2010 Chachi #5 Jayson Werth

Not to be confused with his Special Edition beard variation Chachi card, this is Jayson Werth's base set card, #5 in this year's series.

Phillies debut: April 4, 2007

Major League debut: September 1, 2002

How acquired: Signed by the Phillies as a free agent formerly with the Los Angeles Dodgers, December 18, 2006

Others wearing #28 in the 2000s: Chris Pritchett 2000, Reggie Taylor 2000-2001, Eric Junge 2002-2003, Valerio de los Santos 2003, Rich Dubee (coach) 2005-2006, Jayson Werth 2007-2009

2009 Postseason: Jayson set a Phillies record for most home runs in one Postseason with 7.

Pictured: NLDS Game 1, October 7, 2009 - Jayson scores one of his two runs against the Rockies and the Phillies would go on to win the game, 5-1.

2010 Phillies Team Issue #27 Placido Polanco

Phillies 7, Nationals 4

Game 7 - Monday Afternoon, April 12th in Philadelphia

I took this afternoon off for a doctor's appointment which conveniently also allowed me to be home to watch the Phillies' 2010 home opener. However, I spent the duration of the game seriously distracted by a 3-year-old who wanted desperately to play Star Wars.

So here's what I was able to gather while trying to watch the game, but mostly fending off a Jawa attack.

- Jimmy Rollins was announced prior to the game as leading off and playing shortstop, but Juan Castro took the field at short to start the first. After the game, it was revealed Jimmy had strained his right calf during pre-game stretching and he'll undergo an MRI tomorrow. Crap.

- The Nationals took an early 4-0 lead against Cole Hamels, but the Phils scored twice in the 4th and five times in the 5th to complete the comeback.

- The big blows in the 5th were Placido Polanco's go-ahead 2-run single followed by Chase Utley's 2-run home run.

- Jayson Werth left the game in the 6th with left hip soreness. Werth's injury doesn't appear to be that serious at the moment, and he indicated after the game he expected to be back in action on Wednesday night.

- The back end of the bullpen looked solid as Jose Contreras, Danys Baez and Ryan Madson pitched consecutive scoreless innings to close out the game. Madson recorded his 2nd save.

Nothing against Juan Castro, but I hope he's back on the bench on Wednesday night. And hopefully I've got this Jawa insurrection under control by then.

Nationals at Phillies: April 12th through April 15th

Monday 3:05, Wednesday 7:05, Thursday 3:05

Records: Nationals 3-3 (Tied for 3rd Place in NL East with the Braves, 2 games behind the Phillies), Phillies 5-1 (1st Place in NL East, 1 game ahead of the Marlins)

Home Opener: The Budweiser Clydesdales will lead the 2010 Phillies into the ballpark and Charlie Manuel will raise the 2009 National League Champions flag from Ashburn Alley. First balls will be delivered by the Navy Leap Frogs, as they sky dive into the ballpark. The Phillies will receive their 2009 National League Champions rings on Thursday afternoon.

2010 Topps Heritage #219 Charlie Manuel MG

Blog Violation: Unofficial Rule #1 when I started the blog was, "Feature a Phillies baseball card in every post." I've been doing these series preview posts since April of last year, not once including a Phillies baseball card within the post. Oops. Starting with this series preview, I'll include a baseball card with each of these posts, which may or may not be a Phillies baseball card. (Gasp!) Rest assured, the baseball card featured will have something to do with the Phillies or their series opponent.

Nationals Probables: Jason Marquis, Craig Stammen, TBD

Phillies Probables: Cole Hamels, Kyle Kendrick, J.A. Happ

2010 Chachi #3 Chase Utley

Chase Utley, you are the man! And you're also card #3 in the 2010 Chachi set.

Phillies debut: April 4, 2003

How acquired: Selected by the Phillies in 1st round of June 2000 draft

Others wearing #26 in the 2000s: Alex Arias 2000, Marc Bombard (coach) 2001, Chase Utley 2003-2009

2009 Postseason: Chase set a National League record for most home runs in a Postseason with 5. He also set a record by reaching base safely in 27 consecutive Postseason games - a streak which began in 2007.

