Game 152 - 2013 Bowman Platinum Prospects #BPP59 Jesse Biddle

Braves 8, Phillies 3
Game 152 - Thursday Night, September 20th in Atlanta
Record - 78-74, 2nd place, 6 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  A four-run eighth inning doomed the Phillies and hastened their now inevitable elimination from the postseason.

What It Means:  I'm ready for the offseason.  It's tough to watch these games and the joy experienced when watching (some) games earlier in the season has all but evaporated.  And I can't help but wonder how many more games Pete Mackanin would have won with this same flawed roster.

What Happened:  Jorge Alfaro singled in the 3rd to score Asdrubal Cabrera and tie up the game at 3-3.  The game stayed tied until the 7th when Tommy Hunter allowed back-to-back doubles to Dansby Swanson and Lucas Duda, giving the Braves a 4-3 lead.  Luis Garcia entered in the 8th, did not retire a batter, and allowed four more runs to score.

Featured Card:  Jesse Biddle was the beneficiary of the win for the Braves, as he had recorded the final two outs in the top of the 7th.  I'm sincerely glad to see Biddle finding success, but I just wish he had found it while wearing red pinstripes.

Game 17 - 2013 Topps Heritage Minor Leage Road to the Show #RTTS-JBI Jesse Biddle

Braves 7, Phillies 3
Game 17 - Wednesday Night, April 18th in Atlanta
Record - 10-7, Tied for 2nd place, 3 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  New Phillie-killer Ryan Flaherty's three-run home run in the fifth ended up sinking the Phillies, 7-3.

What It Means:  Flaherty was released by the Phillies at the end of spring training, and his .365 average currently leads the National League.  He added an RBI-single in the eighth.  Flaherty's playing time may be limited going forward as the Braves signed Jose Bautista yesterday to eventually serve as their primary third baseman.

What Happened:  The home run allowed to Flaherty was Vince Velasquez's only real mistake, as the starter allowed just those three runs in his six innings of work.  Hoby Milner allowed three more runs in the eighth.  The offense was mostly quiet.  Velasquez started the scoring with an RBI-single in the fifth. 

Featured Card:  The Braves recalled lefty Jesse Biddle from Triple-A Gwinnett before the game, marking the former Phillies prospect's first time on a big league roster.  He did not get into this game.  The Phillies number one draft pick in 2010 has missed significant time during his career battling injuries and he missed the entire 2016 season following Tommy John surgery.  The Phillies Room wishes Biddle nothing but success, unless he's facing the Phillies.

2013 Bowman Platinum Autograph Prospects #BPAP-JBI Jesse Biddle

Phillies 7, Braves 4
Spring Training Game 9 - Saturday Afternoon, March 4th in Clearwater
Record - 4-3-2

One Sentence Summary:  Chris Coghlan and Andrew Knapp contributed key doubles in the seventh inning, allowing the Phillies to mount a 7-4 come-from-behind win.

What It Means:  Maikel Franco also continued his hot spring with an RBI single in the first and he now owns a .385 average (5 for 13).

What Happened:  Jared Eickhoff allowed three runs (two earned) in his three innings of work. Drew Anderson impressed with three strong innings in which he struck out three.  J.P. Crawford is scuffling so far this spring, going 0 for 4 and dropping his average to .143.

Featured Card:  Former Phillies top prospect Jesse Biddle, now with the Braves, saw his first game action since August 27, 2015.  Biddle is attempting to come back from Tommy John surgery.  The Phillies' first round draft pick in 2010 walked Tommy Joseph to start the fourth inning, but then retired the next three batters he faced.

I'd love to see Biddle have a successful career, given how much he's had to battle to get to this point. I just hope his success doesn't come at the expense of the Phillies.  This is one of three on-card autographs I have of his in my collection from 2013 Bowman products.

