2025 Chachi #35 Mick Abel

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'5"  Weight:  210
Opening Day 2025 Age:  23

Born:  August 18, 2001, Portland, OR
Acquired:  Drafted by the Phillies in the 1st round (15th pick) of the 2020 amateur draft, June 10, 2020

Departed:  Traded by the Phillies with Eduardo Tait to the Minnesota Twins for Jhoan Duran, July 30, 2025
Major League Teams:  Philadelphia Phillies 2025; Minnesota Twins 2025

I had anticipated Mick Abel's big league debut for years, knowing he was one of the top pitching prospects in the Phillies' system and had been, for the most part, untouchable by other teams when it came to trade discussions.  That all changed at the July trade deadline when Abel was shipped to the Twins for a much-needed dominant closer in the form of Jhoan Duran.  Abel made his major league debut on May 18th, setting a rookie club record with nine strikeouts in his six shutout innings against the Pirates.  He was 2-2 with a 5.04 ERA in his short time with the club, making six starts.  Following his trade to the Twins, Abel was 1-2 with an 8.36 ERA in four games, and two starts, including a strong outing against the Phillies on September 27th.

2025 Topps Now #194

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  2021 Bowman Prospects #BP-42
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (1):  2025
Favorite 2025 Card:  2025 Topps Now #194
Total Cards in My Phillies Collection:  33 as of 1/30/26, 4 added in 2025

TCDB Stats: 2,586 total as of 1/30/26, my 33 cards overall are ranked 7th, 1st is herkojerko with 132

Complete Chachi Checklist

2020 Chachi Almost #1 DP

2025 Chachi #35

2025 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2025 Season Summary Index / 2025 Chachi Set Checklist

2025 Chachi #34 Daniel Robert 

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2025 Chachi #36 Max Lazar

Game 161 - Phils Aren't Abel to Defeat Twins

Minnesota Twins	5
Philadelphia Phillies	0

2024 Donruss #121

Saturday Night, September 27th

Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA
95-66, 1st Place, 12 games ahead of the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Mick Abel enjoyed some revenge against his former team, pitching six shutout innings in this 5-0 punchless Phillies loss.

What It Means:  It was a long-shot, but this loss let the Brewers clinch the #1 seed in the National League playoff bracket.  The Brewers also lost to the Reds, making it even more frustrating.  Instead of facing off against the Cubs or Padres, the Phillies will wait to face the Dodgers, Mets or Reds in the NLDS.

What Happened:  Abel has struggled in his three appearances with the Twins, owning a 14.63 ERA in eight innings pitched.  But he handled his ex-teamates in this game, allowing three hits and striking out nine.  Ranger Suarez labored through 4 1/3 innings, allowing three runs on nine hits, including a pair of home runs.  He exited the game in the fifth after taking a liner off his groin.  (The injury was diagnosed post-game as a contusion.)  The Phillies had seven hits in this game, going 0 for 3 with runners in scoring position.

Featured Card:  He only pitched in six games for the Phillies this season, but I still managed to accumulate 29 of Abel's cards during his time with the organization.  This is his logo-less card from last year's Donruss set, which I picked for this post because it kind of looks like he's wearing a Twins uniform.

2025 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2025 Season Summary Index / 2025 Chachi Set Checklist

Game 108 - Phils Acquire Duran, Bader at Trade Deadline

2025 Topps #687

2025 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Series 2) #16

2025 Choice Clearwater Threshers #1

Philadelphia Phillies	3
Chicago White Sox	9

Wednesday Afternoon, July 30th

Rate Field - Chicago, IL
61-47, 2nd Place, 1/2 game behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The White Sox banged out 17 hits against five Phillies pitchers, and the offense was mostly quiet on a day highlighted by the acquisition of new closer Jhoan Duran.

What It Means:  The game was definitely an afterthought, following a 3 1/2 hour rain delay at the outset and the anticipation created by the upcoming trade deadline.

What Happened:  Taijuan Walker gave up the first seven White Sox hits, departing after five innings with  the game tied at 2-2.  Max Lazar, who had been excellent of late, got hit hard in the seventh, allowing six runs on seven hits and retiring just one batter.  RBI singles in the fourth from Nick Castellanos and Otto Kemp gave the Phillies their only two runs.