Pictured: World Series Game 4, November 1, 2009 - Chase homers off the Yankees' CC Sabathia in the 7th inning.

2010 Topps Phillies #PHI7 Roy Halladay

Phillies 2, Astros 1

Game 6 - Sunday Afternoon, April 11th in Houston

At the conclusion of this afternoon's game in Houston, broadcaster Larry Andersen was tossing around words like "masterful" and "wonderful" and referring to how watching that game was "a pleasure." Not that anyone had forgotten, but Roy Halladay reminded everyone watching this afternoon why he's one of the best pitchers in the game today. Doc threw a complete game, surrendering an unearned run on 7 hits. He struck out 8 while not walking anyone, setting down the last 9 batters of the game in order. He was at his best in the 6th and 7th innings, getting into trouble but then working out of his jams with seemingly little effort. The win was the 5th of the season for the Phils and the 150th of Halladay's career.

On the second pitch of the game, Jimmy Rollins homered to right off the Astros' Roy Oswalt giving the Phils the early lead. In the second, Carlos Ruiz brought home Raul Ibañez on an RBI-ground-out and that was all the scoring needed for the indisputable ace, Roy Halladay.

Other Game Notes: This is the first time the Phillies have started the season with a record of 5-1 since 1993. Placido Polanco went 0 for 3 on the day, lowering his average to .481.

Scrapbook Sunday: April 12, 1991

1991 Donruss #744 Dr. Dirt & Mr. Clean

19 years ago tomorrow, the Phillies celebrated their home opener with a pre-game tribute to the 20-year-old Veterans Stadium. Jim Bunning and Tim McCarver, the battery from the first game at the Vet participated in the pre-game ceremony as Bunning threw out the ceremonial first pitch to McCarver.

Lenny Dykstra, Darren Daulton and John Kruk led the offensive barrage against the Cardinals, as the Phillies scored early and often. And check out who started the game for the Cardinals. He struggled against the Phillies' line-up, lasting just 2 batters into the 3rd inning. I wonder what ever happened to that guy?

Dr. Dirt & Mr. Clean: As the blurb covering Lenny Dykstra's leg mentions, the opening day giveaway was a Dr. Dirt and Mr. Clean poster, featuring Dykstra and Dale Murphy. Donruss used the picture in its 1991 set, and the back of the card thanks the photographer and the Phillies for permission to use the picture.

2010 Topps Heritage #245 Ryan Howard

Phillies 9, Astros 6

Game 5 - Saturday Night, April 10th in Houston

Ryan Howard's 2-run home run in the 7th recaptured the lead for the Phillies tonight, and they never looked back. Both Howard and Jayson Werth knocked in 3 runs a piece, and Shane Victorino added a 2-run home run in the 8th. Howard's heroics helped Jamie Moyer salvage his night and record his 259th career win.

By taking the mound tonight, Moyer became one of only eight pitchers to pitch in four decades. In the bottom of the third, he had retired eight straight batters, the Phils led 4-0, and all was right with the world. No sooner had Chris Wheeler announced that Moyer was in a groove, eight straight Astros reached base and the Phils were down, 5-4. Fortunately, Moyer settled down and the bullpen combination of Chad Durbin and Danys Baez shut down the Astros' offense. Ryan Madson looked shaky in a non-save situation, but he was able to record the final three outs, giving the Phils their 4th victory of the year.

1926: The Phillies have had 10+ hits in each of the first five games of the season, tying the franchise mark set in 1926.

1965: As mentioned previously, both teams wore 1965-style uniforms tonight. One of my pet peeves is when teams go through the trouble of having these retro uniforms made, but the teams wear their regular batting helmets. The Phillies' uniforms were a little off as well, as both the numbers on the backs and the team name on the front were outlined in white - something not present on the original uniforms.

Not Good: Brad Lidge was rocked in his rehab appearance in Clearwater, allowing 4 runs on 3 hits in just 2/3 of an inning.

