Game 15 - Phils Sleep Through Sunday Matinee in St. Louis

Philadelphia Phillies	0
St. Louis Cardinals	7

1988 Fleer #308

Sunday Afternoon, April 13th

Busch Stadium - St. Louis, MO
9-6, 2nd Place, 1 game behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies managed three singles against Matthew Liberatore and three Cardinals' relievers, getting shut out for the second time in the series with this 7-0 loss.

What It Means:  The Phillies went 2-4 on a forgettable road trip, and they now head home for four against the Giants and three against the Marlins.

What Happened:  I got a little bit of a nap in, and so did the Phillies' bats.  Zack Wheeler allowed four runs on seven hits in six innings, with relievers Matt Strahm and Carlos Hernandez unable to stop the Cardinals from running up the score.  Libertore struck out seven in his six innings.  

The Phillies managed hits from Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto and Edmundo Sosa.  Alec Bohm and Brandon Marsh both went 0 for 3, watching their averages dip to .150 and .108, repsectively.

Featured Card:  @boopstats posted this brutal look at Marsh's start to 2025 over on Bluesky:

Marsh finds himself in a category with Steve Jeltz, with the slick-fielding, light-hitting Bobby Wine next in his crosshairs.

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

Phillies at Brewers - September 16th to September 18th

2024 Chachi 1984 Topps Missing Links #6

1984 Topps Traded #97T

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 7:40
American Family Field - Milwaukee, WI

At the Ballpark:  There are a bunch of theme nights and concession/merchandise deals for this series, but no fan-wide giveaways.

Philadelphia Phillies 90-59
1st Place in the N.L. East, 8 1/2 games ahead of the Braves

Phillies Probables
Ranger Suarez (12-6, 3.05)
Zack Wheeler (15-6, 2.60)
Aaron Nola (12-8, 3.62)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Trea Turner - .294
Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 101
Home Runs:  Kyle Schwarber - 35
RBIs:  Kyle Schwarber - 95
Stolen Bases:  Bryson Stott - 29

Wins:  Zack Wheeler - 15
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 2.60
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 199
Saves:  Jose Alvarado - 13

Milwaukee Brewers 86-62
1st Place in the N.L. Central, 10 1/2 games ahead of the Cubs

Brewers Probables
Aaron Civale (4-2, 3.84)
Colin Rea (12-5, 4.21)
Freddy Peralta (11-8, 3.75)

Brewers Leaders
Average:  William Contreras - .280
Runs:  William Contreras - 94
Home Runs:  Willy Adames - 32
RBIs:  Willy Adames - 109
Stolen Bases:  Brice Turang - 43

Wins:  Colin Rea - 12
ERA:  Freddy Peralta - 3.75
Strikeouts:  Freddy Peralta - 184
Saves:  Trevor Megill - 20

2024 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2024 Season Summary Index / 2024 Chachi Set Checklist

Game 118 - '83 and '93 Phillies Return for Alumni Weekend

Twins 8, Phillies 1
Game 118 - Saturday Night, August 12th in Philadelphia
Record - 65-53, 2nd Place, 11 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Taijuan Walker and Gregory Soto were hit hard in this 8-1 loss to the Twins, and the Phillies offense went 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position.

What It Means:  A series win is still a possibility with Ranger Suarez on the mound for the Phillies this afternoon.

What Happened:  On the field, after the first pitch was thrown, not much happened from the Phillies' perspective.  Off the field, and prior to the game, several Wall of Famers returned to Philadelphia to induct three more members - former general managers John Quinn and Ruly Carpenter and the newly elected Hall of Famer Scott Rolen.  It was a lackluster event, given Rolen wasn't able to attend and the election of two former executives to the Wall of Fame didn't exactly induce a strong emotional reaction.  In the Hall of Fame Club, Doug and I braved the crowds and autograph seekers to once again load up on signatures for Doug's Quinn/Carpenter/Rolen Wall of Fame print.  The key above shows who signed the newest treasure in his collection.

Featured Cards/Field Report:  Fellow collector Rick and his wife were kind enough to save us a spot at the front of the club entrance line, and we quickly staked our territory outside the alumni suite in the Hall of Fame Club level.  As has been the case in recent years, many of the returning players took their time and honored all autograph requests, sometimes signing several things for the same collector.  Stand-outs included Tony Longmire, Kevin Gross, Steve Jeltz and my personal favorite player, Bob Dernier.  Dernier was outside the suite the longest, signing everything, posing for pictures, talking with fans and genuinely seeming to enjoy himself.  Runner-up to Dernier in terms of signing was probably Danny Jackson, who graciously signed everything handed to him and posed for several pictures letting fans model his 1993 National League Champions ring.

