1985 Game 7 - 1985 Fleer #55 Bob Dernier

Cubs 1, Phillies 0 (10)
Game 7 - Tuesday Afternoon, April 16th in Chicago
Record - 1-6, 6th Place, 5 games behind the Cubs and Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Bob Dernier's walk-off single in the 10th off Al Holland scored Larry Bowa and the Cubs won, 1-0.

What It Means:  I wish video of this game was readily available, as I'd love to re-watch this one.  A quick Google and YouTube search came up empty.  Amazingly enough, this extra inning game was played in under 2 1/2 hours.

This box score was a source of consternation for me back in the day, as I had no idea who "Arguello - ss" was.  The internet was a decade away and these box scores were my only source for day-to-day stats.  Of course I know now that Arguello was actually Luis Aguayo, but the Atlantic City Press box score editor at the time had no idea how much stress he/she caused me in April 1985.

What Happened:  This was a pitching duel between Jerry Koosman and Dennis Eckersley.  Koosman pitched eight scoreless innings, allowing five hits and striking out five before yielding to pinch-hitter Greg Gross to start the ninth.  Eckersley pitched a complete game, 10-inning shutout, allowing five hits, one walk and striking out 11.  Tim Corcoran had a pair of hits off Eckersley.

Bowa went 3 for 4 in this game with a pair of doubles off Koosman.  He led off the ninth with a single against Holland, was sacrificed over to second by Chris Speier and came home on Dernier's hit.

This was to be Holland's (Mr. T's) final game for the Phillies, as the team would trade him five days later to the Pirates for Kent Tekulve.  At the time, my two favorite players were Dernier and Tekulve, so this was a pretty big deal for me.

Featured Card:  I have to go with Dernier again here, over a card for either Koosman or Bowa.  He gets the nod for having the walk-off hit and for being my favorite Phillies player.

Also, this was an ad in the Phillies Today Scorecard Magazine available throughout the 1985 season at The Vet.  I wonder who won?

1985 Game 6 - 1985 Seven-Up Cubs #20 Bob Dernier

Cubs 2, Phillies 1
Game 6 - Monday Afternoon, April 15th in Chicago
Record - 1-5, 6th Place, 4 games behind the Cubs and Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Cubs nipped the Phillies, 2-1, on an eighth inning Chris Speier sacrifice fly off Don Carman.

What It Means:  These attendance figures are shocking to me.  It was probably cold for this game, but only 8,347 came out to Wrigley Field for a Monday matinee?  After the first six games of the season, I was still optimistic about the 1985 Phillies, but doubt was already starting to enter into my 11-year-old brain.  And looking at this first full page of boxscores (below), the Phillies were blasted, edged, crushed, stymied and nipped according to the box score editor for the Atlantic City Press.

What Happened:  With the tie scored 1-1, Kevin Gross allowed a lead-off double in the eighth to Keith Moreland.  Davey Lopes pinch-ran for Moreland, going to second when Gross intentionally walked Jody Davis and then to third on a Shawon Dunston single.  Carman relieved Gross and Speier's fly ball scored Lopes as the eventual winning run.  The Phillies only run came in the seventh when Glenn Wilson scored on a Bo Diaz groundout to short.  Mike Schmidt made an error, but collected his first hit of the season.

John Denny pitched six innings, allowing an unearned run on six hits while striking out five.

Featured Card:  My favorite Phillies player, Bob Dernier, was traded to the Cubs in March 1984 with Gary Mathews and Porfi Altamirano for Bill Campbell and Mike Diaz.  The ex-Phillies are all over this boxscore with Dernier, Ryne Sandberg, Matthews and Moreland making appearances.  Warren Brusstar, Dick Ruthven, Richie Hebner and Larry Bowa all also spent time with the 1985 Cubs.  Dallas Green was the team's GM with Ruben Amaro, Johnny Oates and John Vukovich serving as coaches.

