NLDS Game 1 - Phils Waste Wheeler's Gem

Mets 6, Phillies 2
NLDS Game 1 - Saturday Afternoon, October 5th in Philadelphia
Mets lead series, 1-0

One Sentence Summary:  Zack Wheeler pitched one of the best games of his career, but a quiet Phillies offense couldn't support the ace's outing in this nauseating 6-2 loss.

What It Means:  The Phillies will try for a home split this afternoon with Cristopher Sanchez on the mound.  Games 3 and 4 will be Tuesday and Wednesday in Flushing.

What Happened:  Wheeler allowed one single in seven innings of work, while walking four and striking out nine.  Phillies Notes posted on X that Wheeler now has a 2.18 ERA in 12 career starts and 13 games overall in the postseason.  His nine strikeouts give him 77 for the postseason, tying him with Cole Hamels for the franchise all-time lead.

Kyle Schwarber gave us the only thing to cheer about from the offensive side, leading off the game with a second deck home run off Mets' starter Kodai Senga.  From that point on, Senga, David Peterson, Reed Garrett and Phil Maton limited the potent Phillies' line-up to three hits between the first and eighth innings.  The Phillies were 2 for 8 with runners in scoring position.

Wheeler departed after seven innings, and the usually dependable Jeff Hoffman, Matt Strahm and Orion Kerkering gave us a nightmare top of the eighth inning.  The Mets batted around, scoring five runs on five hits and a walk, giving them an insurmountable 5-1 lead.

Featured Card:  Let's hope this is the first of many postseason subset cards from this year's Chachi set.

Field Report:  Jenna and I attended this game from our preferred perch in Section 315.  We arrived more than an hour before game-time, giving us plenty of time to check out (and purchase) some postseason merchandise and pose for a picture in front of the awesome mural right outside Pass and Stowe.  Settling into our seats, we waved our towels and cheered throughout the pregame ceremony, Schwarber's home run, and every Wheeler inning.  But the thing we kept saying, along with 45,000-plus other fans in attendance, was "We need more runs."  We departed the ballpark quickly and quietly, hoping for some life from the bats on Sunday.

Transaction:  Taijuan Walker (rhp) and Buddy Kennedy (inf) were left off the NLDS roster, with Kolby Allard (lhp) and Weston Wilson (inf) both making the cut.

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

2024 Chachi #66 Phils Clinch N.L. East HL / 2024 Chachi #68 NLDS Game 2

1993 Medford Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  45
Card Size:  4" x 6"

Description:  For the fifth year in a row, the card fronts feature a photo with the player's, coach's or manager's name in a red band with white text.  The card backs feature biographical information along with complete career statistics.  Medford Food Company was in the third year of its sponsorship of the set.  Size-wise, the cards lost an eighth of an inch with this set, settling into the 4" x 6" size that has been used for each team-issued photo card set produced by the Phillies as of this writing.

I always thought this was one of the weakest of the team issued sets from the 1990s, and it's a shame since the 1993 squad is really the only team from the 1990s worth remembering.  Some of the cards suffer from strange cropping, dark backgrounds and/or blurry photos.

How Distributed:  As originally detailed in this post from March 2013, the original 35-card set was available for sale at Veterans Stadium through at least early August.  A five-card update set was available for sale at some point during the second half of the season.  A second 36-card set was sold at the ballpark late in the season which included a Bobby Thigpen card and four photo variations of players included within the original 35-card set.  This second set would have been sold at The Vet at some point after Thigpen's acquisition from the White Sox on August 10th.