1968 Topps #98 Gary Sutherland

I've already documented my appreciation for Turn Back the Clock games, in which the Phillies wear retro-style uniforms. Tonight, as part of the Houston Astros' season-long celebration of their first 45 years, the Phils and Astros will take the field wearing throw back jerseys from 1965. (I would have preferred both teams wear their 1975 uniforms, but I wasn't asked.)

I'm still piecing together my collection of Phillies cards from the '60s, and this Gary Sutherland card from 1968 was the best example in my collection of what the Phillies away uniforms looked like in 1965.

For an in-depth look at the 1968 set - and 5 Phillies cards, so far - please check out the fine 1968 Topps Baseball blog.

1954 Topps #24 Granny Hamner

My son has discovered and embraced Star Wars, becoming completely and totally obsessed with everything Star Warian. (Or is it Star War-ish?) He's only 3, so we're limiting his Star Wars intake to select scenes from the first movie (Episode IV to be precise), and his Star Wars universe consists solely of the characters from that movie. What's this have to do with Granny Hamner, you may ask? I'll get to that in a bit.

I'm trying to track down newer Star Wars toys for Doug to play with, but I'm having a difficult time wading through the sheer magnitude of Star Wars product available. On Friday afternoon, I ventured into a local hobby and collectibles shop in pursuit of something Star Wars to bring home for Doug to add to his collection. His collection currently consists of his Dad's old broken-down toys - chipped paint, loose limbs, missing pieces and all. (And a new Chewbacca action figure received from his grandmother on Easter.)

I was completely overwhelmed and unprepared. There are no less than a dozen different "collections" of Star Wars action figures, including the Saga Collection, the Legacy Collection, the Clone Wars Collection and others. All I wanted was a decent Luke Skywalker to bring home to the kid and I was faced with a wall of unknown droids, Jedi knights and other aliens. Confused and defeated, I left the Star Wars wall of the shop and found more familiar territory in the form of a rotating display case containing vintage Phillies baseball cards.

The familiar visage of Granny Hamner gazed up at me, and I was happy to instantly recognize something in this crazy world of far too many Star Wars characters. And that's how this baseball card came to be in my collection. Sometimes you go searching for a Jedi and you come home with a Granny.

2010 Chachi #6 Raul Ibañez

Phillies 8, Astros 0
Game 4 - Friday Night, April 9th in Houston

The Phils look good, don't they? It doesn't matter they've started the season playing two of the weakest teams in their league, right? The team knocked out another 16 hits tonight, and the pitching shut down an anemic Astros' offense to win the game, 8-0.

There was plenty to be excited about while watching this game. J.A. Happ looked good in his 5+ innings of shutout work and reliever David Herndon was touching the mid-90s on the radar gun with his fastball.

Placido Polanco continued his torrid start, going 4 for 5 and raising his average to .579. Ryan Howard added a few doubles, just for good measure. And Raul Ibañez snapped his 3-game slump, getting 3 hits (2 of them doubles) and knocking in 3 runs. Raul had looked just awful in Spring Training and during the opening series in Washington, so I'm hoping he's found his swing in Houston.

Raauuuul is card #6 in the 2010 Chachi set.

Phillies debut: April 5, 2009

Major League debut: August 1, 1996

How acquired: Signed by the Phillies as a free agent formerly with the Seattle Mariners, December 16, 2008

Others wearing #29 in the 2000s: Jimmy Rollins 2000, P.J. Forbes 2001, Marlon Byrd 2002-2005, Danny Sandoval 2005, Michael Tucker 2005, Chris Roberson 2006-2007, Roly deArmas 2008, Raul Ibañez 2009

2009 Postseason: Raul batted .417 with runners in scoring position.

Pictured: World Series Game 5, November 2, 2009 - Raul hits a solo home run in the 7th inning off the Yankees' Phil Coke.

Other Game Notes: In the 6th, current third baseman Placido Polanco committed his first error of the season, misplaying a ground ball hit by former third baseman Pedro Feliz. The ball glanced off Polanco's thumb, and he spent the rest of the game trying to shake it off. Get well soon, Placido's thumb.

