Game 154 - Rolen Returns, Bohm Walks It Off

Phillies 5, Mets 4 (10 Innings)
Game 154 - Friday Night, September 22nd in Philadelphia
Record - 85-69, 2nd Place, 14 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  The Mets' attempted comeback fell short when Alec Bohm singled home Trea Turner to give the Phillies a 5-4 walk-off win.

What It Means:  The Magic Number to clinch a postseason berth is three.

What Happened:  The Phillies took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the sixth when J.T. Realmuto hit a three-run home run, his 20th of the season.  Kyle Schwarber singled home Johan Rojas in the seventh for an insurance run.  Francisco Lindor hit a solo home run off Gregory Soto in the eighth, bringing the Mets to within a run.  In the ninth, and with Craig Kimbrel on the mound trying to close it out, Brett Baty stunned the crowd with a game-tying solo home run.

With the game in extra innings, Seranthony Dominguez worked out of a mostly self-created bases loaded jam, striking out Lindor and Pete Alonso to end the Mets' threat in the top of the 10th.  With Turner at second as the ghost runner in the bottom of the 10th, Bohm laced his single to right, scoring the winning run and starting yet another on-field celebration.

Featured Card/Field Report:  Jenna, Doug and I braved the windy weather and attended this game, solely to see Scott Rolen officially inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame in a pregame ceremony.  Rolen had a scheduling conflict and couldn't attend Alumni Weekend in August.  My feelings toward Rolen have softened over the years, and the bitterness I felt when he unceremoniously left Philadelphia in 2002 has dissipated over time.  His speech was on the mark and sincere and the cheers from the early-arriving fans outweighed the few boos.  Former teammates Wayne Gomes, Mark Grace, Kevin Sefick, Rico Brogna, Kevin Jordan and a few others I couldn't quite place were on hand.  The card shown above shows the Wall of Famers who were in attendance for the ceremony.

Doug staked out the alumni suite within the Hall of Fame club, and his patience was rewarded when Rolen came through and signed for the autograph seekers assembled there.  Rolen signed Doug's Wall of Fame print, which joined his quickly growing, and impressive collection.  Shake Shack was on the menu for all of us, and I continue to be underwhelmed by their burgers.  I think I'm in the minority?

Transaction:  The Phillies purchased the contract of Orion Kerkering (rhp) a 22-year-old 5th round draft pick from 2022 who began the season at Low-A Clearwater.  Kerkering has shot up through the system quickly, having been recently promoted to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.  Yunior Marte (rhp) was sent down to Lehigh Valley and Drew Ellis (inf) was designated for assignment to make room for Kerkering on the 40-man roster.

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Game 118 - '83 and '93 Phillies Return for Alumni Weekend

Twins 8, Phillies 1
Game 118 - Saturday Night, August 12th in Philadelphia
Record - 65-53, 2nd Place, 11 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Taijuan Walker and Gregory Soto were hit hard in this 8-1 loss to the Twins, and the Phillies offense went 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position.

What It Means:  A series win is still a possibility with Ranger Suarez on the mound for the Phillies this afternoon.

What Happened:  On the field, after the first pitch was thrown, not much happened from the Phillies' perspective.  Off the field, and prior to the game, several Wall of Famers returned to Philadelphia to induct three more members - former general managers John Quinn and Ruly Carpenter and the newly elected Hall of Famer Scott Rolen.  It was a lackluster event, given Rolen wasn't able to attend and the election of two former executives to the Wall of Fame didn't exactly induce a strong emotional reaction.  In the Hall of Fame Club, Doug and I braved the crowds and autograph seekers to once again load up on signatures for Doug's Quinn/Carpenter/Rolen Wall of Fame print.  The key above shows who signed the newest treasure in his collection.

Featured Cards/Field Report:  Fellow collector Rick and his wife were kind enough to save us a spot at the front of the club entrance line, and we quickly staked our territory outside the alumni suite in the Hall of Fame Club level.  As has been the case in recent years, many of the returning players took their time and honored all autograph requests, sometimes signing several things for the same collector.  Stand-outs included Tony Longmire, Kevin Gross, Steve Jeltz and my personal favorite player, Bob Dernier.  Dernier was outside the suite the longest, signing everything, posing for pictures, talking with fans and genuinely seeming to enjoy himself.  Runner-up to Dernier in terms of signing was probably Danny Jackson, who graciously signed everything handed to him and posed for several pictures letting fans model his 1993 National League Champions ring.

Old favorites Mickey Morandini, Dickie Noles, Charlie Manuel and Manny Trillo were there again too and the time these players spend patiently signing dozens of autographs should be appreciated.  Doug's personal highlight was getting Jim Kaat to sign his print as Kaat snuck out a back door of the suite and walked down the hall, largely unrecognized.

Riding home, Doug and I recapped the night and discussed our plans for next year.  He realizes he's reached the age where he's "aged-out" of the cute kid asking for autographs, and as fun as the night is, it's also a bit exhausting.  As he prepares to look at colleges, and depending who the Wall of Fame inductee is next year, we may decide to take 2024 off.  We're both looking forward to the Phillies breaking the seal on the 2008 team and starting to induct some of the players for those team into the Wall of Fame.

As I've done the last few years, I created a limited edition Chachi insert set from photos I took throughout the evening.  My favorite four are featured below, and a second post with the rest of the set can be found here.

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