Featured Card / Transactions:  Word leaked during the game the Phillies had acquired Duran from the Twins, and the deal became official shortly after the game ended.  Duran (rhp) was acquired for Mick Abel (rhp) and Eduardo Tait (c).  Duran has been one of the game's best closers recently, and in 3 1/2 seasons with the Twins, he was 17-23 with a 2.47 ERA and 74 saves.  He's struck out 292 in 233 2/3 innings pitched.  Abel made his big league debut earlier this year, picking up a win and striking out nine Pirates over six innings.  Overall with the Phillies, he made six starts and was 2-2 with a 5.04 ERA in 25 innings pitched.  Tait, the team's top catching prospect, is a few weeks away from his 19th birthday and is likely years away from the majors.

2025 Topps #356

2025 Choice Reading Fightin Phils (Series 2) #8

On Thursday's off-day, the Phillies completed another big trade, acquiring Harrison Bader (of) from the Twins for minor leaguers Hendry Mendez (of) and Geremy Villoria (rhp).  Brett de Geus (rhp) was designated for assignment to make room for Bader on the 40-man roster.  Bader is a veteran of nine seasons, mostly with the Cardinals.  In 96 games so far this season with the Twins, he's batting .258 with 12 home runs and 38 RBIs.

Finally, in a smaller deal, Matt Manning (rhp) was acquired from the Tigers for Josueth Quinonez (of).  Manning was optioned to Lehigh Valley and Devin Sweet (rhp) was DFA'd for a 40-man roster spot.

2025 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2025 Season Summary Index / 2025 Chachi Set Checklist

Game 46 - Abel is More Than Able in MLB Debut, Outduels Skenes

Pittsburgh Pirates	0
Philadelphia Phillies	1

2025 Topps Now #194

Sunday Afternoon, May 18th

Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA
28-18, 2nd Place, 1/2 game behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Making his big league debut, Mick Abel shut down the Pirates for six innings, striking out nine, as the Phillies squeaked by Paul Skenes and the Pirates, 1-0.

What It Means:  The win completed the three-game sweep against the Pirates, with a four-game series in Denver up next.  The Rockies have won eight games all season.

What Happened:  Abel was calm, cool and collected on the mound, scattering five hits, walking none and tying the franchise record for strikeouts in a debut with nine.  Curt Simmons also had nine strikeouts in his debut with the Phillies on September 28, 1947.  The Pirates outhit the Phillies, six to three, but the Phillies were able to manufacture a run in the fifth inning.  Nick Castellanos led off with a single and hustled to third when Max Kepler singled to right.  Brandon Marsh grounded out to short, barely beating out a potential double play, scoring Castellanos.  Orion Kerkering, Matt Strahm and Jordan Romano pitched the final three scoreless innings, striking out five more Pirates batters.

Featured Card:  As expected/hoped Topps issued a Topps Now card for Abel's performance and MLB debut.

Transaction:  The good vibes generated by Abel's debut were somewhat negated from the very bad news for the Phillies' bullpen.  Abel (rhp) was recalled from Lehigh Valley, with Daniel Robert (rhp) heading back down.  Jose Alvarado (lhp) was placed on the restricted list after testing positive for a PED.  The team's closer was suspended 80 games and he's ineligible for the postseason.  Jose Ruiz (rhp) was activated from the injured list to take his place in the bullpen.  Alvarado was a likely candidate for the All-Star Game, and now he'll miss the bulk of the summer and all of October.

2025 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2025 Season Summary Index / 2025 Chachi Set Checklist

Spring Training Game 17 - Offense Rips Sox

Philadelphia Phillies	18
Boston Red Sox	8

2024 Choice Reading Fightin
Phils Top 10 #4

Spring Training Game 17

Tuesday Afternoon, March 11

JetBlue Park - Fort Myers, FL

Record - 8-8-1

One Sentence Summary:  A line-up of non-veteran starters with some reserves and Triple-A depth clubbed 13 hits and scored 18 runs against the Red sox in this 18-8 romp.

What It Means:  The Phillies concluded their mini road trip to Fort Myers going 2-0 against the Twins and Red Sox, and with signs of life from the offense.

