1998 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

Number of Cards:  36
Card Size:  4" x 6"

Description:  The fronts feature full color photos with the player's, coach's or manager's name in large capital letters framing one of the corners of the card.  Scott Rolen's card features a badge on the front celebrating his 1997 National League Rookie of the Year win, while Curt Schilling's card celebrates his league leading 319 strikeouts in 1997.  The card backs feature biographical information with the Phillies wordmark logo in the background.  There are some strangely cropped photos in the set - see the cards for Billy Brewer and Bobby Abreu as examples.

How Distributed:  The 36-card set was available for sale at Veterans Stadium throughout the season.  For the fourth year in a row, there was no update set issued.

Complete Set Checklist (Unnumbered, presented here alphabetically with uniform number and position from the back of cards): 

1. Bobby Abreu (#53 - OF) 2. Ruben Amaro (#33 - OF) 3. Alex Arias (#26 - INF) 4. Matt Beech (#55 - LHP) 5. Ricky Bottalico (#52 - RHP) 6. Billy Brewer (#49 - LHP) 7. Rico Brogna (#2 - 1B) 8. Galen Cisco (#42 - Pitching Instructor) 9. Chuck Cottier (#3 - Bench Coach) 10. Bobby Estalella (#27 - C) 11. Terry Francona (#7 - MG) 12. Doug Glanville (#6 - OF)

13. Wayne Gomes (#61 - RHP) 14. Mike Grace (#44 - RHP) 15. Tyler Green (#28 - RHP) 16. Ramon Henderson (#59 - Bullpen Coach) 17. Rex Hudler (#14 - INF) 18. Gregg Jefferies (#25 - LF) 19. Kevin Jordan (#23 - INF) 20. Mark Leiter (#31 - RHP) 21. Mark Lewis (#5 - INF) 22. Mike Lieberthal (#24 - C) 23. Billy McMillon (#41 - OF) 24. Hal McRae (#56 - Hitting Instructor)

25. Brad Mills (#9 - First Base Coach) 26. Mark Parent (#8 - C) 27. Mark Portugal (#21 - RHP) 28. Desi Relaford (#30 - INF) 29. Scott Rolen (#17 - 3B) 30. Curt Schilling (#38 - RHP) 31. Kevin Sefcik (#11 - INF) 32. Jerry Spradlin (#48 - RHP) 33. Garrett Stephenson (#54 - RHP) 34. John Vukovich (#18 - Third Base Coach) 35. Darrin Winston (#58 - LHP) 36. Phillie Phanatic

One and Only Phillies Baseball Card (0):  But see below under Variations/Rarities . . .

First Appearance in Phillies Photo Card Set (12):  Abreu, Arias, Beech, Brewer, Estalella, Glanville, Gomes, Lewis, McMillon, Relaford, Stephenson, Winston
Returning Players in Phillies Photo Card Set (16):  Amaro, Bottalico, Brogna, Grace, Green, Hudler, Jefferies, Jordan, Leiter, Lieberthal, Parent, Portugal, Rolen, Schilling, Sefcik, Spradlin

Manager (1):  Francona
Coaches (6):  Cisco, Cottier, Henderson, McRae, Mills, Vukovich

Phillie Phanatic (1):  The Phanatic is once again pictured atop his ATV.

Broadcasters (0):  N/A

Set Composition:  The entire 25-man opening day roster is represented in the set with the exception of reliever Matt Whiteside, who signed with the Phillies on March 27th, a few days prior to opening day.  Wayne Gomes, Matt Beech and Bobby Estalella would start the season in the minors, but they're in the set too.  Billy McMillon, who spent the entire 1998 season in Triple-A was the only miss for the Phillies on the checklist and the only player in the set not to suit up at some point during the 1998 season for them.

Omissions:  A card for Whiteside would have been nice, as he would never appear with the Phillies on a baseball card.  (His Chachi Missing Links card will have to suffice.)  Other players who spent significant time with the team that could have found their way into an update set include pitchers Yorkis Perez,  Carlton Loewer, Ken Ryan and Mike Welch along with Paul Byrd, who joined the Phillies on August 14th.  Cards for rookies Jon Zuber, Gary Bennett and Marlon Anderson would have welcome additions to an update set too.

