2009 Chachi #24 Ryan Madson

The Bridge to Lidge . . . the right-handed set-up guy who absolutely dominated towards the latter part of the 2008 season and in the Postseason . . . the former #63, #46 Ryan Madson.

Phillies debut: September 27, 2003
How acquired: Selected by Phillies in the 9th round of June 1998 draft
2008 Postseason: Pitched in 11 playoff games, and compiled a 1-0 record and a 2.13 ERA in 12.2 innings.
Pictured: October 29, 2008 - World Series Game 5b

1991 Stadium Club #581 Darrel Akerfelds

In this 1991 Stadium Club card, Darrel is captured practicing for his future duties as the Padres' bullpen coach. Wearing #35, Darrel appeared in relief in 101 games for the Phils in 1990 and 1991. Only Roger McDowell (72) appeared in more games for the Phillies in 1990 than Darrel (71).

When the 1991 Stadium Club set first appeared, I thought the appearance of each player's Topps rookie card on the back was incredibly cool. In some cases, I enjoyed looking at the rookie card on the back more than I enjoyed looking at the picture on the front. I hope Darrel doesn't take this personally.

Padres at Phillies: April 17th through April 20th

Friday & Saturday 7:05, Sunday 1:35, Monday 7:05

Records: Padres 7-3, 1st Place in N.L. West; Phillies 4-4, 3rd Place in N.L. East
Former Phillies with the Padres: Bullpen Coach Darrel Akerfelds pitched with the Phillies in 1990 and 1991.
Notable: In the first half-inning of Friday's broadcast on Comcast Network Philadelphia, there will be no commentary, to honor the memory of Harry Kalas. The ceremonial first balls will be thrown out by Harry's sons Todd, Brad and Kane and there will be a moment of silence before Kane sings the national anthem.
Phillies Probables: Cole Hamels, Brett Myers, Chan Ho Park, Jamie Moyer
Padres Probables: Chris Young, Shawn Hill, Walter Silva, Kevin Correia

1961 Topps #103 Ruben Amaro

Ruben Amaro, Sr. is the father of current Phillies General Manager, Ruben Amaro, Jr. Ruben Sr. played with the Phillies from 1960 to 1965, winning a Gold Glove at shortstop in 1964. He joined the Phillies coaching staff in 1980, but followed Dallas Green to the Chicago Cubs after the 1981 season. Ruben Sr. eventually made his way back to the Phillies' organization in the early 2000s as the manager of the Phillies' Gulf Coast League team.

1965 Topps #203 Dallas Green

In honor of my Mom's birthday, I'll feature a few Phillies cards from the '60s. She wanted to know why I haven't featured any of my '60s cards, so I'll post a few.

Dallas pitched for the Phillies from 1960 to 1964 and again in 1967, compiling a record of 20-22. Of course, Dallas is best know for managing the Phillies to their first World Championship in 1980. He's still with the Phillies as a senior advisor to the General Manager, a position he's held since 1998. In 2006, Dallas was inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame.

New Poll!

For the past few weeks, I've been chronicling all Phillies cards from the 1956 Topps set. What Phillies team or team set should I cover next? I've narrowed it down to 4 choices:

1972 Topps Phillies - This is my most recently completed vintage Topps set. The '72s are unmistakably Funky. Can you dig it?
1975 Topps Phillies - My first and probably my favorite completed Topps set.
1980 Phillies - I'd cover a key card (most likely my favorite card) of each member of the 1980 World Champions.
1993 Phillies - Harry's favorite team . . . I'd cover the best cards of each member of the 1993 N.L. Champs, with the high probability of several John Kruk cards.

Poll Results

Poll Question: What do you think of this blog?

The votes are in, the people have spoken (all 13 of them) and the first Phillies Room poll has ended in a tie. 5 people strongly felt this blog is wicked cool, while 5 people have voiced their anticipation of additional Chachi cards. 2 voters clearly think I have too much time on my hands and that I should be more engaged in my chosen profession. Unfortunately, 1 voter seems to be completely and totally confused by the blog.

The results of this poll have in no way been tainted by the fact that almost half the voters are family members.