1985 Game 5 - 1984 Topps #4 Ryan, Carlton & Perry HL

Astros 5, Phillies 3
Game 5 - Sunday Afternoon, April 14th in Houston
Record - 1-4, Tied for 5th Place, 4 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Nolan Ryan outdueled Steve Carlton, pitching a complete game and striking out nine in this 5-3 Astros win.

What It Means:  A Sunday afternoon game, inside, with Ryan facing off against Carlton, and the attendance was only 15,277?  That's crazy to me.

What Happened:  Ryan allowed six hits and two of the three runs he allowed were unearned.  Carlton helped himself with a two-run double off Ryan in the third.  Von Hayes also had two hits off Ryan with a double.  Mike Schmidt went 0 for 4 as his early season slump continued.  Jose Cruz had three hits for the Astros.

Carlton went five innings, allowing five runs (four earned) on nine hits with an unsightly five walks.  Pat Zachry and Larry Andersen threw three shutout innings to close the game, and Andersen's scoreless outing helped lower his ERA to 15.43.

Featured Card:  I have four cards in my collection featuring Ryan and Carlton together.  They're on league leaders cards together in the 1973 and 1975 Topps sets, and they share two different cards in the 1984 Topps set.  This card highlights Ryan, Carlton and Gaylord Perry all surpassing the career strikeout total of Walter Johnson during the 1983 season.  Ryan did it first, but by the end of season Carlton had a slim lead over Ryan - 3,709 to 3,677.

1985 Game 4 - 1985 Topps #636 Shane Rawley

Phillies 4, Astros 2
Game 4 - Saturday Night, April 13th in Houston
Record - 1-3, 5th Place, 3 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies found a few clutch hits and Shane Rawley was effective in his first start of the season as the club edged the Astros, 4-2.

What It Means:  John Felske had his first win as a Phillies manager.  Drinks all around.

What Happened:  Jeff Stone went 3 for 4 out of the lead-off spot with a pair of runs scored.  The Phils scored first when Tim Corcoran singled home Stone in the fourth.  Samuel would triple Stone home in the sixth and Mike Schmidt would add a sacrifice fly to score Samuel.  Steve Jeltz added an insurance run with an RBI single in the ninth before Al Holland pitched a scoreless inning to notch his first save of the season.  It was also to be Holland's final save as a member of the Phillies.

Rawley went 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs (both unearned) on five hits.  Schmidt was now 0 for 7 to start the season, but he did have 3 RBIs.

Featured Card:  Rawley had been acquired from the Yankees in June 1984, so this was to be his first full season with the Phillies.  He'd emerge as one of the more reliable starting pitchers for the club in the mid to late 1980s, making the All-Star team in 1986 and winning 17 games in 1987.

Sadly, I don't have the 1985 Phillies calendar in my collection but he's a photo I found in an online auction of the month ahead for the team.  Game summary posts will be published exactly 35 years after each scheduled start time.

1985 Game 3 - 1985 Topps #428 Larry Andersen

Astros 8, Phillies 3
Game 3 - Friday Night, April 12th in Houston
Record - 0-3, Tied for 5th Place, 3 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Astros plated seven runs in a nightmarish sixth inning, easily defeating the Phillies, 8-3.

What It Means:  A season that had so much promise is getting off to a rocky start for the Phils.  At the time, I was still convinced the team would turn it around and reach the postseason.  They would not.

What Happened:  Phillies starting pitcher Jerry Koosman cruised through the first five innings but then ran into trouble in the bottom of the sixth.  He allowed three hits to start the inning and then was relieved by Larry Andersen.  Andersen allowed a double and a pair of singles along with an intentional walk before yielding to Don Carman.  When it was all over, the Astros had scored seven runs in the inning on seven hits and a pair of walks.

Enos Cabell went 4 for 5 for the Astros.  Terry Puhl went 3 for 4 with 4 RBIs.

Von Hayes had an RBI single in the sixth for the Phils, followed by an RBI double from Glenn Wilson.  Through the first three games of the season, neither Mike Schmidt nor regular first baseman John Russell had a hit.