Phillies at Astros: April 9th through April 11th

Friday 8:05, Saturday 7:05, Sunday 2:05

Records: Phillies 2-1, Tied for 1st Place in NL East with the Braves and Marlins (1 game ahead of the Mets and Nationals); Astros 0-3, 5th Place in NL Central (2 games behind the Brewers, Pirates and Cardinals)

Former Astros with the Phillies: Disabled closer Brad Lidge started his career in Houston where he saved 123 games between 2002 and 2007. First base coach Davey Lopes closed out his 16-year career with the Astros in 1986 and 1987. Hitting coach Milt Thompson played parts of two seasons in Houston in 1994 and 1995. Radio broadcaster Larry Andersen pitched in 268 games with the Astros between 1986 and 1990. Finally, Special Assistant to the General Manager, Charley Kerfeld pitched in parts of four seasons with the Astros (1985-1987 and 1990).

Houston, We Have a Problem: Through the first three games of 2010, the Astros are hitting .196 as a team, with no home runs and 2 walks. New starting pitcher Brett Myers gave up a career-high 12 hits to the Giants on Wednesday.

Phillies Probables: J.A. Happ, Jamie Moyer, Roy Halladay

Astros Probables: Bud Norris, Felipe Paulino, Roy Oswalt

2001 Phillies Team Issue #47 Amaury Telemaco

Nationals 6, Phillies 5

Game 3 - Thursday Afternoon, April 8th in Washington

The last time the Phillies started a season with a 3-0 record was 2001. The Phils swept the Marlins in Miami with Amaury Telemaco, Chris Brock and Rheal Cormier recording the first three wins of the '01 season for new manager Larry Bowa. In April 2001, Nelson Figueroa was pitching in Scranton for the Phils' AAA affiliate. He'd be summoned to the big club on May 13th, eventually pitching in 19 games with the Phils in 2001.

Fast forward 9 years to this afternoon, and Nelson Figueroa was again on the mound for the Phils, wearing #44 in what I'm going to suggest (hope?) was some sort of strange homage to Vicente Padilla. (Padilla, Figueroa, Travis Lee and Omar Daal will be forever linked as the players obtained from the Diamondbacks for Curt Schilling back in July 2000.) Figueroa allowed a Ryan Zimmerman bloop RBI double in the 7th inning, permitting the Nationals to regain the lead for good and eventually win the game.

Kyle Kendrick struggled in his 2010 debut, lasting only 4 innings and allowing 5 runs on 6 hits. But the Phillies struggled mightily in clutch situations, going just 1 for 14 with runners in scoring position.

Doubles and Puddin': Jayson Werth had three doubles on the day, all against the Nationals' starting pitcher, Craig Stammen. The last Phillie to hit 4 doubles in a game was Willie "Puddin' Head" Jones, who accomplished the feat against the Boston Braves on April 20, 1949.

2008 Chachi #20 Tim Lahey

With the addition of Nelson Figueroa to the bullpen today (the righty was claimed off waivers from the New York Mets yesterday), Drew Carpenter joins an ignominious club which counts reliever Tim Lahey and third baseman Wes Helms among its members. Carpenter, Lahey and Helms all made recent Phillies' opening day rosters only to be dropped from the roster within a few games into the season - and without having appeared in a game.

On March 31, 2008, Wes Helms was included in the pre-game opening day introductions, enjoyed the game from the bench, and was designated for assignment two days later. In need of bullpen arms, the Phils had signed reliever Rudy Seanez and Helms' roster spot was needed to clear space for Seanez. After a few days in limbo, Helms was traded to the Marlins for a player to be named later. (As far as I can tell, that player has yet to be actually named.)

On March 28, 2008, the Phils claimed reliever Tim Lahey off waivers from the Cubs. (Lahey had somehow come to the Cubs via the Twins, but my memory is foggy about the details.) He made the team's Opening Day roster with Helms, but on April 5th, Brad Lidge was activated and Lahey was designated for assignment. Lahey had been on the Phillies active roster for 4 games, but did not appear in a game. He returned to the Twins' organization, where he's been biding his time ever since, hoping to one day make his Major League debut.

