Mets at Phillies: May 8th to May 10th

Friday and Saturday 7:05, Sunday 1:35
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

Mets 18-10, 1st Place in the N.L. East, 4 games ahead of the Braves
Phillies 10-19, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 8 1/2 games behind the Mets

Mets Probables:  Matt Harvey (5-0, 2.41), Jon Niese (2-2, 2.40), Bartolo Colon (5-1, 2.90)
Phillies Probables:  Cole Hamels (1-3, 4.14), Aaron Harang (3-2, 2.35), Chad Billingsley (0-1, 9.00)

At the Ballpark:  Sunday is Mother's Appreciation Day at the ballpark (and Mother's Day everywhere else) and all women 15 and older will receive a Phillies Ladies Wristlet.  I will admit I'm not really sure what that is.  Is a wristlet just a fancy name for a bracelet?

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Freddy Galvis - .330
Runs:  Ben Revere - 13
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 5
RBIs:  Chase Utley - 14
Stolen Bases:  Odubel Herrera and Ben Revere - 5

Wins:  Aaron Harang - 3
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 2.35
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 38
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 5

1985 Topps #492

1985 Topps Traded #33T

1985 Topps Appreciation:  Former Phillies infielder Davey Johnson managed the Mets between 1984 and 1990, finishing in second place or better in each of those seven seasons.  The Mets of course won the World Series in 1986.  Within that time span, John Felske was the manager of the Phillies from 1985 until part-way through 1987.  Felske's teams finished fifth in 1985, a distant second in 1986 and ultimately fourth in 1987 under the guidance of Lee Elia who replaced Felske in mid-June that season.

The Phillies fared as follows against the Mets between 1985 and 1987, a dark time known in our household as the Felske Years:

1985 - 7-11
1986 - 10-8
1987 - 5-13
Overall - 22-32

Similar to the mid-1980s, it seems as if we're back in another era where the Phillies are looking up in the standings at the Mets.

2015 Chachi #23 Jake Diekman

#63

Jacob Tanner Diekman

Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  203

Born:  January 21, 1987, Wymore, NE

Home:  Beatrice, NE

Drafted:  Selected by the Phillies in the 30th round of the June 2007 draft

Teams: Phillies 2012-

Acquired: Via draft

2009 Multi-Ad Lakewood BlueClaws #11

2012 Chachi #33

2012 Topps Update #US85

13 Diekman Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2009 Multi-Ad Lakewood BlueClaws #11
First Phillies Card:  2012 Topps Update #US85
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  2012 Topps Update #US85
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2012 Phillies Team Issue 2 #63
Latest Card:  2015 Topps Phillies #PHP-17

First Chachi Base Card:  2012 Chachi #33

Diekman Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

Cards and game statistics through 5/6/15.

2015 Chachi #22 Justin De Fratus

#30

Justin A. De Fratus

Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Switch  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  224

Born:  October 21, 1987, Oxnard, CA

Home:  Oxnard, CA

Drafted: Selected by the Phillies in the 11th round of the June 2007 draft

Teams: Phillies 2011-

Acquired: Via draft

2008 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #7

2011 Bowman Prospect Autographs #BPA-JD

2011 Chachi #51

2012 Topps #243

17 De Fratus Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2008 Choice Williamsport Crosscutters #7
First Phillies Card:  2011 Bowman Prospect Autographs #BPA-JD
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  2012 Topps #243
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2013 Phillies Team Issue #79
Latest Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #30

First Chachi Base Card:  2011 Chachi #51

De Fratus Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

Cards and game statistics through 5/6/15.

2014 Grandstand Clearwater Threshers #2 J.P. Crawford

Braves 7, Phillies 5
Game 29 - Wednesday Night, May 6th in Atlanta
Record - 10-19, 5th Place, 8 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies mounted an impressive comeback, but it wasn't enough as they fell to the Braves in the series finale, 7-5.

What It Means:  The Phils went 3-7 on the road trip and they'll return home on Friday night to face-off against the first place Mets.

