Series Preview - Phillies at Dodgers: June 14th to June 16th

1986 Topps #158

1986 Topps #109

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 10:10
Dodger Stadium - Los Angeles, CA

At the Ballpark:  On Tuesday night, the first 25,000 fans will receive a Justin Turner bobble head, and on Wednesday night the Dodgers are giving away a Mookie Betts jersey.

Phillies 32-31
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 3 games behind the Mets

Phillies Probables
Spencer Howard (0-1, 4.61)
Zach Eflin (2-5, 3.89)
Zack Wheeler (4-3, 2.29)

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Rhys Hoskins - .242
Runs:  Rhys Hoskins - 34
Home Runs:  Rhys Hoskins - 12
RBIs:  Rhys Hoskins - 35
Stolen Bases:  Jean Segura - 6

Wins:  Jose Alvarado and Aaron Nola - 5
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 2.29
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 112
Saves:  Hector Neris - 9

Dodgers 39-26
2nd Place in the N.L. West, 1 game behind the Giants

Dodgers Probables
Tony Gonsolin (0-0, 5.40)
Julio Urias (9-2, 3.56)
Clayton Kershaw (8-5, 3.39)

Dodgers Leaders
Average:  Justin Turner - .281
Runs:  Chris Taylor - 47
Home Runs:  Max Muncy - 14
RBIs:  Chris Taylor and Justin Turner - 34
Stolen Bases:  Mookie Betts and Chris Taylor - 6

Wins:  Julio Urias - 9
ERA:  Walker Buehler - 2.38

Strikeouts:  Trevor Bauer - 111
Saves:  Kenley Jansen - 15

2021 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2021 Season Summary Index / 2021 Chachi Set Checklist

1985 Game 69 - 1986 Topps #158 Derrel Thomas

Cardinals 4, Phillies 3
Game 69 - Thursday Afternoon, June 27th in Philadelphia
Record - 30-39, 5th Place, 10 1/2 games behind the Expos

One Sentence Summary:  Shane Rawley pitched well in his return to the starting rotation, but the offense fell short in this 4-3 loss to the Cardinals.

What It Means:  The loss ended the Phillies' modest five-game win streak, and they'd travel to Montreal following this matinee for a quick road trip and a weekend series against the Expos.

What Happened:  This was Rawley's first start since his June 8th outing when he lasted only two innings.  He took over the disabled Steve Carlton's spot in the rotation, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits over six innings.  The unearned run scored by the Cardinals proved to be costly, and resulted from another error committed by shortstop Derrel Thomas.  Between Thomas and Steve Jeltz, manager John Felske was having a tough time finding shortstop for his line-up.

The Phillies tried mounting a comeback late in the game with solo home runs from Ozzie Virgil in the fifth and Von Hayes in the seventh.  In the eighth, with Greg Gross on second and Mike Schmidt on first, Glenn Wilson doubled to center scoring Gross.  Third base coach Dave Bristol waved Schmidt home as the potential tying run, but Schmidt was gunned down on relay throws from center fielder Willie McGee to shortstop Ozzie Smith to catcher Tom Nieto.  Smith had hit a solo home run off Rawley in the seventh for the deciding fourth run.

Featured Card:  This game represented Thomas' fourth start in a row at short.  After this game, Thomas was batting .185 with three costly errors while Jeltz was also batting .185 with eight errors.  What was a manager to do?

1985 Virtual Phillies Wall / 1985 Season Summary Index

1985 Game 32 - 1985 Topps Traded #121T Derrel Thomas

Braves 6, Phillies 3
Game 32 - Thursday Night, May 16th in Atlanta
Record - 11-21, 5th Place, 10 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Shane Rawley left this game early and Derrel Thomas had a costly error as the Braves won again against the Phillies, 6-3.

What It Means:  A little over 10,000 paying customers watched two fairly bad teams play a somewhat boring game.

What Happened:  Rawley must have departed with an injury as he left with two outs in the third after issuing a walk to Brad Komminsk.  He'd make his next regularly scheduled start five days later, so the early hook ended up only being a precaution.  Pat Zachry entered the game after Rawley's exit, and he must have actually hurt something as he'd not appear in a game again until May 27th.  Zachry, Dave Rucker and Larry Andersen allowed six runs (four earned) on nine hits.  The unearned runs came courtesy of Thomas, who made his Phillies debut and booted his first chance at shortstop in the seventh inning.

Glenn Wilson had a three-hit game.  The three Phillies runs scored on RBI ground-outs and a Luis Aguayo sacrifice fly.