1956 Topps #220 Del Ennis

Born in Philadelphia, Del Ennis was always a Phillies fan favorite. He came up with the Phillies in 1946 and was a fixture in the Phillies' line-up through the 1956 season. Del's RBI total from 1946 to 1959 (1,284) was second only to Stan Musial during that period, and he led the National League in RBI (126) during the 1950 pennant-winning season. He was the Phillies all-time home run leader with 257 until Mike Schmidt surpassed him in 1980. Del still holds the Phillies record for most home runs by an outfielder, trailed by Chuck Klein (241) and Pat Burrell (235).

I received this card on Christmas Day 1996. When questioned, Santa revealed he had purchased the card at an earlier Deptford Mall baseball card show for $9.

1956 Topps #211 Murry Dickson

Murry Dickson was a 20-game winner with the Pirates in 1951 and earned a save in the 1953 All-Star Game. He pitched with the Phillies from 1954 until his May 1956 trade to the St. Louis Cardinals with Herm Wehmeier.

This was another Hummell's purchase in October 1987.

2007 Chachi #44 Rain Delay HL

After steady rain all day today, the Phillies/Nationals game was rained out. Back on July 8, 2007, the entire Phillies team came together during a monsoon-like storm in Denver. From the Phillies website, detailing the event:

With rain and fierce winds making personal safety a concern before the start of the seventh inning -- turning the task of covering the field into an adventure -- most of the Phillies' players and coaches did the only thing they could. Help. "The guy might have died," Greg Dobbs said. "He was trapped under there. We were watching and once it got to a point, we were all like, 'We gotta do something.'" Aaron Rowand and Chase Utley clung to a section in left field. Michael Bourn, Jimmy Rollins and Cole Hamels grabbed a large piece along the third-base line. Shane Victorino waged his own personal war near third base -- tightly gripping his section and not letting go. He won. "It was incredible," said Mark Razum, Colorado's head groundskeeper.

2009 Chachi #23 Scott Eyre

Lou Piniella's loss is the Phillies' gain. Scott apparently found himself in Sweet Lou's doghouse and was traded to the Phillies last August.

Phillies debut: August 10, 2008
Major League debut: August 1, 1997
Former teams: Chicago White Sox 1997-2000, Toronto Blue Jays 2001-2002, San Francisco Giants 2002-2005, Chicago Cubs 2006-2008
How acquired: Acquired from the Chicago Cubs for Brian Schlitter, August 7, 2008
2008 Postseason: Scott pitched in 5 Postseason games for the Phillies, and had a key strikeout of Akinori Iwamura to close out the 7th inning of World Series Game 3.
Pictured: October 26, 2008 - World Series Game 4

2009 Chachi #22 Clay Condrey

As mentioned here, Clay was one of the early inspirations for creating my own card set. Seriously, go ahead and try to find a Clay Condrey baseball card. Poor dude.

Phillies debut: April 26, 2006
Major League debut: August 28, 2002
Former team: San Diego Padres 2002-2003
How acquired: Acquired from the San Diego Padres for Trino Agular, March 28, 2004
2008 Postseason: Clay pitched a game each in the NLDS and the NLCS, but did not appear in the World Series.
Pictured: April 17, 2008 - Clay is congratulated by Chris Coste after wrapping up a Phillies 10-2 victory over the Astros.

2009 Chachi #21 Chad Durbin

In 2008, only Brad Lidge (72), Ryan Madson (76) and J.C. Romero (81) appeared in more games than Chad Durbin (71). It honestly seemed as if Chad pitched in every single game last season. When Chad's not pitching, he's Tweeting.

Phillies debut: March 31, 2008
Major League debut: September 26, 1999
Former teams: Kansas City Royals 1999-2002, Cleveland Indians 2003-2004, Arizona Diamondbacks 2004, Detroit Tigers 2006-2007
How acquired: Signed as a free agent formerly with the Detroit Tigers, December 20, 2007
2008 Postseason: Pitched in 6 games throughout the Postseason, compiling a 2.70 ERA.
Pictured: October 26, 2008 - World Series Game 4

2009 Chachi #20 Jack Taschner

WANTED: A decent picture of Jack Taschner in a Phillies' uniform. I am embarrassed by the current state of Jack's card and this situation will not be tolerated. Do not let this travesty continue.

Phillies debut: April 5, 2009
Major League debut: June 11, 2005
Former team: San Francisco Giants 2005-2008
How acquired: Acquired from the San Francisco Giants for Ronny Paulino, March 27, 2009
Pictured: 2009 Spring Training action with the Giants

UPDATE, April 17: Jack had a rough night last night, giving up 4 runs to the Nationals in the 8th inning. The updated picture shows Jack in a state of dismay and confusion as he watched his ERA rise to 9.00 against the lowly Nationals. More specifically, Jack is probably thinking, "I hope this picture isn't used for my 2009 Chachi card". I'm still holding out for a better picture, possibly from the 2009 Yearbook.