What Happened:  The hits were equally dispersed throughout the line-up with Bryson Stott and Johan Rojas having multi-hit games.  The big hits came from Buddy Kennedy and Otto Kemp.  Kennedy, who has played all over the diamond this spring, hit a two-run home in the second.  Kemp added a two-run triple in the sixth.  Catcher Josh Breaux hit a monster solo home run to left in the ninth.

Pitching prospect Mick Abel got the start and didn't fare well.  He allowed four runs (three earned) on four hits in 1 2/3 innings.

Featured Card:  Better things will come for Abel, but for now he'll start his season with the IronPigs.

Camp Head Count:  53 - 5 = 48

Abel (rhp) was optioned to Triple-A following the game.  Paul McIntosh (c), Kemp (inf), Matt Kroon (of) and Gabriel Rincones, Jr. (of) were all reassigned to minor league camp.

2024-25 Offseason - Pre-Thanksgiving Notes

2024 Choice Reading Fightin Phils (3rd Edition) #37

2024 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #15

2022 Choice Delmarva Shorebirds #18

2024 Choice Jersey Shore BlueClaws #7

Here's a look at a few recent Phillies-related news items as we head towards one of the best holidays of the year - Thanksgiving.

Lowy Joins Coaching Staff:  It looks as if the only turnover on manager Rob Thomson's coaching staff will be the assistant pitching coach.  Brian Kaplan recently left that role, taking the primary pitching coach position with the Diamondbacks.  He appeared on a few hard to find Phillies team-issued photo cards in 2022 and 2023, and I don't believe there are too many of those in the wild.

Replacing Kaplan is Mark Lowy.  Lowy joined the Phillies' organization in 2021 and has served as a backroom pitching analyst since then.  He played college baseball at Gettysburg College and has no baseball cards (yet) to his name.

Painter Wins Award:  On the road to recovery following Tommy John surgery, Andrew Painter (rhp) was named as the Arizona Fall League's Pitcher of the Year.  He was 2-0 with a 2.30 ERA in six starts, striking out 18 and walking four over 15 2/3 innings.  I would expect to see Painter hopefully pitching in Philly at some point in 2025.

40-Man Roster Moves:  On Tuesday, the Phillies added pitching prospects Mick Abel (rhp), Jean Cabrera (rhp) and Moises Chace (rhp) to their 40-man roster, protecting them from the upcoming rule 5 draft.  John McMillon, claimed off waivers from the Marlins on November 4th, cleared waivers and was outrighted to the IronPigs.  The Phillies currently have 39 spaces filled on their 40-man roster.

Spring Training 2024: Phillies Announce 15 Non-Roster Invitees

2023 Topps Pro Debut #PD-86

2023 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #17

2023 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #11

2023 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #13

2023 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #12

In a sure sign we're getting closer to baseball again, the Phillies today announced their first 15 non-roster invitees to spring training, which will officially open next month in Clearwater, Florida.  I say "first" as the team has typically added on invitees as the reporting date approaches.  The list below summarizes the Phillies players who will likely be sporting numbers in the 70s and 80s and takes a look at their most recently released mainstream baseball cards, if any.  Only four of the players below are new to the Phillies organization for 2024.