Variations/Rarities:  This is the set that first tipped me off that variations and rarities existed for these team-issued photo card sets.  For years, I was comfortable in the knowledge that once I purchased the complete set from the Vet, I was done for the year.  As Steve F. pointed out back in the 1998 Phillies - The Missing Links post in March 2012, Zuber had a card produced in the same style as the rest of the 1998 team issued set, most likely to allow him to respond to autograph requests and making it his sole Phillies baseball card.  Fellow collector Rick noted in a comment to the original post for this set that cards were issued for Perez and Welch to sign at the annual ALS Autograph and Auction Party, held on June 29th.

Toby Borland and Loewer were on the active roster on June 29th, but cards weren't produced for them for the ALS event.  Oddly enough, Welch was not active on June 29th, and the Phillies wouldn't add him to their roster until July 10th, the first game following the All-Star break.

There's also a Dickie Noles card available with a 1998 copyright on the back and sponsored by Independence Blue Cross/Pennsylvania Blue Shield.

ALS Autograph/Auction Party        1. Yorkis Perez (#45 - LHP) 2. Mike Welch (#47 - RHP) 3. Jon Zuber (#40 - 1B/OF)

Independence Blue Cross/Blue Shield 1. Dickie Noles (#34 - RHP)

Also See:  1998 Topps Phillies

Resources:  Beckett.com; Phillies collectors Steve F. and Rick (@rickphils)

This set was originally featured in a post back in November 2014, and I'm going through these older team-issued photo card set posts to update them with new information learned (if any) over the past nine years.

1997 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards / 1999 Philadelphia Phillies Photo Cards

1980-1999 Phillies Team-Issued Photo Cards Want List / Phillies Team Issued Sets Index Page

Game 30 - The Night Before Brycemas

1998 Upper Deck Collector's Choice #258

Dodgers 13, Phillies 4
Game 30 - Late Monday Night, May 1st in Los Angeles
Record - 15-15, 4th Place, 4 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Taijuan Walker had another rough outing, as the Dodgers pounded Walker and the Phillies' bullpen, 13-4.

What It Means:  With Bryce Harper miraculously set to return to the Phillies line-up on Tuesday night, the game action here seemed secondary.  I made it through 1 1/2 innings before calling it a night, so I missed most of the damage.

What Happened:  Walker gave up eight runs on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings, including three home runs.  The bullpen surrendered five more runs, with Kody Clemens making his pitching debut, and striking out Michael Busch in the eighth.  Kody and his father Roger now have a combined 4,673 major league strikeouts.  Kyle Schwarber hit a solo home run (his seventh) in the fourth inning.

Featured Card:  I have two Roger Clemens baseball cards in my Phillies collection.  I featured the 1999 Sports Illustrated card pairing him with Curt Schilling back in March.  This is the second card, from the 1998 Collector's Choice set, also pairing him with Schilling.

2023 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2023 Season Summary Index / 2023 Chachi Set Checklist

Rolen Elected Into Hall of Fame

1996 Topps #434

1997 Topps #268

1998 Topps #25

1999 Topps #125

2000 Topps #328

2001 Topps #478

2002 Topps #610

2002 Topps #709

On Tuesday evening, and with 76.3% of the votes, Scott Rolen squeaked into the Hall of Fame and will be inducted in Cooperstown on July 23.  It was Rolen's fifth year on the ballot, and he saw a steady ascent since receiving just 10.2% of the votes during his initial year of 2018, when the ballot had been much more crowded.  He's a Hall of Famer on the strength of his combined offensive and defensive output, and his induction hopefully builds the case for Dick Allen, Dale Murphy and eventually Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley.

