1998 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  36
Card Size:  4" x 6"

Description:  The fronts feature full color photos with the player's, coach's or manager's name in large capital letters framing one of the corners of the card.  Scott Rolen's card features a badge on the front celebrating his 1997 National League Rookie of the Year win, while Curt Schilling's card celebrates his league leading 319 strikeouts in 1997.  The card backs feature biographical information with the Phillies wordmark logo in the background.  There are some strangely cropped photos in the set - see the cards for Billy Brewer and Bobby Abreu as examples.

How Distributed:  The 36-card set was available for sale at Veterans Stadium throughout the season.  For the fourth year in a row, there was no update set issued.

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

1. Bobby Abreu (#53 - OF) 2. Ruben Amaro (#33 - OF) 3. Alex Arias (#26 - INF) 4. Matt Beech (#55 - LHP) 5. Ricky Bottalico (#52 - RHP) 6. Billy Brewer (#49 - LHP) 7. Rico Brogna (#2 - 1B) 8. Galen Cisco (#42 - Pitching Instructor) 9. Chuck Cottier (#3 - Bench Coach) 10. Bobby Estalella (#27 - C) 11. Terry Francona (#7 - MG) 12. Doug Glanville (#6 - OF)

13. Wayne Gomes (#61 - RHP) 14. Mike Grace (#44 - RHP) 15. Tyler Green (#28 - RHP) 16. Ramon Henderson (#59 - Bullpen Coach) 17. Rex Hudler (#14 - INF) 18. Gregg Jefferies (#25 - LF) 19. Kevin Jordan (#23 - INF) 20. Mark Leiter (#31 - RHP) 21. Mark Lewis (#5 - INF) 22. Mike Lieberthal (#24 - C) 23. Billy McMillon (#41 - OF) 24. Hal McRae (#56 - Hitting Instructor)

25. Brad Mills (#9 - First Base Coach) 26. Mark Parent (#8 - C) 27. Mark Portugal (#21 - RHP) 28. Desi Relaford (#30 - INF) 29. Scott Rolen (#17 - 3B) 30. Curt Schilling (#38 - RHP) 31. Kevin Sefcik (#11 - INF) 32. Jerry Spradlin (#48 - RHP) 33. Garrett Stephenson (#54 - RHP) 34. John Vukovich (#18 - Third Base Coach) 35. Darrin Winston (#58 - LHP) 36. Phillie Phanatic

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (0):  But see below under Variations/Rarities . . .

First Appearance in Phillies Photo Card Set (12):  Abreu, Arias, Beech, Brewer, Estalella, Glanville, Gomes, Lewis, McMillon, Relaford, Stephenson, Winston
Returning Players in Phillies Photo Card Set (16):  Amaro, Bottalico, Brogna, Grace, Green, Hudler, Jefferies, Jordan, Leiter, Lieberthal, Parent, Portugal, Rolen, Schilling, Sefcik, Spradlin

Manager (1):  Francona
Coaches (6):  Cisco, Cottier, Henderson, McRae, Mills, Vukovich

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

Broadcasters (0):  N/A

Set Composition:  The entire 25-man opening day roster is represented in the set with the exception of reliever Matt Whiteside, who signed with the Phillies on March 27th, a few days prior to opening day.  Wayne Gomes, Matt Beech and Bobby Estalella would start the season in the minors, but they're in the set too.  Billy McMillon, who spent the entire 1998 season in Triple-A was the only miss for the Phillies on the checklist and the only player in the set not to suit up at some point during the 1998 season for them.

Omissions:  A card for Whiteside would have been nice, as he would never appear with the Phillies on a baseball card.  (His Chachi Missing Links card will have to suffice.)  Other players who spent significant time with the team that could have found their way into an update set include pitchers Yorkis Perez,  Carlton Loewer, Ken Ryan and Mike Welch along with Paul Byrd, who joined the Phillies on August 14th.  Cards for rookies Jon Zuber, Gary Bennett and Marlon Anderson would have welcome additions to an update set too.

Variations/Rarities:  This is the set that first tipped me off that variations and rarities existed for these team-issued photo card sets.  For years, I was comfortable in the knowledge that once I purchased the complete set from the Vet, I was done for the year.  As Steve F. pointed out back in the 1998 Phillies - The Missing Links post in March 2012, Zuber had a card produced in the same style as the rest of the 1998 team issued set, most likely to allow him to respond to autograph requests and making it his sole Phillies baseball card.  Fellow collector Rick noted in a comment to the original post for this set that cards were issued for Perez and Welch to sign at the annual ALS Autograph and Auction Party, held on June 29th.

Toby Borland and Loewer were on the active roster on June 29th, but cards weren't produced for them for the ALS event.  Oddly enough, Welch was not active on June 29th, and the Phillies wouldn't add him to their roster until July 10th, the first game following the All-Star break.

