Game 114 - 2019 Phillies Team Issue #53 Yacksel Rios

Diamondbacks 6, Phillies 1
Game 114 - Late Thursday Night, August 7th in Phoenix
Record - 59-55, 3rd place, 8 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Five Diamondbacks pitchers I've never heard of before held the Phillies to five hits in this latest lifeless loss.

What It Means:  We didn't even stay up to watch the beginning of this game.

What Happened:  Starting pitcher Zac Gallen, making his Diamondbacks debut, held the Phillies to one hit over his five innings of work.  Phillies starter Jason Vargas didn't fare as well, allowing four runs on four hits over his five innings.  Bryce Harper hit a meaningless solo home run (20) in the ninth.

Featured Card:  I got nothing for this game, and since I never provided Yacksel Rios with the usual Phillies Room send-off after he was claimed off waivers by the Pirates on August 3rd - here he is.  Fare thee well Yacksel, and thanks for throwing your hat to my son on the final day of the 2018 season.  His final Phillies cards can be found in the first edition of the team-issued photo card set and in the 2019 Lehigh Valley IronPigs team set.


Rios Complete Chachi Checklist
2017 Chachi #55
2018 Chachi #29
2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #13 (with Odubel Herrera)
2019 Chachi #44

Arrived During the 2019 Season

• Jay Bruce - of (6/2/19) - Acquired from the Seattle Mariners with cash considerations for Jake Scheiner.
• Brad Miller - inf (6/13/19) - Purchased from the New York Yankees.
• Fernando Salas - rhp (6/13/19) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League.
• Mike Morin - rhp (7/20/19) - Acquired from the Minnesota Twins for cash considerations.
• Drew Smyly - lhp (7/21/19) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Milwaukee Brewers organization.
• Jason Vargas - lhp (7/29/19) - Acquired with cash from the New York Mets for Austin Bossart.
• Blake Parker - rhp (7/30/19) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Minnesota Twins.
• Corey Dickerson - of (7/31/19) - Acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates for a player to be named later and international bonus money.

Departed During the 2019 Season

• Aaron Altherr - of (5/12/19) - Selected off waivers by the San Francisco Giants.
• Dylan Cozens - of (8/1/19) - Released and signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Rays, 8/9/19.
• Yacksel Rios - rhp (8/3/19) - Selected off waivers by the Pittsburgh Pirates.

2019 Chachi #44 Yacksel Rios

#53
Yacksel Rios
Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  204
Opening Day Age:  25
Born:  June 27, 1993, Caguas, PR
Drafted:  Selected by the Phillies in the 12th round of the June 2011 draft
Teams:  Phillies 2017-
Acquired:  Via draft
Contract Status:  Arbitration eligible in 2021, free agency eligible in 2025

2013 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #26

2017 Chachi #55

2018 Topps Heritage #273

2018 Topps #551

First Phillies Minor League Card:  2013 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #26
First Phillies Card:  2018 Topps Heritage #273 (with J.P. Crawford and Victor Arano)
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2018 Phillies Team Issue 2 #53
First Topps Flagship Base Card:  2018 Topps #551
Newest Card Added:  2019 Phillies Team Issue #53

2018 Phillies Team Issue 2 #53

9 - Rios baseball cards in my collection per The Phillies Room Checklist as of 5/30/19.

Complete Chachi Checklist
2017 Chachi #55
2018 Chachi #29
2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #13 (with Odubel Herrera)
2019 Chachi #44

2019 Chachi Set Checklist
Virtual Phillies Wall - Featuring Current Active Roster

Game 124 - Little League Classic: Former Williamsport Crosscutters Return

2008 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #30

2010 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #21

2011 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #10

2011 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #19

2012 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #24

2013 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #11

2013 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #26

2014 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #14

2016 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #5

Mets 8, Phillies 2
Game 124 - Sunday Night, August 19th in Williamsport
Record - 68-56, 2nd place, 1/2 game behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Against a Mets starting pitcher, Jason Vargas, with an ERA over 8, the Phillies failed to hit and ultimately lost this game in Williamsport, 8-2.

What It Means:  The Phillies and Mets participated in the 2nd annual Little League Classic, playing in front of about 3,000 youth baseball players and their families.  Both teams wore youth baseball-appropriate jerseys with the players' nicknames on the backs.  Todd Zolecki Tweeted this was the first time the Phillies had played a regular season game at a neutral site since September 3, 1957 when they played the Dodgers at Roosevelt Stadium in Jersey City, NJ.

What Happened:  Nick Pivetta got knocked around in his 3 2/3 innings of work, allowing six runs on eight hits.  The only Phillies runs came on a two-run home run from Carlos Santana (18) in the 6th.

Featured Cards:  Rhashan, the official Director of Smiles for the Williamsport Crosscutters, made the sign below to welcome back one-time members of the short season Class A team.  Crosscutters baseball cards for 9 of the former players/coaches mentioned in the sign are featured above.

Transaction:  Due to the "inconvenience of travel," Andrew Knapp was added to the active roster as the 26th man for this game.