Complete Set Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically with uniform number and position from the front of cards): 

1. Kyle Abbott (#37 - LHP) 2. Ruben Amaro (#33 - OF) 3. Larry Andersen (#47 - RHP) 4. Bob Ayrault (#53 - RHP) 5. Kim Batiste (#5 - INF) 6. Juan Bell (#24 - INF) 7. Larry Bowa (#2 - Third Base Coach) 8. Wes Chamberlain (#44 - OF) 9. Darren Daulton (#10 - C) 10. Jose DeLeon (#50 - RHP) 11. Mariano Duncan (#7 - INF) 12. Lenny Dykstra (#4 - OF)

13. Jim Eisenreich (#8 - OF) 14. Jim Fregosi (#11 - MG) 15. Tyler Green (#28 - RHP) 16. Tommy Greene (#49 - RHP) 17. Dave Hollins (#15 - INF) 18. Pete Incaviglia (#22 - OF) 19. Danny Jackson (#27 - LHP) 20. Ricky Jordan (#17 - 1B) 21. John Kruk (#29 - 1B-OF) 22. Denis Menke (#14 - Hitting Instructor) 23. Mickey Morandini (#12 - INF) 24. Terry Mulholland (#45 - LHP)

25. Johnny Podres (#46 - Pitching Coach) 26. Todd Pratt (#23 - C) 27. Ben Rivera (#34 - RHP) 28. Mel Roberts (#26 - First Base Coach) 29. Mike Ryan (#9 - Bullpen Coach) 30. Curt Schilling (#38 - RHP) 31. Milt Thompson (#25 - OF) 32. John Vukovich (#18 - Dugout Assistant) 33. David West (#40 - LHP) 34. Mitch Williams (#99 - LHP) 35. Phillie Phanatic

Complete First Update Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically with uniform number and position from the front of cards):

1. Jeff Manto (#30 - INF-C) 2. Roger Mason (#48 - RHP) 3. Kevin Stocker (#19 - INF)

4. Mike Williams (#41 - RHP)          5. 1993 Phillies All-Stars

Complete Second Update Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically with uniform number and position from the front of cards):

1. Darren Daulton (dugout background) 2. Tommy Greene (dugout background) 3. Mickey Morandini (dugout background)

4. Bobby Thigpen (#37 - RHP) 5. Mitch Williams (bright background)

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (0):  N/A

First Appearance in Phillies Team Issued Set (13):  Bell, DeLeon, Eisenreich, Green, Incaviglia, Jackson, Manto, Mason, Pratt, Stocker, Thigpen, West, Mike Williams
Returning Players in Phillies Team Issued Set (23):  Abbott, Amaro, Andersen, Ayrault, Batiste, Chamberlain, Daulton (x 2), Duncan, Dykstra, Greene (x 2), Hollins, Jordan, Kruk, Morandini (x 2), Mulholland, Rivera, Schilling, Thompson, Mitch Williams (x 2)

Manager (1):  Fregosi
Coaches (6):  Bowa, Menke, Podres, Roberts, Ryan, Vukovich

Phillie Phanatic (1):  The Phanatic is shown walking on the field with the green and black Veterans Stadium outfield wall behind him.

Broadcasters (0):  N/A
Other Cards (1):  1993 Phillies All-Stars, featuring Mulholland, Daulton, Fregosi, Kruk and Hollins.

Set Composition:  The original 35-card set includes the entire 25-man opening day roster and adds cards for Kyle Abbott and Ruben Amaro.  Amaro would be called up in mid-June, but Abbott would spend the entire season pitching in the minors.  The four players added to the first update set first appeared with the Phillies between mid-May and early July, with Kevin Stocker being the newest member of the bunch having been recalled on July 7th.

As mentioned above, the second update set only included one new player - Bobby Thigpen.  The reliever was acquired from the White Sox on August 10th in exchange for Jose DeLeon.

Omissions:  Early season roster additions who could have made an appearance in the first update set include Mark Davis, Doug Lindsey, Tim Mauser and Joe Millette.  All spent time with the club prior to Stocker's debut.  Joining the club prior to Thigpen's acquisition, but omitted from the second update set was Paul Fletcher, but he pitched in just one game.  September additions left out entirely were Tony Longmire, Donn Pall, Kevin Foster and Brad Brink.

Variations/Rarities:   Comments on earlier posts and e-mails from fellow collectors have led me to the six cards listed below, which I'm calling Non-Set Variations.  How and why these cards were created and issued is still unknown to me, although it's possible the Mike Schmidt card was created for the Annual Phillies ALS Charity Event, held on August 2nd.  Then again, the card comes with a printed black facsimile autograph, so it's doubtful it would have been created for Schmidt to add his actual signature.