Camp Head Count:  62

Off Day Odds & Ends - 1984 Tastykake Phillies & 2016 Chachi Almost

2016 Chachi Almost #5

2016 Chachi Almost #6

2016 Chachi Almost #7

2016 Chachi Almost #8

Yesterday's off day gives me the chance to post some images saved to my drafts folder and provide an update to my series on the Phillies team issued sets.

First up is a group of Chachi Almost cards, featuring players who never officially played with the team and these four players were all non-roster invitees to spring training.  Ernesto Frieri was released on April 5th and he has yet to latch on elsewhere.  Catcher J.P. Arencibia requested and received his release from the IronPigs on May 16th and signed with the Rays organization a few days later.

Ryan Jackson's services were no longer needed in Lehigh Valley when J.P. Crawford earned his promotion and he was sold to the Angels on May 20th.  Finally, Bobby LaFromboise, who appeared to be close to making the team out of spring training, was released on June 2nd.  His spot on the IronPigs was claimed by the activated Mario Hollands who missed all of last season following Tommy John surgery.  LaFromboise is the only one of this quartet with an official Phillies baseball card, having appeared in the first team issued photo card set.

2016 Chachi Almost #1

2016 Chachi Almost #2

Both Kelly Dugan and Jesse Biddle were on the offseason 40-man roster, but were eventually removed and moved on to other teams.  Dugan is currently playing with the Cubs Double-A team in Tennessee after spending his first seven professional seasons with the Phillies organization.

Biddle is recovering from Tommy John surgery and will miss the entire 2016 season.  He was traded to the Pirates in early February for pitcher Yoervis Medina and then claimed off waivers by the Braves in March.  He's currently on the Braves 60-day disabled list.

* * *

Reader and Friend O' the Blog Steve F. recently e-mailed me the image below, showing an uncut sheet of 1984 Tastykake Phillies cards.  The sheet includes the rarely seen seven "update" cards, including the very difficult to find cards of Steve Jeltz, Darren Daulton and Steve Fireovid.  As reader and collector Rick pointed out in his comment to the original 1984 Tastykake Phillies post, these update cards were never released to the general public.  A local baseball card dealer somehow obtained the sheets and had them professionally cut, selling the additional seven update cards as a separate set.

I still find this stuff fascinating and thanks to Steve F. for sending me the image below.  And I still need the Fireovid and Jeltz cards for my collection!

Phils Trade Biddle to Pirates for Medina

2013 Bowman Inception Prospect Autographs #PA-JBI

2014 Topps Update #US265

Jesse Biddle's Phillies career came to end on Wednesday afternoon when the Phillies traded their former number one pick to the Pirates for right-handed pitcher Yoervis Medina.  Biddle, who will miss all of 2016 following Tommy John surgery, was designated for assignment last week to make room for Bobby LaFromboise.

Medina has been invited to spring training, increasing the camp head count to 65.  He split time last season between the Mariners and Cubs, appearing in 17 games with a 4.71 ERA.  Medina has appeared in both the 2013 and 2014 Topps Update sets with the Mariners.

I'm bummed to see Biddle go, and I certainly wish him nothing but success with the Pirates.  Unless of course he's pitching against the Phillies.  I have 33 Biddle cards in my collection dating back to 2010, four of which contain his autograph.  Sadly, unless he comes back to the organization later in his career, he'll never get to grace an official Chachi card.  I'm sure he's truly bummed about this too.

