Spring Training Game 22 - Phils Slip by Jays on St. Patty's Day

Toronto Blue Jays	2
Philadelphia Phillies	4

2003 Topps Retired
Signature Edition #109

Spring Training Game 22

Monday Afternoon, March 17

BayCare Ballpark - Clearwater, FL

Record - 11-9-2

One Sentence Summary:  Decked in green hats for St. Patrick's Day, the Phillies took care of the Blue Jays in Clearwater, winning 4-2.

What It Means:  It doesn't really mean anything, but the Phillies have won seven of their last nine games.

What Happened:  In one of his final tune-ups before the regular season, Aaron Nola gave up a pair of home runs and struck out five in 4 2/3 innings.  In the fourth, Trea Turner singled, stole second and came around to score on a J.T. Realmuto double.  The Phillies tied the game in the seventh on an RBI-single from Dylan Campbell, scoring Edmundo Sosa, and took the lead on a wild pitch that allowed Buddy Kennedy to score.  Prospect Keaton Anthony made it 4-2, Phillies, with a solo home run in the eighth.

Featured Card:  Here's a card I recently added of my favorite Phillies leprechaun.

Camp Head Count:  41

Game 129 - D-Backs Stun Phils in Ugly Comeback

2003 Topps Traded #T98

Diamondbacks 13, Phillies 7
Game 129 - Late Monday Night, August 29th in Phoenix
Record - 72-57, 3rd Place, 10 games behind the Mets

Post-Vacation Catch-Up II, Post 9 of 11

One Sentence Summary:  The Phillies blew a 7-0 lead with the Diamondbacks scoring six runs in each of the fourth and fifth innings in this painful, late-night loss.

What It Means:  Woof.

What Happened:  Like most Phillies fans, I went to bed seemingly secure in the knowledge the Phillies would win this contest against the fourth place Diamondbacks.  I was wrong.  Ranger Suarez, Cristopher Sanchez and Andrew Bellatti were the recipients of the damage, although a costly error from Jean Segura meant four of Suarez's six runs allowed were unearned.  Kyle Schwarber had a four-RBI night, which included his 36th home run.

Featured Card:  As a few people pointed out on Twitter, this game was reminiscent of the loss on August 26, 2003 against the Expos.  The Phillies had a 8-0 lead heading to the bottom of the fifth in that game, and lost 14-10.  Phillies pitchers beat up by the Expos were Vicente Padilla, Terry Adams, Dan Please, Mike Williams and Phillies Room Favorite Rheal Cormier.

Transaction:  The Blue Jays claimed Bradley Zimmer (of) off waivers, returning him to the team where he had started the season.  It seems as if Zimmer was an unofficial rental from the Blue Jays while Brandon Marsh recovered from his leg injuries.  Zimmer appeared in nine games for the Phillies, making five starts in center field, while batting .250 (4 for 16) with a few nice catches in the outfield.

2022 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2022 Season Summary Index / 2022 Chachi Set Checklist

2022 Chachi #29 Joe Girardi MG

#25
Joseph Elliott Girardi
Manager

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  5'11"  Weight:  195
Opening Day Age:  57
Born:  October 14, 1964, Peoria, IL
Contract Status:  Signed through 2022 with a club option for 2023
Major League Teams:  Chicago Cubs 1989-1992; Colorado Rockies 1994-1995; New York Yankees 1996-1999; Chicago Cubs 2000-2002; St. Louis Cardinals 2003
As a Coach:  New York Yankees 2005
As a Manager:  Florida Marlins 2006; New York Yankees 2008-2017; Philadelphia Phillies 2020-

First Phillies Card:  N/A
Newest Card Added:  2020 Topps Allen & Ginter Field Generals #FG-6
Topps Flagship Set Appearances (16):  1990-1998, 2000-2003, 2008-2010

1 - Girardi baseball card in my collection per The Phillies Room Checklist as of 5/7/22.

Complete Chachi Checklist
2019 Chachi #69 - New Manager HL
2020 Chachi Preseason Photo Cards #25
2020 Chachi #31
2020 Chachi Fan Favorites #24
2021 Chachi #27
2021 Chachi #58 - Weird Game HL
2021 Chachi Fan Favorites #15
2022 Chachi #29

1990 Topps #12

1993 Topps #425

1997 Topps #291

2003 Topps #521

2009 Topps #555

2022 Virtual Phillies Wall / 2022 Season Summary Index / 2022 Chachi Set Checklist

2022 Chachi #28 Corey Knebel / 2022 Chachi #30 Phillies Coaches

2003 Topps Phillies Team Set

#651 Phillies Team

#283 Larry Bowa MG

#346 Pat Burrell LL

#457 Bobby Abreu

#86 Terry Adams

#155 Marlon Anderson

#604 David Bell

#160 Pat Burrell

#37 Brandon Duckworth

#615 Tyler Houston

#296 Il Kim

#428 Ricky Ledee

#117 Mike Lieberthal

#165 Jose Mesa

#466 Jason Michaels

#620 Brett Myers

#260 Vicente Padilla

#485 Tomas Perez

#242 Robert Person

#592 Dan Please

#531 Placido Polanco

#572 Todd Pratt

#3 Jimmy Rollins

#484 Bud Smith

#76 Randy Wolf

#322 Marlon Byrd & Jorge Padilla FS

#682 Chase Utley & Gavin Floyd PROS

#671 Cole Hamels DP

Traded

#T79 Kevin Millwood

#T38 Aaron Myette

#T175 Elizardo Ramirez

#T262 Jay Sitzman

#T107 Jim Thome

#T98 Mike Williams

#T135 Taylor Buchholz PROS

2002 Topps Phillies Team Set / 2004 Topps Phillies Team Set

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s - #33 Steven Register

#21
Steven Craig Register
Relief Pitcher

When Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco arrived in Philadelphia on July 29th in a blockbuster trade with the Indians, John Mayberry, Jr. and Steven Register were optioned back to the IronPigs to clear two roster spots.  Register had been recalled on July 25th, appearing in that night's game for a pair of innings, and his demotion four days later ended his big league career.

