Series Preview - Pirates at Phillies: September 23rd to September 26th

1986 Topps Traded #120T

1986 Topps #326

Thursday and Friday 7:05, Saturday 4:05, Sunday 1:05
Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, PA

At the Ballpark:  Hard to believe Harry, but this is the final home series of the 2021 season unless the Phillies can somehow squeak their way into the play-off picture.  Sunday is Fan Appreciation Day and the team's website promises "prizes and surprises all game long," as well as a 2022 schedule magnet for all fans.

Pirates 57-94
5th Place in the N.L. Central, 33 1/2 games behind the Brewers

Pirates Probables
Connor Overton (0-0, 0.00)
TBD
Wil Crowe (4-7, 5.77)
Max Kranick (1-3, 7.28)

Pirates Leaders
Average:  Brian Reynolds - .295
Runs:  Brian Reynolds - 85
Home Runs:  Bryan Reynolds - 24
RBIs:  Bryan Reynolds - 88
Stolen Bases:  Ke'Bryan Hayes - 8

Wins:  Chris Stratton - 6
ERA:  N/A

Strikeouts:  JT Brubaker - 129
Saves:  Chris Stratton - 6

Phillies 78-74
2nd Place in the N.L. East, 3 games behind the Braves

Phillies Probables
Aaron Nola (8-8, 4.48)
Kyle Gibson (4-5, 4.76)
Ranger Suarez (6-5, 1.60)
TBD

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Bryce Harper - .314
Runs:  Bryce Harper - 95
Home Runs:  Bryce Harper - 33
RBIs:  Bryce Harper - 80
Stolen Bases:  Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto - 13

Wins:  Zack Wheeler - 14
ERA:  Zack Wheeler - 2.79
Strikeouts:  Zack Wheeler - 240
Saves:  Hector Neris - 12

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

Series Preview - Phillies at Pirates: May 19th to May 21st

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

Phillies 14-24, 4th Place in the N.L. East, 10 games behind the Nationals
Pirates 18-23, 5th Place in the N.L. Central, 5 1/2 games behind the Brewers

Phillies Probables:  Jeremy Hellickson (4-1, 3.71), Vince Velasquez (2-3, 5.63), Aaron Nola (2-0, 4.50)
Pirates Probables:  Trevor Williams (2-2, 6.41), Ivan Nova (3-3, 2.48), Chad Kuhl (1-4, 6.69)

At the Ballpark:  The Pirates are throwing out some fairly strong promotions for this weekend series.  There will be fireworks after the game tonight and on Sunday all kids will receive a Pirates baseball glove.

On Saturday afternoon, the first 20,000 fans will receive what's being called a "Bob Walk Chair-Tip Bobblechair."  My assumption is that this is the typical broadcasting positioning of former Phillies pitcher and current Pirates broadcaster Bob Walk.  Very cool item.

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Cesar Hernandez - .299
Runs:  Cesar Hernandez - 30
Home Runs:  Aaron Altherr - 8
RBIs:  Maikel Franco - 28
Stolen Bases:  Cesar Hernandez - 6

Wins:  Jeremy Hellickson - 4
ERA:  Jeremy Hellickson - 3.71
Strikeouts:  Jerad Eickhoff - 43
Saves:  Hector Neris - 4

Pirates Leaders
Average:  Josh Harrison - .286
Runs:  Andrew McCutchen - 19
Home Runs:  Josh Bell - 9
RBIs:  Andrew McCutchen - 19
Stolen Bases:  Gregory Polanco - 6

Wins:  Ivan Nova - 3
ERA:  Ivan Nova - 2.48
Strikeouts:  Gerrit Cole - 50
Saves:  Tony Watson - 8

1982 Topps #235

1982 Topps #332

1982 Topps #458

1982 Topps #485

1982 Topps Appreciation:  If you had told me in 1982 that Mike Easler, Don Robinson and Kent Tekulve, all major stars for the Pirates in my mind, would be playing for the Phillies in the coming decade I would have been ecstatic.  Tekulve had a successful run with the Phillies as one of their most reliable relief pitchers in the late 1980s.  Easler and Robinson had less successful, and much shorter, stints with the Phillies.

Willie Montanez, the Phillies' regular center fielder in 1971 and 1972 and their starting first baseman in 1974, came back to the organization on August 10, 1982, having been released by the Pirates. Montanez appeared in the final 18 games of his 14-year career with the Phillies, hitting just .063 (1 for 16) primarily as a late-inning defensive replacement for Pete Rose at first base.

Series Preview - Braves at Phillies: April 21st to April 23rd

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

Braves 6-7, 4th Place in the N.L. East, 2 games behind the Nationals
Phillies 5-8, 5th Place in the N.L. East, 3 games behind the Nationals

Braves Probables:  Bartolo Colon (1-1, 4.24), Jaime Garcia (0-1, 4.67), Mike Foltynewicz (0-2, 4.26)
Phillies Probables:  Jeremy Hellickson (2-0, 1.59), Jerad Eickhoff (0-1, 2.75), Zach Eflin (0-0, 3.60)

At the Ballpark:  Tonight the Phillies will pay tribute to Jackie Robinson, and I believe both the Braves and Phillies will once again all wear Robinson's #42.  The Phanatic celebrates his birthday on Sunday afternoon with all kids receiving a Phanatic cap.

