grimsley, Hollins, Malone, Martinez, McElroy, Murphy, Vatcher
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (21):  Carman, Cook, Daulton, Dykstra, Ford, C. Hayes, V. Hayes, Herr, Howell, Jones, Jordan, Kruk, Lake, McDowell, Moore, Mulholland, Noles, Parrett, Ready, Ruffin, Thon

Manager (1):  Leyva
Coaches (1):  The coach's card features Larry Bowa, Darold Knowles, Hal Lanier, Denis Menke, Mike Ryan and John Vukovich.

Phillie Phanatic (1):  The Phanatic returns after a one year absence.  The photo used pictures him atop the Phillies dugout.

Broadcasters (2):  The core TV/radio broadcast team of Richie Ashburn, Harry Kalas, Andy Musser and Chris Wheeler are featured on a card.  The PRISM broadcast team of Jim Barniak, Garry Maddox and Mike Schmidt are featured on another.
Commemorative Cards (4):  Ashburn, Carlton, Roberts and Schmidt

Schmidt's #20 was retired in a pre-game ceremony on May 26th, and cards of the four players to have their numbers retired - Ashburn, Roberts, Carlton and Schmidt - are included in the set.  Also of interest is Schmidt's first card as a broadcaster, featuring him with his fellow PRISM broadcasters.  Schmidt's first stint as a broadcaster lasted just the one season.

For those of you not in the Philadelphia area, PRISM was the Philadelphia-based HBO equivalent that broadcast a handful of Phillies games every year between 1976 and 1997.

Set Composition:  Of the 27-man opening day roster, only Moore and Frohwirth are omitted from the original set, with Moore getting a card in the update set.  Tommy Barrett and Floyd Youmans spent the entire season on the Disabled List, and Steve Ontiveros spent all but the last month of the season out with an injury, and none of those three are in the set.  Beginning the year in the minors, but earning a spot on the checklist are Grimsley, Jones and Vatcher.  The latter two were added to the roster on May 30th, and Grimsley wasn't called up until August 8th.

The eight card update set may not have all been issued all at once, given Freeman and Boever are both in it and they were traded for each other on July 23rd.  Freeman headed to the Braves with Boever coming to the Phillies.  Murphy and Greene were acquired from the Braves on August 3rd for Parrett, Vatcher and minor leaguer Victor Rosario.  Noles is a surprise addition, as he was on the active roster for three games in early May, his comeback attempt cut short by arm injuries.

Omissions:  Back-up catcher Tom Nieto appeared in 17 games but was on the team's active roster for 73 games during the season.  Late season call-ups Wes Chamberlain, Mickey Morandini, Louie Meadows and Darrin Fletcher all saw time with the Phillies in September, so it's understandable no photo cards were created for that quartet.

Variations/Rarities:  Fellow collector Rick left a few comments on my original post for this set and sent me an e-mail with scans showing 12 cards made available at the 1990 ALS Autograph Party fund raising event (later the Phillies Phestival) held at Veterans Stadium on July 30th.  The Phillies issued 10 cards celebrating the ten year anniversary of the 1980 World Champions.  Coach Hal Lanier received his own card and there are two versions of cards for Larry Bowa - one showing him as a coach, and one showing him up at bat.  The back of the 1980 commemorative cards feature a 10th Reunion logo.

ALS Autograph Party 1. Larry Bowa (coach) 2. Larry Bowa (1980) 3. Dallas Green (1980)    4. Greg Gross (1980)

5. Hal Lanier (coach) 6. Greg Luzinski (1980) 7. Garry Maddox (1980) 8. Bake McBride (1980)

9. Tug McGraw (1980) 10. Paul Owens (1980) 11. Manny Trillo (1980)    12. Del Unser (1980)

Also See:  The Mysterious Jim Vatcher Card
Trivia:  The Beckett database incorrectly lists the set as "1990 Phillies Tastykake" even through the Tastykake logo or name is nowhere to be found on the set.  The Beckett database also omits the eight update cards.  The 2001 Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards lists the set at "1990 Phillies Photocards," and omits the Vatcher card from the main set.  For years, my want list for this set included only 44 cards as most published checklists for the set omit the Vatcher card.
Resources:  Beckett.com; Phillies collector Rick (@rickphils)

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.