Rolen was drafted by the Phillies in the 2nd round of the June 1993 amateur player draft, and he'd make his big league debut on August 1, 1996, getting the call after third baseman Todd Zeile was dealt to the Orioles at the trade deadline.  Rolen was the team's opening day third baseman in 1997, ultimately winning the Rookie of the Year in the National League, after batting .283 with 21 home runs and 92 RBIs.  He'd win his first of eight Gold Gloves the following year in 1998.  Rolen was the Phillies' opening day and regular third baseman between 1997 and mid-2002, during some pretty lean years.  Not looking to sign a contract extension, and wanting to play for a winning team, he was dealt to the Cardinals on July 29, 2002 with Doug Nickle and cash for Placido Polanco, Bud Smith and Mike Timlin.

I was disappointed and upset with Rolen when the trade was announced, and I've since gotten over that.

In his seven seasons with the club, he appeared in 884 games, nearly 200 more than he appeared with the Cardinals.  Rolen batted .282 with 150 home runs and 559 RBIs with the Phillies, again surpassing his totals with the Cardinals.  He's not yet decided which hat his plaque will show when he's inducted, and while a Cardinals hat probably makes the most sense, I'm hoping he wears a Phillies hat.  Rolen also seems a natural candidate to be the team's Wall of Fame Inductee in 2023, but no official announcement has been made.

1998 Topps Phillies Team Set

#351 Bob Abreu

#163 Ricky Bottalico

#123 Rico Brogna

#341 Gregg Jefferies

#60 Mark Leiter

#94 Mike Lieberthal

#219 Mickey Morandini

#25 Scott Rolen

#332 Curt Schilling

#192 Garrett Stephenson

#156 Kevin Stocker

#476 Curt Schilling SH

1997 Topps Phillies Team Set / 1999 Topps Phillies Team Set

Game 51 - 2020 Topps Finest The Man #FTM-13 Rhys Hoskins

Phillies 3, Marlins 2
Game 51 - Thursday Afternoon, May 27th in Miami
Record - 25-26, Tied for 2nd Place, 2 1/2 games behind the Mets

One Sentence Summary:  Rhys Hoskins hit a key two-run home run with the Spencer Howard / Ranger Suarez combination pitching an effective seven innings in this 3-2 win over the Marlins.

What It Means:  The Phillies have a rare (and strange?) off-day on Friday before a short two-game series with the Rays begins on Saturday afternoon.

What Happened:  Howard went four innings and allowed a run with Suarez following with three scoreless innings.  The Marlins tied the game against the wild Jose Alvarado who walked three and gave up an RBI-single to Garrett Cooper.  The Phillies took the lead in the ninth when Ronald Torreyes beat out a throw to first, allowing Odubel Herrera to score with the eventual winning run.  Hector Neris locked down the ninth, earning his ninth save.

Featured Card:  Hoskins has found his swing and he increased his team lead in home runs with his 11th off Marlins' pitcher Pablo Lopez in the fourth.  Lopez had knocked down Hoskins earlier in the at-bat with a ball that buzzed Hoskins' noggin.  The version of Hoskins that hits a home run after almost getting drilled is my favorite version of Hoskins, as he was clearly fired up after his blast.

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

Game 45 - 1998 Pacific Online #568 Mark Parent

Marlins 8, Phillies 1 (Game 2 - 7 Innings)
Game 45 - Sunday Afternoon, September 13th in Miami
Record - 23-22, 3rd Place, 4 games behind the Braves

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies offense managed four hits while Zach Eflin and Ranger Suarez each allowed four runs as the Marlins easily defeated the floundering Phils, 8-1.

What It Means:  The loss dropped the Phillies into third place behind the Marlins.  They play one more game Monday afternoon in Miami before mercifully heading home.

What Happened:  Alec Bohm hit a second inning home run off Marlins' starting pitching Braxton Garrett, making his Major League debut, and that was pretty much the only highlight for the Phillies. Garrett, Yimi Garcia and former Phillie Nick Vincent struck out nine and easily handled the depleted Phillies line-up.  Eflin fell to 2-2 and Suarez's ERA is now an unsightly 20.25.

Featured Card:  With J.T. Realmuto's hip ailing, Andrew Knapp started both ends of this double header.  In doing so, he's the first Phillies catcher to start both ends of a double header since Mark Parent did it at the Vet on July 24, 1998.  The Phillies won both those games in 12 innings, with Parent catching all 24 innings.  Bobby Estalella got the start behind the plate for the Phillies the following day.