Old favorites Mickey Morandini, Dickie Noles, Charlie Manuel and Manny Trillo were there again too and the time these players spend patiently signing dozens of autographs should be appreciated.  Doug's personal highlight was getting Jim Kaat to sign his print as Kaat snuck out a back door of the suite and walked down the hall, largely unrecognized.

Riding home, Doug and I recapped the night and discussed our plans for next year.  He realizes he's reached the age where he's "aged-out" of the cute kid asking for autographs, and as fun as the night is, it's also a bit exhausting.  As he prepares to look at colleges, and depending who the Wall of Fame inductee is next year, we may decide to take 2024 off.  We're both looking forward to the Phillies breaking the seal on the 2008 team and starting to induct some of the players for those team into the Wall of Fame.

As I've done the last few years, I created a limited edition Chachi insert set from photos I took throughout the evening.  My favorite four are featured below, and a second post with the rest of the set can be found here.

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

Jeu 79 - Les Coups de Circuit Coulent les Phillies

1987 Donruss #359

Cardinals 7, Phillies 6
Game 79 - Saturday Afternoon, July 2nd in Philadelphia
Record - 41-38, 3rd Place, 7 1/2 games behind the Mets

Post-Vacation Catch-Up Post 8 of 11

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies came back after starter Kyle Gibson allowed four consecutive Cardinals home runs in the first inning, only to lose the game in the ninth on Nolan Arenado's second home run of the game.

What It Means:  It's impressive the Phillies came back after Gibson's display, but it would have been even more impressive had they managed to win.

What Happened:  Yairo Munoz doubled home a pair of runs in the third inning to tie the score at 5-5.  The Cardinals briefly took the lead again in the fifth, but Nick Castellanos tied it up again in the sixth with an RBI-single.  The amazingly steady Phillies bullpen kept the team in the game until Seranthony Dominguez surrendered Arenado's home run.

Featured Card:  Our European vacation was coming to an end, and we spent this day walking around a small portion of the Louvre, which of course made me think of the one and only Phillies player to have been born in Paris, France.  And now you know.

2022 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2022 Season Summary Index / 2022 Chachi Set Checklist

Series Preview - Rays at Phillies: August 24th to August 25th

2021 Chachi Fan Favorites #9

1986 Topps #453

Tuesday and Wednesday 7:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  It's Scooby Doo Night tonight at the ballpark, and if you purchased a special theme night ticket, you'll receive a Phillies Scooby Doo bobblehead.  Wednesday is a rare August Dollar Dog Night.

Rays 77-48
1st Place in the A.L. East, 4 games ahead of the Yankees

Rays Probables
Drew Rasmussen (1-0, 3.30)
TBD

Rays Leaders
Average:  Randy Arozarena - .274
Runs:  Brandon Lowe - 76
Home Runs:  Brandon Lowe - 29
RBIs:  Austin Meadows - 88
Stolen Bases:  Brett Phillips - 12

Wins:  Josh Fleming - 10
ERA:  N/A

Strikeouts:  Tyler Glasnow - 123
Saves:  Diego Castillo - 14

Phillies 63-61
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 4 1/2 games behind the Braves

Phillies Probables
Ranger Suarez (5-4, 1.47)
Zack Wheeler (10-8, 2.77)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Jean Segura - .295
Runs:  Bryce Harper - 71
Home Runs:  Rhys Hoskins - 26
RBIs:  Rhys Hoskins - 70
Stolen Bases:  Bryce Harper - 12

Wins:  Zack Wheeler - 10
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 2.77
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 194
Saves:  Hector Neris - 12

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

1984 Tastykake Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  47
Card Size:  3 1/2" x 5 1/4"

Description:  The 1984 Tastykake photo card set got a little more ambitious than its predecessor by adding cards for all the coaches and a broadcaster card.  The fronts are nearly identical to the 1983 set, with the exception of the Phillies script logo added to the top.  The photographer also requested that everyone remove their hats for this set, which was unfortunate for some of the subjects and is reminiscent of the 1976 team-issued photo card set.  The backs of the cards feature a facsimile autograph of the player, coach or manager, and some of the cards include words of encouragement.

I really wish the Phillies had chosen, "Wherever you go, there you are" for the back of Larry Andersen's card.