1989 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards / 1991 Medford Phillies Photo Cards

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

1989 Tastykake Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  46

Number of Cards (SGA Version):  32
Card Size:  4 1/8" x 6"

Description:  The Phillies came up with this card design . . . and then took the next six years off.  The 1989 to 1995 team issued sets are all identical in design, containing the player's, coach's or manager's name in a red band with white text.  The card backs feature biographical information along with complete career statistics.  This set is notable as it's the last set (to date) to be sponsored by Tastykake.

How Distributed:  A 32-card set was given away to all fans on May 13, 1989 at Veterans Stadium and a 37-card set was available for sale at the ballpark throughout the season.  Both sets contain identical photos, but the 32-card giveaway set cards feature a darker tint and are not as vibrant as their 37-card counterparts.  The 32-card sets can be found in uncut sheets and thanks to fellow collector Rick, I added these cards to my collection via an eBay auction.  As (I believe) the 37-card set is more prevalent, I've listed the stadium giveaway 32-card set (and its variations) under the Variations/Rarities section below.

Given the ton of roster moves made by the club in the first half of the season, a nine-card update set was issued and available for purchase at souvenir stands throughout the Vet.  This was the second year in a row that a nine-card update set was released.  Of the nine players in the set, Jim Adduci made his debut the latest, on July 3rd, so this set would have been first available for sale in mid to late July.

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

1. Header / Sponsor Card 2. Steve Bedrosian (#40 - RHP) 3. Larry Bowa (#2 - CO) 4. Don Carman (#42 - LHP) 5. Darren Daulton (#10 - C) 6. Bob Dernier (#22 - OF) 7. Curt Ford (#24 - OF) 8. Todd Frohwirth (#52 - RHP) 9. Greg Harris (#33 - RHP) 10. Von Hayes (#9 - OF-1B) 11. Tom Herr (#28 - 2B) 12. Ken Howell (#43 - RHP) 13. Chris James (#26 - OF-3B)

14. Steve Jeltz (#30 - SS) 15. Ron Jones (#26 - OF) 16. Ricky Jordan (#17 - 1B) 17. Darold Knowles (#3 - CO) 18. Steve Lake (#25 - C) 19. Nick Leyva (#16 - MG) 20. Mike Maddux (#44 - RHP) 21. Alex Madrid (#34 - RHP) 22. Larry McWilliams (#46 - LHP) 23. Denis Menke (#4 - CO) 24. Dwayne Murphy (#6 - OF) 25. Tom Nieto (#19 - C)

26. Randy O'Neal (#27 - RHP) 27. Steve Ontiveros (#41 - RHP) 28. Jeff Parrett (#49 - RHP) 29. Bruce Ruffin (#47 - LHP) 30. Mark Ryal (#31 - OF) 31. Mike Ryan (#5 - CO) 32. Juan Samuel (#8 - OF) 33. Mike Schmidt (#20 - 3B) 34. Tony Taylor (#12 - CO) 35. Dickie Thon (#21 - SS) 36. John Vukovich (#7 - CO) 37. Floyd Youmans (#15 - RHP)

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

1. Jim Adduci (#18 - INF) 2. Eric Bullock (#35 - OF)      3. Dennis Cook (#39 - LHP)

4. Lenny Dykstra (#4 - OF) 5. Charlie Hayes (#8 - 3B) 6. John Kruk (#11 - OF-1B)

7. Roger McDowell (#13 - RHP) 8. Terry Mulholland (#45 - LHP) 9. Randy Ready (#23 - 3B)

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (5):  Adduci, Bullock, Nieto, O'Neal, Ryal

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (18):  Cook, Dykstra, Ford, C. Hayes, Herr, Howell, Kruk, Lake, Madrid, McDowell, McWilliams, Mulholland, Murphy, Ontiveros, Parrett, Ready, Thon, Youmans
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (15):  Bedrosian, Carman, Daulton, Dernier, Frohwirth, Harris, V. Hayes, James, Jeltz, Jones, Jordan, Maddux, Ruffin, Samuel, Schmidt

This is the only set featuring Phillies baseball cards of the five players listed in the One and Only One category.  The First Appearance designation is for players who have never before appeared on a Phillies team issued set.  These players may have already appeared on other Phillies baseball cards.

