Fun at the @ReadingFightins Game!

Rubber Ducks 3, Fightin Phils 2 (15 Innings)
Saturday Night, June 13th in Reading

One Sentence Summary:  The Fightins fell in 15 innings to the Rubber Ducks by a score of 3-2.

What It Means:  This was the third straight extra inning game played by the Fightins, and my family was there!  We called it a night following the 10th inning after a 3-1 family vote determined it was time to go.  My eight-year-old son Doug was the lone dissenter in the vote, although he was sound asleep no more than 10 minutes into our ride home.

What Happened:  As it turned out, Aaron Nola made his final Double-A appearance as he was promoted to the Triple-A IronPigs on Sunday afternoon.  Nola pitched five innings, allowing two runs on five hits.  Brian Pointer hit a solo home run in the second while J.P. Crawford went 0 for 6 at the plate.  (Several of Crawford's outs came from very hard hit balls.)  Phillies Room favorite Art Charles went 1 for 7 but impressed us all with his hustle on the field.

Pre-game corn

Aaron Nola on the mound

J.P. Crawford at the plate

Crazy Hot Dog Vendor!

Featured Cards/Field Report:  We had a blast!  After our false start a few weeks ago, we were anxious to try to get back to another Fightin Phils game.  We sat in Box 3 (the green seats) in Row 24 and had a great view of the action.  The boys loved the mascot band, the between inning entertainment and of course . . . the Crazy Hot Dog Vendor!  (Our oldest son figured out that the vendor wasn't riding a real ostrich.  Our youngest son Ben still isn't quite sure.)

We'll definitely be back for another game!

* * *

2015 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils Top Prospects #1

2015 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils #12

2015 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils #36

2015 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils Top Prospects #9

For the baseball card collector, the 2015 Reading Fightin Phils team set borrows the design of the 1993 Topps set and includes 35 cards.  The team store was also selling a 10-card Top Prospects set which borrows the design of the 1953 Topps set and (as advertised) includes the Phillies top ten prospects who are all current members of the Reading squad or who have recently passed through on their way to the big leagues.

1975 Hostess #133 Mike Schmidt

Pirates 1, Phillies 0 (11 Innings)
Game 64 - Sunday Afternoon, June 14th in Pittsburgh
Record - 22-42, 5th Place, 12 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Cole Hamels pitched another gem of a ballgame, but the offense took the afternoon off and the Pirates won in eleven innings.

What It Means:  The Phillies are in the midst of a six-game losing streak and they're now 20 games under .500.  They'll play four games against the Orioles beginning on Monday night - two in Baltimore and then two in Philly.

What Happened:  Hamels struck out 12 and allowed just four hits in his seven innings.  The offense was shut down by Pirates pitching, including nine shutout innings from A.J. Burnett.  With two outs in the 11th and a runner on first, Freddy Galvis threw away a ground ball from Jose Tabata, putting runners at second at third.  Josh Harrison's single a batter later brought the winning run home and (to add insult to injury) Antonio Bastardo was credited with the win for the Pirates.

Featured Card:  As noted on the game's TV broadcast, the last time the Phillies played two games in the same series that went into extra innings with no score was May 26 and 27, 1975 against the Giants.  I'm always happy to find an excuse to show off a vintage Hostess Mike Schmidt card.

2015 Grandstand Reading Fightin Phils Top Prospects #2 Aaron Nola

Pirates 4, Phillies 3
Game 63 - Saturday Afternoon, June 13th in Pittsburgh
Record - 22-41, 5th Place, 11 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Once again, the Phillies couldn't string together a few hits when they needed them and the Pirates prevailed 4-3.

What It Means:  This seems like the 10th or 11th time this season the Phillies have had an active five game losing streak going.

What Happened:  Starting pitcher Sean O'Sullivan allowed four runs in his six innings of work.  Trailing by a run in the eighth, the Phillies loaded the bases with no outs.  Maikel Franco, Cody Asche and Freddy Galvis all grounded out in quick succession to end the threat.

Featured Card:  We listened to the first half of this game on our drive to Reading to take in the Reading Fightin Phils game.  I'll have a full recap of the Double-A action in an upcoming post.

Transaction:  Following the game, Darin Ruf was optioned to Triple-A and the long-exiled former All-Star Domonic Brown was recalled.  Ruf will see more regular at-bats with the IronPigs and hopefully Brown has a strong few weeks in order to raise his trade value.