Featured Card:  It would get better for Andersen, one of the team's top relievers in 1984, but after his first outing of the season his ERA was 108.00 - four earned runs in a third of an inning.

1985 Game 2 - 1985 Donruss #61 Mike Schmidt

Braves 6, Phillies 3
Game 2 - Thursday Night, April 11th in Philadelphia
Record - 0-2, Tied for 4th Place, 2 games behind the Cubs and Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies scored three times in the first, but then put their bats away for the rest of the game, as the Braves won 6-3.

What It Means:  New Phillies manager John Felske would need to wait a little longer to notch his first big league win as a skipper.

What Happened:  Mike Schmidt and Bo Diaz had the first RBIs of the season for the Phils as Schmidt had a sacrifice fly and Diaz added a two-run single in the first.  Juan Samuel had a pair of hits and his first stolen base of the season.  The Braves took the lead for good in the third, scoring three times in a rally started after Schmidt booted a ball at third.  Dale Murphy went 3 for 5 with a home run and 3 RBIs for the Braves.

John Denny lasted only four innings in his first start of the season, allowing four runs (two earned) on 10 hits.  Kevin Gross pitched two scoreless innings of relief.

Featured Card:  Depending on how long this side project lasts, I'll most likely repeat some Schmidt cards featured in prior posts on this blog.  Here's a great card from the 1985 Donruss set showing off Schmidt's glorious head of hair.

1985 Game 1 - 1985 Fleer Limited Edition #6 Steve Carlton

Braves 6, Phillies 0
Game 1 - Tuesday Night, April 9th in Philadelphia
Record - 0-1, Tied for 2nd Place, 1 game behind the Cubs and Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The offense was quiet in this 6-0 season opener loss to the Braves at The Vet.

What It Means:  This would be the first of 101 different line-ups used by manager John Felske throughout the 1985 season.

What Happened:  Starting pitcher Steve Carlton deserved better as his offense provided only three hits, and his defense contributed six errors.  In six innings, he allowed three runs (one earned) on four hits while striking out three.

Rick Mahler and Bruce Sutter combined to shutout the Phillies.  The Phillies had a their best chance to score in the bottom of the fourth.  Jeff Stone led off with a triple but was doubled off third when Juan Samuel popped up to Mahler a batter later.  Dale Murphy had a pair of RBIs for the Braves.

Looking at the Phillies' opening day lineup, only Samuel at second, Mike Schmidt at third and Von Hayes in center were holdovers from the 1984 opening day lineup.  Carlton started every opening day for the Phillies between 1972 and 1986 with the exception of 1976, which was started by Jim Kaat.

Featured Card:  I'm assuming Lefty's Fleer Limited Edition card isn't really all that limited.

Opening Day Roster:  Here's the opening day roster for Felske's club.  Kiko Garcia must have been hurt to start the season as he wouldn't appear in a game until April 23rd.

Starting pitchers (4) - Steve Carlton, John Denny, Jerry Koosman, Shane Rawley
Relief pitchers (6) - Larry Andersen, Don Carman, Kevin Gross, Al Holland, Charles Hudson, Pat Zachry
Catchers (3) - Bo Diaz, Ozzie Virgil, John Wockenfuss
Infielders (6) - Luis Aguayo, Kiko Garcia, Steve Jeltz, John Russell, Juan Samuel, Mike Schmidt
Outfielders (6) - Tim Corcoran, Greg Gross, Von Hayes, Garry Maddox, Jeff Stone, Glenn Wilson
Disabled List (1) - Joe Lefebvre

I'm going to try to stick to a schedule of posting these game summaries to coincide with the actual start time of the games.  Back in 1985, home night weekday games started at 7:35.

I'd love to hear your memories of this season (good or bad) in the comments.

1985 Phillies Season Starts (Again) Tomorrow

Let's give this a shot.