Transaction:  Between games, Connor Brogdon (rhp) was optioned back to Lehigh Valley and Rafael Marchan (c) had his contract selected.  The addition of Marchan means Realmuto's injury could be worse than expected.  To make room on the 40-man roster for Marchan, Jose Alvarez (lhp) was transferred to the 45-day injured list and he's now most likely out for the season.

2020 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2020 Season Summary Index / 2020 Chachi Set Checklist

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s - #22 Russell Branyan

#4
Russell Oles Branyan
Pinch-Hitter/Third Base

First a disclaimer . . . In the course of drafting this post, I discovered for the first time, that Russell Branyan does in fact have a Phillies baseball card!  Unbeknownst to me until now, Topps included him within their Year in Review insert set in 2008.  Please consider this Missing Links card an Uncorrected Error, as Branyan is not in fact a Missing Link.  Carry on.

Over the course of his 14-year big league career, Branyan played for 10 teams teams and the Phillies hold the distinction of being his shortest stop.  The Indians sold Branyan to the Phillies on August 9th in a move presumably designed with the intention of Branyan being used as a left-handed bat off the bench.  The move resulted in one big win for the team as Branyan hit a pinch-hit, two-run home run in his first at-bat for the Phillies on August 14th, giving the team a 3-2 win over the Nationals.  He'd have one more hit in a Phillies uniform (another home run) and it came during his only start with the team (at third base) on August 19th.  On August 27th, Chase Utley was activated from the disabled list and Branyan was designated for assignment.  He'd land with the Cardinals on August 31st - his fourth organization of the season.

Branyan's best season was on the horizon, as he hit 31 home runs and drove in 76 with the 2009 Mariners.  His last Major League appearance came in 2011 with the Angels, and he played professionally through the 2014 season during his fifth (!) stint within the Indians organization.

Bats:  Left  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'4"  Weight:  235
Born:  December 19, 1975, Warner Robins, GA
Drafted:  Drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 7th round of the 1994 amateur draft, June 2, 1994
Major League Teams:  Cleveland Indians 1998-2002; Cincinnati Reds 2002-2003; Milwaukee Brewers 2004-2005; Tampa Bay Devil Rays 2006; San Diego Padres 2006-2007; Phillies 2007; St. Louis Cardinals 2007; Milwaukee Brewers 2008; Seattle Mariners 2009; Cleveland Indians 2010; Seattle Mariners 2010; Arizona Diamondbacks 2011; Los Angeles Angels 2011
Professional Affiliations:  Cleveland Indians 1998-2002; Cincinnati Reds 2002-2003; Atlanta Braves 2004; Cleveland Indians 2004; Milwaukee Brewers 2004-2005; Tampa Bay Devil Rays 2006; San Diego Padres 2006-2007; Cleveland Indians 2007; Phillies 2007; St. Louis Cardinals 2007; Milwaukee Brewers 2008; Seattle Mariners 2009; Cleveland Indians 2010; Seattle Mariners 2010; Arizona Diamondbacks 2011; Los Angeles Angels 2011; New York Yankees 2012; Toros de Tijuana (Mexico) 2014; Cleveland Indians 2014

Phillies Career
7 games, .222 average (2 for 9), 2 home runs, 5 RBIs, 6 strikeouts
Acquired:  August 9, 2007 - Purchased from the Cleveland Indians.
Debut:  August 14, 2007 - Pinch-hitting for Antonio Alfonseca in the 8th inning in a game the Phillies were trailing 2-1 against the Nationals, hit a home run off Jon Rauch to give the Phillies a 3-2 lead.  Brett Myers struck out the side in the 9th to record his 10th save, pulling the Phillies to within 3 games of the Mets in the division.
Final Game:  August 25, 2007 - Pinch-hit for Tom Gordon in the 8th and struck out against the Padres' Heath Bell.
Departed:  August 31, 2007 - Traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for a player to be named later.