2015 Phillies Team Issue #22 Bob McClure CO

Pirates 1, Phillies 0 (13 Innings)
Game 62 - Friday Night, June 12th in Pittsburgh
Record - 22-40, 5th Place, 11 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Despite solid efforts from new starter Kevin Correia and the Phillies bullpen, the offense couldn't produce and the Pirates won 1-0 in 13 innings.

What It Means:  The Phillies have lost four in a row and their road record is a Major League worst at 7-24.

What Happened:  Correia gave the Phillies 5 2/3 scoreless innings in his debut and the bullpen followed with scoreless frames through the 12th.  Dustin McGowan was on the mound in the 13th when Starling Marte singled home Chris Stewart with the winning run.  The Phillies offense went 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position, painfully wasting opportunities to score in the 9th, 10th and 11th innings.

Featured Card:  Pitching coaches don't get featured that often in these game summary reports, but Bob McClure gets the nod here for being on one end of the most emotionally charged exchanges in the Phillies dugout this season.  The Phillies website has video and a summary of the Ken Giles vs. Ryne Sandberg and McClure argument here.

Phillies at Pirates: June 12th to June 14th

Friday 7:05, Saturday 4:05 and Sunday 1:35
PNC Park - Pittsburgh, PA

Phillies 22-39, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 10 games behind the Mets
Pirates 32-27, 3rd Place in the N.L. Central, 6 1/2 games behind the Cardinals

Phillies Probables:  Kevin Correia (0-0, 0.00), Sean O'Sullivan (1-4, 4.96), Cole Hamels (5-5, 3.19)
Pirates Probables:  Jeff Locke (3-3, 5.37), Gerrit Cole (9-2, 1.73), A.J. Burnett (6-2, 2.11)

At the Ballpark:  The first 20,000 fans will receive a Pirate Parrot t-shirt tonight and there's a postgame concert tomorrow night featuring Big & Rich.  On Sunday, all kids will receive an Andrew McCutchen compression sleeve.  I won't speak for the kids of today, but I think I'd be pretty bummed (and a little confused) if the giveaway item I received at a ballgame was a tight fitting sleeve.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Ben Revere - .270
Runs:  Ben Revere - 29
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 11
RBIs:  Ryan Howard - 28
Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 12

Wins:  Cole Hamels - 5
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 3.04
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 91
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 12

1985 Topps #185

1985 Topps Traded #55T

1985 Topps Appreciation:  Mr. T, Al Holland, found himself in Pittsburgh following the April 20, 1985 closer swap that brought Phillies Room favorite Kent Tekulve to Philadelphia.  Holland pitched only part of one season with the Pirates, going 1-3 with a 3.38 ERA and contributing four saves.  On August 2, 1985, he found himself as part of a much bigger trade, going with John Candeleria and George Hendrick to the Angels for Mike Brown, Pat Clements and Bob Kipper.  Holland would wrap up the season with the Angels and then play two more seasons with the Yankees before calling it a career following the 1987 season.

Thanks for the Autographs Doug Nickle!

2002 Topps Total #518

2022 Upper Deck Victory #509

A few months ago I received an e-mail from former Phillies pitcher Doug Nickle, who had found my post on the Phillies card found within the 2002 Topps United We Stand subset.  Doug confirmed that he was indeed the fourth player from the left, next to Dave Coggin, and he provided me with a few other updates.  Doug was kind enough to point out that the players to either side of him are P.J. Forbes (and not Nick Punto) and Turk Wendell (not Jose Santiago).  I've updated the original post for this new information.

In his e-mail Doug told me he had been trying to track down this card for his personal collection, and I e-mailed him back that I'd be more than happy to send it to him.  I included a few of Doug's other cards in the package and he graciously signed and sent the cards back to me to be included in my sons' growing autograph collection.  Both my boys, Doug and Ben, were thrilled to have received mail from a big league pitcher.

Thanks again Doug!

1984 Donruss #427 Ivan DeJesus

Reds 5, Phillies 2
Game 61 - Wednesday Afternoon, June 10th in Cincinnati
Record - 22-39, 5th Place, 10 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  Jerome Williams dug the Phillies an early hole by allowing four runs in the first inning, and the Reds went on to win the ballgame, 5-2.