Once it became clear the 2020 baseball season would be postponed indefinitely, I started to think of alternatives for this blog and ways to keep myself busy.  I've written about this a number of times throughout the years, but this blog is a daily outlet for me.  I don't expect widespread readership or to win any major awards with my ramblings.  I've had an innate need to have something in my life be a daily (or semi-daily) routine since I first put together a Phillies scrapbook in 1984.  These early scrapbooks are no more than photo albums containing boxscores, interesting Phillies pictures and articles (from later years) I had enjoyed reading.

The 1985 Phillies season began on April 9th, and beginning tomorrow I'll start recapping that season with boxscores and snippets from my original 1985 Phillies scrapbook and a baseball card relevant to each game.  I'll post a game recap every day (or close to every day) at the time the original game would have taken place, 35 years ago. 

One major caveat here:  I hope the 2020 season returns soon and this project ends before its completion.  I'd be fine with doing this through April and May and maybe part of June and shelving the whole thing once Bryce Harper and Aaron Nola and Andrew McCutchen take the field.  The other alternative is that I could do this for a little while and stop after I got bored with reliving a pretty awful 1985 Phillies season.  So with that overwhelming sense of excitement and positivity . . . here we go.

The 1985 Phillies season starts (again) tomorrow.

Dispatches from the Quarantine

2014 Topps Heritage #208

How is everyone doing?

Our family has reluctantly settled into our new routine, staying home and only venturing outside for exercise or a very quick trip to the grocery store.  With everything going on, I consider ourselves extremely lucky as we're all healthy and keeping relatively busy throughout the week.  My wife is a fourth grade teacher and she's essentially running three classrooms throughout the day - her own (virtually), and then assisting with our two boys' homework whenever one of them has questions.  I'm fortunate enough to have a job that can be done just as effectively most of the time from home.  While this is typically my busiest time of the year at work, it's been somewhat slower as the regular pace of my day-to-day job has changed.  I'm on calls or in online meetings for most of the day, and I'm trying to establish healthy barriers between work life and home life.

I miss baseball.  I never took for granted the daily cadence and the mundane regularity of the baseball schedule, as it has been a daily part of my life for the past 40 years between April and October.  I published my first posts on March 30, 2009, and for the past 11 years this blog has served as a daily outlet for me and I miss that routine.  I toyed with the idea of daily posts reliving the 1985 Phillies season through my meticulously kept 1985 Phillies scrapbook, but then two thoughts struck me about this potential project.  First, it was a project that would hopefully not be completed and I don't like not completing things.  I could post the boxscores and write about daily Phillies games from 1985 through April and probably most of May, but then it would halt abruptly when the 2020 season got underway.  Second, what if I did complete this project?  I truly believe baseball will return this season, but what if it doesn't?  Do I want to lock myself into a project where I'm reliving a season 35 years ago, between now and October?  Not really.  So this blog will go somewhat dormant with the occasional post until baseball comes back.  If nothing else, the postponement of the 2020 season has allowed me to focus daily on my other two blogs celebrating the cards from the 1956 and 1965 Topps sets.  I have posts for those blogs scheduled and ready to go through May.

2015 Topps Archives #244

I'm hopeful, trying to stay positive and more and more frequently avoiding the news.  I hope you're doing well too.  Stay healthy, take care of your family and friends and go wash your hands.

* * *

I originally sat down to write this post solely to thank Section 36 for the package that arrived in the mail last week.  The package was dominated by Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels cards, which is somewhat prescient given our family's viewing choices the past few days.  We re-watched the Roy Halladay perfect game on Thursday (what would have been the 2020 Opening Day) and we re-watched Cole Hamels' no-hitter from 2015 on Saturday.  Typically, I would have received Phillies cards from 2010 with this annual shipment, but I'm told there was a tragic accident in the basement of Section 36 headquarters involving water.  Still, it was great to get new baseball cards in the mail, and I'll gladly take what I can get these days.  Thanks Section 36!