There's also a Dickie Noles card available with a 1998 copyright on the back and sponsored by Independence Blue Cross/Pennsylvania Blue Shield.

ALS Autograph/Auction Party        1. Yorkis Perez (#45 - LHP) 2. Mike Welch (#47 - RHP) 3. Jon Zuber (#40 - 1B/OF)

Independence Blue Cross/Blue Shield 1. Dickie Noles (#34 - RHP)

Also See:  1998 Topps Phillies

Resources:  Beckett.com; Phillies collectors Steve F. and Rick (@rickphils)

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

1997 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards / 1999 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

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

Just One Card - 1990s Phillies Edition (Part Two - 1996 to 1999)

Having wrapped up my Phillies Missing Links custom card sets from the 1980s and 1990s, I wanted to look back and those players who just barely missed inclusion.  These are the players who have been featured on one and only one Phillies baseball card.

There were 23 Phillies players from the 1990s with no Phillies baseball card appearances, and there were 26 Phillies players from the decade with only one Phillies baseball card appearance.  Here's part two of the list.  Part one can be found here.

The Jon Zuber card, available only at the 1998 Phillies Phestival, has eluded my search so far.

1996 Phillies Team Issue #5

1996 Phillies Team Issue #43

1996 Phillies Team Issue #54

1997 Phillies Team Issue #40

1997 Phillies Team Issue #41

1998 Phillies Team Issue ALS Phestival #40

1996
Mike Benjamin - 1996 Phillies Team Issue #5
Carlos Crawford - 1996 Phillies Team Issue #54
Ricardo Jordan - 1997 Pacific #381
Dave Leiper - 1996 Phillies Team Issue #43
J.R. Philllips - 1996 Leaf Signature Extended Autographs #159
Jon Zuber - 1998 Phillies Team Issue ALS Phestival #40

1996 Leaf Signature Extended Autographs #159

1997 Fleer #649

1997 Pacific #381

1998 Upper Deck Collector's Choice #202

1997
Tony Barron - 1998 Upper Deck Collector's Choice #202
Reggie Harris - 1997 Phillies Team Issue #40
Erik Plantenberg - 1997 Phillies Team Issue #41
Edgar Ramos - 1997 Fleer #649

1999
Scott Aldred - 2000 Phillies Team Issue #30

Jim Poole - 1999 Phillies Team Issue #41

Steve Schrenk - 2000 Phillies Team Issue #52

Paul Spoljaric - 1999 Phillies Team Issue #50

1999 Phillies Team Issue #41

1999 Phillies Team Issue #50

2000 Phillies Team Issue #30

2000 Phillies Team Issue #52

1998 Phillies - The Missing Links

1998 Pacific Online #569, 1998 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons 10th Anniversary (#15),
1995 Topps #254 and 1998 Q Cards Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons #9

This post adds two more unfortunate souls to the list of players who appeared with the Phillies during the mostly lost decade of the '90s, yet never appeared on cardboard with the team.

40 players suited up with the Phillies during the 1998 season.  Without checking Baseball Reference, I would have pegged that number a little higher, but 40 it is.

3 Cards or More
35 Players

Relievers Jerry Spradlin, Yorkis Perez and Billy Brewer all made the cut with exactly three Phillies cards.  Each of those guys were featured in a few Phillies Team Issue sets and the 1998 Pacific Online set.  When I was trying to create my Phillies Wall back in the late-90s, the 1998 Pacific Online set was a necessity.  Weighing in with 780 different cards, the set featured middle inning relievers and back-up catchers during an era when the other card manufacturers were ignoring those guys.  It's not a pretty set, but it definitely served its purpose.

2 Cards
Darrin Winston (7 games in 1997 and 27 games in 1998) - 1998 Pacific Online #576 and 1998 Phillies Team Issue #58

Winston already made the list in 1997.

1999 Sports Illustrated #61

1 Card
Mike Welch (10 games in 1998) - 1999 Sports Illustrated #61
Jon Zuber (30 games in 1996 and 38 games in 1998) - 1998 Phillies Team Issue (Special Edition)*

Welch had to share his sole Phillies card with Marlon Anderson and Gary Bennett.  Welch, a right-handed reliever was acquired from the Mets in December 1997 for minor leaguer Hector Mercado.

*See the comment after this post from reader Steve F. for more information.

0 Cards
Matt Whiteside (10 games in 1998)
Robert Dodd (4 games in 1998)

Pitchers Whiteside and Dodd join the infamous list.  Whiteside had been a mainstay in the Rangers bullpen for the better part of the '90s before the team unceremoniously released him in Spring Training 1998.  The Phils signed him a few days later.  He spent the bulk of the '98 season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons, although he does not appear in the Red Barons team set; most likely because he actually opened the season on the Phillies active roster.  So Whiteside is the classic case of a player caught in the middle - he was acquired too late to be included within the team issued postcard set, and he was still with the Phillies when the Red Barons were compiling the checklist for their team set.