Dale Murphy was released by the Phillies on April 3, 1993.  I originally thought the Davis and Mauser cards would have been created for the ALS event, but Davis was released on July 2nd and Mauser was traded to the Padres for Mason on July 3rd, a month before the cards would have been needed had both players still been with the team.

Non-Set Cards 1. Mark Davis 2. Tim Mauser 3. Dale Murphy

4. Dickie Noles (Blue Cross Blue Shield logo on back)   5. Mike Schmidt (with black facsimile autograph) 6. Kevin Stocker (running)

Also See:  1993 Topps Phillies; 1993 Medford Phillies Variations (March 2013) and Update (April 2013)

Resources:  Beckett.com; Phillies collector Rick (@rickphils)

This set was originally featured in a post back in November 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.

1992 Medford Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards / 1994 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

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

Game 118 (Continued) - Alumni Weekend Chachi Cards

I didn't have enough room to tag everyone in my main game summary post, so here's a continuation post featuring the bulk of the Chachi Alumni Weekend insert cards.  This is always a fun night, and creating these cards is annually a fun project.

Series Preview - Phillies at Rays: April 13th to April 15th

2018 Chachi Fan Favorites #14

2018 Chachi Fan Favorites #15

Friday 7:10, Saturday 6:10 and Sunday 1:10
Tropicana Field - St. Petersburg, FL

Phillies 6-5, 3rd place in the N.L. East, 4 games behind the Mets
Rays 3-9, 5th place in the A.L. East, 7 games behind the Red Sox

Phillies Probables:  Vince Velasquez (1-1, 5.19), Jake Arrieta (0-0, 4.50), Ben Lively (0-1, 5.56)
Rays Probables:  Jake Faria (0-1, 14.29), Chris Archer (1-0, 5.94), Blake Snell (1-1, 3.60)

At the Ballpark:  On Saturday, fans can snag a Carl Crawford bobble head and on Sunday kids will receive a Chris Archer and Kevin Kiermaier emoji t-shirt.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Rhys Hoskins - .364
Runs:  Carlos Santana - 9
Home Runs:  Five tied with - 2
RBIs:  Maikel Franco - 12
Stolen Bases:  Cesar Hernandez - 3

Wins:  Six tied with - 1
ERA:  Aaron Nola - 1.96
Strikeouts:  Nick Pivetta - 19
Saves:  Hector Neris and Jake Thompson - 1

Rays Leaders
Average:  Matt Duffy - .250
Runs:  Carlos Gomez - 7
Home Runs:  Carlos Gomez - 2
RBIs:  Denard Span - 8
Stolen Bases:  Mallex Smith - 2

Wins:  Three tied with - 1
ERA:  Yonny Chirinos - 0.00
Strikeouts:  Chris Archer - 22
Saves:  Alex Colome - 3

Game 5 - 1995 Donruss #291 Kevin Stocker

Mets 4, Phillies 2
Game 5 - Wednesday Afternoon, April 4th in New York
Record - 1-4, 5th place, 3 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies offense took another day off against the Mets in this 4-2 matinee loss.

What It Means:  The home opener is this afternoon and the Phillies are in last place.  New manager Gabe Kapler seems somewhat confused in his role, the bullpen has already been relied on heavily and the offense struck out 26 times in the two games against the Mets.  I'd expect a few boos later today.

What Happened:  Aaron Nola battled through five innings, allowing two runs on four hits.  The Mets took the lead for good on a two-run triple from Armed Rosario in the sixth off Drew Hutchison.

Featured Card:  This game was only available for viewing over Facebook, which I didn't entirely mind as I was at work (working diligently of course) and I could check in on the game from time to time.  On the way home, I listened to the end of the radio broadcast of the game.

Long-time radio color commentator Larry Andersen will only be working home games this season, and Kevin Stocker is one of the fill-ins who will accompany radio play-by-play guy Scott Franzke on the road.  I thought Stocker did a pretty good job during his first five games with Franzke, and the two seem to have a good chemistry.  It will be tough to replace the successful Andersen/Franzke tandem, but I was pleasantly surprised by Stocker's job in the booth.