3 Branyan Baseball Cards in My Collection
2007 Topps Heritage #195
2007 Topps Update #US19
2007 Upper Deck #910

Complete Chachi Checklist
2007 Chachi #52

1996 Bowman #342

1998 Topps #262

2007 Topps Heritage #195

2007 Chachi #52

2011 Topps #116

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1996 Bowman #342
First Topps Base Card:  1998 Topps #262 (with Eric Chavez and Russ Johnson)
Last Mainstream Card:  2011 Topps Heritage #364
Other Notable Cards:  1999 Upper Deck #358, 2000 Topps #208, 2001 Topps #599, 2001 Topps Heritage #263, 2002 Topps Traded #T32, 2005 Bowman Heritage #87, 2008 Topps Year in Review #YR134, 2011 Topps #116

Sources:  Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s
1 Kirk Bullinger
2 Chris Pritchett
3 Bryan Ward
4 Mark Holzemer
5 Turner Ward
6 P.J. Forbes
7 Matt Walbeck
8 Kelly Stinnett
9 Valerio de los Santos
10 Josh Hancock
11 Brian Powell
12 Paul Abbott
13 Todd Jones
14 A.J. Hinch
15 Ramon Martinez
16 Matt Kata
17 Aquilino Lopez
18 Adam Bernero
19 Jose Hernandez
20 Randall Simon
21 Anderson Garcia
22 Russell Branyan

This is a continuing series looking at those players who spent time with the Phillies but possess no baseball card proof of their time in Philadelphia.  In some cases, the First and Last Mainstream cards listed above have been subjectively chosen if multiple cards were released in that year.

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s - #19 Jose Hernandez

#8
Jose Antonio Hernandez
Infield

An All-Star with the Brewers in 2002, Jose Hernandez ended his 15-year Major League playing career with 18 games for the contending 2006 Phillies.  Hernandez was one of a trio of veterans acquired in August along with Jamie Moyer and Jeff Conine to help the Phillies attempt a run on the N.L. Wild Card.  The team had purged the clubhouse of veteran leadership (and hefty salaries) in July with the departures of Bobby Abreu, Cory Lidle, David Bell, Sal Fasano, Rheal Cormier and Ryan Franklin.  With the youngsters now leading the way, suddenly the Phillies were in contention again.

12 of his 18 games with the Phillies saw him used as either a pinch-hitter or a pinch-runner, although he did receive four starts at third base and a start in right field.  His biggest hit with the club was a grand slam on September 18th off the Cubs' Sean Marshall in a game the Phillies would eventually lose 11-6.  Hernandez departed following the season, signing with the Pirates.  He'd spend the entire 2007 season playing for Triple-A Indianapolis before playing two final professional seasons in Mexico in 2008 and 2009.

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  180
Born:  July 14, 1969, Rio Piedras, PR
Signed:  Signed by the Texas Rangers as an amateur free agent, January 13, 1987
Major League Teams:  Texas Rangers 1991; Cleveland Indians 1992; Chicago Cubs 1994-1999; Atlanta Braves 1999; Milwaukee Brewers 2000-2002; Colorado Rockies 2003; Chicago Cubs 2003; Pittsburgh Pirates 2003; Los Angeles Dodgers 2004; Cleveland Indians 2005; Pittsburgh Pirates 2006; Phillies 2006
Professional Affiliations:  Texas Rangers 1987-1991; Cleveland Indians 1992; Chicago Cubs 1994-1999; Atlanta Braves 1999; Milwaukee Brewers 2000-2002; Colorado Rockies 2003; Chicago Cubs 2003; Pittsburgh Pirates 2003; Los Angeles Dodgers 2004; Cleveland Indians 2005; Pittsburgh Pirates 2006; Phillies 2006; Pittsburgh Pirates 2007; Leones de Yucatan (Mexico) 2008-2009

Phillies Career
18 games, .250 (8 for 32) with a grand slam and 7 RBIs
Acquired:  August 22, 2006 - Purchased from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Debut:  August 24, 2006 - Pinch-hit for Brian Sanches in the 5th inning, remained in the game at shortstop and collected two hits in an eventual 11-2 loss to the Cubs.
Final Game:  October 1, 2006 - In the final game of the season in Miami, pinch-hit again for Sanches, striking out in the 8th against Renyel Pinto.
Departed:  October 31, 2006 - Granted free agency and signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates, January 15, 2007.