Dodd does appear in the Red Barons set, and he took Whiteside's spot in the bullpen when the team designated Whiteside for assignment in late May.  Dodd appeared in four games with the Phillies in late May/early June, winning a game, but allowing four earned runs in five innings (7.20 ERA).

Past Missing Link Posts

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

1996 Phillies - The Missing Links

1994 Bowman #664, 1996 Leaf Signature Extended Autographs (#159),
1997 Pacific #381 and 1996 Fleer Update #U168

The mostly forgettable last-place 1996 Phillies fielded 54 different players during the season, and all but six of them appeared on a Phillies baseball card at some point.

3 Cards or More
40 Players

Jeff Parrett appeared on no Phillies cards during his second stint with the club in 1996, but I'm invoking the Dickie Noles rule given his appearance on a bunch of Phillies cards between 1989 and 1990.  The same goes for Terry Mulholland, but he actually appears on two cards (1996 Fleer Update and 1996 Phillies Team Issue) during his second stay with the Phils in 1996.

1996 Phillies Team Issue #43 and #54

2 Cards
Russ Springer (14 games in 1995 and 51 games in 1996) - 1996 Leaf Signature Extended Autographs (#190) and 1996 Phillies Team Issue #33
Larry Mitchell (7 games in 1996) - 1993 Stadium Club Murphy #39 and 1994 Bowman #664

Springer makes the list for the second year in a row, despite having appeared in almost a third of the team's games in 1996.  You'd think he would have somehow snuck into a 1997 Pacific or Score set along the way.

1 Card

Jon Zuber (30 games in 1996 and 38 games in 1998) - 1998 Phillies Team Issue #40 (Special Edition)

Steve Frey (9 games in 1995 and 31 games in 1996) - 1996 Phillies Team Issue #37
Mike Benjamin (35 games in 1996) - 1996 Phillies Team Issue #5
J.R. Phillips (35 games in 1996) - 1996 Leaf Signature Extended Autographs (#159)

Ricardo Jordan (26 games in 1996) - 1997 Pacific #381

Dave Leiper (26 games in 1996) - 1996 Phillies Team Issue #43
Carlos Crawford (1 game in 1996) - 1996 Phillies Team Issue #54

I've already featured Benjamin's sole Phillies card on the blog, the day after my second son was born.  Phillips had 12 hits during his tenure with the team, and 5 of those hits were home runs.  Former Phillie Ricky Jordan spent the season in the Mariners organization, but the Phils filled their R. Jordan quota by bringing aboard lefty reliever Ricardo Jordan.  Ricardo had a respectable 2-2 record and a 1.80 ERA in his 26 games with the club, but it still doesn't explain why Pacific chose to include him in their 1997 set over Springer.

I don't remember much about Leiper and I remember even less about Crawford.  It appears as if Crawford made an emergency start on June 7th, lasted less than 4 innings, picked up the loss and was optioned back to Scranton a few days later.  He'd never pitch in the Majors again.

1997 Best Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons #20, 1996 Stadium Club #401,
1996 Fleer Excel #203 and 1996 Best Reading Phillies #11

0 Cards
**Glenn Murray (38 games in 1996)
Manny Martinez (13 games in 1996)
Glenn Dishman (4 games in 1996)
Bronson Heflin (3 games in 1996)
Rafael Quirico (1 game in 1996)

How does Jon Zuber not have a Phillies card?  Seriously, did I miss something when reviewing my checklists?  Zuber was drafted by the Phillies in 1992 and he made his Major League debut on April 19, 1996.  In 68 games with the Phillies in 1996 and 1998, he hit .250 with 3 home runs and 16 RBIs.

UPDATE: Zuber has been moved up to the 1 Card section.  See the comment from reader Steve F. within the 1998 Missing Links post.

Not only are there no Phillies baseball cards of Murray and Martinez, but I don't have any Phillies-related baseball cards of either of those guys in my collection.  Murray appears within a 1996 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons team set that I don't have, and Martinez was shut out completely.  I find it interesting that Lee Tinsley played in 7 less games as a Phillie than Murray, yet Tinsley by my count is featured on three Phillies cards (1996 Ultra, 1996 Fleer Update and 1996 Phillies Team Issue).

Dishman was in the Phillies system for less than a month.  On September 12th, he was selected off waivers from the Padres and on October 3rd, he was selected by the Tigers off waivers from the Phils.  And if you could have picked Heflin and Quirico out of list of players who were former Phillies, I am equally impressed and frightened by your deep Phillies knowledge.

**UPDATE 2:  I now know that Murray has a card in the style of the 1996 Phillies Team Issue set that was issued either as a late season update or during the annual ALS Phillies Phestival.  Please see this post for further details.

Past Missing Link Posts

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