Phillies, Fans Spend #OpeningDayAtHome

2020 Topps Rhys Hoskins #RH-2

In an attempt to make the best of having no baseball on what should have been opening day, Rhys Hoskins took on the Marlins' Miguel Rojas in a live stream of MLB The Show.  Hoskins' Phillies beat Rojas' Marlins by a score of 2-0 after several false starts and some technical difficulties.  Doug and I watched the first 20 minutes or so of the stream and it was fun to hear Hoskins and Rojas banter back and forth.  Doug considers himself a pro at MLB The Show, so he was a little critical of some of the plays made by Hoskins and Rojas.

Camp Head Count:  58 - 6 = 52.  The Phillies optioned six players to Lehigh Valley on Thursday afternoon.  The season is not close to starting up yet, but the moves were made to allow the Phillies to call up players sooner (without the requisite waiting period) when the season eventually does resume.

Outfielders Kyle Garlick and Nick Williams, along with right-handed pitchers Edgar Garcia and Reggie McClain and left-handed pitchers Austin Davis and Cole Irvin were all optioned.

* * *

The video embedded below is fantastic and kudos to the MLB marketing department for putting this together and realizing Mike Trout had to narrate it.  I hope everyone is staying positive, safe, hopeful and healthy.

1965 Topps #22 Charlie Smith

While the 2020 baseball season and The Phillies Room have paused and are currently practicing responsible social distancing, I'm still regularly posting on my 1956 Topps and 1965 Topps blogs.  New 1956 Topps posts are scheduled for every Friday morning, while I'll be posting new cards added to our 1965 Topps set on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday mornings.  My 1965 Topps blog took a look at short-time Phillies player Charlie (or Charley) Smith.  Stay safe everyone!


Charles William Smith
New York Mets
Third Base-Outfield

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  170
Born:  September 15, 1937, Charleston, SC
Signed:  Signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent before 1957 season
Major League Teams:  Los Angeles Dodgers 1960-1961; Philadelphia Phillies 1961; Chicago White Sox 1962-1964; New York Mets 1964-1965; St. Louis Cardinals 1966; New York Yankees 1967-1968; Chicago Cubs 1969
Died:  November 29, 1994, Reno, NV (age 57)

Charlie Smith, or Charley Smith per most reference sources, played for 10 years in the Majors mostly in a utility infielder role.  Primarily a third baseman, he appeared in over 120 games in a season five different times with the Dodgers and Phillies in 1961, the White Sox and Mets in 1964, the Mets again in 1965, the Cardinals in 1966 and the Yankees in 1967.  Smith was sent to the Yankees in December 1966 in the deal that saw Roger Maris (#155) head to St. Louis.

In 771 career games, Smith hit .239 with 69 home runs and 281 RBIs, finishing three years in the top 10 for strikeouts.

Building the Set
January 25, 2020 from Los Angeles, CA - Card #39
Some January days are longer than others, and on a particularly long January day at work a few months ago, I decided I needed a few more 1965 Topps cards for our set.  I've been familiar with Greg Morris Cards for a while now, as I've been using a lot of the images of old Topps cards scanned for their eBay auction listings in these posts and within the posts over at my 1956 Topps blog.  The images are always centered and clear and for all the help Greg Morris has indirectly provided me, I thought I'd browse his eBay store.

Given the vast inventory available, I figured there had to be at least a few 1965 Topps cards up for auction, and I was correct.  I stumbled upon a set break and I set about finding auctions with no current bidders and cards graded at least EX-MT.  I bid on a total of 20 auctions, winning 10 of them, including this Smith card.  I was the first and sole bidder on the Smith card and the first Mets card for our set was on its way to us from Los Angeles for a winning bid of $0.79.

The Card
This card gives us a fantastic look at the New York World's Fair patch the Mets wore on their sleeves during the 1964 season.  Smith appeared in every Topps set between 1962 and 1969, and he's Charlie on his cards for every year except 1963 and 1967 when Topps went with Charley.  This is his only Topps card to refer to him as a part-time outfielder, as Smith had played 13 games in left field for the Mets in 1964.  For his career, Smith appeared on the field in 698 games with 623 of those appearances coming at third base.

His 20 home runs in 1964 were indeed tops on the Mets, with Joe Christopher (#495) and his 16 home runs finishing second on the team.