Lahey appears as a Phillie within 2008 Topps Series 2 (card #532), which was released in May, even though Lahey was back pitching with the Twins organization by early April. The image for Lahey's 2008 Chachi card was borrowed from his 2008 Topps card. It's a Photoshop job, but it's got to be one of the few images in existence featuring Lahey as a Phillie.

2007 Chachi #CNP Chachi Passaro

Happy 6th birthday to my favorite dog, even though you bark too much at squirrels. May your birthday bring win #3 of the 2010 season to the Phillies, and plenty of treats!

2010 Chachi #4 Ryan Howard

Phillies 8, Nationals 4
Game 2 - Wednesday Night, April 7th in Washington

Cole Hamels battled through 5 innings for the win, but it was Ryan Howard's moonshot 2-run home run that put the Phils ahead for good tonight. Hamels (5 IP, 2 ER, 4 walks, 5 strikeouts, 103 pitches) looked wild at times, and he continues to shake his head a little too much whenever he allows a base runner, but he got the job done.

Howard's 5th inning home run was the 224th of his career, moving him past Greg Luzinski for sole possession of 5th on the Phillies all-time home run list. Chuck Klein's 243 career Phillies home runs is next in line for Howard. Placido Polanco had another multi-hit night, scoring 3 runs. Interim closer Ryan Madson recorded the last 4 outs of the game for the season's first save.

The clean-up hitter, the "Big Piece", appears as card #4 in the 2010 Chachi set.

Phillies debut: September 1, 2004

How acquired: Selected in 5th round of June 2001 draft

Others wearing #6 in the 2000s: Doug Glanville 2000-2002 and 2004, Jimmy Rollins 2003, Ryan Howard 2004-2009

2009 Postseason: Ryan hit .375 in the NLDS, .333 in the NLCS with 2 home runs and 8 RBI, but just .174 in the World Series.

Pictured: November 2, 2009 - World Series Game 5

Other Game Notes: Former Phillie Tyler Walker pitched 2 scoreless innings for the Nationals, striking out 3. Ross Gload made his Phillies debut, pinch-hitting for Cole Hamels in the 6th inning, and fouling out to third.

2010 Chachi #9 Roy Halladay

Did you know Roy Halladay's first name was Harry? I sure didn't until I made the back of his 2010 Chachi card.

Phillies debut: April 5, 2010
Major League debut: September 20, 1998
How acquired: Acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays for Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor and Travis d'Arnaud, December 16, 2009
Others wearing #34 in the 2000s: Paul Byrd 2000-2001, Nick Punto 2001-2002, Kevin Millwood 2003-2004, Gavin Floyd 2005-2006, Freddy Garcia 2007, Cliff Lee 2009
Pictured: Doc makes his Phillies debut on Opening Day in Washington, April 5, 2010

2010 Chachi #2 Placido Polanco

Phillies 11, Nationals 1
Game 1 - Monday Afternoon, April 5th in Washington

Let's hope the rest of the season is this easy! The Phillies cruised this afternoon against the Nationals, taking the first game of the 2010 campaign by a decisive 11 to 1 score. Roy Halladay pitched as advertised, throwing 7 strong innings for the win while striking out 9 and scattering 6 hits. The offense also hit as advertised, collecting 13 hits on the day - 2 from Jimmy Rollins, 2 from Ryan Howard and 3 from Placido Polanco.

Polanco was the offensive star of the game, hitting a 7th inning grand slam and knocking in a total of 6 runs. Polanco makes his return to the Chachi set, following a 4-year absence.