Braves Leaders
Average:  Freddie Freeman - .407
Runs:  Freddie Freeman - 13
Home Runs:  Freddie Freeman - 6
RBIs:  Freddie Freeman and Nick Markakis - 8
Stolen Bases:  Brandon Phillips - 4

Wins:  Jim Johnson - 2
ERA:  Julio Teheran - 3.52
Strikeouts:  Julio Teheran - 18
Saves:  Jim Johnson - 3

Phillies Leaders
Average:  Cesar Hernandez - .299
Runs:  Cesar Hernandez - 13
Home Runs:  Maikel Franco and Cesar Hernandez - 3
RBIs:  Maikel Franco - 12
Stolen Bases:  Cesar Hernandez - 3

Wins:  Jeremy Hellickson and Aaron Nola - 2
ERA:  Jeremy Hellickson - 1.59
Strikeouts:  Vince Velasquez - 19
Saves:  Three tied with - 1

1982 Topps #296

1982 Topps #680

1982 Topps Appreciation:  On March 25, 1981, about five short months after winning the first World Championship in franchise history, the Phillies traded their World Series game one starting pitcher to the Braves for outfielder Gary Matthews.  Bob Walk went 11-7 for the Phillies in 1980 and he wouldn't find success again in the big leagues until the 1986 season with the Pirates.  Walk bounced back and forth between the Braves and their Triple-A team in Richmond for three seasons, ultimately posting a 12-13 record over 45 games with the Braves.

Matthews had signed a lucrative six-year contract with the Braves in 1976 and was set to become a free agent following the 1981 season.  Following public acrimony between Matthews and the Braves, the Phillies landed Matthews to replace Greg Luzinski whose departure to the White Sox was imminent.  The trade worked out for both Matthews and the Phils, as he'd earn MVP votes in both 1981 and 1982 and then win N.L.C.S. MVP honors in 1983.

Phillies at Pirates: July 4th to July 6th

Friday 5:05, Saturday 4:05 and Sunday 1:35
PNC Park - Pittsburgh, PA

Phillies 37-48, Tied for 4th in the N.L. East, 10 games behind the Braves
Pirates 44-41, 3rd Place in the N.L. Central, 6 1/2 games behind the Brewers

Phillies Probables:  Roberto Hernandez (3-7, 4.26), David Buchanan (4-4, 4.86), A.J. Burnett (5-7, 3.92)
Pirates Probables:  Gerrit Cole (6-4, 4.02), Edinson Volquez (6-6, 4.07), Jeff Locke (1-1, 3.46)

At the Ballpark:  Happy 4th of July!  The first 25,000 fans at PNC Park this afternoon will receive a Pirates t-shirt as part of their season-long Free Shirt Friday promotion.  On Sunday, all kids will receive an Andrew McCutchen poster.

Phillies Leaders

Average:  Ben Revere - .293

Runs:  Chase Utley - 46

Home Runs:  Marlon Byrd - 16

RBIs:  Ryan Howard - 51

Stolen Bases:  Ben Revere - 24

Wins:  A.J. Burnett - 5

ERA:  Cole Hamels - 2.98

Strikeouts:  A.J. Burnett - 95

Saves:  Jonathan Papelbon - 19

1988 Topps #543 and #349

1988 Topps Appreciation:  For the entire 1984 season and the first few weeks of the 1985 season, Kent Tekulve and Bob Walk were teammates on the Pirates.  Tekulve came over to the Phillies on April 20, 1985 in a deal that sent Al Holland and minor leaguer Frankie Griffin to Pittsburgh.  I was ecstatic at news of this trade.  Growing up, I was a Phillies fan first and a Kent Tekulve fan second and when the two came together as I was wrapping up fifth grade, I honestly couldn't believe my good fortune.  I've written about Teke a lot over the life of this blog, but here are a few posts in which I tried to explain my affection for the lanky, bespectacled reliever.

As I wrote almost five years ago, Walk pitched in only 28 games for the Phillies, but he's best remembered as the rookie who started Game 1 of the 1980 World Series.  When he won the game, he became just the second Philadelphia Phillies' player to win a World Series game, and the first since Grover Cleveland Alexander had won a game in the 1915 World Series.

In March 1981, Walk was shipped to the Atlanta Braves for Gary Matthews.  He pitched three years in Atlanta before signing as a free agent with the Pirates.  He'd pitch ten seasons with the Pirates, including three NLCS appearances with the team from 1990 through 1992.  Following the 1993 season and after a 14-year career in which he collected 105 wins, Walk retired, eventually joining the Pirates' broadcast booth.

1981 Donruss #393 Bob Walk

Bob Walk only pitched 28 games for the Phillies, but he's best remembered in Philly as the rookie who started Game 1 of the 1980 World Series. When he won the game, he became just the second Philadelphia Phillies' player to win a World Series game, and the first since Grover Cleveland Alexander had won a game in the 1915 World Series.

"Whirly Bird" joined the Phillies' starting rotation in May 1980 and he finished the year at 11-7 with a 4.57 ERA.

In March 1981, Bob was shipped to the Atlanta Braves for Gary Matthews. He pitched three years in Atlanta before signing as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He'd pitch 10 seasons with the Pirates, including three NLCS appearances with the team from 1990 through 1992. Following the 1993 season and after a 14-year career in which he collected 105 wins, Bob retired, eventually joining the Pirates' broadcast booth.