Featured Card:  Heck of a way to start your Phillies career.  Thomas entered the game in the sixth as a pinch-hitter for Steve Jeltz with the Phillies trailing 3-2.  His groundout to second scored Ozzie Virgil and tied the score at three.  In the seventh, with the score still tied, he whiffed on his first chance at short and the Braves took a 4-3 lead.  Two more unearned runs would eventually score later in the inning.  Somewhere, the recently designated for assignment Kiko Garcia was shaking his head.

1985 Virtual Phillies Wall / 1985 Season Summary Index

1985 Game 31 - 1985 Donruss Action All-Stars #55 Steve Carlton

Braves 3, Phillies 2 (10 Innings)
Game 31 - Wednesday Night, May 15th in Atlanta
Record - 11-20, 5th Place, 10 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  The Braves tied the game in the ninth and walked it off in the 10th on a Terry Harper home run given up by Kent Tekulve.

What It Means:  This is one of those brutal losses that must have stung for a few days.  The Phillies had a 2-0 lead going into the bottom of the ninth thanks in part to a great outing from Steve Carlton.  Carlton had pitched six shutout innings before yielding to the bullpen.

What Happened:  The downfall happened quickly.  Larry Andersen allowed a lead-off single in the ninth to Ken Oberkfell and Gerald Perry then promptly hit a two-run home run to tie the game.  Harper led off the 10th with his game-winning home run off Tekulve.

The offense had plenty of opportunities to score more, but went 3 for 13 with runners in scoring position.  The game was scoreless until the seventh thanks to the pitching duel between Carlton and Braves starting pitcher Steve Bedrosian.  In the top of the seventh, Tim Corcoran doubled home Von Hayes for the first run of the game.  Mike Schmidt would single home Luis Aguayo an inning later.

Featured Card:  This was to be Carlton's last outing of pitching at least six innings of shutout baseball for the rest of the season.  In mid-June, Lefty landed on the disabled list with a left shoulder injury and he'd return in September to make three rough starts.  He'd attempt a comeback in 1986, with a few starts showing promise, but the Phillies would ultimately release the greatest pitcher in the franchise's history on June 24, 1986.

That began a season and a half odyssey that saw Carlton pitch for the Giants, White Sox, Indians and Twins between mid-1986 and early 1988.  His longest stint during that period came with the Indians, with whom he made 23 appearances (14 starts) in the first half of 1987.

1985 Topps #763

1985 Fleer #314

Transaction:  Also on this day, the Phillies designated infielder Kiko Garcia for assignment and signed utility player Derrel Thomas as a free agent.  Thomas would make his Phillies debut on Thursday against the Braves and Garcia would be released by the club on May 23rd (according to the team's 1986 Media Guide).

Garcia had been released by the club once already, prior to the start of the regular season, but was quickly re-signed when the Phillies dealt Ivan DeJesus to the Cardinals.  Garcia had only appeared in four games for the Phillies in 1985, going 0 for 3 to end his 10-year big league career.

Derrel Thomas was a veteran of 14 seasons in the majors, having last appeared in 122 games with the Expos and Angels in 1984.  When the Phillies signed him, he had been playing for the Miami Marlins, an unaffiliated team in the Class A Florida State League.  Thomas took over Garcia's uniform number too - #18.

1985 Virtual Phillies Wall / 1985 Season Summary Index

Series Preview - Phillies at Giants: June 1st to June 3rd

1978 Topps #610

1978 Topps #194

Friday 10:15, Saturday 10:05 and Sunday 4:05
AT&T Park - San Francisco, CA

Phillies 31-23, 3rd place in the N.L. East, 1 game behind the Braves
Giants 26-30, Tied for 3rd place in the N.L. West, 4 games behind the Rockies

Phillies Probables:  Nick Pivetta (4-3, 3.26), Vince Velasquez (4-5, 4.08), Jake Arrieta (5-2, 2.16)
Giants Probables:  Chris Stratton (6-3, 4.97), Andrew Suarez (1-4, 5.65), TBD

At the Ballpark:  On Saturday night, the first 20,000 fans will receive a retro Giants fanny pack.  The first 35,000 fans on Sunday will receive a Willie McCovey bobble head.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Odubel Herrera - .313
Runs:  Cesar Hernandez - 38
Home Runs:  Carlos Santana - 9
RBIs:  Carlos Santana - 33
Stolen Bases:  Cesar Hernandez - 10