What It Means:  The Reds completed the three-game sweep of the Phillies.  After an off day Thursday, they'll head to Pittsburgh to open a weekend series with the Pirates.

What Happened:  Ivan DeJesus, Jr. hit a three-run home run off Williams in the first.  Cameron Rupp drove in both Phillies runs.  Chase Utley's average dippped down to .185 after his 0 for 3 day.

Featured Card:  Smile Phillies fans!  Just wait until next year!  (Or maybe the year after that . . . but definitely 2017 . . . maybe.)

2015 Topps Heritage #401 Hector Neris/Chris Heston

Reds 11, Phillies 2
Game 60 - Tuesday Night, June 9th in Cincinnati
Record - 22-38, 5th Place, 9 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Joey Votto's three home run night sunk the hapless Phillies as the Reds easily won, 11-2.

What It Means:  So . . . how 'bout those Astros?  (I got nothing.)

What Happened:  Aaron Harang turned in another troubling start, allowing seven runs on seven hits through six innings.  The Phillies offense actually banged out 11 hits (including three from Odubel Herrera) but they went 2 for 9 with runners in scoring position.

2012 Topps Heritage #1

Featured Cards:  It's getting increasingly more difficult to find Phillies baseball cards with a relevant connection to these games as the Phillies season is officially in free-fall mode.  I actually have a Votto card in my collection as he's one of the floating heads on the 2012 Topps Heritage N.L. Batting Leaders card that includes former Phillies outfielder Hunter Pence.

I decided to go with that card for this post, but then I read this Tweet from Phungo this morning.  Giants pitcher Chris Heston, who threw a no-hitter last night against the Mets, shares his 2015 Topps Heritage card with Phillies/IronPigs reliever Hector Neris.  As Phungo points out, it's not often that the game featuring a player with three home runs isn't the best game of the day.

2015 Phillies Team Issue - 2nd Edition

Number of Cards:  40
Card Size:  4" x 6"
Description:  Keeping with a theme that's been used for the past two seasons, the card fronts feature full color photos with a bottom border containing the player's name, number and position.  The blue border used for the first series set has been replaced by a red border and a simple Phillies "P".  The horizontal card backs feature biographical information and complete career statistics.

How Distributed:  The second series set went on sale at Citizens Bank Park on June 2, 2015.  Sets are available for sale for $5.

Complete Standard Checklist:  The cards are unnumbered, but I've presented them below ordered by uniform number.

2 - Ben Revere 3 - Jeff Francoeur 4 - Andres Blanco 5 - Pat Burrell (Alumni) 5 - Steve Henderson CO 6 - Ryan Howard 7 - Maikel Franco 8 - Juan Samuel CO 9 - Domonic Brown 10 - Larry Bowa CO 12 - John Mizerock CO 13 - Freddy Galvis 16 - Cesar Hernandez 18 - Darin Ruf 22 - Bob McClure CO 23 - Ryne Sandberg MG 24 - Grady Sizemore 25 - Cody Asche 26 - Chase Utley 29 - Cameron Rupp

30 - Justin De Fratus 31 - Jerome Williams 34 - Aaron Harang 35 - Cole Hamels 37 - Odubel Herrera 38 - Chad Billingsley 40 - Dustin McGowan 45 - Pete Mackanin CO 46 - Jeanmar Gomez 47 - Sean O'Sullivan 51 - Carlos Ruiz 53 - Ken Giles 54 - Rod Nichols CO 55 - David Buchanan 57 - Luis Garcia 58 - Jonathan Papelbon 59 - Elvis Araujo 63 - Jake Diekman Phillie Phanatic Phillies Broadcasters

One and Done (1):  McGowan
First Appearances (2):  Araujo and O'Sullivan
Returning Players (26):  Asche, Billingsley, Blanco, Brown, Buchanan, De Fratus, Diekman, Franco, Francoeur, Galvis, Garcia, Giles, Gomez, Hamels, Harang, Hernandez, Herrera, Howard, Papelbon, Revere, Ruf, Ruiz, Rupp, Sizemore, Utley, Williams

I wouldn't be surprised if Araujo, McGowan and O'Sullivan get bumped from the First Appearances designation up to the One and Done spot.  The younger Araujo has the best chance of receiving a second Phillies baseball card.  Asche's card designates him as a left fielder, despite the fact he had only played three career games at the position prior to this set's release.  Sizemore was released the day before this set was released.