Player (position) - 2023 Organization - Last Major Baseball Card

1.  Mick Abel (rhp) - Phillies - 2023 Topps Pro Debut #PD-86

2.  Ryan Burr (rhp) - Rays - 2019 Topps Total (White Sox)

3.  Griff McGarry (rhp) - Phillies - 2023 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs #CPA-GM

4.  Tyler McKay (rhp) - Phillies - N/A

5.  Tyler Phillips (rhp) - Phillies - 2019 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs #CPA-TP

6.  Jose Ruiz (rhp) - White Sox / Diamondbacks - 2020 Topps Total #720 (White Sox)

7.  Nick Snyder (rhp) - Rangers - N/A

8.  Aramis Garcia (c) - Phillies - 2020 Topps Total #477 (Giants)

9.  Cody Roberts (c) - Phillies - N/A

10.  William Simoneit (c) - Athletics - N/A

11.  Scott Kingery (inf) - Phillies - 2022 Topps Opening Day Luck of the Irish #LI-3

12.  Nick Podkul (inf) - Phillies - N/A

13.  Carlos De La Cruz (of) - Phillies - 2023 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs #CPA-CDC

14.  Matt Kroon (of) - Phillies - N/A

15.  Cal Stevenson (of) - Athletics / Giants / Phillies - 2023 Topps Heritage #508

2023 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #20

2023 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #4

2023 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #24

2023 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #28

2023 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #29

Game 88 - Phils, Suarez Fall to Fish in Miami

2023 Choice Reading
Fightin Phils #40

Marlins 5, Phillies 3
Game 88 - Saturday Afternoon, July 8th in Miami
Record - 48-40, 3rd Place, 12 games behind the Braves

Completely Unnecessary Post-Vacation Game Recap Post 9 of 10

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies bats were largely quiet and Ranger Suarez had another iffy outing in this 5-3 loss to the Marlins.

What It Means:  Probably the scariest moment of this game was Bryce Harper getting drilled in his surgically repaired elbow by Marlins pitcher Braxton Garrett in the third inning.  Harper would leave the game as a precaution and come back seemingly fine following the All-Star Game break.

What Happened:  Suarez pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits and four walks.  Trea Turner hit a solo home run in the top of the first, his 10th of the year.  The Marlins would score three times in the bottom of the first off Suarez.  In the second, the Phillies tied the game following an RBI double from Cristian Pache and an RBI groundout from Kyle Schwarber.  That was it for the Phillies in the runs department.  The Marlins took the lead in the fourth off Suarez and scored a seventh inning insurance run off reliever Yunior Marte.

Featured Card:  The annual Futures Game took place on Saturday night, with top prospects Mick Abel and Justin Crawford representing the Phillies.  Abel got the start for the National League Futures team, pitching a scoreless first inning and striking out a pair.  He'd get the win after his team won in a 5-0 shutout.  Crawford started as the National League's DH and went 0 for 2 with an RBI.  The newest card of Abel's in my collection is from the 2023 Reading Fightin Phils team set.

2023 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2023 Season Summary Index / 2023 Chachi Set Checklist

Spring Training Game 22 - Phils Fall Quietly to Braves

2021 Topps Heritage Minor
League 1972 Topps Poster Card 
#72BPC-15

Braves 5, Phillies 1
Spring Training Game 22 - Saturday Night, March 18th in North Port
Record - 11-10-1

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies line-up collected just two hits, including a solo home run from Brandon Marsh, in this 5-1 loss to the Braves.

What It Means:  We were admittedly watching the World Baseball Classic during this game, and the Phillies were an afterthought.

What Happened:  Marsh hit his home run to lead-off the game, and then the offense pretty much took off for the next eight innings.

Featured Card:  Mick Abel got the start, and was nearly perfect in his two innings of work, allowing just one walk.  He struck out a pair.  With fellow top pitching prospect Andrew Painter on the shelf with elbow issues, Abel could conceivably make his big league debut with the Phillies before Painter.  The Phillies' top draft pick in 2020, I already have 18 different Abel cards in my collection, including this cool card from 2021 Topps Heritage Minor League in the style of a 1972 Topps Poster.

Camp Head Count:  55

Phillies Add 21 Non-Roster Invitees to Spring Camp

2022 Topps Pro Debut #PD-8

2022 Choice Jersey Shore BlueClaws #5

2022 Choice Reading Fightin Phils Update #17

2022 Reading Fightin Phils Top 10 Prospects

2022  Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #35

I've faithfully tracked the Phillies' non-roster invitee announcements on this blog since 2010, and this is the latest year ever we've received news of the team's invitees.  Adding to the intrigue, the list came all at once instead of in dribs and drabs.  For comparison purposes, the fist seven invitees to 2022 spring training were announced on December 14, 2021.  Here's a look at the 21 players who will show up to Clearwater in a few weeks, along with their 2022 organization and last major baseball card appearance, if any.