Mets Team Set

1965 Season
This would be Smith's best season in the Majors.  As the everyday first baseman for the Mets, Smith hit .244 over 135 games with 16 home runs and a career high 62 RBIs.  Following the season, the Mets traded Smith to the Cardinals with Al Jackson (#381) for Ken Boyer (#100).

1961 Sports Service Phillies
Set B

Phillies Career
On May 4, 1961, the Phillies traded Turk Farrell (#80) and Joe Koppe to the Dodgers for Smith and Don Demeter (#429).  The Dodgers were in need of a closer having lost Ed Roebuck (#52) to a shoulder injury and the Phillies were looking to rebuild following a 95-loss season in 1960.  Demeter was the key return for the Phillies with the 23-year-old Smith seemingly included as a throw-in.  Smith immediately took over the starting third baseman's job from the platoon of Bobby Malkmus and Bob Sadowski (#156).

In 112 games for the Phillies, Smith hit .248 with 9 home runs and 47 RBIs.  His defense was shaky as he finished in fourth place for the highest number of errors committed in the N.L. with 28.  Following the season, Smith was on the move again, traded to the White Sox on November 28th with John Buzhardt (#458) for Roy Sievers (#574).

Smith appeared on a few oddball issuances as a Phillie, but there's no mainstream baseball cards to mark his one season with the club.

1962 Topps #283

1963 Topps #424

1966 Topps #358

1968 Topps #596

1969 Topps #538

Other Notable Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1962 Topps #283
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (8):  1962-1969
Most Recent Mainstream Card:  1978 TCMA 1960s I #289

33 - Smith non-parallel baseball cards in the Beckett online database as of 1/26/20.

Sources:  
Baseball Reference
Beckett Database
The Trading Card Database

In some cases, the first and last cards listed above are subjective and chosen by me if multiple cards were released within the same year.  Most recent mainstream card may also be subjective and does not include extremely low serial numbered cards, buybacks or cut autograph cards.

2020 Phillies Want List

2020 Topps #246

Bowman Next Prospect Pool
Main Set - 25 Bohm, 30 Howard

Stadium Club

Base Variations - 30 Harper

Instavision - IR-BH Harper

Topps Series 1
Base Variations - 250 Harper SSP (Portrait)
1985 Topps Baseball 35th Anniversary Autographs - 85A-AN Nola, 85A-BHA Harper
1985 Topps Baseball Relics - 85R-BH Harper, 85R-RHO Hoskins
Baseball Stars Autographs - BSA-NLA Nola, BSA-RH Hoskins

Topps Series 2
Base Variations - 467 McCutchen SP (1979 uniform), 467 McCutchen SSP (touching home), 687 Hoskins SSP (signing autographs)
1985 Topps Baseball 35th Anniversary Autographs - 85A-RHO Hoskins
1985 Topps Baseball Relics - 85TR-AM McCutchen, 85TR-AN Nola, 85TR-JR Realmuto

Topps Allen & Ginter

Mini Exclusives Extended - 387 Harper

Topps Archives
Fan Favorites Autographs - FFA-JGI Girardi
1964 Topps Giant - 64O-RH Hoskins

Topps Big League
Ballpark Oddities - BPO-5 Velasquez

Topps Gallery

Heritage - HT-35 Harper

Topps Heritage
1971 Topps Baseball Tattoos - 27 Harper/Hoskins
1971 Topps Greatest Moments - 49 Hoskins
Real One Autographs - ROA-RH Hoskins

Topps Heritage High Numbers

1971 Bazooka Numbered Test Minis - BN-15 Hoskins

1971 Topps Baseball Tattoos - 32 Gregorius

1971 Topps Greatest Moments Box Loader - 8 Wise

1971 Topps Scratch-Offs - 24 Harper

1971 Topps Super Baseball Box Loader - 30 Harper

Real One Autographs - ROA-AN Nola, ROA-BH Harper, ROA-JRE Realmuto, ROA-ZW Wheeler