What Happened:  At least the Phillies kept this game interesting.  Trailing at one point by a score of 6-1, the offense continued to chip away but eventually ran out of time.  Ben Revere had a nice night with four hits - three of them doubles.  Ryan Howard had three hits, including a solo home run in the sixth.

Jerome Williams was chased in the fifth inning.  His final line isn't pretty - 4 1/3 innings, six runs on eight hits.

Featured Card:  With an eye towards the future, it was nice to see the return of top prospect J.C. Crawford yesterday to the Clearwater Threshers line-up.  Crawford suffered an oblique injury in spring training, and he missed the start of the season.  He homered in his first at-bat and finished his first game back with two hits, two runs scored and three RBIs.

Meanwhile . . . my hunt is on for the Phillies's affiliates 2015 minor league team sets.  A quick check of each of the teams' online stores shows that none of the sets are on sale yet.

2015 Phillies Team Issue #38 Chad Billingsley

Braves 9, Phillies 0
Game 28 - Tuesday Night, May 5th in Atlanta
Record - 10-18, 5th Place, 7 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Chad Billingsley returned to the mound after a two-year absence, but the Braves spoiled his comeback with a lopsided 9-0 win.

What It Means:  This was just an awful game for the Phillies.  In a rarity for me, I turned this game off and went to bed.

What Happened:  Billingsley last pitched in a game in April 2013 and since then he's had Tommy John surgery (in April 2013) and right flexor tendon surgery (in June 2014).  He lasted five innings, giving up six runs (five earned) on eight hits while striking out two.  Two of his eight hits allowed were home runs.

Shelby Miller handcuffed the offense, throwing a complete game shutout in just 99 pitches and allowing three Phillies hits.

Featured Card:  Good for Billingsley for persevering and making it back to the Majors after his two year absence.  His first and only Phillies baseball card at this point can be found within the team issued set.

Transaction:  Billingsley was activated from the disabled list prior to the game.

2015 Chachi #21 Luis Garcia

#57

Luis Amado Garcia

Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  230

Born:  January 30, 1987, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Home:  Dover, NJ

Signed:  Signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent, January 22, 2004

Teams:  Phillies 2013-

Acquired:  Signed as minor league free agent, formerly with the Newark Bears of the independent Canadian-American Association, March 25, 2013

2013 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs Update #8

2013 Chachi #49

2014 Topps #451

5 Garcia Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2013 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs Update #8
First Phillies Card:  2014 Topps #451
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  2014 Topps #451
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #57
Latest Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #57

First Topps Base Card:  2014 Topps #451
First Chachi Base Card:  2013 Chachi #49

Garcia Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

Cards and game statistics through 5/4/15.

2015 Chachi #20 Jeanmar Gomez

#46

Jeanmar Alejandro Gomez

Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  222

Born:  February 10, 1988, Caracas, Venezuela

Home:  Caracas, Venezuela

Signed:  Signed by the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent, April 4, 2005

Teams:  Cleveland Indians 2010-2012, Pittsburgh Pirates 2013-2014, Phillies 2015

Acquired:  Signed as a minor league free agent formerly with the Pittsburgh Pirates, January 8, 2015

2010 Topps Update #US-59

2015 Phillies Team Issue #46

1 Gomez Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #46
First Phillies Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #46
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  N/A
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #46
Latest Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #46

First Topps Base Card:  2010 Topps Update #US-59
First Chachi Base Card:  2015 Chachi #20

Gomez Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

Cards and game statistics through 5/4/15.

2009 Topps #42 Jeff Francoeur

Phillies 5, Braves 2
Game 27 - Monday Night, May 4th in Atlanta
Record - 10-17, 5th Place, 6 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Led by Jeff Francoeur's four hits, the offense banged out a season high 14 hits en route to a 5-2 in over the Braves.

What It Means:  It's a two game win streak!

What Happened:  Francoeur had a double, triple and two singles in his big night while also knocking in a pair of runs.  Darin Ruf had a three-hit night and Carlos Ruiz contributed a two-run single.

