Game 154 - The Worst Phillies Baseball Card of 2018

2018 Topps Now Road to Opening Day Bonus #ODB-20

Braves 5, Phillies 3
Game 154 - Saturday Afternoon, September 22nd in Atlanta
Record - 78-76, 2nd place, 8 1/2 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  Jake Arrieta lasted just two innings and Mike Foltynewicz no-hit the offense through six innings, as the Braves dropped the Phillies, 5-3.

What It Means:  The loss clinched the N.L. division pennant for the Braves.

What Happened:  This was the shortest outing of Arrieta's career in what should be considered a bust of a season for the offseason acquisition.  The Phillies rallied for three runs in the 8th with a two-run single from Cesar Hernandez and an RBI-single from Rhys Hoskins.  Maikel Franco flew out to left fielder Ronald Acuna, Jr. to end the game and eliminate the Phillies in the division.

Featured Card:  The Phillies have made me cranky and I thought this was as good an opportunity as any to showcase what I believe to be the worst Phillies baseball card of 2018.  I'm not one to complain too often about Topps, but it's no secret within the hobby that their quality control department is sometimes lacking and it's seemingly getting worse every year.  Their unintentional errors range from presenting incorrect information on the backs of some cards to using the wrong font or design elements when reproducing their vintage designs.

The background for this particular card is that Topps produced a 15-card set during spring training for each team and sold the team sets exclusively on their website for $50.  If you purchased a team's set, bonus cards would be unlocked for certain milestones, including your team being in first place in their division at the All-Star break.  As I purchased a Phillies team set in February, and since the Phillies were in first place way back on July 15th, I was rewarded a bonus card.

This is that bonus card, which I received on August 16th.  The photo used for the card is clearly from last season as it features Aaron Altherr (optioned to Triple-A shortly after the break), Odubel Herrera and Michael Saunders, released by the Phillies on June 23, 2017, a full year before the date this card celebrates.  This baseball card, much like the 2018 Phillies season, makes me irrationally angry.

Highlights from the 2017 Phillies Phestival (Part 2) #StrikeOutALS

Here are the remaining 13 cards from the very limited edition Chachi set from Thursday's Phillies Phestival to benefit ALS reasearch.  Part 1 can be found here.

If you've never gone to this event before, try to make every effort to come out to it in 2018.

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #11

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #12

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #13

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #16

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #17

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #18

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #19

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #21

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #22

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #14

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #15

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #20

2017 Chachi Phillies Phestival #23

2017 Chachi #5 Michael Saunders

#5
Michael Edward Brett Saunders
Right Field

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  225
Born:  November 19, 1986, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Home:  Castle Rock, CO
Drafted:  Selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 11th round of the June 2004 draft
Teams:  Seattle Mariners 2009-2014; Toronto Blue Jays 2015-2016; Phillies 2017
Acquired:  Signed as a free agent formerly with the Toronto Blue Jays, January 19, 2017

2009 Topps Update #UH3

2017 Phillies Team Issue #5

1 Saunders Baseball Card in My Collection per The Phillies Room Checklist
First Card:  2017 Phillies Team Issue #5
First Phillies Card:  2017 Phillies Team Issue #5
First Phillies Team Issued Card:  2017 Phillies Team Issue #5
Latest Card:  2017 Phillies Team Issue #5

First Topps Flagship Base Card:  2009 Topps Update #UH3

Complete Chachi Checklist
2017 Chachi New Additions #7
2017 Chachi #5

Card statistics through 4/22/17.

New Phillies Uniform Numbers (Getting Closer to Clearwater!)

2016 Topps Heritage #547

2016 Topps Heritage #590

2016 Topps Heritage #694

2016 Topps Heritage #575

At some point over the past few days, I checked the Phillies roster page on their official website and noticed that the dreaded "--" in place of a uniform number for all new players had been replaced with actual uniform numbers.  Friends, this is yet another milestone to the glorious promised land that is spring training.

Here's a look at the new uniform numbers assigned to the newest members of the 2017 Phillies.

New Players (and a Coach) - Under 60 Division

• #5 Michael Saunders - Departed hitting coach Steve Henderson was #5 last year and the #21 Saunders wore the past few seasons with the Blue Jays had already been claimed by newcomer Clay Buchholz.
• #15 Sean Burnett - Emmanuel Burriss wore this number in 2016.
• #17 Pat Neshek - With Peter Bourjos moving on, Neshek reclaims the number he wore with the Twins from 2006 to 2010.
• #18 Pedro Florimon - Florimon takes Darin Ruf's old number.
• #21 Clay Buchholz - With #11 unofficially retired (see below), the new starting pitcher takes #21.  Buchholz has previously worn #11 and #61 with the Red Sox.
• #25 Daniel Nava - Nava will wear the number worn by Cody Asche the prior four seasons.
• #34 Ryan Hanigan - Hanigan takes over the number worn by both Brett Oberholtzer and A.J. Ellis last year.
• #40 Matt Stairs - Mickey Morandini already has #12, the number Stairs wore as a player with the Phillies, so the new hitting coach claims the number worn briefly last season by James Russell.
• #47 Howie Kendrick - No surprise here as the veteran has worn #47 for his entire 11-year career.  Charlie Morton wore the number last season for his four starts.
• #53 Joaquin Benoit - Daniel Stumpf, Frank Herrmann and now Joaquin Benoit are the most three recent #53s for the Phillies.
• #54 Pedro Beato - It appears as if Brad Lidge's number has been officially-unofficially retired.  I don't believe anyone has worn this number for the Phillies since Lidge's final appearance in 2011.  (Matt Harrison had been assigned the number when he came over from the Rangers in the Cole Hamels deal, but he never actually put on a Phillies uniform.)
• #55 Cesar Ramos - David Buchanan last wore #55 during the 2015 season.
• #59 Bryan Holaday - Elvis Araujo's old number goes to Holaday.