Topps Heritage Minor League

Real One Autographs - ROA-BST Stott

Topps Now
Bracket Bonanza - BB1-8 Harper

Topps Opening Day
Image Variations - 156 Hoskins, 188 Harper
Diamond Relics - DR-BH Harper, DR-RH Hoskins
Dugout Peeks - DP-2 Harper
Lighter Side of Baseball - LSB-11 Harper
Major League Mementos - MLM-BH Harper
Walk This Way - WW-5 Harper

Topps Pro Debut
Future Cornerstones Autographs - FCA-SH Howard

Topps Seattle Mariners
Main Set - SEA-17 McClain

Topps Throwback Thursday
Main Set - 9 Harper, 179 Harper

Topps Update

Base Variations - U-266 McCutchen SP (press conference), U-279 Harper SP (press conference), U-279 Harper SSP (back of jersey)

Decades' Best - DB-4 Roberts, DB-55 Phillies

2019 Phillies Want List / 2021 Phillies Want List

Grapefruit Game 20 - Baseball Hits Pause

2019 Choice Reading
Fightin Phils #24

Phillies 8, Rays 4
Spring Training Game 20 - Thursday Afternoon, March 12th in Port Charlotte
Record - 14-5-1

One Sentence Summary:  The offense supplied four home runs and Jake Arrieta had a decent outing before leaving with an injury in this 8-4 win over the Rays.

What It Means:  In the grand scheme of things, and with everything going on in the world right now due to the coronavirus pandemic, this game didn't mean much.  After the Phillies and Rays had started play on Thursday afternoon, Major League Baseball put out a press release cancelling the remainder of spring training and pushing back the start of the regular season by at least two weeks.  It was a little odd to listen to a portion of this game, knowing it would be the last baseball played for a while. 

As disappointed as I am to be without baseball for the foreseeable future, the decision by MLB makes complete sense and it was a necessary move in order to slow and attempt to contain the spread of the virus.  These are unusual times and the absence of baseball (and all other sporting events) is going to be tough.  But I'm confident and optimistic we'll be back to normal soon.  Be kind, be patient and be supportive.  Listen to the scientists and reputable news sources.  Stay safe everyone.

What Happened:  Josh Harrison, Roman Quinn, Neil Walker and Phil Gosselin all homered for the Phillies.  All but Quinn are presumably battling for a roster spot when baseball returns.  Arrieta pitched 3 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on three hits.  He left the game in the fourth inning with stiffness in his right shoulder.

It was also announced that Seranthony Dominguez had suffered a setback in his road to recovery and Tommy John surgery may be the next step for the young pitcher.

Featured Card:  At 4:30 on Thursday afternoon, I took a screenshot of my phone to capture the last baseball action for a little while.  All other games other than the Phillies-Rays game were either over with by then or already cancelled.  Pitching prospect Jonathan Hennigan was on the mound for the final outs of the game and after he retired Ruben Cardenas on a strikeout looking, baseball went on hiatus.

Camp Head Count:  58 - And that's where it will stand for at least the next few weeks.

Grapefruit Game 19 - 2019 Topps Pro Debut #53 Spencer Howard

Phillies 5, Twins 1
Spring Training Game 19 - Tuesday Afternoon, March 10th in Clearwater
Record - 13-5-1

One Sentence Summary:  Zack Wheeler looked great and the offense kept plugging along in this 5-1 win over the Twins.

What It Means:  Bryce Harper exited the game in the first after being hit in the foot on a pitch from Twins starting pitcher Sean Poppen.  Harper would later say he was just fine.

What Happened:  Wheeler went four innings, allowing a run on four hits while striking out six.  Top pitching prospect Spencer Howard made his spring debut and pitched a scoreless inning of relief.  Didi Gregorius had an RBI-single in the first, snapping his 0 for 22 streak.  J.T. Realmuto would later add a two-run home run and Logan Forsythe hit a home run to left that might still be in the air.

Featured Card:  Howard will most likely open the season in the rotation for the Triple-A IronPigs, but I have to think we'll see him pitching in Philly at some point in 2020.