How Distributed:  All fans 14 and under attending the Phillies game at Veterans Stadium on April 21, 1984, received a complete 40-card set, shrink-wrapped and containing a logo/checklist card on the top.  The back of the logo/checklist card advertised that additional sets could be purchased from the Phillies via mail order for $3.

There are also 7 somewhat rare "update" cards available, and by all accounts at least three of these cards were never released to the general public, at least not in very large quantities.  Here's a verbatim report from a reliable hobby source on the origins of these 7 cards:

"That set was a mess from day 1.  We obtained some uncut sheets from the printer right off the bat.  When the team started selling the shrink wrapped sets, we found that the seven players on one side of the sheets were not included.  I called a friend in the PR dept and asked him what was going on.  He was upset that we’d obtained the sheets and explained that they knew that prospects would be called up from the minors during the season and wanted to avoid making special print runs in order to have pictures for them.  So they picked 7 prominent players and filled out the sheet with their pictures.  When I spoke to him, all the cut cards were in stacks in a back store room.  He was concerned that, if word got out as to which 7 they picked, other players would be upset at not having been included.  As the season went on, I believe that they pulled and used the pictures for Carman, Russell, Stone and Wehrmeister but not for Daulton, Fireovid and Jeltz.  In speaking with the PR guy at the end of the season, he asked what I thought he should do with the supplies of the last three.  I told him I’d deep-six them as they hadn’t been “issued”.  They [the Phillies] ended up selling a bunch of the entire run to a dealer up around, I think, Wilkes Barre.  I believe he sold them as separate “extension” sets for a while."

Fellow collector Steve sent me the scan of the uncut sheet shown here, showing the 7 "update" cards in the far right column.  I'm calling these update cards, but they could just as easily be labelled as unreleased rarities.

Complete Standard Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here based  on the numbered checklist found on the back of the header card): 

1. Header Card / Checklist 2. Team Photo 3. Phillie Phanatic 4. Veterans Stadium 5. Steve Carlton - Future HOF 6. Mike Schmidt - Future HOF         7. Phillies Broadcasters       8. Paul Owens MG 9. Dave Bristol CO 10. John Felske CO 11. Deron Johnson CO 12. Claude Osteen CO 13. Mike Ryan CO 14. Larry Andersen

15. Marty Bystrom 16. Bill Campbell 17. Steve Carlton 18. John Denny 19. Tony Ghelfi 20. Kevin Gross 21. Al Holland 22. Charles Hudson 23. Jerry Koosman 24. Tug McGraw 25. Bo Diaz 26. Ozzie Virgil 27. John Wockenfuss

28. Luis Aguayo 29. Ivan DeJesus 30. Kiko Garcia 31. Len Matuszek 32. Juan Samuel 33. Mike Schmidt 34. Tim Corcoran 35. Greg Gross 36. Von Hayes 37. Joe Lefebvre 38. Sixto Lezcano 39. Garry Maddox 40. Glenn Wilson

Complete Update Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically): 

1. Don Carman 2. Darren Daulton         3. Steve Fireovid

4. Steve Jeltz 5. John Russell

6. Jeff Stone 7. Dave Wehrmeister

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (2):  Fireovid, Wehrmeister

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (19):  Andersen, Campbell, Carman, Corcoran, Daulton, Garcia, Ghelfi, K. Gross, Hudson, Jeltz, Koosman, Lefebvre, Lezcano, Matuszek, Russell, Samuel, Stone, Wilson, Wockenfuss
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (12):  Aguayo, Bystrom, Carlton, DeJesus, Denny, Diaz, G. Gross, Hayes, Maddox, McGraw, Schmidt, Virgil

Manager (1):  Owens
Coaches (5):  Bristol, Felske, Johnson, Osteen, Ryan

Phillie Phanatic (1):  Uses the same ATV photo from the 1983 Tastykake set.
Broadcasters (1):  Chris Wheeler, Harry Kalas, Andy Musser and Richie Ashburn.
Commemorative Cards (2):  Carlton and Schmidt get Future Hall of Famer cards.  The back of the Carlton card features a list of all-time victories leaders, while the back of the Schmidt card features a list of all-time home run leaders.
Other Cards (3):  Header/checklist card, team photo and Veterans Stadium.

Surprises:  Knowing what I know now about the genesis of the 7 update cards, the Phillies PR department did a great job of predicting future roster additions.  Only Darren Daulton didn't see playing time with the club in 1984.  The set contains the entire 25-man opening day roster, plus pitcher Tony Ghelfi who started the season on the disabled list and Marty Bystrom who began the season with Triple-A Portland.