Manager (1):  Leyva
Coaches (6):  Bowa, Knowles, Menke, Ryan, Taylor, Vukovich

Other Cards (1):  Header / sponsor card

Surprises:  The 37-card set includes the entire 25-man opening day roster, the manager and all six coaches, Juan Samuel and Tom Nieto, who both began the season on the disabled list, and three players who started the year in the minors but who would eventually spend time with the Phillies - Todd Frohwirth, Alex Madrid and Randy O'Neal.  There aren't really any surprises here, and it's a fairly inclusive checklists.

The Chris James card is an uncorrected error.  James wore #18 in 1989, but the back of the card lists his uniform as #26.  James had switched from #26 mid-way through the 1988 season and Ron Jones wore #26 in 1989.

Omissions:  47 players appeared with the Phillies in 1989.  Only 10 of them didn't have cards in the original 37-card set or the 9-card update set.  Bob Sebra, Gordon Dillard and Marvin Freeman all briefly appeared on the roster and weren't considered for either set.  Neither were any of the seven September call-ups - Tom Barrett, Pat Combs, Chuck McElroy, Keith Miller, Steve Stanicek, Al Pardo and Jason Grimsley.

Variations/Rarities:  The 32-card stadium giveaway set omitted the following five cards - the Header/sponsor card and the cards for four players - Nieto, Jones, O'Neal and Madrid.  Both O'Neal and Madrid were on the 24-man roster on the giveaway day, as was Dillard who was around for all of two weeks.  It's a shame, but completely understandable, that Dillard didn't somehow make it into the SGA set.  

In addition to these omissions, this set contains the following name placement variations, as well as being darker in tone as mentioned above.

• Don Carman, name is bottom center (instead of bottom left)
• Todd Frohwirth, name is more to the right (instead of centered)
• Ken Howell, name is bottom center (instead of bottom left)
• Steve Ontiveros, name is top center (instead of top right)
• Bruce Ruffin, name is top center (instead of bottom left)
• Mike Ryan CO, name is top center (instead of top left)
• Floyd Youmans, name is bottom right (instead of bottom left)

Unless you're a Phillies team issued set or Bruce Ruffin super collector (and why wouldn't you be?) there's really no need to add these cards to your collection.

Also See:  1989 Phillies - The Missing Links, 1989 Topps Phillies

Resources:  14,000 Phillies; Beckett.com; Phillies collector Rick (@rickphils)

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 nine years.

1988 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards / 1990 Phillies Photo Cards

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

1981 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  32
Card Size:  3 1/4" x 5 1/2"
Description:  As was the case with all Phillies photo cards issued since 1970, these cards feature a black and white photo with the players' name below.  The backs of the cards are blank and there's no indication on the cards themselves that they're from 1981.  Some of the cards contain blue facsimile autographs as noted on the checklist below.  There are six cards available with a horizontal orientation as also noted below.  The Sparky Lyle card contains an uncorrected error with the spelling of his first name as "Sparkey."

How Distributed:  The cards were handed out to fans individually and supplied to the players in order to reply to fan mail or honor autograph requests.  I could be wrong, but I don't believe these cards were ever available in complete set form.

The set's composition features the entire 25-man opening day roster, the manager and all six coaches.  No one who made his 1981 season debut after opening day received a photo card.

Complete Standard Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically): 

1. Luis Aguayo 2. Ruben Amaro CO 3. Ramon Aviles (auto) 4. Bob Boone (auto, horizontal) 5. Larry Bowa 6. Marty Bystrom (auto) 7. Steve Carlton (horizontal)       8. Larry Christenson 9. Dick Davis (auto) 10. Billy DeMars CO (auto) 11. Lee Elia CO

12. Nino Espinosa (auto) 13. Dallas Green MG (auto) 14. Greg Gross 15. Sparky Lyle 16. Garry Maddox (auto) 17. Gary Matthews 18. Bake McBride (auto) 19. Tug McGraw 20. Keith Moreland (horizontal)       21. Mike Proly (auto) 22. Ron Reed