Highlights from the 2018 Phillies Phestival (Part 2) #StrikeOutALS

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #13

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #17

Presented here are the remaining cards from the limited edition Chachi insert set I created to commemorate our amazing time at this year's Phillies Phestival benefiting the ALS Association.  Part 1 can be found here along with some of my memories from the event.

If you plan to go to the event in 2019, we'll see you there!

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #10

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #9

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #11

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #12

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #14

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #15

Phillies Phestival Memory Lane

2017 Part 1 and Part 2

2018 Part 1 and Part 2

2018 Chachi Phillies Phestival #16

2018 Chachi #29 Yacksel Rios

#53
Yacksel Rios
Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  204
Opening Day Age:  24
Born:  June 27, 1993, Caguas, PR
Drafted:  Selected by the Phillies in the 12th round of the June 2011 draft.
Teams:  Phillies 2017-
Acquired:  Via draft

2013 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #26

2017 Chachi #55

2018 Topps Heritage #273

7 Rios Baseball Cards in My Collection per The Phillies Room Checklist
First Phillies Minor League Card:  2013 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #26
First Phillies Card:  2018 Topps Heritage #273 (with J.P. Crawford and Victor Arano)
First Topps Flagship Base Card:  N/A
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2018 Phillies Team Issue 2 #53
Newest Card:  2018 Phillies Team Issue 2 #53

2018 Phillies Team Issue 2 #53

First Mention on The Phillies Room:  March 7, 2016 - The Phillies also added 13 more players to their roster, going so far as to add these players to their website's roster page along with numbers in the 80s and 90s.  Ken Roberts is the only player listed below to have previously played for the Phillies.  I guess these guys are non-non-roster players?  And how confusing is it that there are three different players walking around with #89?

#86 Nick Fanti - lhp
#88 Andrew Amaro - inf
#88 Andrew Pullin - of
#89 Yacksel Rios - rhp
#89 Joely Rodriguz - lhp
#89 Jesmuel Valentin - 2b
#90 Ken Roberts - lhp
#91 Brendon Hayden - inf
#92 Edgar Cabral - c
#92 Ryan O'Sullivan - rhp
#92 Tom Windle - lhp
#95 Tommy Joseph - 1b
#95 Ben Lively - rhp

Complete Chachi Checklist
2017 Chachi #55
2018 Chachi #29

Card statistics through 6/8/18.

2016 Grandstand Clearwater Threshers #23 Yacksel Rios

Braves 7, Phillies 2
Game 154 - Friday Night, September 22nd in Atlanta
Record - 61-93, 5th place, 31 1/2 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies couldn't recover from Ben Lively's rough start as the Braves won, 7-2.

What It Means:  I've officially begun daydreaming and planning out the Phillies 25-man roster to start the 2018 season.

What Happened:  Lively allowed the first six batters to reach and it was 5-0 Braves after the first inning.  Lively stuck around for five innings, allowing six runs on eight hits.  Nick Williams had a two-hit night and a pair of RBIs.

Featured Card:  Yacksel Rios pitched the final two innings of this game, allowing Kurt Suzuki's second home run in the seventh.  Matt Gelb recently wrote an article about Rios' concern for his family and his neighbors in the hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico.

If you have a few minutes and a few dollars to spare, please consider helping out with a donation to the charity of your choice or the Hispanic Federation.

2017 Chachi #55 Yacksel Rios

#53
Yacksel Rios
Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  185
Born:  June 27, 1993, Caguas, PR
Home:  Carolina, PR
Drafted:  Selected by the Phillies in the 12th round of the June 2011 draft.
Teams:  Phillies 2017
Acquired:  Via draft

2013 Choice Williamsport
Crosscutters #26

5 Rios Baseball Cards in My Collection per The Phillies Room Checklist
First Card:  2013 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #26
First Phillies Card:  N/A
First Topps Flagship Base Card:  N/A
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  N/A
Latest Card:  2017 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils #23

Click to enlarge

Complete Chachi Checklist
2017 Chachi #55

Card statistics through 8/26/17.

2017 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils #23 Yacksel Rios

Marlins 7, Phillies 4 (Game 2)
Game 124 - Tuesday Night, August 22nd in Philadelphia
Record - 45-79, 5th place, 30 1/2 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  Nick Pivetta was chased in the second inning and the Phillies couldn't recover as the Marlins won, 7-4.

What It Means:  The Phillies were swept in the double header, and the Marlins reached .500 for the first time since late April.

What Happened:  Pivetta allowed six runs in 1 1/3 innings.  Nick Williams (7), Andres Blanco (3) and Tommy Joseph (18) all homered for the Phils, with Christian Yelich taking a second home run away from Williams.

Featured Card:  Yacksel Rios made his big league debut in this game (see below) and this is the only 2017 baseball card of his in my collection to date.

Field Report:  Jenna, Doug, Ben and Uncle Drew made it to the sixth inning of Game 2 of the double header.  I found this incredibly impressive especially considering the Phillies were looking rough in both games.  At least they saw a lot of home runs!

Phillies Debuts:  Rios became the 12th Phillies player making his Major League debut when he entered in relief in the fifth inning.

22.  Yacksel Rios (rhp) - Relieved Edubray Ramos with one out in the fifth and a runner on second. Rios pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out two and walking one.