Brown is in the set even though as of the set's release date he had yet to appear in a game with the Phillies in 2015.  Brown has been exiled to Triple-A Lehigh Valley thus far into the season.

The First Appearance designation is for players who have never before appeared within a Phillies team issued set.  These players may have already appeared on other Phillies baseball cards.

Manager (1):  Sandberg
Coaches (7):  Bowa, Henderson, Mackanin, McClure, Mizerock, Nichols, Samuel
Phillie Phanatic (1)
Broadcasters (1):  Features the same photo as the first series with announcers Tom McCarthy, Ben Davis, Larry Andersen, Scott Franzke, Jim Jackson, Matt Stairs, Mike Schmidt and Gregg Murphy.
Other Cards (1):  Burrell (Alumni Card)

The second series replaces the Charlie Manuel alumni card (found within the first series) with an alumni card for this year's Wall of Fame inductee Burrell.

Variations/Rarities:  On July 31st, I purchased a second series photo card set from the ballpark that included an Aaron Nola card on top.  The rest of the cards in the set were the same 40 cards as listed on the checklist above.

• 27 - Aaron Nola

Photo from Steve F. from 2016 ALS Festival

Photo from Rick from Jr. Phillies Club Night

Update (6/13/16):  Fellow collector Steve F. obtained an Aaron Altherr card in the style of this set at the 2016 ALS Festival held on June 9, 2016. The card is blank-backed and was most likely printed solely in order for Altherr to have a card for autograph requests.  Collector Rick also informed me that blank backed cards are available for Franco and Rupp.

Update (9/16/16):  Fellow collector Rick e-mailed me on September 16th to let me know that blank-backed photo cards in the style of this set were available to Jr. Phillies Club members during the game.  From the scans sent by Rick, I've listed below the additional cards available through this promotion.

• 17 - Peter Bourjos (posed photo)
• 23 - Aaron Altherr
• 39 - Adam Morgan
• 45 - Pete Mackanin MG (different photo - white jersey)
• 48 - Jared Eickhoff

Update (12/15/18): At the recent Phillies holiday sale, an annual event held at Citizens Bank Park, Steve found even more rare versions of cards in this set's style.  These three coaches joined the staff in 2016, so presumably these cards were produced during the 2015-2016 offseason.

• 9 - John McLaren CO (posed photo)
• 12 - Mickey Morandini CO (posed photo)
• 33 - Rick Kranitz CO (posed photo)

Trivia:  As I laid out in this post, this is the earliest a second series set has ever been released since the team started issuing multiple team issued sets back in 2010.  Hector Neris and Severino Gonzalez are the only members (so far) of the 2015 Phillies not to appear in either series of team issued sets.

Resources:  Thanks to fellow Phillies collectors Steve F. and Rick for giving me a head's up that this set was for sale at the ballpark.

1983 Donruss #399 Ivan DeJesus

Reds 6, Phillies 4
Game 59 - Monday Night, June 8th in Philadelphia
Record 22-37, 5th Place, 9 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies fell short once again as costly home runs allowed to Ivan DeJesus, Jr. and Zack Cozart ultimately led to the 6-4 loss.

What It Means:  We flipped between this game and the 2015 MLB Draft last night, with the draft only being slightly more exciting.

What Happened:  Cole Hamels didn't have his best stuff, allowing five runs on eight hits over six innings.  Carlos Ruiz tied the game up at three a piece in the fourth with a two-run single, but DeJesus's home run in the bottom of the sixth broke the tie.

Featured Cards:  Ivan DeJesus was the player acquired from the Cubs in January 1982 in the awful trade that sent Larry Bowa and Ryne Sandberg to Chicago.  All these years later, and his son, Ivan DeJesus Jr., did the Phillies in with a two-run home run in the sixth inning.

2014 Topps Heritage #62

Transaction:  After Sunday afternoon's game, the Phillies optioned starting pitcher Severino Gonzalez back to Lehigh Valley.  In five starts this season, Gonzalez has gone 2-2 with a 8.69 ERA.