Wins:  Aaron Nola - 7
ERA:  Jake Arrieta - 2.16
Strikeouts:  Aaron Nola - 74
Saves:  Hector Neris - 9

Giants Leaders
Average:  Brandon Belt - .309
Runs:  Brandon Belt - 32
Home Runs:  Brandon Belt - 11
RBIs:  Brandon Belt - 31
Stolen Bases:  Andrew McCutchen - 4

Wins:  Chris Stratton - 6
ERA:  Derek Holland - 4.94
Strikeouts:  Derek Holland and Chris Stratton - 48
Saves:  Hunter Strickland - 11

Series Preview - Dodgers at Phillies: September 18th to September 21st

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 7:05, Thursday 1:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

Dodgers 96-53, 1st Place in the N.L. West, 9 1/2 games ahead of the Diamondbacks
Phillies 58-91, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 32 games behind the Nationals

Dodgers Probables:  Clayton Kershaw (17-3, 2.12), Yu Darvish (3-3, 4.34), Alex Wood (15-3, 2.69), Kenta Maeda (12-6, 4.21)
Phillies Probables:  Nick Pivetta (5-10, 6.75), Aaron Nola (11-10, 3.60), Jake Thompson (2-2, 4.46), Mark Leiter, Jr. (3-6, 4.93)

At the Ballpark:  Other than some theme nights and Chase Utley's second return to Citizens Bank Park since being traded to the Dodgers in 2015, there aren't any other scheduled giveaways or promotions.

Dodgers Leaders
Average:  Justin Turner - .323
Runs:  Cody Bellinger - 83
Home Runs:  Cody Bellinger - 38
RBIs:  Cody Bellinger - 88
Stolen Bases:  Chris Taylor - 16

Wins:  Clayton Kershaw - 17
ERA:  Clayton Kershaw - 2.12
Strikeouts:  Clayton Kershaw - 188
Saves:  Kenley Jansen - 38

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Cesar Hernandez - .290
Runs:  Cesar Hernandez - 75
Home Runs:  Tommy Joseph - 21
RBIs:  Maikel Franco - 69

Stolen Bases:  Cesar Hernandez - 14

Wins:  Aaron Nola - 11
ERA:  Aaron Nola - 3.60
Strikeouts:  Aaron Nola - 167
Saves:  Hector Neris - 21

1982 Topps #213

1982 Topps #348

1982 Topps #774

1982 Topps Appreciation:  For the final two weeks of the 1985 season, former Dodger teammates Dave Stewart and Derrel Thomas were reunited on the Phillies when the Phillies acquired Stewart from the Rangers for Rich Surhoff on September 13th.

Jay Johnstone played in parts of five seasons for the Phillies between 1974 and 1978, appearing in 462 games primarily in right field.

Nationals at Phillies: April 10th to April 12th

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

Nationals 1-2, Tied for 3rd Place in the N.L. East, 2 games behind the Braves
Phillies 1-2, Tied for 3rd Place in the N.L. East, 2 games behind the Braves

Nationals Probables:  Gio Gonzalez (0-0, 0.00), Doug Fister (0-0, 0.00), Max Scherzer (0-1, 0.00)
Phillies Probables:  Jerome Williams (0-0, 0.00), Cole Hamels (0-1, 7.20), Sean O'Sullivan (0-0, 0.00

At the Ballpark:  Sunday is Kids Opening Day and all fans 14 and under will receive a Turkey Hill Phillies Bat Pack.  The picture from the Phillies website sure looks like a backpack to me, but it's officially being called a Bat Pack.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Carlos Ruiz - .375
Runs:  Ben Revere - 2
Home Runs:  Jeff Francoeur - 1
RBIs:  Jeff Francoeur - 3
Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 1

Wins:  Aaron Harang - 1
ERA:  Aaron Harang - 0.00
Strikeouts:  Aaron Harang - 8
Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 1

1985 Topps Traded #121T

1985 Topps #448

1985 Topps Appreciation:  Derrel Thomas earned two Phillies Topps cards to mark his short time with the club - one in the 1985 Topps Traded set and one in the 1986 Topps set.  I originally wrote about my confusion regarding Thomas' Phillies origin story in this post, noting:

1985 Fleer #314

To be honest, I'm not sure how Thomas came to be with the Phillies.  His Baseball Reference page says he was granted free agency by the Angels in November 1984 and then the Phillies purchased him from Miami (Florida State) in May 1985.  Was this some sort of independent league back in the day?  In any event, Thomas appeared in 63 games for the 1985 Phillies, hitting just .207 but seeing time at shortstop, left field, center field, second base and third base.  He even caught two innings in a game back on August 21, 1985, hitting a three-run home run in the process.

