Friday, August 8, 2014

2014 Topps Philadelphia Phillies 60th Anniversary Ryan Howard

Phillies 6, Astros 5
Game 115 - Thursday Night, August 7th in Philadelphia
Record - 52-63, 5th Place, 11 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  Ryan Howard's dramatic eighth-inning grand slam gave the Phillies a 6-5 lead and the eventual, impressive come-from-behind win.

What It Means:  Sure, the Astros aren't very good, but a series sweep is a series sweep.  It would be great to see the team get back to .500 before season's end.

What Happened:  Spot starter Sean O'Sullivan was roughed up early, allowing five runs (on three home runs) in his six innings of work.  The Phils clawed back with a five-run eighth, capped by Howard's slam.

Featured Card:  It's nice to see Howard pop up more often on the blog these days.  This is his card from the limited edition five-card Phillies team set available from the Topps website, celebrating the 60th anniversary of the 1955 Topps set.

Transaction:  Early yesterday afternoon, the Phillies finally announced their first semi-major deal of the season, sending starting pitcher Roberto Hernandez to the Dodgers for two players to be named later or cash.  Hernandez is currently tied for the team lead in wins with six.  Unless he appears as a Phillie in the Topps Update set, Hernandez's sole Phillies card will be his oversized card in the team issued set.

O'Sullivan was summoned from Toledo, where the IronPigs are playing, to make the emergency start in Hernandez's place.

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