Taking Gonzalez's place in the rotation will be veteran Kevin Correia, who opted out of his minor league contract with the Giants at the end of May and signed a Major League deal with the Phillies yesterday.  In six starts with the Sacramento River Cats, Correia was 0-1 with a 3.58 ERA.  More importantly he had stuck out 25 and only walked 11 in 37 2/3 innings of work.

Correia's most recent mainstream baseball cards can be found in the 2014 Topps and 2014 Topps Heritage sets featuring him with the Twins.

Departed During Season
Grady Sizemore (6/1/15) - Released

Arrived During Season
Kevin Correia (6/8/15) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the San Francisco Giants organization.

Phillies Select Randolph with First Pick

In last night's 2015 MLB Draft, the Phillies selected shortstop Cornelius Randolph with the 10th overall pick.  Randolph attended Griffin High School in Griffin, GA, and he'll most likely be moved to a different position given that the Phillies have top prospect J.P. Crawford pencilled in as their regular shortstop for the foreseeable future.  Randolph could see time in the outfield.

I'd recommend checking out the fine Phillies Minor Thoughts blog for more on Randolph and the other 2015 Phillies draft picks.

A quick search of eBay shows that Randolph has already appeared on a handful of 2014 Leaf products.  For his first Chachi card, I'm using the design of the Draft Picks subset found within the 1985 Topps set.

Memory Lane
2014 Draft - Aaron Nola

Phillies at Reds: June 8th to June 10th

Monday and Tuesday 7:10, Wednesday 12:35
Great American Ball Park - Cincinnati, OH

Phillies 22-36, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 9 games behind the Mets
Reds 24-31, 4th Place in the N.L. Central, 13 games behind the Cardinals

Phillies Probables:  Cole Hamels (5-4, 2.88), Aaron Harang (4-6, 2.45), Jerome Williams (3-5, 5.68)
Reds Probables:  Mike Leake (2-4, 4.40), Anthony DeSclafani (4-4, 3.60), Jon Moscot (0-1, 7.20)

At the Ballpark:  There looks to be a bunch of themed and discounted ticket packages available for this series, but no notable promotions or giveaways.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Ben Revere - .266
Runs:  Ben Revere - 28
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 11
RBIs:  Ryan Howard - 27
Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 12

Wins:  Cole Hamels - 5
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 2.45
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 84
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 12

1985 Topps #737

1985 Topps Traded #68T

1985 Topps Appreciation:  The Phillies pulled off two major trades with the Cincinnati Reds over a five month span in late 1985.  In the series preview post from a few weeks ago, I covered the trade in December 1985 that sent John Denny (and Jeff Gray) to the Reds for Tom Hume and Gary Redus.

Five months earlier, on August 8, 1985, the Phillies shipped popular catcher Bo Diaz (and minor league pitcher Greg Simpson) to the Reds for Tom Foley, Alan Knicely and a player to be named later (eventually Fred Toliver).  Diaz enjoyed several relatively successful seasons with the Reds between 1985 and 1989, making the All-Star team in 1987.  I first talked about this trade in a series preview post from last season.

This trade could be viewed as a definite win for the Reds, as Knicely (7 games with the Phillies, going 0 for 7) and Foley (85 games, .274 average) didn't do that much to make their time in Philadelphia memorable.  Toliver went 1-7 with the Phillies over 26 games with a 4.67 ERA.

2015 Topps Gypsy Queen #286 Ken Giles

Phillies 6, Giants 4
Game 58 - Sunday Afternoon, June 7th in Philadelphia
Record - 22-36, 5th Place, 9 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies pulled off another come-from-behind victory, avoiding the sweep and defeating the Giants, 6-4.

What It Means:  The Phils went 3-6 on the nine-game homestand and they'll now head to Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and Baltimore for eight games.

What Happened:  With the score tied at three in the seventh, Jeff Francoeur hit a pinch-hit two-run double to give the Phillies the lead for good.  Maikel Franco hit a solo home run in the eighth for the all important insurance run.

Featured Card:  On the day the Phillies gave away a t-shirt bearing his likeness, Ken Giles recorded the final two outs of the seventh and pitched a perfect eighth.  Francoeur's big hit gave him the win in this game.  Thanks in part to his successful rookie campaign in 2014, Giles has popped up in quite a few Topps releases this year.  His card from the Topps Gypsy Queen set uses the same exact photo as his card from the Topps Heritage set.