UPDATE, May 25: The Googles have led me to a better picture to use for Jack Taschner's 2009 Chachi card. This shot is apparently from Jack's appearance on May 13, 2009.

2009 Chachi #19 J.A. Happ

I think Harry would have wanted us to get back to baseball . . .

So on to the Phillies' 2009 opening day bullpen! We'll start with J.A. Happ, the lefty long-man, currently toiling in the bullpen until he's needed back in the rotation.

Phillies debut: June 30, 2007

How acquired: Selected by Phillies in the 3rd round of June 2004 draft

2008 Postseason: J.A. beat out Rudy Seanez for the 25th spot on the Phillies' Postsean roster. He pitched 3 innings in NLCS Game 3.

Pictured: October 12, 2008 - NLCS Game 3

1984 Tastykake Phillies #7 Phillies Broadcasters

I think this is how I'll best remember Harry Kalas and Richie Ashburn. This team of broadcasters worked together from 1977 until Whitey's passing in 1997.

2009 Chachi #32 Harry Kalas

Harry Kalas passed away today, at the age of 73. Very, very sad, but at least he's back with Whitey again. As already discussed here, like most baseball fans growing up in this area, Harry and Whitey and the Phillies were a huge part of my summers. With the exception of my parents and my sister, I've probably heard Harry's voice more often in my 35 years than anyone else's voice.

As my Dad told me, "He lived a full life and he died with his boots on".

I have so many memories of Harry Kalas . . . He announced my name before I took batting practice with the Phillies in the summer of 1982. I was in North Carolina in 1993 when the Phillies clinched the N.L. East and my parents held the phone up to the TV so I could listen to Harry call the final out against the Pirates. I was there when he revealed the #1 on the outfield wall for the Vet Countdown and he gestured up to the heavens to his long-time partner. The poem Harry read during his Hall of Fame induction thanking all Phillies fans is framed and hanging on my office wall. And Jenna and I were there last Wednesday when Harry threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the game.

I came home from work this afternoon to watch the game and to play with Doug. We were playing with his cars when they replayed Harry calling the final out of the 2008 World Series. Doug looked up from his cars as he heard the familiar voice announce Brad Lidge's strikeout of Eric Hinske, and he smiled. He looked at me, still smiling, and said, "Go Phillies!" Thank you Harry.

1983 Donruss #626 Pat Corrales MG

The coolest thing about Pat Corrales' stint as Phillies manager is that his last name rhymed with Dallas. This allowed Terry Cashman, in his 1982 classic, "Talkin' Baseball (Phillies Baseball)" to sing the line, "Goodbye to Dallas, hello Corrales, and let's play ball!"

Pat played for the Phillies from 1964 to 1965. He was brought in to manage the Phils in 1982, after Dallas Green departed for the Cubs. Pat was fired mid-way through the 1983 season (even though the Phillies were in 1st place!) and replaced by then Phillies general manager, Paul Owens. Pat spent 9 years as the Braves' bench coach and he's now a special assistant to the general manager for the Nationals.

1975 Topps #351 Bob Boone

Bob Boone and Carlos Ruiz - the two will be forever linked for catching the final strike of the final out of the clinching World Series wins in 1980 and 2008.

Bob Boone caught for the Phillies from 1972 to 1981. I still remember the first time I saw Boonie's 1982 Topps Traded card picturing him with the California Angels - it just looked weird.

Bob is now in the Nationals' front office as an assistant general manager and vice president in charge of player development.

Phillies at Nationals: April 13th through April 16th

Monday 3:05, Wednesday & Thursday 7:05

Records: Phillies 3-3, Tied for 3rd Place in N.L. East; Nationals 0-6, Last Place in N.L. East

Former Phillies with the Nationals: Bob Boone is the Nationals' Assistant GM & VP, Player Development. Pat Corrales is a Special Assistant to the GM.

Notable: Monday is the Nationals 2009 home opener.

Phillies Probables: Jamie Moyer, Joe Blanton, Cole Hamels

Nationals Probables: Daniel Cabrera, Shairon Martis, John Lannan