Omissions:  Minor leaguers who would ultimately appear with the Phillies in 1984 who could have received consideration for the update set are Francisco Melendez, Mike Lavalliere and Rick Schu.  And for completists, the Phillies added four players from outside their organization throughout the season - Jim Kern, Shane Rawley, Al Oliver and Renie Martin.  Kern and Martin would never receive actual Phillies baseball cards.

Variations/Rarities:  Again, the 7 update cards could easily appear here as they're not technically true update cards and they're not readily available.

Also See:  The Curious Case of Dave Wehrmeister; Memories of 1984 Phillies Photo Day

Resources:  Beckett.com; 14,000 Phillies - Dave Wehrmeister, Worst Phillies Card of All Time; Fellow collectors Steve F., Rick G. and Bill W.

This set was originally featured in a post back in October 2014, and I'm going through these older team-issued set posts to update them with new information learned (if any) over the past six years.

1983 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards / 1985 Tastykake Phillies Photo Cards

1980-1999 Phillies Team-Issued Photo Cards Want List / Phillies Team Issued Sets Index Page

Game 29 - 1989 Donruss #431 Steve Jeltz

Braves 12, Phillies 10
Game 29 - Sunday Night, August 30th in Philadelphia
Record - 14-15, Tied for 2nd Place, 3 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Down 10-0 in the second, the Phillies nearly pulled off what would have been one of their most impressive comebacks in franchise history.

What It Means:  Having just missed completing a three-game sweep of the first place Braves, the Phillies open a crucial four-game series tonight with the last place Nationals.

What Happened:  The early deficit was courtesy of Jake Arrieta (1 1/3 innings, 7 runs, 6 hits, 3 walks) and David Hale (1 2/3 innings, 3 runs, 3 hits).  It was Arrieta's shortest outing of his career and Hale's Phillies debut.

The comeback began in the bottom of the second when Didi Gregorius hit a solo home run to right.  It continued in the third when the Phillies plated six runs with the big hits coming from Andrew McCutchen (RBI double), Rhys Hoskins (2-run home run) and Gregorius again (2-run triple).  The Phillies got to within a run when Roman Quinn and McCutchen hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth to make it 11-10 Braves.

The lousy outing from Arrieta and questionable umpire calls were the big factors in the loss, with manager Joe Girardi earning his first ejection in a Phillies uniform in the ninth.

2019 R-Phils Phillies
Top 25 Prospects #25

Featured Card:  The near comeback had Phillies fans referring back to the last time the team had overcome a 10-run deficit, on June 8, 1989 against the Pirates.  That was the game in which Pirates broadcaster Jim Rooker infamously announced if the Pirates lost the game (they did) he would walk back to Pittsburgh (he eventually did).  Steve Jeltz entered the game in the second at second base, taking over for veteran Tommy Herr with the Phillies trailing 10-2.  He ended up becoming the first player in franchise history to homer from both sides of the plate in the same game, going 2 for 4 with 5 RBIs and helping to fuel the comeback.

Transaction:  Mickey Moniak was added to the team's Player Pool, and many were quick to point out that players not included in a team's Player Pool were ineligible to be traded before today's 4pm deadline.  By my very unofficial tally, I believe the Phillies now have 25 players training at their alternate site in Lehigh Valley.  It's 26 if you count the rehabbing Ranger Suarez.

2020 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2020 Season Summary Index / 2020 Chachi Set Checklist

1985 Game 36 - 1985 Cigna Phillies #10 Steve Jeltz

Phillies 2, Giants 1
Game 36 - Monday Night, May 20th in Philadelphia
Record - 14-22, 5th Place, 9 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  A Steve Jeltz single in the seventh off Giants' reliever Vida Blue broke a 1-1 tie and ultimately led to this 2-1 win for the Phillies.

What It Means:  After this game, the Phillies and Giants had identical woeful records of 14-22.  The Giants would continue to be bad, ultimately losing 100 games and costing new manager Jim Davenport his job.  Roger Craig would take over in September, and he'd successfully manage the Giants through their 1992 season.  To date, 1985 is the only season in the 137 seasons in the history of the Giants franchise they have lost 100 games.

What Happened:  Steve Carlton won his first (and last) game of the season, pitching seven strong innings and allowing a run on five hits.  He struck out four.  Kent Tekulve got himself into a jam in the ninth with a pair of walks, but he worked out of it and recorded his first save for the club.