2015 Phillies Team Issue 2 #3 Jeff Francoeur

Giants 7, Phillies 5
Game 57 - Saturday Afternoon, June 6th in Philadelphia
Record - 21-36

One Sentence Summary:  The Giants roughed up rookie starting pitcher Severino Gonzalez on the way to a 7-5 win over the Phillies.

What It Means:  The Phillies are now a season high 15 games below .500 and they've lost 13 of their last 17 games.  It's not going well.

What Happened:  Gonzalez lasted 2 2/3 innings (six runs on seven hits) before he was mercifully pulled.  Dustin McGowan came in to pitch an impressive 3 1/3 scoreless innings.  Jeff Francoeur hit a grand slam in the sixth that temporarily gave the Phillies fans something to be excited about.  Andres Blanco added a solo home run in the eighth.

Featured Card:  Francoeur gets the honor today given that his grand slam in the fourth inning was the only real highlight for the Phillies in this game.  With the release of the second series of team issued postcards, Francoeur now has two Phillies cards.

2015 Panini Diamond Kings #170 Maikel Franco

Giants 5, Phillies 4
Game 56 - Friday Night, June 5th in Philadelphia
Record - 21-35, 5th Place, 9 1/2 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  Home runs from Ryan Howard and Maikel Franco weren't enough against Tim Lincecum and the Giants as the Phillies lost the series opener, 5-4.

What It Means:  In case you missed it, the Phillies are now firmly back in last place in the East, 2 1/2 games behind the fourth place Marlins.

What Happened:  I wonder how much longer the Phillies can keep going with Jerome Williams as a starting pitcher option.  Williams was pulled with one out in the fifth inning of this game, and when the dust settled he had allowed four runs on nine hits.  His ERA of 5.68 ranks him as 123rd out of 128 qualifying Major League pitchers and he leads the National League in hits allowed with 87.

Williams did double home the Phillies third run of the night, so it wasn't a total bust of a night for him.

Featured Card:  Might as well go with another Franco card here.  Franco hit his third game-tying home run in four games in the sixth.  This is Franco's card from the recently released Panini Diamond Kings set, which doesn't actually look Diamond King-ish to me.  I get the feeling Panini wanted to produce a logo-less set with current players and veterans, using artsy washed out photos.  In lieu of coming up with a non-recognizable set name, they decided to just slap the Diamond King name on this set.

Transaction:  Dustin McGowan was added to the bullpen to take the place of the demoted Jake Diekman.

Giants at Phillies: June 5th to June 7th

Friday 7:05, Saturday 3:05 and Sunday 1:35
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

Giants 30-25, 2nd Place in the N.L. West, 1 1/2 games behind the Dodgers
Phillies 21-34, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 9 games behind the Mets

Giants Probables:  Tim Lincecum (5-3, 3.00), Madison Bumgarner (6-2, 3.12), Ryan Vogelsong (4-3, 4.26)
Phillies Probables:  Jerome Williams (3-5, 5.49), Severino Gonzalez (2-1, 6.88), Sean O'Sullivan (1-4, 5.03)

At the Ballpark:  On Sunday afternoon, all kids will receive a nice looking Ken Giles T-Shirt.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Freddy Galvis and Ben Revere - .269
Runs:  Ben Revere - 25
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 10
RBIs:  Ryan Howard - 25
Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 11

Wins:  Cole Hamels - 5
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 2.45
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 84
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 11

1985 Topps #310

1985 Topps #235

1985 Topps Appreciation:  Today's look back at Phillies-related cards found within the 1985 Topps set pairs two players from the legendary 1980 World Champions.

Manny Trillo played two seasons in San Francisco, coming to the Giants in 1984 after stops in Cleveland and Montreal.  He struggled during those two seasons, hitting just .238, and he was traded to the Cubs in December 1985 for Dave Owen.

Garry Maddox of course began his 15-year career playing three full seasons with San Francisco.  He was 17 games into the 1975 seasons with the Giants when the Phillies acquired him for Willie Montanez.  I wrote more about this trade in a Giants-Phillies series preview post in May 2013.

2015 Topps Phillies #PHP-17 Jake Diekman

Reds 6, Phillies 4
Game 55 - Thursday Night, June 4th in Philadelphia
Record - 21-34

One Sentence Summary:  There was no late inning comeback in this game for the Phillies, as they fell to the Reds, 6-4.