Player (position) - 2015 Organization - Last Major Baseball Card Appearance
1.  James Russell (lhp) - Cubs - 2015 Topps #255 (Braves)
2.  Emmanuel Buriss (inf) - Nationals - 2010 Topps Update #US-82 (Giants)
3.  Ryan Jackson (inf) - Royals/Angels - 2013 Panini Prizm #238 (Cardinals)
4.  Frank Herrmann (rhp) - Angels/Pirates - 2010 Topps Update #US-89 (Indians)
5.  Chris Leroux (rhp) - Brewers/Phillies - 2013 Panini Select #205 (Pirates)
6.  Reinier Roibal (rhp) - Phillies - N/A
7.  J.P. Arencibia (c) - Orioles/Rays - 2014 Topps #627 (Rangers)
8.  Greg Burke (rhp) - Blue Jays - 2009 Bowman Chrome #103 (Padres)
9.  Ernesto Frieri (rhp) - Rays - 2014 Topps #240 (Angels)
10.  Gregory Infante (rhp) - Blue Jays - 2011 Topps Allen & Ginter #84 (White Sox)
11.  Angelys Nina (inf) - Rockies - 2012 Bowman Prospects #BP45 (Rockies)
12.  Andrew Bailey (rhp) - Yankees - 2013 Topps Heritage #344 (Red Sox)
13.  Edward Mujica (rhp) - Red Sox/Athletics - 2015 Topps #131 (Red Sox)
14.  Cedric Hunter (of) - Braves - 2011 Topps #554 (Padres)
15.  Mark Appel (rhp) - Astros - 2015 Topps Heritage Minor Leagues #219 (Astros)
16.  J.P. Crawford (ss) - Phillies - 2015 Topps Heritage Minor Leagues #208 (Phillies)
17.  Zach Eflin (rhp) - Phillies - 2014 Topps Pro Debut #184 (Padres)
18.  Andrew Knapp (c) - Phillies - 2014 Topps Heritage Minor Leagues #146 (Phillies)
19.  Gabriel Lino (c) - Phillies - 2012 Bowman Chrome Prospects #BCP199 (Phillies)
20.  Logan Moore (c) - Phillies - 2011 Bowman Draft Chrome Prospects #BDPP44 (Phillies)
21.  Brock Stassi (1b) - Phillies - N/A
22.  Jake Thompson (rhp) - Rangers/Phillies - 2015 Topps Heritage Minor Leagues #129 (Rangers)
23.  Nick Williams (of) - Rangers/Phillies - 2015 Topps Heritage Minor Leagues #175 (Rangers)
24.  David Lough (of) - Orioles - 2015 Topps #290 (Orioles)
25.  Yoervis Medina (rhp) - Mariners/Cubs - 2014 Topps Update #US265 (Mariners)

LaFromboise Added to List of Bullpen Candidates

2016 Chachi New Additions #12

2015 Topps Pro Debut #47

2016 Chachi Departures #11

2016 Chachi Departures #12

The long list of Phillies offseason comings and goings got a little longer on Friday when the team claimed left-handed reliever Bobby LaFromboise off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels. LaFromboise appeared in 11 games last season for the Pirates, pitching to a 1.13 ERA over eight innings.  This is the fourth time in two years that he's been plucked from the waiver wire, having bounced from the Mariners to the Padres to the Pirates to Angels to the Phillies.

To make room for the new reliever on the 40-man roster, former top prospect Jesse Biddle was designated for assignment.  Biddle, who is from Philadelphia, was the team's #1 pick in 2010, but injuries have hampered his professional career so far.  He's set to miss the entire 2016 season following Tommy John surgery.

Finally, a few other former Phillies found homes this past week when the Rangers signed Jordan Danks and the Cubs signed Jonathan Pettibone.