Mike Krukow started for the Giants, and lasted five innings, allowing a run on four hits.  The Phillies generated a run off Krukow in the first with back-to-back singles from Jeff Stone and Von Hayes, followed by an RBI groundout from Mike Schmidt.

Featured Card:  Jeltz had two hits in this game and the game-winning RBI, so that's good enough for the featured card.  This also gives me a good opportunity to cover one of the oddball Phillies sets issued in 1985.  I've always referred to this set as the Cigna Phillies set, as Cigna Corporation is indicated as the set's sponsor on the back of the cards.  The Standard Catalog lists this as the 1985 Police/Fire Safety set.  The cards measure 2 5/8" x 4 1/8" and there are 16 cards total in the Phillies set.  The set's listing also indicates these cards were distributed by several Philadelphia area police departments throughout the year.

The Standard Catalog also lists 1985 Police/Fire Safety sets for the Blue Jays, Braves and Brewers.

1985 Virtual Phillies Wall / 1985 Season Summary Index

1985 Game 15 - 1985 Fleer #653 John Russell / Steve Jeltz

Cubs 7, Phillies 3
Game 15 - Friday Night, April 26th in Philadelphia
Record - 4-11, Tied for 5th Place, 7 games behind the Cubs

One Sentence Summary:  Jerry Koosman was hammered in his latest outing and didn't make it out of the second inning as the Cubs cruised to a 7-2 win.

What It Means:  This was the second straight rough outing for Koosman after he had shut down the Cubs earlier in April.  He'd make one more start on April 30th before missing the month of May with a bad left knee.

What Happened:  The Cubs scored five runs off Koosman in the first two innings.  Dennis Eckersley was in control for the Cubs from the outset, pitching a complete game and holding the Phillies to three runs (two earned).  Ryne Sandberg and Davey Lopes both had three-hit games for the Cubs with Lopes hitting a three-run home run in the first before the Veterans Stadium crowd of over 27,000 fans had even settled in for the night.

Glenn Wilson prolonged Eckerlsley's outing with an RBI triple in the ninth.  Steve Jeltz had a pair of errors at shortstop and went 0 for 3 to drop his season average to .186.  Mike Schmidt went 0 for 4 and was hitting .157 through the first 15 games of 1985.

Featured Card:  At this point in the season, Juan Samuel had started every game at second, Schmidt had started every game at third and Jeltz had started every game at shortstop.  The slumping Jeltz was about to get his first day off on Saturday night in game 16, and Schmidt would get a few days off a week later.  John Russell and Tim Corcoran had split first base duties with Russell hitting just .158.

1985 Cramer Hawaii Islanders #244

1985 Cramer Portland Beavers #50

Transaction:  The Phillies and Pirates swapped minor league catchers before this game with the Phillies sending Mike Diaz to Pittsburgh and getting back Steve Herz in return.  Neither would appear with their respective new teams in 1985, so this was a strange trade then and a strange trade now.  Diaz, acquired from the Cubs with Bill Campbell in the awful deal that sent Bob Dernier, Gary Matthews and Porfi Altamirano to Chicago, would go on to appear in 247 games with the Pirates between 1986 and 1988.  Diaz hit 16 home runs and drove in 48 as a back-up catcher, first baseman and corner outfielder with the Pirates in 1987.  He'd also spend four seasons playing in Japan between 1989 and 1992.

Herz appeared in 85 games for the Portland Beavers in 1985, his last year in professional baseball.

Pitchers and Catchers Report to Clearwater in One Month (cc: @TheSnortingBull)

We're exactly one month away from the official start of spring training, and I thought I'd check in with the Phillies offseason moves so far.  Before we get to that, and thanks to the suggestion of fellow collector and blogger Snorting Bull, here's a Steve Geltz/Steve Jeltz combo card that had to happen.  Geltz is a Phillies non-roster invitee and a Durham Bulls alumni.

Back on December 18th, I completely missed the news that Hyun Soo Kim had signed a four-year $10.58 million contract with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization.  Kim came to the Phillies in late July in the Jeremy Hellickson deal with the Orioles.  Unless he appears in some early season Topps releases with the Phillies, his one and only Phillies baseball card can be found within the limited, late season, team-issued photo card update set.

