Wednesday, April 7, 2021

Game 5 - 2020 Topps #402 Vince Velasquez

Mets 8
, Phillies 4
Game 5 - Tuesday Night, April 6th in Philadelphia
Record - 4-1, 1st Place, 1 game ahead of the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  The bullpen struggled in the Phillies' first loss of the season.

What It Means:  I genuinely wonder how long a leash Vince Velasquez has at this point.  The team's fifth starter, Chase Anderson, kept the Phillies in the game by allowing two runs in five innings of work.  The bullpen duo of Velasquez and David Hale couldn't keep the Mets off the scoreboard.

What Happened:  In his Phillies debut, Anderson allowed a pair of hits, including a two-run home run to Dominic Smith in the fourth.  Didi Gregorius got the Phillies to within a run when his solo home run made it a 2-1 game in the bottom of the fourth.  Velasquez dominated in the sixth, striking out the side.  But then he fell apart in the seventh, walking four in a row before departing.  Hale allowed a two-run home run to Pete Alonso in the ninth.

Featured Card:  In five seasons with the Phillies, Velasquez has been maddeningly inconsistent.  He's either brilliant and unhittable or wild and extremely hittable.  He doesn't have any 2021 baseball cards yet, and this is his card from last year's Topps flagship second series release.

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