Aaron Harang improved to 3-2 by throwing six strong innings, allowing just a run on five hits.

Featured Card:  If you would have told me three or four years ago that I'd be using a Francoeur baseball card from his time with the Braves as the featured card in a game summary post, I would have told you that you were straight up bananas.  But my lack of Francoeur Phillies cards (other than this one) forces my hand, and a Braves card it is.

Phillies at Braves: May 4th to May 6th

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 7:10
Turner Field - Atlanta, GA

Phillies 9-17, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 7 games behind the Mets
Braves 12-13, Tied for 2nd Place in the N.L. East, 3 1/2 games behind the Mets

Phillies Probables:  Aaron Harang (2-2, 2.51), Chad Billingsley (0-0, 0.00), Jerome Williams (2-1, 4.08)
Braves Probables:  Alex Wood (1-1, 4.03), Shelby Miller (3-1, 2.17), Mike Foltynewicz (1-0, 3.60)

At the Ballpark:  Fans will have to wait a few more weeks for the Javy Lopez Bobblehead, which is being given away on May 20th.  There are no giveaways or special events scheduled for this series.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Freddy Galvis - .341
Runs:  Odubel Herrera and Ben Revere - 10
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 4
RBIs:  Chase Utley - 14
Stolen Bases:  Odubel Herrera and Ben Revere - 5

Wins:  Aaron Harang and Jerome Williams - 2
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 2.51
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 38
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 5

1985 Topps #500

1985 Topps #320

1985 Topps Appreciation:  I always thought it was kind of a shame that Mike Schmidt and Dale Murphy were never teammates on the Phillies.  Schmidt announced his retirement on May 28, 1989 in San Diego.  Murphy was acquired from the Braves on August 3, 1990, while Schmidt was in the middle of his first foray into the world of broadcasting.

Technically speaking, they were teammates on six All-Star teams between 1980 and 1987.  (Murphy missed the 1981 game while Schmidt didn't make the 1985 squad.)  But I would have loved to have seen them both in burgundy pinstripes at the same time.

2015 Phillies Team Issue #30 Justin De Fratus

Phillies 6, Marlins 2
Game 26 - Sunday Afternoon, May 3rd in Miami
Record - 9-17, 5th Place, 7 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies came to life in a 6-2 win over the Marlins as Ryan Howard and Ben Revere paced the offense.

What It Means:  The five game losing streak is over, the sweep was averted and the Phillies will head to Atlanta next to open a three-game series with the Braves.

What Happened:  Severino Gonzalez notched his first Major League win, striking out five in his five innings of work while allowing only two runs.  Howard tied up the game 2-2 in the sixth with an RBI triple off Marlins pitcher Jarred Cosart.  Grady Sizemore singled home Howard with the eventual winning run.  Revere added three hits and knocked in the first run for the Phils in the fifth.

In less pleasant news . . . Chase Utley went 0 for 5 and is now hitting .108.

Featured Card:  I don't often get to post cards of middle relievers, so I thought I'd go with a Justin De Fratus card today.  De Fratus has struggled a little this season, but he was able to look absolutely unhittable in this game.  Protecting a 3-2 lead, De Fratus entered in the bottom of the sixth and struck out the 3-4-5 hitters - Giancarlo Stanton, Marcell Ozuna and Michael Morse - all swinging, on 10 pitches.

Transaction:  Following the game, Gonzalez was optioned back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley as the Phillies won't need a fifth starter until May 12th.

2015 Chachi #19 Cesar Jimenez

#56

Cesar Enrique Jimenez

Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Left  Height:  6'0"  Weight:  215

Born:  November 12, 1984, Cumana, Venezuela

Home:  Cumana, Venezuela

Signed:  Signed by the Seattle Mariners as an amateur free agent, July 2, 2001

Teams:  Seattle Mariners 2006, 2008, 2011; Phillies 2013-

Acquired:  Signed as a minor league free agent formerly with the Seattle Mariners organization, December 5, 2012

2007 Topps #638

2013 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #10

2013 Chachi #56

2015 Phillies Team Issue #56

4 Jimenez Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2013 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #10
First Phillies Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #56
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  N/A
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #56
Latest Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #56

First Topps Base Card:  2007 Topps #638
First Chachi Base Card:  2013 Chachi #56

Notice anything odd about Jimenez's first Topps card?