Camp Head Count:  61 - 3 = 58.  LHP Garrett Cleavinger and RHP Mauricio Llovera were optioned to Lehigh Valley while 1B Darrick Hall was reassigned to minor league camp.

2020 Chachi New Additions #2

2020 Chachi New Additions #3

Grapefruit Game 18 - 2019 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils #54 Ramon Rosso

Phillies 3, Yankees 1
Spring Training Game 18 - Monday Afternoon, March 9th in Clearwater
Record - 12-5-1

One Sentence Summary:  An eighth inning home run from Christian Bethancourt broke a 1-1 tie and sent the Phillies to a 3-1 win over the Yankees.

What It Means:  Aaron Nola was supposed to start this game, but he was a late scratch as the presumed opening day starter has the flu.

What Happened:  Ramon Rosso got the emergency start and allowed a run on two hits in his two innings of work.  Six relievers shut down the Yankees after that, with Mauricio Llovera throwing two scoreless innings.  Bryce Harper had three more hits and Mikie Mahtook hit a third inning solo home run.

Featured Card:  Rosso has emerged as a potential bullpen candidate, and he certainly didn't hurt his chances with his outing on Monday.

Camp Head Count:  64 - 3 = 61.  Prior to the game, the Phillies optioned catcher Deivy Grullon to Lehigh Valley and infielder Arquimedes Gamboa to Reading, while re-assigning Austin Listi to minor league camp.  The Grullon move seems to indicate Andrew Knapp will once again open the season as the back-up to J.T. Realmuto.

Grapefruit Game 17 - 2019 Topps Heritage #302 Seranthony Dominguez

Blue Jays 9, Phillies 0
Spring Training Game 17 - Sunday Afternoon, March 8th in Dunedin
Record - 11-5-1

One Sentence Summary:  The offense had only three hits and Vince Velasquez looked shaky in this 9-0 drubbing from the Blue Jays.

What It Means:  At this point, I would think Velasquez ends up in the bullpen and the fifth starter's job either goes to Nick Pivetta or Ranger Suarez, the dark horse candidate.

What Happened:  Velasquez labored through 2 2/3 innings, giving up three runs on two hits and three walks.  Both hits allowed were home runs.  Deolis Guerra and Seranthony Dominguez each threw a scoreless inning of relief.

Featured Card:  If Dominguez is healthy to start the season, that would be huge for the Phillies bullpen.  This was his second appearance and while he's only thrown 10 pitches, he hasn't allowed a hit and he's struck out two while his fastball has been in the low to mid 90s.

Camp Head Count:  64

Grapefruit Game 16 - Quartet of Pitching Prospects

2019 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #14

2020 Chachi New Additions #4

2020 Chachi New Additions #5

2019 Choice Reading Fightin Phils #21

Phillies 10, Red Sox 2
Spring Training Game 16 - Saturday Afternoon, March 7th in Clearwater
Record - 11-4-1

One Sentence Summary:  Offense, pitching, defense and baserunning all looked good in this 10-2 win over the Red Sox.

What It Means:  This is the final match-up between these two teams until the 2021 World Series.  The Red Sox are re-building this year so I figure they'll be in the 2021 World Series when the Phillies are going for their second title in a row.

What Happened:  The keys to the Phillies offense all doubled - Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto and Rhys Hoskins.  Harper stole a pair of bases for good measure.  Ranger Suarez allowed two runs in his three innings of work and pitching prospect Jeff Singer impressed with a perfect inning, striking out the side.

Featured Cards:  Featuring a quartet of pitching prospects today - Singer for his awesome performance in this game and Adonis Medina, JoJo Romero and Cristopher Sanchez for the note below.

Camp Head Count:  70 - 6 = 64.  In the first headcount cut of the spring, Romero and Medina were optioned to Lehigh Valley while Sanchez was optioned to Reading.  Pitchers Kyle Dohy, Damon Jones and Zach Warren were reassigned to minor league camp.