Register's promotion to the Phillies was necessitated by a rash of bullpen injuries in mid-2009 that saw Clay Condrey, Chad Durbin and J.C. Romero all on the disabled list.  His two-inning Phillies career came during an eventual 14-6 blowout win over the Cardinals with Register pitching the final two frames after relieving Chan Ho Park who in turn had relieved Rodrigo Lopez.  I'm fairly certain the photo used for this Missing Links card is a photo I took of my television screen from one of those innings as photos of Register in a Phillies uniform are fairly scarce.

Prior to his short Phillies career, Register pitched in the Rockies system and appeared with them for 10 games in 2008.

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  180
Born:  May 16, 1983, Columbus, GA
Drafted:  Drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 3rd round of the 2004 amateur draft, June 7, 2004
Major League Teams:  Colorado Rockies 2008; Phillies 2009

Phillies Career

1 game, 2 innings, 1 run on 3 hits, 11 batters faced
Acquired:  May 20, 2009 - Selected off waivers from the Colorado Rockies
Debut:  July 25, 2009 - Relieved Chan Ho Park in the eighth inning of a 14-5 game against the Cardinals.  Allowed one run and recorded one strikeout against former Phillie Joe Thurston.
Final Game:  July 25, 2009
Departed:  October 5, 2009 - Granted free agency and signed with the Toronto Blue Jays' organization, January 19, 2010

0 Register Baseball Cards in My Collection

Complete Chachi Checklist
2009 Chachi #51

2003 Upper Deck Finite Stars and Stripes #USA-3

2004 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects #BDP45

2008 Bowman Signs of the Future #SOF-SR

2009 Chachi #51

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  2004 Bowman Draft Picks & Prospects #BDP45
First Topps Base Card:  N/A
Last Mainstream Card:  2008 Bowman Signs of the Future #SOF-SR
Other Notable Cards:  2003 Upper Deck Finite Stars and Stripes #USA-3, 2009 Multi-Ad Colorado Springs Sky Sox #28

Sources:  Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s
Gallery - Cards 1 to 34

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 - #32 Rodrigo Lopez

#31
Rodrigo Lopez
Starting Pitcher

When rookie starting pitcher Antonio Bastardo landed on the disabled list on June 30, 2009 with a left shoulder injury, the Phillies needed to reach down to the minor leagues to fill Bastardo's rotation spot.  Both Carlos Carrasco and Kyle Kendrick were in the mix for the job, but the Phillies ended up selecting the contract of veteran Rodrigo Lopez from the IronPigs.  At the time, Lopez had appeared in parts of seven seasons with the Padres, Orioles and Rockies and he had won at least 14 games three different years.  He made five starts for the Phillies in July, with the team going 4-1 in those games and Lopez turning in a respectable month.

However, the Phillies acquired Cliff Lee from the Indians on July 29th and Lopez was moved to the bullpen for a few weeks to make room for the newly acquired ace.  He was optioned back to the IronPigs on August 10th when Chad Durbin was activated from the disabled list and he wouldn't return to the club again.

2013 Chachi Almost #1

In total, Lopez compiled a lifetime record of 81-89 with a 4.82 ERA over 257 games.  He best season came in 2004 when he went 14-9 for the Orioles.  As a postscript, the Phillies signed Lopez to a minor league deal in January 2013 with an invitation to spring training.  He didn't make the team and was released in late March, ending his big league career.

Bats:  Right  Throws:  Right  Height:  6'1"  Weight:  185
Born:  December 14, 1975, Tlalnepantla, Mexico
Acquired:  Purchased by the San Diego Padres from Veracruz (Mexico), March 17, 1995.
Major League Teams:  San Diego Padres 2000; Baltimore Orioles 2002-2006; Colorado Rockies 2007; Phillies 2009; Arizona Diamondbacks 2010; Chicago Cubs 2011-2012

Phillies Career

7 games (5 starts), 3-1, 5.70 ERA over 30 innings, 11 walks, 19 strikeouts
Acquired:  March 5, 2009 - Signed as a minor league free agent formerly with the Atlanta Braves organization.
Debut:  July 3, 2009 - Started and won against the Mets, pitching 6 1/3 innings and allowing two runs on six hits while striking out four.
Final Game:  August 9, 2009 - In his worst outing with the Phillies, allowed six runs on three hits and three walks against the Diamondbacks in 2/3 of an inning.  He entered the game in the seventh, relieving Tyler Walker.
Departed:  September 8, 2009 - Released and signed as a free agent by the Arizona Diamondbacks, December 16, 2009.

1 Lopez Baseball Card in My Collection
2009 Choice Lehigh Valley IronPigs #14

Complete Chachi Checklist
2009 Chachi #43
2013 Chachi Almost #1

2000 Fleer Tradition Update #U90

2003 Topps #445

2006 Topps Heritage #352

2007 Topps #348

2009 Chachi #43

Other Baseball Cards
First Mainstream Card:  2000 Fleer Tradition Update #U90
First Topps Base Card:  2003 Topps #445
Last Mainstream Card:  2007 Topps #348
Other Notable Cards:  1996 Idaho Falls Braves #14, 2002 Topps 206 #369, 2004 Topps #81, 2005 Topps #73, 2006 Topps #232

Sources:  Baseball Reference and The Trading Card Database

Phillies Missing Links of the 2000s
Gallery - Cards 1 to 34

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.