Jimenez Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

Cards and game statistics through 5/2/15.

2015 Chachi #18 Dustin McGowan

#40

Dustin Michael McGowan

Relief Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  240

Born:  March 24, 1982, Savannah, GA

Drafted:  Selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1st round of the June 2000 draft

Teams:  Toronto Blue Jays 2005-2008, 2011, 2013-2014; Phillies 2015

Acquired:  Signed as a free agent formerly with the Los Angeles Dodgers, April 4, 2015

2003 Topps Traded #T255

0 McGowan Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  N/A
First Phillies Card:  N/A
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  N/A
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  N/A
Latest Card:  N/A

First Topps Base Card:  2003 Topps Traded #T255
First Chachi Base Card:  2015 Chachi #18

McGowan Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

N/A

Cards and game statistics through 5/2/15.

2007 Topps Opening Day #185 Tom Gordon

Marlins 7, Phillies 0
Game 25 - Saturday Afternoon, May 2nd in Miami
Record - 8-17

One Sentence Summary:  The Marlins easily handled the Phillies, shutting them out 7-0.

What It Means:  The 2015 Phillies are not a very good baseball team.  They've now lost five in a row and they'll try to avoid the series sweep this afternoon.

What Happened:  Cole Hamels was hit pretty hard, allowing a three-run home run to Martin Prado in the second.  Overall, he surrendered six runs on ten hits in six innings of work.  The offense never even got a runner into scoring position.

Featured Card:  Dee Gordon, son of former Phillies closer Tom Gordon, is on fire right now.  He collected three more hits in this game to raise his league leading average to .440.  He scored three times and stole a few bases for good measure.

Transaction:  Struggling starting pitcher David Buchanan was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley and reliever Elvis Araujo was recalled to take his place.  Another roster move will be needed on Tuesday when Chad Billingsley is activated from the disabled list to make his first start of the season.

2015 Chachi #17 Jerome Williams

#31

Jerome Lee Williams

Starting Pitcher

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'3"  Weight:  262

Born:  December 4, 1981, Honolulu, HI

Drafted:  Selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 1st round of the June 1999 draft

Teams:  San Francisco Giants 2003-2005, Chicago Cubs 2005-2006, Washington Nationals 2007, Los Angeles Angels 2011-2013, Houston Astros 2014, Texas Rangers 2014, Phillies 2014-

Acquired:  Selected off waivers from the Texas Rangers, August 10, 2014

2003 Topps Traded #T149

2014 Topps Update Red #US-236

2014 Chachi #60

2015 Phillies Team Issue #31

3 Williams Baseball Cards in My Collection per Zistle
First Card:  2014 Topps Update Red #US-236
First Phillies Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #31
First Phillies Topps Base Card:  N/A
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2015 Phillies Team Issue #31
Latest Card:  2015 Topps Phillies #PHP-14

First Topps Base Card:  2003 Topps Traded #T149
First Chachi Base Card:  2014 Chachi #60

Williams Games I've Attended per Hardball Passport

Cards and game statistics through 5/1/15.

2015 Topps '52 Tribute Gold #294 Ryan Howard

Marlins 4, Phillies 3
Game 24 - Friday Night, May 1st in Miami
Record - 8-16, 5th Place, 8 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Marlins came from behind to walk-off with a 4-3 win.

What It Means:  The Phillies start the month of May with a loss and only the Brewers (5-18) have a worse winning percentage than the Phils.

What Happened:  It really looked as if this was going to be the Phillies night after Chase Utley's three-run home run in the third.  But that was the only offense produced by the Phillies and the Marlins hung around long enough for the win.