1 Hernandez Baseball Card in My Collection
2006 Upper Deck #763

Complete Chachi Checklist
2006 Chachi #55

1992 Topps #237

1998 Topps #234

2002 Topps Heritage #438

2006 Upper Deck #763

2006 Chachi #55

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  1992 Donruss #530
First Topps Base Card:  1992 Topps #237
Last Mainstream Card:  2006 Upper Deck #763
Other Notable Cards:  1991 Classic/Best #94, 1994 Fleer Ultra #457, 1995 Donruss #466, 1998 Topps #234, 1999 Topps #90, 2000 Fleer Tradition #184, 2000 Topps #353, 2001 Topps #631, 2002 Topps Heritage #438, 2003 Topps #502, 2005 Topps Heritage #334

Sources:  Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s
1 Kirk Bullinger
2 Chris Pritchett
3 Bryan Ward
4 Mark Holzemer
5 Turner Ward
6 P.J. Forbes
7 Matt Walbeck
8 Kelly Stinnett
9 Valerio de los Santos
10 Josh Hancock
11 Brian Powell
12 Paul Abbott
13 Todd Jones
14 A.J. Hinch
15 Ramon Martinez
16 Matt Kata
17 Aquilino Lopez
18 Adam Bernero
19 Jose Hernandez

This is a continuing series looking at those players who spent time with the Phillies but possess no baseball card proof of their time in Philadelphia.  In some cases, the First and Last Mainstream cards listed above have been subjectively chosen if multiple cards were released in that year.

Uniform Number Update - 2018 Edition

2014 Topps #502

1993 Topps #418

2009 Topps #232

2012 Topps #625

A sure sign that spring training is approaching is the appearance of new uniform numbers on the Phillies website's roster page, usually in mid-January.  New players and coaches have had the dreaded "--" in front of their names all offseason and the Phillies only updated their website for the new uniform number assignments this past week.  Here's a look at the new number assignments and a few number changes.

This is a longer post than in prior years given the complete overhaul of the coaching staff.

New Players (Under 60/Over 90 Division)

• #4 Ryan Flaherty - Flaherty takes over the number that Andres Blanco wore the past four seasons.
• #9 Adam Rosales - Bullpen coach John McLaren wore this number for the Phillies in 2017.
• #12 Will Middlebrooks - Middlebrooks assumes the number associated with former Phillies coach Mickey Morandini.
• #21 Collin Cowgill - Clay Buchholz briefly wore this number last season.
• #30 Matt McBride - Cameron Perkins most recently wore this number last season.
• #33 Drew Hutchison - This number opened up when pitching coach Rick Kranitz switched to #39.
• #40 Tommy Hunter - Former hitting coach Matt Stairs wore this number in 2017.
• #41 Carlos Santana - Santana has worn this number his entire career and with Brock Stassi headed to the Twins, there wasn't even a need to negotiate for it.
• #93 Pat Neshek - If Neshek has explained his reasoning for his new high number, I've missed it so far.  He wore #17 during his stint last season with the club before being traded to the Rockies.  He's the first person in franchise history to wear #93.

New Coaches

• #3 Jose Flores - Oddly enough, this number was vacant all last season.  David Lough last wore the number in 2016.
• #8 John Mallee - New hitting coach Mallee takes over the number that rightfully only belongs to Juan Samuel.
• #22 Gabe Kapler - Bob McClure wore this number the past four seasons.  Interestingly enough, Kapler never wore the number during his 12-year big league career.
• #35 Jim Gott - Gott becomes the first person to wear #35 since Cole Hamels departed for the Rangers in mid-2015.
• #45 Chris Young - The new assistant pitching coach takes over Pete Mackanin's old number.
• #58 Pedro Guerrero - Jeremy Hellickson's number goes to the new assistant hitting coach.
• #59 Rob Thomson - This number became available when Mark Leiter, Jr. switched to #31.
• #62 Dusty Wathan - Patrick Schuster briefly wore this number in 2016.