Moving On - 2015-2016 Offseason

• Chase d'Arnaud - inf (10/9/15) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent the Atlanta Braves, 11/24/15.
• Justin De Fratus - rhp (10/9/15) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed with the Seattle Mariners, 12/2/15.
• Erik Kratz - c (10/9/15) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the San Diego Padres, 11/8/15.
• Sean O'Sullivan - rhp (10/9/15) - Elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Boston Red Sox, 12/11/15.
• Kevin Correia - rhp (10/10/15) - Elected free agency.
• Adam Loewen - lhp (10/10/15) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Arizona Diamondbacks, 11/7/15.
• Dustin McGowan - rhp (10/10/15) - Elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Miami Marlins, 12/10/15.
• Seth Rosin - rhp (10/10/15) - Elected free agency.
• Brian Bogusevic (10/26/15) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed with the Orix Buffaloes of the Japanese Pacific League, 12/9/15.
• Domonic Brown (10/26/15) - Outrighted off 40-man roster and elected free agency.
• Chad Billingsley - rhp (11/2/15) - Elected free agency.
• Jeff Francoeur - of (11/2/15) - Elected free agency.
• Aaron Harang - rhp (11/2/15) - Elected free agency.
• Jerome Williams - rhp (11/2/15) - Elected free agency.
• Cliff Lee - lhp (11/2/15) - Team option declined and elected free agency.
• Jordan Danks - of (11/6/15) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Texas Rangers, 1/19/16.
• Ethan Martin - rhp (11/6/15) - Elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Atlanta Braves, 12/11/15.
• Jonathan Pettibone - rhp (11/6/15) - Elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Chicago Cubs, 1/29/16.
• Nefi Ogando - rhp (12/2/15) - Claimed off waivers by the Miami Marlins.
• Ken Giles - rhp (12/12/15) - Traded with Jonathan Arauz to the Houston Astros for Mark Appel, Harold Arauz, Thomas Eshelman, Brett Oberholtzer and Vincent Velasquez.

New Additions - 2015-2016 Offseason

• Jeremy Hellickson - rhp (11/14/15) - Acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks for Sam McWilliams.
• Michael Mariot - rhp (11/30/15) - Claimed off waivers from the Kansas City Royals.
• Peter Bourjos - of (12/2/15) - Claimed off waivers from the St. Louis Cardinals.
• David Hernandez - rhp (12/9/15) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
• Tyler Goeddel - of (12/10/15) - Selected from the Tampa Bay Rays in the Rule 5 draft.
• Daniel Stumpf - lhp (12/10/15) - Selected from the Kansas City Royals in the Rule 5 draft.
• Charlie Morton - rhp (12/12/15) - Acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates for David Whitehead.
• Brett Oberholtzer - lhp and Vincent Velasquez - rhp (12/12/15) - Acquired with Mark Appel, Harold Arauz and Thomas Eshelman from the Houston Astros for Ken Giles and Jonathan Arauz.
• Bobby LaFromboise (1/29/16) - Claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels.

Already Gone - 2015-2016 Offseason

• Dan Otero - rhp (11/3/15) - Claimed off waivers from the Oakland Athletics. (Designated for assignment, 12/12/15 and traded to the Cleveland Indians for cash considerations, 12/18/15.)
• A.J. Achter - rhp (11/20/15) - Claimed off waivers from the Minnesota Twins. (Designated for assignment, 12/12/15 and claimed off waivers by the Los Angeles Angels, 12/17/15.)

Biddle, Morgan and Ogando Added to 40-Man Roster

2014 Topps Heritage Minor League #193

2014 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs #BCAP-AM

2014 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils #25

I'm taking a break from the Phillies Team Issue posts to look at three recent prospects added to the team's 40-man roster.  The addition of these three to the roster keeps them safe from next month's Rule 5 draft.  As of this writing, there are 38 players on the Phillies roster.

I'm not an expert on future Phillies, so please see the fine Phuture Phillies blog for more on these players or follow along at Phillies Minor Thoughts.

Jesse Biddle (lhp) - Biddle had a lost season in 2014, appearing in just 19 games and missing significant time due to concussion-related symptoms incurred during a violent hail storm.  In total, the 2010 first round pick went 5-10 with a 4.58 ERA playing mostly between High A Clearwater and Double-A Reading.  Biddle has appeared on quite a few Phillies baseball cards since 2010, and his most recent baseball card can be found within the 2014 Topps Heritage Minor League set.