Giancarlo Stanton scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth, coming around on Marcell Ozuna's double off Ken Giles.

2010 Hero Decks

Featured Cards:  Ryan Howard played in his 1,299th game at first base for the Phillies, bumping Fred Luderus from the top spot of games played at the position in franchise history.  Luderus had held the record since his final game on June 23, 1920.

I recently purchased the gold '52 Tribute team set from the Topps website, which features 10 oversized (5 x 7) Phillies cards numbered to just 49 sets.  (It's 11 cards if you count the unnumbered header card.)  The regular version of this set is numbered to 99, while the gold version is numbered to 49 and contains a bonus "legend" card.  In the Phillies case, the "legend" is Mike Schmidt.  There's more about this set in a recent blog post over at 14,000 Phillies.

I also wanted to pay tribute to Luderus who is now second all-time in games played at first base for the Phillies.  The only card of his in my collection is from the 2010 Hero Decks set.  Team Phungo wrote more about Luderus in a January post.

Phillies at Marlins: May 1st to May 3rd

Friday 7:10, Saturday 4:10 and Sunday 1:10
Marlins Park - Miami, FL

Phillies 8-15, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 7 games behind the Mets
Marlins 10-12, Tied for 2nd Place in the N.L. East, 4 1/2 games behind the Mets

Phillies Probables:  Jerome Williams (2-1, 3.80), Cole Hamels (1-2, 3.19), Severino Gonzalez (0-1, 23.63)
Marlins Probables:  Tom Koehler (2-2, 4.50), Dan Haren (2-1, 3.38), Jarred Cosart (1-1, 2.49)

At the Ballpark:  It's a Fireworks Friday at Marlins Park tonight with postgame fireworks.  On Sunday, the first 5,000 kids will receive a Bob the Shark Sea Creature plush doll.  (I wouldn't mind being kid #5,001 for this particular giveaway.)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Freddy Galvis - .355
Runs:  Freddy Galvis and Odubel Herrera - 9
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 4
RBIs:  Chase Utley - 11
Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 5

Wins:  Aaron Harang and Jerome Williams - 2
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 2.51
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 32
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 5

2002 Fleer Ultra #111 Travis Lee

Cardinals 9, Phillies 3
Game 23 - Thursday Afternoon, April 30th in St. Louis
Record - 8-15

One Sentence Summary:  The Cardinals made it look easy in a lopsided 9-3 win over the Phillies.

What It Means:  The Phillies will turn the page on April and limp into Miami to open May with a three game series against the Marlins.

What Happened:  The Phils tried to claw back into this game, but David Buchanan and the Cardinals offense were having no part of a series split.  Buchanan dropped to 0-5 by allowing seven runs on eight hits and not making it out of the fifth inning.  His league worst ERA now stands at 8.76.

Featured Card:  This is the team's worst April since Larry Bowa's squad went 9-18 in April 2002.  That team would turn things around somewhat and finish the season with a respectable record of 80-81.  I was looking for a generic 2002 Phillies baseball card to represent that season and this Travis Lee card jumped out at me.

I wonder if Lee could teach the 2015 Phillies how to bunt?

1962 Topps Stamps Roy Sievers

Cardinals 5, Phillies 2
Game 22 - Wednesday Night, April 29th in St. Louis
Record - 8-14, 5th Place, 7 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Aaron Harang suffered his first rough outing as the Cardinals downed the floundering Phillies, 5-2.

What It Means:  The loss put the Phillies back in sole possession of last place in the division.

What Happened:  Harang gave up five runs on nine hits in his six innings of work.  Ryan Howard hit a solo home run in the fourth and Odubel Herrera singled home Harang in the fifth.

Featured Ca . . . Stamp:  After this game, Chase Utley was hitting .114 which was tied for the lowest batting average in the month of April in franchise history for batters with at least 40 plate appearances.  Roy Sievers hit .114 in April 1962 while Billy Kelly hit .119 in April 1928.  (H/T to the game recap at Phillies.com)