2018 Chachi Departures #5

Hyun Soo Kim Complete Chachi Checklist
2017 Chachi #50
2018 Chachi Departures #5

Moving On - 2017-2018 Offseason

• Henderson Alvarez - rhp (10/4/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster and elected free agency.
• Ty Kelly - 2b-of (10/4/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster and elected free agency.
• Kevin Siegrist - lhp (10/4/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster and elected free agency.
• Andres Blanco - inf (11/2/17) - Elected free agency.
• Clay Buchholz - rhp (11/2/17) - Elected free agency.
• Hyun Soo Kim - of (11/2/17) - Elected free agency, signed with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization, 12/18/17.
• Daniel Nava - of (11/2/17) - Elected free agency.
• Jesen Therrien - rhp (11/6/17) - Outrighted off 40-man roster and elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers, 11/29/17.
• Michael Mariot - rhp (11/6/17) - Elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the San Diego Padres, 11/29/17.
• Colton Murray - rhp (11/6/17) - Elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the Tampa Bay Rays, 12/14/17.
• Brock Stassi - 1b (11/6/17) - Elected free agency, signed as a minor league free agent with the Minnesota Twins, 12/7/17.
• Cameron Perkins - of (12/11/17) - Claimed off waivers by the Seattle Mariners.
• Freddy Galvis - ss (12/15/17) - Traded to the San Diego Padres for Enyel De Los Santos.

Coming Back - 2017-2018 Offseason

• Pedro Florimon - inf-of (11/13/17) - Signed to a minor league contract.
• Pedro Beato - rhp (12/22/17) - Signed to a minor league contract.

New Additions - 2017-2018 Offseason

• Engelb Vielma - inf (11/20/17) - Claimed off waivers from the San Francisco Giants.
• Pat Neshek - rhp (12/15/17) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Colorado Rockies.
• Tommy Hunter - rhp (12/15/17) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Tampa Bay Rays.
• Carlos Santana - 1b (12/20/17) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Cleveland Indians.

Already Gone - 2017-2018 Offseason

• Engelb Vielma - inf (12/11/17) - Claimed off waivers by the Pittsburgh Pirates.

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!

Marlins at Phillies: October 3rd to October 4th

Saturday Double Header 4:05, Sunday 3:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

Marlins 69-90, 3rd Place in the N.L. East, 20 games behind the Mets
Phillies 62-97, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 27 games behind the Mets

Marlins Probables:  Justin Nicolino (4-4, 4.16), Tom Koehler (11-14, 4.00), Adam Conley (4-1, 3.84)
Phillies Probables:  Aaron Harang (6-15, 4.86), Alec Asher (0-5, 9.00), David Buchanan (2-9, 7.54)

At the Ballpark:  This is it . . . the final series of the 2015 season.  Sunday is Fan Appreciation Day with "prizes and surprises" promised for all fans in attendance.

Marlins Leaders
Average:  Dee Gordon - .329
Runs:  Dee Gordon - 83
Home Runs:  Giancarlo Stanton - 27
RBIs:  Justin Bour - 71
Stolen Bases:  Dee Gordon - 56

Wins:  Tom Koehler - 11
ERA:  Tom Koehler - 4.00
Strikeouts:  Tom Koehler - 132
Saves:  A.J. Ramos - 30

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Odubel Herrera - .290
Runs:  Odubel Herrera - 62
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 23
RBIs:  Ryan Howard - 77
Stolen Bases:  Cesar Hernandez - 19+

Wins:  Ken Giles, Aaron Harang and Aaron Nola - 6*
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 4.86
Strikeouts:  Aaron Harang - 106*
Saves:  Ken Giles - 15^

+Ben Revere, now with the Blue Jays, is the overall team leader with 24 stolen bases.
*Cole Hamels, now with the Rangers, is the overall team leader with 6 wins (tied) and 137 strikeouts.
^Jonathan Papelbon, now with the Nationals, is the overall team leader with 17 saves.

1985 Topps #379

1985 Topps #763

1985 Topps Traded #62T

1985 Topps Appreciation:  I've got a post coming up which will tally up all the Phillies-related cards in the 1985 Topps set.  The three cards shown here are the last remaining 1985 Toopps Phillies cards that had no logical fit in any series preview posts throughout the season.  Sorry guys.

I'm looking forward to doing these series preview posts in 2016 looking back at Phillies-related cards in the 1970 Topps set.  I've already put together a list of former and future Phillies in the 1970 Topps set, and there were quite a few I wasn't familiar with.  Just one more reason to look forward to the 2016 season!