Adam Morgan (lhp) - Morgan was the team's third round pick in the 2011 draft.  After finishing the 2013 season with Lehigh Valley, Morgan missed the entire 2014 season due to shoulder surgery.  He was omitted from any of the team's minor league sets in 2014, but he can be found in the 2014 Bowman Chrome Prospect Autographs set.

Nefi Ogando (rhp) - Ogando emerged as one of the system's top pitching prospects after an impressive 2014 campaign with Double-A Reading.  I say impressive in the sense that he apparently has a big upside, not in the sense that his numbers at Reading were impressive.  Ogando, acquired from the Red Sox last season for veteran infielder John McDonald, went 5-1 with a 6.27 ERA this past season.  He struck out 57 while walking 28 in 56 innings of work.  If he can gain any semblance of control, he might just emerge as a 2015 bullpen candidate.  His sole Phillies card to date can be found in the Reading team set.

Memory Lane
2009 Additions - Quintin Berry, Yohan Flande and Jesus Sanchez
2010 Additions - Cesar Hernandez, Matt Rizzotti, Harold Garcia, Freddy Galvis and Justin De Fratus*
2011 Additions - Phillippe Aumont, Jake Diekman, Tyson Gillies and Sebastian Valle
2012 Additions - Zach Collier, Ethan Martin, Trevor May and Jonathan Pettibone
2013 Additions - Aaron Altherr, Kelly Dugan, Tommy Joseph and Rob Rasmussen

*Somehow I skipped 2010 and didn't do a post.

Biddle, Franco, 3 Others Going to Clearwater

2013 Bowman Draft Top Prospects #TP-6, 2013 Topps Heritage Minor Leagues #158,
2013 Grandstand Clearwater Threshers #21 and 2012 Multi-Ad Lakewood Blueclaws #11

Last week, the Phillies most likely completed handing out their invitations to Spring Training by asking five more prospects to join camp.  The big names on the list are left-handed pitcher Jesse Biddle and third baseman Maikel Franco, who have been ranked as the top two prospects in the organization.  Biddle is expected to open the season with Triple-A Lehigh Valley, but Franco could actually compete with Cody Asche for the starting third baseman's job.  With High-A Clearwater and Double-A Reading, Franco hit .320 with 31 home runs in 103 RBIs in just 134 games.

I don't know much about right-handed pitcher Ken Giles or left-handed pitcher Mario Hollands other than that they both had decent years for Clearwater.  Oddly enough, Giles completely missed out on any 2013 Phillies minor league cards as a result of the significant time he missed due to injury.

Catcher Sebastain Valle was dropped from the 40-man roster in mid-December to make room for free agent pitcher Roberto Hernandez.  Once considered the top catching prospect in the organization, he's probably now sixth on the team's depth chart behind Carlos Ruiz, Wil Nieves, Tommy Joseph, Cameron Rupp and Lou Marson.

Player (position) - 2013 Organization - Last Major Baseball Card Appearance

1.  Shawn Camp (rhp) - Cubs/Diamondbacks - 2012 Topps Update #US238 (Cubs)

2.  Leandro Castro (of) - Phillies - 2010 Topps Pro Debut #84 (Phillies)

3.  Cesar Jimenez (lhp) - Phillies - 2009 Upper Deck #857 (Mariners)

4.  Clete Thomas (of) - Twins - 2010 Topps #441 (Tigers)

5.  Reid Brignac (inf) - Yankees/Rockies - 2013 Topps Update #US206

6.  Andres Blanco (inf) - N/A - 2007 Topps #659 (Royals)

7.  Jeff Manship (rhp) - Rockies - 2010 Finest #141 (Twins)

8.  Tony Gwynn, Jr. (of) - Dodgers - 2012 Topps #284 (Dodgers)

9.  Lou Marson (c) - Indians - 2013 Topps #443 (Indians)

10.  Sean O'Sullivan (rhp) - Padres - 2011 Topps Update #US89 (Royals)

11.  Dave Sappelt (of) - Cubs - 2012 Topps #657 (Cubs)
12.  Jesse Biddle (lhp) - Phillies - 2013 Bowman Draft Top Prospects #TP-6 (Phillies)
13.  Maikel Franco (3b) - Phillies - 2013 Topps Heritage Minors #158 (Phillies)
14.  Ken Giles (rhp) - Phillies - None
15.  Mario Hollands (lhp) - Phillies - None
16.  Sebastian Valle (c) - Phillies - 2012 Topps Heritage Minors #144 (Phillies)