23. Pete Rose (auto) 24. Dick Ruthven (auto) 25. Mike Ryan CO (auto) 26. Mike Schmidt (horizontal) 27. Lonne Smith (horizontal) 28. Herm Starrette CO 29. Manny Trillo (horizontal) 30. Del Unser 31. John Vukovich 32. Bobby Wine CO (auto)

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (0)

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (5):  Bystrom, Davis, Lyle, Matthews, Proly
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (20):  Aguayo, Aviles, Boone, Bowa, Carlton, Christenson, Espinosa, Gross, Maddox, McBride, McGraw, Moreland, Reed, Rose, Ruthven, Schmidt, Smith, Trillo, Unser, Vukovich

Manager (1):  Green
Coaches (6):  Amaro, DeMars, Elia, Ryan, Starrette, Wine

Surprises:  I'm more impressed than surprised the Phillies were able to issue photo cards for Dick Davis, Gary Matthews and Mike Proly as that trio of players was acquired in the month before the start of the regular season.  Proly was acquired from the White Sox on April 1st and his photo card features a photo taken at Veterans Stadium.  The earliest date that photo could have been taken was April 17th, Proly's home debut with the Phillies.

Omissions:  The only player to appear with the Phillies during the first half of this strike-shortened season and not appear on a photo card is George Vukovich, who made his season debut on May 29th.  The 10 players who made their season debuts after the strike ended, and after the second half of the season began on August 10th, are all omitted from the set:  Dickie Noles, Mark Davis, Warren Brusstar, Ryne Sandberg, Bob Dernier, Len Matuszek, Ozzie Virgil, Dan Larson, Jerry Reed and Don McCormack.

Variations/Rarities:  Collectors Rick and Steve once again filled in with some rarities (or potential rarities) when I originally posted on this set almost six years ago.  Tim McCarver joined the broadcast booth and received a card showing him wearing a headset.  Steve notes variations may exist for the Garry Maddox and Proly cards.  

Finally, and similar to 1980, there is a black and white 1981 card of the Phillie Phanatic issued by Harrison/Erickson that is roughly the same size as the rest of the set.

Broadcaster       1. Tim McCarver

Mystery Variation?        1. Garry Maddox 2. Mike Proly

Harrison/Erickson   1. Phillie Phanatic

Resources:  The Trading Card Database; Phillies collectors Steve and Rick (@rickphils).

This set was originally featured in a post back in January 2015, and I'm going to slowly go through these team-issued set posts and update them with new information gathered (if any) over the past five-plus years.

1980 Phillies Team-Issued Photo Cards / 1982 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards

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

2004 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  37
Card Size:  4" x 6"
Description:  The 2003 team-issued set contained elements celebrating the final season of Veterans Stadium, so it's only fitting the 2004 team-issued set contains the Inaugural Season logo for Citizens Bank Park.  The card fronts feature a white border, full color photos and the player's name, position and uniform number in a simple, clean and bright design.  The card backs go horizontal for the first time and feature biographical information and complete career statistics.

How Distributed:  The set was available for sale at Citizens Bank Park throughout the season.  Similar to the 2003 set, collectors had to wait a few series into the start of the regular season until the cards were available for sale, which explains the potentially short-printed card celebrating the back-to-back-to-back home runs hit by Bobby Abreu, Jim Thome and Pat Burrell on May 18, 2004.  All cards feature photos from the first few games to be played at the new ballpark, including the on-deck exhibition series against the Indians prior to the start of the regular season.

The Abreu/Thome/Burrell card was numbered to 3,000, the first and last time the Phillies would include a numbered card in these sets, and I'm not sure if this card was available in every set sold during the season.