What It Means:  The modest two game winning streak is over and the Giants come to town tonight for a three-game weekend series.  Things could get ugly.

What Happened:  Aaron Harang struggled for the first time this season, allowing six runs (five earned) on six hits and five walks in 5 2/3 innings.  The wheels came off for Harang after a controversial call at the plate allowed the Reds to break a 2-2 tie in the fifth.  Carlos Ruiz was ruled to have obstructed the plate on a play at home when he didn't provide a path for Reds pitcher Anthony DeScalafani within the base path.  It's a dumb rule.

Featured Card/Transaction:  Following the game, reliever Jake Diekman was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.  A corresponding a roster move will be made before tonight's game.  Diekman had been one of the team's best relievers last season, but he's struggling mightily this season.  He pitched a scoreless 1 1/3 innings in this game to lower his 2015 ERA to 6.75.

2015 Phillies Team Issue 2 #7 Maikel Franco

Phillies 5, Reds 4 (11 Innings)
Game 54 - Wednesday Night, June 3rd in Philadelphia
Record - 21-33

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies won their second straight dramatic come-from-behind game, thanks again in part to a huge home run from Maikel Franco.

What It Means:  Exciting baseball!

What Happened:  The Phillies had absolutely nothing going against Mike Leake until Franco singled with two outs in the seventh to break up the Reds pitcher's no-hit bid.  Trailing 4-0 going to the bottom of the ninth, the Phils managed to score four times with the big hit being Franco's three-run home run off Reds closer Aroldis Chapman.

They'd walk off with the win in the 11th after Cody Asche doubled and came in to score when pitcher Ryan Mattheus booted a throw to him at first on a Freddy Galvis grounder.

Featured Card/Field Report:  We were there!  Thanks to a very kind usher, we enjoyed the game from behind home plate.  Doug and I were lingering behind home plate prior to the game when the usher invited us to sit in two seats in one of the back rows of Section 126.  Sadly, even the sections right behind home plate aren't filling up these days.  In the interest of full disclosure on this blog, we didn't make it all 11 innings as it was a school night, but my personal record improved to 3-3 for the season.

Thanks to tips from fellow Phillies collectors Rick and Steve F., I knew the Phillies had recently released their second edition team issued photo card set.  This marks the earliest the team has ever released a second series since they started the practice back in 2010.  Doug and I each picked up a 40-card set for our respective collections and I'll publish a post with a full checklist in the near future.

The Phillies continue to do a nice job with player and photo selection, and all players to have suited up with the team in 2015 now have official Phillies baseball cards.  The only surprise with the checklist is the omission of the injured Cliff Lee and the inclusion once again of the Triple-A exiled Domonic Brown.

Dropped (7) - Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez, Mario Hollands, Cesar Jimenez, Cliff Lee, Charlie Manuel (Alumni Card), Andy Oliver, Kevin Slowey
Added (4) - Elvis Araujo, Pat Burrell (Alumni Card), Dustin McGowan, Sean O'Sullivan

Memory Lane - Phillies Team Issue 2
2010, Mid-August - Drops 1, Adds 3
2011, Mid-June - Drops 2, Adds 6
2012, Mid-July - Drops 8, Adds 10
2012 Update, October - Drops 6, Adds 6
2013, Early July - Drops 5, Adds 4
2014, Mid-August - Drops 8, Adds 5
2015, Early June - Drops 7, Adds 4

2015 Topps '52 Tribute Gold #298 Maikel Franco

Phillies 5, Reds 4
Game 53 - Tuesday Night, June 2nd in Philadelphia
Record - 20-33

One Sentence Summary:  Late-inning clutch hits from Maikel Franco and Darin Ruf fueled the Phillies come-from-behind 5-4 win over the Reds.

What It Means:  It means the dreadful seven game losing streak is finally over.  (And I won't be posting another Braulio Castillo card for the time being.)

What Happened:  The Phillies fell behind early to the Reds and found themselves trailing by a score of 4-1 heading into the bottom of the sixth.  Chase Utley got them a run closer with a solo home run in the sixth that was his third hit of the night, raising his average to .209.