Memory Lane

2013 Non-Roster Invitees

2013 Phillies Team Issue 2 #15 John Mayberry, Jr.

Phillies 4, White Sox 3 (10 Innings)
Game 96 - Sunday Afternoon, July 14th in Philadelphia
Record - 48-48, 3rd Place, 6 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  John Mayberry, Jr. delivered the winning hit in the 10th, as the Phillies walked off with the 4-3 win over the White Sox.

What It Means:  It means the Phillies wrapped up their pre-All-Star break home stand with a 7-3 record and are back at .500.  At the All-Star break last year, the Phillies owned a record of 37-50.  The team has been a strong second half team under manager Charlie Manuel, so I'm cautiously optimistic as we head into the break.

What Went Right:  Mayberry's heroics were necessitated by Jonathan Papelbon's fifth blown save of the season.  The Phillies led 3-2 going into the ninth, but Papelbon couldn't hold the lead, causing Cole Hamels to miss out on the win and forcing extra innings.  Hamels had another great outing, allowing two runs on eight hits in eight innings of work.  The pitcher also had an RBI-single in the fourth.

The Phillies got on the board in the first thanks to a two-run double from Domonic Brown.  All-Star Brown enters the break with a team-leading 67 RBIs.

2013 Topps Pro Debut #89 and #102

Featured Card:  Mayberry has as many base Topps cards this year as his father, John Mayberry, Sr., who hasn't played since the 1982 season.  Mayberry, Jr. appears in the Topps flagship set while the elder Mayberry has a card in this year's Topps Archives release.  The card featured here is from the second series of the team issued set, and chances are there will be a version 2.1 set released at some point in late summer.  Especially if Ruben Amaro, Jr. can add a few much-needed pieces (relief pitcher, center fielder) to the suddenly contending Phillies.

Meanwhile, in Gotham City:  The All-Star festivities are underway in New York, and yesterday afternoon Citi Field hosted the annual Futures Game.  The Phillies sent two representatives to this year's game, which features the top prospects from around the minors.  Third baseman Maikel Franco started for the World team (as their DH) and faced his Reading Fightin Phils teammate, pitcher Jesse Biddle, in the fourth inning.  Biddle won the match for Team USA, striking out Franco on three pitches.

2011 Topps Heritage Minor League #65 Jesse Biddle

Brewers 6, Phillies 2
Game 119 - Friday Night, August 17th in Milwaukee
Record - 54-65, 4th Place, 20 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  The Brewers easily handled Vance Worley and the hapless Phils, winning 6-2.

What It Means:  The Phillies have put together a crappy little three-game losing streak, dropping them 20 games behind the Nationals.

What Went Wrong:  The Phils held a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth when Worley allowed two base runners with two outs.  Nyjer Morgan hit a ball to Domonic Brown that should have been caught for the final out of the inning - but it was not.  Two runs scored and the Brewers never looked back.

The Phillies managed just six hits, two coming in the ninth inning.

Featured Card:  In good news for the team's 2014 or 2015 season, prospect Jesse Biddle threw seven no-hit innings last night for the Clearwater Threshers.  Biddle, ranked as the Phillies second best pitching prospect by Baseball America, has now struck out 137 in 129 2/3 innings this season.  Born and raised in Philly, Biddle was the team's first round draft pick in the 2010 draft.  Call him up.