I was confused in 1985 when I came across Thomas' 1985 Fleer card showing him with the Angels.  Unbeknownst to me and unsuspecting Topps collectors, Thomas spent the last month of the 1984 season with the Angels, but Topps denied the transaction by maintaining that Thomas was still with the Expos at the end of 1984.  Flipping his 1985 Topps card over, Topps acknowledges Thomas' 14 game stint with the Angels in his career statistics.  It also baffled me as to why Topps didn't at least include a "Now with Angels" byline on the front of his card.

Padres at Phillies: September 10th to September 12th

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

Padres 65-77, 3rd Place in the N.L. West, 18 1/2 games behind the Dodgers
Phillies 66-77, 3rd Place in the N.L. East, 20 games behind the Braves

Padres Probables:  Andrew Cashner (8-8, 3.45), Robbie Erlin (2-2, 5.56), Burch Smith (0-1, 9.17)
Phillies Probables:  Tyler Cloyd (2-3, 3.57), Roy Halladay (3-4, 7.19), Cliff Lee (12-6, 3.01)

At the Ballpark:  It's bound to be a sparsely populated three-game series against the Padres, but at least tonight is Bark in the Park night.  This is the first ever event held at the ballpark in which pet owners are permitted to bring their dogs with them to the game.

Please don't tell Chachi this is happening.  I can't make it to the game tonight, and I'll try to make it up to him next year.

Phillies Leaders

Average:  Chase Utley - .276*

Runs:  Chase Utley - 64

Home Runs:  Domonic Brown - 27

RBIs:  Domonic Brown - 81

Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 22

Wins:  Cliff Lee - 12

ERA:  Cliff Lee - 3.01
Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 183

Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 25

*Michael Young, now with the Dodgers, is tied for the overall team lead (.276) among players with enough qualifying plate appearances.

1973 Topps #57 and #133

1973 Topps Flashback:  Derrel Thomas and Dave Roberts were teammates on the Padres from 1972 to 1974, wearing the brown and mustard yellow that has since been replaced with a very boring navy blue.  Roberts stuck around with the Padres through the 1978 season before he was traded to the Rangers along with Phillies Room favorite Oscar Gamble.

The Phillies acquired Roberts in March 1982 from the Astros, but injuries limited him to just 28 games with the club.  He stuck around long enough to appear with the Phillies in the 1983 Donruss and Topps sets, before the team released him in May 1983.

To be honest, I'm not sure how Thomas came to be with the Phillies.  His Baseball Reference page says he was granted free agency by the Angels in November 1984 and then the Phillies purchased him from Miami (Florida State) in May 1985.  Was this some sort of independent league back in the day?  In any event, Thomas appeared in 63 games for the 1985 Phillies, hitting just .207 but seeing time at shortstop, left field, center field, second base and third base.  He even caught two innings in a game back on August 21, 1985, hitting a three-run home run in the process.

1985 Phillies - No Missing Links

1985 Topps Traded #121T, 1986 Donruss #34 and 1986 Topps #418

For just the second time since I started this series, I came across a year in which every single player spending time with the Phillies actually has a Phillies baseball card.  (The only other year to this point is 1993.)  I don't think there's any real reason for this to have happened in 1985, as it wasn't a terrific year for the Phils.  But with a little luck, and the existence of the team-issued Tastykake sets, every member of the 1985 squad graces at least a little Phillies cardboard.

In fact, there are just 10 players who appeared with the Phillies in 1985 who didn't appear in either the regular Topps base or traded set.  I created cards for these 10 players, and posted them here.

3 Cards or More
32 Players

Right-handed reliever Dave Shipanoff just makes the cut with three total cards from the 1986 Donruss, Fleer and Tastykake sets.  He appeared in 26 games with the Phils in late 1985, before injuries cut his career short.

2 Cards

Derrel Thomas (63 games in 1985) - 1985 Topps Traded #121T and 1986 Topps #158
Rocky Childress (16 games in 1985 and 2 games in 1986) - 1985 Tastykake Phillies and 1986 Tastykake Phillies

Thomas finished up his 15-year career with the Phillies.  He has the distinction of appearing with three different teams on 1985 baseball cards.  His 1985 Topps card features him as a member of the Expos.  The Expos sold Thomas to the Angels in September 1984, and he played in just 14 games with California.  Fleer hustled a little more than Topps and has him with the Angels on his 1985 card.  Finally, Topps issued a Phillies card for Thomas within its traded series.