Ryan Howard doubled with two outs in the eighth and Franco then launched his third home run of the year off Jumbo Diaz to tie up the ballgame.  In the bottom of the ninth Odubel Herrera doubled to start the inning, went to third on Carlos Ruiz's sacrifice bunt and came in to score the winning run on Ruf's bloop single to right.

Featured Card:  Ruf's hit won it, but it was Franco's bomb of a home run to left that dramatically tied the game in the eighth inning.  Franco already has quite a few 2015 baseball cards, but this is one of my favorites from the Topps '52 Tribute Gold set, available for sale on the company's website.

Reds at Phillies: June 2nd to June 4th

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

Reds 22-27, 4th Place in the N.L. Central, 10 games behind the Cardinals
Phillies 19-33, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 10 games behind the Nationals and Mets

Reds Probables:  Johnny Cueto (3-4, 3.03), Mike Leake (2-4, 4.66), Anthony DeSclafani (3-4, 3.41)
Phillies Probables:  Sean O'Sullivan (1-4, 4.81), Cole Hamels (5-4, 2.91), Aaron Harang (4-5, 2.02)

At the Ballpark:  All fans attending tonight's game will receive a Vintage Phillies Bobble Head.  Tomorrow night is another Dollar Dog Night.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Freddy Galvis - .289
Runs:  Ben Revere - 23
Home Runs:  Ryan Howard - 10
RBIs:  Ryan Howard - 25
Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 10

Wins:  Cole Hamels - 5
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 2.02
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 76
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 11

1985 Topps #223

1985 Topps #146

1985 Topps #325

1985 Topps Appreciation:  It's funny how a 12-year-old brain processes a fairly significant baseball trade.  Back on December 11, 1985, when the Phillies traded former Cy Young winner John Denny (along with Jeff Gray) to the Cincinnati Reds for Tom Hume and Gary Redus, my honest to goodness first thought was, "Well, Denny is going to have to shave his mustache."  The Reds had a no facial hair rule at the time and I remember trying to picture Denny without his mustache.

Denny pitched in his final season with the 1986 Reds, going 11-10 with a 4.20 ERA over 27 starts.  Hume stuck around with the Phillies for a season and a half before getting released in August 1987 and ending up back in Cincinnati.  Redus was only around for a season (90 games in left field, hitting .247 with 11 home runs) before being traded to the White Sox in the deal that began the short-lived and tragic Joe Cowley era for the Phillies.

2015 Topps Phillies #PHP-16 Grady Sizemore

The first in-season player move was announced yesterday when the Phillies released outfielder Grady Sizemore.  Sizemore had been designated for assignment on Friday to make room for the returning Cody Asche.

In total, Sizemore appeared in 99 games with the 2014 and 2015 Phillies, hitting .250 with 3 home runs and 18 RBIs.  He leaves behind a short cardboard legacy with the Phillies, appearing (by my tally) on just three different Phillies baseball cards:

2014 Topps Update #US-33
2015 Phillies Team Issue #24
2015 Topps Phillies #PHP-16

Departed During Season
Grady Sizemore (6/1/15) - Released

Memory Lane
2011-2012 Offseason Moves
2012 In-Season Transactions
2012-2013 Offseason Moves
2013 In-Season Transactions
2013-2014 Offseason Moves
2014 In-Season Transactions
2014-2015 Offseason Moves

1992 Donruss #753 Braulio Castillo

Rockies 4, Phillies 1
Game 52 - Sunday Afternoon, May 31st in Philadelphia
Record - 19-33, 5th Place, 10 games behind the Nationals

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies dropped their seventh in a row, falling 4-1 to the Rockies.

What It Means:  There's another day off today and then the Reds and Giants come to town for six games.

What Happened:  Jerome Williams allowed four runs in his five innings, closing out May with an ERA of 6.62 for the month.  The Phillies best chance to do something came in the bottom of the seventh when they loaded the bases with no outs.  However, Cameron Rupp, pinch-hitter Darin Ruf and Ben Revere all struck out in succession to end the inning.

Featured Card:  The Rockies entered the National League in 1993, and this is the first time they've ever swept the Phillies in a series at home.  The Phillies lost three players to the Rockies in the 1992 expansion draft - pitchers Andy Ashby and Keith Shepherd along with outfielder Braulio Castillo.

This seems like as good a time as any to post a Castillo card.  Maybe I'll just go with nothing but Castillo cards until the losing streak is over . . .