Player (position) - 2022 Organization - Last Major Baseball Card

1. Mick Abel (rhp) - Phillies - 2022 Topps Heritage Minor League #173 (Phillies)
2. Mark Appel (rhp) - Phillies - 2022 Topps Now #433 (Phillies)
3. Andrew Baker (rhp) - Phillies - N/A
4. Jon Duplantier (rhp) - Dodgers - 2021 Donruss Retro 1987 Signatures #87S-JO (Diamondbacks)
5. Louis Head (rhp) - Marlins / Orioles - N/A
6. Jake Jewell (rhp) - Guardians / Twins - N/A
7. Griff McGarry (rhp) - Phillies - N/A
8. Francisco Morales (rhp) - Phillies - 2022 Topps Update #US318 (Phillies)
9. McKinley Moore (rhp) - Phillies - N/A
10. Andrew Painter (rhp) - Phillies - 2022 Topps Pro Debut #PD-48 (Phillies)
11. Billy Sullivan (rhp) - Phillies - N/A
12. Jeremy Walker (rhp) - Giants / Rays - 2020 Topps Total #777 (Braves)
13. Ben Bowden (lhp) - Rockies / Rays / Giants - 2021 Topps Update #US298 (Rockies)
14. Jim Haley (inf) - Rays - N/A
15. Scott Kingery (inf) - Phillies - 2022 Topps Opening Day Luck of the Irish #LI-3 (Phillies)
16. Vimael Machin (inf) - Athletics - 2021 Topps Heritage #502 (Athletics)
17. Will Toffey (inf) - Phillies - 2020 Bowman Prospect Autographs #PA-WT (Mets)
18. Weston Wilson (inf) - Brewers - N/A
19. Vito Friscia (c) - Phillies - N/A
20. John Hicks (c) - Cubs - 2019 Topps #593 (Tigers)
21. Max McDowell (c) - Yankees - N/A

Game 103 - 2021 Bowman Prospects #BP-42 Mick Abel

Pirates 7, Phillies 0
Game 103 - Friday Night, July 30th in Pittsburgh
Record - 51-52, 2nd Place, 3 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  On trade deadline day, the Phillies suffered one of their worst losses of the year, turning in a lifeless performance against the last place Pirates.

What It Means:  So much for a momentum swing following the dramatic Brad Miller game-winning grand slam on Thursday afternoon.

What Happened:  Vince Velasquez was shelled, pitching two innings and allowing five runs on six hits, and effectively ending his time in the starting pitching rotation.  Bryce Harper lost two balls in the outfield, contributing to the mess.  The Phillies offense had one hit - an Alec Bohm single.  Both Rhys Hoskins and Jean Segura were out of the line-up with nagging injuries.

Featured Card:  There was a complete trading frenzy across Major League Baseball on Friday with the Phillies pulling off three trades of their own.  I'm happiest about the trade that didn't happen, as last year's top draft pick, and currently the Phillies top prospect, Mick Abel was requested by a few teams as a starting point for any blockbuster deals.  Specifically, the Cubs reportedly wanted Abel as part of the return for closer Craig Kimbrel.  The Phillies held their ground and Abel remains in the system, and hopefully he'll fare better than Spencer Howard, the newest Texas Ranger.

Transactions:  In terms of the active roster, Travis Jankowski (of) was activated fro the Covid injured list.  Matt Joyce (of) was moved to the 60-day injured list and Brandon Kintzler (rhp) was designated for assignment.

2021 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2021 Season Summary Index / 2021 Chachi Set Checklist

Phils Select High School Pitcher Abel as Top Draft Pick

With the amateur player draft shortened this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Phillies yesterday selected right-handed high school pitcher Mick Abel as their top draft pick, and the 15th pick overall in the draft.  He was apparently the most coveted non-college pitcher available and he's the first high school pitcher selected by the Phillies since they took Jesse Biddle in the 2010 draft.

After learning he'd been drafted by the Phillies, Abel received a FaceTime call from current Phillies star, and his future teammate, Bryce Harper.

As I've done every year since 2014, I wanted to create a card to commemorate Abel's selection and listed below are links to the prior six Phillies top draft picks.

Memory Lane
2014 Draft - Aaron Nola (rhp)
2015 Draft - Cornelius Randolph (ss)
2016 Draft - Mickey Moniak (of)
2017 Draft - Adam Haseley (of)
2018 Draft - Alec Bohm (3b)
2019 Draft - Bryson Stott (ss)
2020 Draft - Mick Abel (rhp)