Phillies debut: July 30, 2002

Major League debut: July 3, 1998

How acquired: Signed as a free agent formerly with the Detroit Tigers, December 3, 2009

Others wearing #27 in the 2000s: David Newhan 2000, Ricky Bottalico 2001-2002, Placido Polanco 2003-2005, Matt Kata 2005, Chris Coste 2006-2009

Pictured: Polanco in action against the Nationals on Opening Day 2009

Other Game Notes: The last time the Phillies scored this many runs on Opening Day, they defeated the Rockies, 12-6, in 1994. This is the team's first Opening Day victory since 2005. Relievers Danys Baez and David Herndon made their Phillies' debuts this afternoon. For Herndon, not only was it his Major League debut, it was the first time he had pitched above the AA level.

2010 Chachi #1 Jimmy Rollins

Last year, I rolled out the 2009 Chachi cards in a two-week-long frenzy of posts, posting the first 31 cards of the set in rapid succession. This year, I'm going to take my time as I've decided to return to the practice of making backs for each of the cards in the base set.

I've taken a few liberties with the original design of the 1974 Topps card backs. I have facsimile autographs of most of the notable Phillies, but autographs for folks like David Herndon or Juan Castro are going to be hard to come by. I made the executive decision to forego actual facsimile autographs and instead use a representation of each player's name in a script font. Also gone are the cartoons from the backs. I could scan and reproduce 40 to 50 different cartoons from the backs of the '74 Topps set, but I liked the look of the Phillies logo on the backs of the cards. (This is slightly less time consuming as well.)

As I write this, there are already 29 cards in the 2010 Chachi set, as follows:

- The opening day 25-man roster

- A team card

- 3 cards for the manager and coaches

Presented here is the first card of the set, lead-off man, and some would say leader of the club, #11, shortstop Jimmy Rollins.

Phillies debut: September 17, 2000
How acquired: Selected by the Phillies in the 2nd round of June 1996 draft

Wore #11 in the 2000s: Kevin Sefcik 2000, Jimmy Rollins 2001-2009

2009 Postseason: Hit a thrilling 2-run, walk-off double off the Dodgers' Jonathan Broxton in NLCS Game 4.

Pictured: World Series Game 5, November 2, 2009

Phillies at Nationals: April 5th through April 8th

Monday 1:05, Wednesday 7:05, Thursday 4:35

Records: It's all even, folks. Every team in the National League is tied for first place in their respective divisions. Let's play ball!

Former Expos/Nationals with the Phillies: Back-up catcher Brian Schneider came up through Montreal's system in the late '90s and he made his debut with the Expos in 2000. He was the team's primary catcher from 2004 until 2008, traveling south with the team when they relocated to Washington for the 2005 season. First base coach Davey Lopes held that same position with the Nationals in 2006 before starting his tenure with the Phils in 2007. Bench coach Pete Mackanin played with the Expos from 1975 until 1977. He was the team's starting second baseman in 1975 and he also coached third for the Expos from 1997 until 2000.

Excitement Level: High

Phillies Probables: Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, Kyle Kendrick

Nationals Probables: John Lannan, Jason Marquis, Craig Stammen

2010 Phillies Team Issue Phillies Broadcasters

I'm sitting here watching the first baseball game of 2010 (Yankees 5, Red Sox 2 in the 5th), which is fitting on Easter Sunday - a wonderful day of hope and new beginnings.

Before the Phillies open their 2010 season tomorrow afternoon in Washington, I wanted to pay tribute to the men with whom I'll be spending most of my summer. Of course I'm talking about the Phillies broadcasters. Sadly, this will be the first Phillies opening day since 1970 without their long-time broadcaster and voice, Harry Kalas. The Phils won't be wearing the "HK" memorial patch on the front of their jerseys this year, but it will be hard not to think of Harry whenever I turn on the TV to watch the game or flip on the radio to listen to a few innings on my way home from work.

Larry Andersen and Scott Franzke man the radio booth again this year, and I'll listen to them call the game every chance I get. No disrespect intended for the TV team, but I simply prefer the style and witty banter of the radio guys. Tom McCarthy handles the play-by-play duties for TV, with Gary Matthews and Chris Wheeler providing color commentary. Long-time Flyers broadcaster Jim Jackson handles the pre and post-game shows on the radio and he occasionally fills in for one of the regulars.

Go Phils!