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

1. Bobby Abreu (#53 - RF) 2. David Bell (#4 - 3B) 3. Mick Billmeyer (#17 - CO) 4. Larry Bowa (#10 - MG) 5. Pat Burrell (#5 - LF) 6. Marlon Byrd (#29 - CF) 7. Rheal Cormier (#37 - LHP) 8. Doug Glanville (#6 - OF) 9. Greg Gross (#8 - CO) 10. Ramon Henderson (#59 - CO) 11. Roberto Hernandez (#35 - RHP)     12. Joe Kerrigan (#16 - CO) 13. Ricky Ledee (#33 - OF)

14. Mike Lieberthal (#24 - C) 15. Ryan Madson (#63 - RHP) 16. Jason Michaels (#22 - OF) 17. Kevin Millwood (#34 - RHP) 18. Eric Milton (#21 - LHP) 19. Brett Myers (#39 - RHP) 20. Vicente Padilla (#44 - RHP) 21. Tomas Perez (#9 - INF) 22. Placido Polanco (#27 - 2B) 23. Todd Pratt (#3 - C) 24. Jimmy Rollins (#11 - SS) 25. Amaury Telemaco (#47 - RHP)

26. Jim Thome (#25 - 1B) 27. Milt Thompson (#15 - CO) 28. Chase Utley (#26 - 2B) 29. Gary Varsho (#7 - CO) 30. John Vukovich (#18 - CO) 31. Billy Wagner (#13 - LHP) 32. Randy Wolf (#43 - LHP) 33. Shawn Wooten (#23 - INF/C)     34. Todd Worrell (#38 - RHP) 35. Phillie Phanatic 36. Phillies Broadcasters 37. Back to Back to Back / 3000

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (0)

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (7):  Hernandez, Madson, Milton, Utley, Wagner, Wooten, Worrell
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (19):  Abreu, Bell, Burrell, Byrd, Cormier, Glanville, Ledee, Lieberthal, Michaels, Millwood, Myers, Padilla, Perez, Polanco, Pratt, Rollins, Telemaco, Thome, Wolf

Manager (1):  Bowa
Coaches (7):  Billmeyer, Gross, Henderson, Kerrigan, Thompson, Varsho, Vukovich
Phillie Phanatic (1):  The Phanatic is shown atop the Phillies new dugout at Citizens Bank Park.
Broadcasters (1):  John Kruk exited and Tom McCarthy joined the broadcast team in 2004.  McCarthy is joined on this card by Chris Wheeler, Scott Graham, Larry Andersen and Harry Kalas.

Commemorative Cards (1):  My "short-printed" version of the back to back to back home runs card is number 322 out of 3,000.

This set contains the first team issued card for Utley and the last team issued card for long-time player and coach Vukovich.  Due to my limited resources and skills when developing the first Chachi cards in 2005, a lot of the photos used for this set are duplicated within the initial 2005 Chachi set.

Surprises:  This is a great checklist to mark the first Phillies team to take the field during Citizens Bank Park's inaugural season.  The entire 25-man opening day roster is represented, plus Chase Utley, who was recalled on May 8th.

Omissions:  Assuming the set was issued in late May, accounting for the inclusion of Utley and the Back to Back to Back card, there are a few other Phillies relievers who could have been included in the set.  On the day of the back to back to back home runs, relievers Brian Powell and Jim Crowell were both on the active roster.  Geoff Geary was recalled the day after the feat, on May 19th.  Promotions for Josh Hancock (May 22nd) and Elizardo Ramirez (May 23rd) would follow shortly thereafter.

Variations/Rarities:  Fellow collector Rick has made me aware of several somewhat rare cards in the style of this set.  First, four of the stars of the team received versions of their cards containing white facsimile autographs.  Somewhat randomly, and one of my personal white whales, reserve outfielder Lou Collier received a card at some point during the summer.  Collier was recalled on August 5th and remained with the club through the rest of the season.  August 5th would have been too late (I think) for the annual ALS Phillies Phestival, so the existence of this card puzzles me.

Finally, the Phillies hired Charlie Manuel to become their 51st manager on November 4, 2004.  A blank-backed card was created so the new skipper would have something to sign during his offseason winter caravan appearances.

White Facsimile Autographs        1. Bobby Abreu (#53 - RF) 2. Pat Burrell (#5 - LF) 3. Mike Lieberthal (#24 - C) 4. Jim Thome (#25 - 1B)

Late Season Addition 1. Lou Collier (#58 - OF) Winter Caravan 1. Charlie Manuel (#41 - MG)

Also See:  The Phillies teamed up with Upper Deck and McDonald's to release a 27-card set in 2004, available at local McDonald's.  14,000 Phillies posted a set summary and checklist as part of its now defunct Phillies Database Project.