Childress never received a standard-sized Phillies card.

1 Card

Pat Zachry (10 games in 1985) - 1985 Tastykake Phillies

Alan Knicely (7 games in 1985) - 1986 Topps #418
Rich Surhoff (2 games in 1985) - 1985 Tastykake Phillies

The inclusion of Knicely's card within the 1986 Topps set always puzzled me, and it would never happen in today's Topps sets.  Knicely came to the Phillies in August 1985 as part of the Bo Diaz deal with the Reds.  Injuries limited his time with the club, and his final Phillies line reads - 0 for 7 with 4 strikeouts.

Technically, Zachry has two cards as he's featured with the rest of the Phillies pitching staff on a multi-player card included within the 1985 Tastykake set.  The 1976 National League Rookie of the Year appeared in just 10 games for the Phillies before getting released in June 1985.

Surhoff, B.J.'s older brother, pitched just one full inning for the Phillies, earning a win on September 8th.  On September 13th, he was traded to the Rangers for Dave Stewart.

Past Missing Link Posts

1980 Phillies - Orlando Isales and Don McCormack

1981 Phillies - Jerry Reed

1982 Phillies - Stan Bahnsen and Alejandro Sanchez

1983 Phillies - Steve Comer
1984 Phillies - Renie Martin, Jim Kern and Mike LaValliere

1990 Phillies - Louie Meadows

1991 Phillies - Dave LaPoint

1992 Phillies - Darrin Chapin and Mickey Weston

1993 Phillies - None

1994 Phillies - Tom Edens and Bob Wells

1995 Phillies - Jim Deshaies, Kevin Elster, Omar Olivares, Chuck Ricci and Dennis Springer

1996 Phillies - Glenn Dishman, Bronson Heflin, Manny Martinez and Rafael Quirico

1997 Phillies - Rob Butler and Mike Robertson

1998 Phillies - Robert Dodd and Matt Whiteside

1999 Phillies - Joel Bennett, Domingo Cedeno, Joe Grahe and Torey Lovullo

2000 Phillies - Clemente Alvarez, Kirk Bullinger, Mark Holzemer and Bryan Ward

Padres at Phillies: May 11th to May 13th

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

Padres 11-21, 5th Place in the N.L. West, 9 1/2 games behind the Dodgers
Phillies 14-18, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 5 1/2 games behind the Nationals

Padres Probables:  Clayton Richard (1-4, 4.89), Edinson Volquez (1-2, 2.98), Jeff Suppan (2-0, 0.90)
Phillies Probables:  Vance Worley (2-2, 2.84), Roy Halladay (3-2, 3.28), Cole Hamels (4-1, 2.45)

At the Ballpark:  Sunday is Mother's Appreciation Day at the ballpark and all women 15 and older in attendance will receive a lovely Phillies scarf.

Phillies Leaders

Average:  Juan Pierre - .341

Runs:  Hunter Pence - 19

Home Runs:  Hunter Pence - 7

RBIs:  Hunter Pence - 23

Stolen Bases:  Shane Victorino - 9

Wins:  Cole Hamels - 4

ERA:  Cliff Lee - 2.17

Strikeouts:  Cole Hamels - 44

Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 9

1979 Topps #342, #679 and #616

1979 Topps Flashback:  This is the final time the Phillies and Padres will face off in 2012, so I had to cram the three remaining Phillies-related 1979 Topps Padres cards into this post.  All three of these players enjoyed more than ten season in the big leagues, and all three saw their careers end as bit players for Phillies teams in the 1980s.

Dave Roberts finished up his 10-year career by appearing in 28 games with the 1982 Phillies.  The bulk of his career was spent in San Diego where he played every position except pitcher while wearing the glorious yellow and brown jerseys of the 1970s Padres.

Derrel Thomas was teammates with Roberts during his first stay in San Diego from 1972 until 1974, and upon his one-year return in 1978.  Like Roberts, he wrapped up his career with the Phillies, appearing in 63 games for the 1985 squad.

And Bill Almon spent the first six seasons of his career with the Padres before bouncing to five different teams and finally ending up with the Phillies in 1988.  Almon appeared in only 20 games with the club, and his .207 average probably contributed to his release that June.

If there's a petition somewhere out there to get the Padres to go back to their old yellow and brown color scheme, I will gladly sign it.