Trio of Kevins Joins Broadcast Booth

1994 Fleer #601

2001 Topps #172

2012 Choice International League All-Stars #19

During the Phillies Broadcaster Golden Age between 1977 and 1997, the core broadcasting team consisted of Harry Kalas, Richie Ashburn, Andy Musser and Chris Wheeler.  There were some supporting players that came and went during that time, but the core four were the primary voices of the Phillies.  I miss listening to Harry and Whitey call a game, and no one will ever replace them (in my opinion).

In recent years, I've thoroughly enjoyed the radio broadcast tandem of Scott Franzke and Larry Andersen and those two have worked together since 2006.  My wife Jenna fully supports the nightly ritual of me muting the TV and turning up the radio so that we can listen to Franzke and L.A. call the game.  With Andersen announcing he'll no longer travel for road games in 2018, a replacement was needed to give Franzke a new partner.  The Phillies will fill Andersen's void with three former players - Kevin Frandsen, Kevin Jordan and Kevin Stocker - and I can't help but feel the broadcast booth is getting way too crowded at this point.

If you're keeping score at home, here's the Phillies broadcasters' line-up for the 2018 season that now includes 11 (!) voices.

Television
Play-by-play - Tom McCarthy
Color commentary - Ben Davis and John Kruk (although not always together)
Color commentary, home weekends - Mike Schmidt
Roving reporter/occasional fill-in for play-by-play - Gregg Murphy

Radio
Play-by-play - Scott Franzke
Play-by-play, middle innings - Jim Jackson
Color commentary, home games - Larry Andersen
Color commentary, road games - Kevin Frandsen, Kevin Jordan and Kevin Stocker

2017 Phillies Team Issue - Broadcasters

Alumni Weekend Continues with More Autographs

Mets 6, Phillies 2
Game 115 - Sunday Afternoon, August 13th in Philadelphia
Record - 43-72, 5th place, 26 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  The Mets dampened the good vibes brought on by the annual Phillies Alumni Day, defeating the Phillies 6-2.

What It Means:  The Mets took three out of four in this series, and the Phillies now head to the West Coast for games in San Diego and San Francisco.

What Happened:  Zach Eflin allowed home runs to Michael Conforto and Curtis Granderson in his 5 1/3 innings of work.  The Phillies went 2 for 11 with runners in scoring position, failing to capitalize twice with the bases loaded.  The fifth inning was cut short when Odubel Herrera ran right into an out at third, as Freddy Galvis was already manning the base.  Rhys Hoskins collected his first big league hit and RBI.


Featured Cards/Field Report:  My wife Jenna and youngest son Ben joined in the fun for this game, as the four of us set out to meet some more Phillies alumni.  The Phillies truly do a great job with this stuff.  Before the start of the game, five tables were set up throughout the ballpark, each with two members of the 1980 World Championship team signing autographs.  We made it to four of the five tables, with the boys getting autographs from Warren Brusstar, Dickie Noles, Bob Boone, Bake McBride, Larry Christenson, Marty Bystrom, Manny Trillo and Greg Luzinski.

We settled into our seats and enjoyed the pre-game ceremony introducing over 40 former Phillies players and once again honoring the late Darren Daulton.  Members of the 1993 Phillies team each appeared on the field wearing Daulton's #10 jersey.


Mid-way through the game, we walked over to an alumni photo both and the boys had their pictures taken with Jim Eisenreich, Milt Thompson, Kevin Stocker and Tommy Greene.  Doug added autographs from Stocker and Greene to the Wall of Fame print he had received on Saturday night. By Doug's tally, he added 22 (!) alumni autographs to his collection on Saturday and Sunday.

I should also mention we received four 15-card packs of the special Topps National Baseball Card Day Phillies sets as we entered the ballpark.  This is a fantastic giveaway, the only problem with it being there are 20 cards in a complete set.  With the four packs we received, we were able to put together only two complete sets.  Still, it's a great looking set and Jenna and Ben don't seem to mind too much (yet) that their sets are missing a few cards.

Ben looks on as Freddy Galvis bats