Number Swaps

1998 Phillies Team Issue #31

• #15 Andrew Knapp - Knapp wore #34 last season and the Phillies announced that no one would wear that number in 2018 in honor of Roy Halladay.
• #31 Mark Leiter, Jr. - This is kind of cool.  Leiter assumes the number his father wore for the Phillies in 1997 and 1998.  Hyun Soo Kim sported the number last season.
• #39 Rick Kranitz - Kranitz swapped the #33 he's worn the past two season for #39.
• #46 Adam Morgan - Morgan had worn #39, but he's now switched to #46.  Jesen Therrien and Jeanmar Gomez wore #46 last season.

Highest Number
If not for Neshek, non-roster invitee Nick Rickles would win the honors with his #86.

Numbers Available - Unofficially Retired Division
The Phillies have a cool, yet unofficial policy of not handing out the uniform number of recently departed players (or coaches) who had been with the team for a while, and left a significant legacy with the franchise.  I'm including #25 on the list below as this may be the Phillies paying tribute to recent Hall of Fame inductee Jim Thome.

#6 Ryan Howard
#10 Larry Bowa and Darren Daulton
#11 Jimmy Rollins
#13 Freddy Galvis
#25 Jim Thome (no offense to Daniel Nava, who wore the number in 2017)
#26 Chase Utley
#34 Roy Halladay

Number Available - Up for Grabs Division
And then there is the one stray number that just hasn't found a new home yet.  #54 was worn by both Casey Fien and Kevin Siegrist last season and it's the only number between 1 and 60, and not unofficially retired, currently up for grabs.  Non-roster invitee Fernando Abad may end up wearing #54, as he's currently numberless on the Phillies website.

Don't Forget Us
The Phillies went the extra mile and list out the following additional coaches/staff on the Coaches portion of their website - #81 Craig Driver (bullpen catcher/receiving coach), #82 Bob Stumpo (bullpen catcher/catching coach), #87 Sam Fuld (Major League player information coordinator) and #95 Mike Calitri (manager, advanced scouting)

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
2017 New Numbers
2018 New Numbers

Baseball Cards from @Section_36 Make January Better

2008 Bowman #62

2008 Topps #238

2008 Topps Opening Day #124

2008 Upper Deck #606

I've never been a big fan of January.  There's the natural post-Christmas let-down, the frigid temperatures, the busyness of my work schedule and the complete and total lack of baseball.  It's dark when I leave the house in the morning and it's dark when I get home.  My attitude towards January is usually, "Let's get this over with," and I'm not entirely proud of that.

Last week, I walked in the door from a long day at work and a crappy commute home and found a small package on our kitchen counter with a familiar return address.  The fine folks from Section 36 had once again cleaned out baseball cards that had reached their 10-year expiration date, and the Phillies cards from this purge came to me.

As has been the case the last few years, I honestly already have most of these cards, but there are always a bunch of gems in the bunch and my sons now reap the bulk of the spoils.  But most importantly, it was such a welcome (and relaxing) exercise to open a package of baseball cards and thumb through each of the three stacks within.  Along with the Phillies cards from 2008, there was a cool selection of older and some more recent Phillies cards.  There were a number of cards from a variety of years for Jimmy Rollins, Cliff Lee, Ryan Howard and the Phillies all-time saves leader, the Closer Who Must Not Be Named.  Section 36 also added to my Adrian Cardenas super collection with another autographed card of the former Phillies prospect.  (I received my first two in a surprise mid-season package this past June.)

1998 Bowman #181

2007 TriStar Elegance Signature Marks #SM-AC

2009 Upper Deck Spectrum #75

2013 Bowman #81

I had to count the years linked below, and I'm a little shocked that this exercise has now been happening for nine years.  That means I've been maintaining (and enjoying) this blog for the past nine years and Section 36 has joined me on the journey.  Time really does fly.

Thanks to Section 36 for the baseball cards and I'm excited for 2018 World Series between the Phils and Sox!

Memory Lane - Section 36 Purge
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008

2017 - Mid-Year Surprise Package