Resources:  Phillies collector Rick (@rickphils)

This set was originally featured in a post back in December 2014, and I'm going to slowly go through some of these team issued set posts and update them with new information gleaned (if any) over the past nearly six years.

2003 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards / 2005 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

2000-Present Phillies Team-Issued Photo Cards Want List / Phillies Team Issued Sets Index Page

Series Preview - Mets at Phillies: June 24th to June 27th

2019 Chachi Fan Favorites #11

2019 Chachi 1971 Topps Missing Links #18

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 7:05, Thursday 1:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

Mets 37-41, 4th place in the N.L. East, 9 games behind the Braves
Phillies 39-38, 2nd place in the N.L. East, 6 1/2 games behind the Braves

Mets Probables:  Steven Matz (5-5, 4.28), Walker Lockett (0-1, 23.14), Jason Vargas (3-3, 3.75), Zack Wheeler (6-5, 4.69)
Phillies Probables:  Jake Arrieta (6-6, 4.12), Zach Eflin (6-7, 2.83), Nick Pivetta (4-2, 5.54), Aaron Nola (6-2, 4.55)

At the Ballpark:  There are some theme nights scheduled, but otherwise no giveaways during this four game series with the Mets.  Following Thursday afternoon's game, kids can go down to the field to run the bases.

Mets Leaders
Average:  Jeff McNeil - .342
Runs:  Pete Alonso - 50
Home Runs:  Pete Alonso - 27
RBIs:  Pete Alonso - 61
Stolen Bases:  Amed Rosario - 9

Wins:  Zack Wheeler - 6
ERA:  Jacob deGrom - 3.25
Strikeouts:  Jacob deGrom - 121
Saves:  Edwin Diaz - 16

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Cesar Hernandez - .275
Runs:  Andrew McCutchen - 45
Home Runs:  Rhys Hoskins - 16
RBIs:  Bryce Harper - 52
Stolen Bases:  Jean Segura - 5

Wins:  Three tied with - 6
ERA:  Zach Eflin - 2.83

Strikeouts:  Aaron Nola - 100
Saves:  Hector Neris - 15

Revisiting the 2004 Phillies Photo Day - 15 Years Ago Today

The 2004 Phillies Photo Day crowd

The first Phillies Photo Day I attended was back in 1984, and I shared some pictures from that day in a post from five years ago.  My Dad was not a fan of crowds or events with any degree of chaos or disorganization, so naturally he hated Photo Day.  After making our way down to the field for the 1984 event, we never went back again.  It would be 20 years until I'd participate in the crowded and controlled chaos that is Photo Day.


Fast forward to May 29, 2004 when Jenna and I were dating and we were invited by my then employer to attend a Phillies game from the comfort of a suite at the newly opened Citizens Bank Park.  Unbeknownst to us, it was also the first Photo Day at the new ballpark and we decided to casually walk down to the field to take some pictures.  This was pre-kids, pre-Chachi sets and pre-The Phillies Room, so I had no real outlet to share any of these pictures back then.  The pictures I took pretty much sat forgotten until recently when I was looking through the thousands (!) of pictures I had taken over the years at Citizens Bank Park.


I thought the time was right to produce a limited edition insert set to mark the 15th anniversary of this first Photo Day at Citizens Bank Park, and the 16 cards presented here were the best of the bunch.  I had a few other pictures I deemed unusable, such as Chase Utley posing with an unknown female fan, Harry Kalas with his eyes fully closed and a picture featuring only half of Larry Andersen's head.

We hope to return this year to this annual event, even though it's slightly crowded and at times chaotic.


Memory Lane
1984 Photo Day - Hudson, Maddox and Lefebvre
2004 Photo Day - First at Citizens Bank Park
2006 Photo Day - with Rick White
2007 Photo Day - with Shane Victorino
2016 Photo Day - Parts One, Two and Three
2017 Photo Night - Parts One, Two and Three
2018 Photo Night - Cancelled due to rain