New Numbers

2016 Topps Heritage #542

• #30 Taylor Featherston - With Buchholz taking #21, Featherston switches to the number worn by reliever David Hernandez last season.

Highest Number
No one touches Dalier Hinojosa and his #94, but Drew Anderson and his #86 comes the closest.

Numbers Available - Unofficially Retired Division
The Phillies have an unwritten tradition of not giving out the uniform numbers of recently departed franchise players.  For that reason, no one on the roster has been assigned #6 (Ryan Howard), #11 (Jimmy Rollins), #26 (Chase Utley), #35 (Cole Hamels) or #51 (Carlos Ruiz).

Numbers Available - Up for Grabs Division
Of the numbers still available, I'm surprised no one has claimed #3 which was worn last season by David Lough.  This could be reserved for Chris Coghlan, who wore the number last season with the Athletics and who was recently signed on Friday.  #41 (Jimmy Paredes) and #43 (Phil Klein) are still available, as is #52 (Severino Gonzalez).

Memory Lane

2012 New Numbers

2013 New Numbers
2014 New Numbers - Part One and Part Two
2015 New Numbers
2016 New Numbers - Part One and Part Two

Phillies Sign Saunders to Bolster Offense

2017 Chachi New Additions #7

On Thursday, the Phillies officially signed outfielder and former All-Star Michael Saunders to a one-year deal worth $9 million.  Saunders crosses left-handed, middle of the line-up power hitter off the Phillies off-season to-do list, and his arrival means that Phillies Room favorite Roman Quinn most likely starts the season in the minors.

I admittedly don't know a lot about Saunders, other than that he enjoyed a career year last season with the Blue Jays, hitting 24 home runs and driving in 57.  I was surprised to learn he's an eight-year veteran with his first six seasons spent in Seattle.  I was also surprised to see he had relatively few mainstream baseball card appearances in 2016.  His cards can be found within the Topps flagship, Heritage and Update sets.

To make room on the 40-man roster for Saunders, pitcher Severino Gonzlaez was designated for assignment.

Moving On - 2016-2017 Offseason

• Cedric Hunter - of (10/3/16) - Elected free agency.
• James Russell - lhp (10/3/16) - Elected free agency.
• Emmanuel Burriss - inf (10/7/16) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Washington Nationals, 12/13/16.
• Frank Herrmann - rhp (10/7/16) - Outrighted off 40-man roster and elected free agency.
• Jimmy Paredes - of (10/7/16) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed with the Chiba Lotte Marines (Japan), 1/15/17.
• Patrick Schuster - lhp (10/7/16) - Outrighted off 40-man roster, elected free agency and signed as a minor league free agent with the Los Angeles Dodgers, 11/5/16.
• Ryan Howard - 1b (11/3/16) - Team option declined and elected free agency.
• Charlie Morton - rhp (11/3/16) - Team option declined, elected free agency and signed with the Houston Astros, 11/16/16.
• Peter Bourjos - of (11/3/16) - Elected free agency.
• A.J. Ellis - c (11/3/16) - Elected free agency and signed with the Miami Marlins, 12/12/16.
• David Hernandez - rhp (11/3/16) - Elected free agency.
• Darin Ruf - 1b-of and Darnell Sweeney - inf-of (11/11/16) - Traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Howie Kendrick.
• Elvis Araujo - rhp (11/18/16) - Claimed off waivers by the Miami Marlins.
• David Buchanan - rhp (11/23/16) - Released and signed with the Yakult Swallows (Japan), 12/20/16.
• Cody Asche - of (12/2/16) - Designated for assignment, non-tendered and signed as a minor league free agent with the Chicago White Sox, 1/6/17.
• Phil Klein - rhp (12/14/16) - Released and signed with the Yokohama BayStars (Japan), 12/20/16.
• Severino Gonzalez - rhp (1/19/17) - Designated for assignment.

Coming Back

• Jeremy Hellickson - rhp (11/3/16) - Elected free agency, accepted team's qualifying offer, 11/14/16.
• Andres Blanco - inf (11/3/16) - Elected free agency, resigned by the Phillies to a one-year contract, 12/14/16.

New Additions - 2016-2017 Offseason

• Pat Neshek - rhp (11/4/16) - Acquired from the Houston Astros for a player to be named later or cash considerations.
• Howie Kendrick - lf (11/11/16) - Acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers for Darin Ruf and Darnell Sweeney.
• Joaquin Benoit - rhp (12/6/16) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Toronto Blue Jays.
• Clay Buchholz - rhp (12/20/16) - Acquired from the Boston Red Sox for Josh Tobias.
• Michael Saunders - of (1/19/17) - Signed as a free agent formerly with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Already Gone - 2016-2017 Offseason

• David Rollins - lhp (12/2/16) - Claimed off waivers from the Texas Rangers.  Designated for assignment, 12/14/16.
• Richie Shaffer - 3b (12/14/16) - Claimed off waivers from the Seattle Mariners.  Designated for assignment, 12/20/16.