2011 First Round Pick Larry Greene

Referring to Larry Greene as a first rounder is a bit of a misnomer, He was a 1st round supplemental picked 39th overall.  Part of a first round that featured 60 picks total - basically two full rounds.

The pick was a compensation pick for the Free Agent loss of Jayson Werth.

2011 Bowman Prospects #BDPP36 Larry Greene

As we know being a first round pick doesn't make you baseball player. This appears to be the case for Larry Greene who elected to not report to Spring Training this year.

Baseball America's First Ranking of Larry Greene as a Phils Prospect came in 2012. He was ranked 20th among the players in the club's system. He progressed to #11 in 2013 before falling out of the top 30 last year. In early reports BA comped Greene to short time Phils bench bat Russell Branyan.  

Larry Greene is only 22, so he is young enough to return to baseball. He also likely has other athletic options outside of baseball. The Phillies lured Greene away from Alabama where he had the opportunity to play College Football. 

MLB Draft Pick #39
In 2014 MLB held the 50th edition of the draft.  Out of the fifty #39 picks 22 have made it to the majors - 2 possibly 3 recent draftees will likely be added to that list meaning the #39 pick has a 50/50 shot of making the majors.

Using WAR as a barometer, the best player to be drafted #39 is Barry Bonds (162.4), after that you have 2 players above 10 WAR, Don Baylor (28.3) and Todd Hundley (10.3). One additional notable is 2008 #39 pick Lance Lynn who is set to break the 10 barrier currently residing at 7.7 WAR

Among all #39 picks there are 15 players with positive Career WAR numbers. Among that 15 are Current Phillies starting pitcher Jerome Williams and Recent Phil Tony Gwynn Jr.

Sources and Links
Baseball-ref
Baseball America Prospect Handbook Various Years

2011 Topps #359 Roy Halladay

2011 Topps #359 Roy Halladay Postseason No-Hitter (black parallel - checklist)

Today Roy Halladay announced his retirement, it is a really sad event for this Phillies fan. We were really fortunate to get to see two great seasons out of Halladay, before baseball, pitching, and age all took their toll on the once dominant right hander.

I have been to 200+ ballgames and the game featured on the above card is the best of them.  For the final three, four or maybe even five innings the crowd hung on Doc's every pitch - it was an absolutely amazing night, the Reds never had a chance.


During Halladay's tenure in Philadelphia, I got to see him pitch several times and he had great outings in each of them. I will miss the excitement he brought to the ballpark in each of his starts - baseball is just not going to be as much fun without him

October 6 2010  

Team Phungo's original account from the no-hitter
Baseball-ref BoxScore

InOtherWords - Halladay Retirment Postings from around the cardworld
Funner Here - Philadelphia Daily News Halladay Farewell
Brad's Blog - Topps 5 Star Relic
The Phillies Room - Chachi Original (1988 Topps Retro)
Sports Card Info - 1997 Bowman Chrome International Refractor (RC)

Contrary Guy - 1972 Topps Retro
Mint Condition - 1977 Topps Retro

Cardboard Connection - Roy Halladay Card Buying Guide (RCs)
30 Year Old Cardboard - Gregor Chisholm MLB.com article
High Heat Stats - Statistical Analysis

Farewell: 2009 Phungo #37 Chad Durbin

On Monday we go the news that Chad Durbin retired. Durbin may have only been a middle reliever for the Phillies, but he performed that job for the 2008 World Champions. That season was among Chad’s best,  He had a 2.87 ERA (152 ERA+) in 87+ innings for the Champs. He was a member of three of the Phillies recent postseason teams (2008-2010) prior to moving on to Cleveland and Atlanta then returning to the Phillies for one last stretch this past season.


2009 Phungo #37 Chad Durbin

This will always be one of my favorite Phungo Cards and I have featured it a number of times. Partially because I like the card, and partially because there really aren't many Chad Durbin cards.

The photo was taken looking down into the Phillies Bullpen following the clinching W in the 2008 World Series. I met Chad Durbin at a card show in 2011 and told him about the picture, he mentioned that he remembered being in the bullpen celebrating. He said it was like being in a movie with all the bright lights shining down and people cheering.

By an account I have ever read Durbin is a really decent guy and seems to understand how lucky he has been. He also seems to be prepared for life after baseball. I read via twitter yesterday that he is working with a bat company and if I remember correctly even during his playing days he had an online project that helped connect prospects with scouts. I hope Durbin finds a post playing career with the Phillies or another organization. He's a good guy for the game to have around.

2008 World Series Champs

With the Durbin retirement announcement it felt like a good time to Where are they Now the 08 Champs:

Carlos Ruiz - With Phillies, Just signed to stay on through 2015.
Ryan Howard – With Phillies contracted forever for lots o $$
Chase Utley – Resigned with Phillies during 2013 through 2016ish
Pedro Feliz - Out of MLB appears to have last played with Camden Riversharks in 2012.
Jimmy Rollins - contracted with Phillies thru 2014 and possibly 2015
Pat Burrell – Retired after winning another World Series with the 2010 San Francisco Giants. Currently scouting with the Giants.
Shane Victorino – RF for the reigning World Series Champion Boston Red Sox. Selling his beard for charity.
Jayson Werth – playing RF for megabucks with division rival Washington Nationals

Cole Hamels – Phillies current Ace.
Jamie Moyer – Retired in 2012 at age of 49.
Brett Myers – pitched as reliever for Indians in 2013, Released on 8/29 and is currently a Free Agent.
Joe Blanton – was 2-14 for the 2013 Angels.
Kyle Kendrick – was in Phillies organization in 2013, but may be a free agent this winter.


Chris Coste – Retired, last played MLB in 2009. Has done pre-/post- on Phils Broadcasts.
Eric Bruntlett – Retired last MLB appearance 2009
Greg Dobbs – with the Marlins in 2013.
Geoff Jenkins – Game 5 of the 2008 World Series was Jenkins last MLB game ever.
Matt Stairs – Retired, last played MLB with 2011 Nats.
So Taguchi – Returned to play in Japan, retired in 2012.


JC Romero – Pitched in Indians and Nationals Minor League system in 2013
Scott Eyre – Retired after 2009 Season with the Phillies
Brad Lidge – Retired as a Philie in 2013. Last pitched in 2012 with Nationals
Ryan Madson – Has not pitched in the Majors since left Philadelphia as FA in 2011. He is currently a FA was last seen in the Angels org.
Clay Condrey - Last pitched in the Twins organization in 2010.
Chad Durbin – See Above

Sources
Baseball-ref.com 

Updates
2013 11 27 - added Jimmy Rollins and Clay Condrey 

The Infield that Never Was - 2013 Phillies

Michael Young, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard 

If the season had been different this would have been the infield for a playoff caliber team.  Instead Chase Utley and Ryan Howard once again had stints on the DL.  The veteran quartet ended up playing 38 games together, which is actually a lot more then I would have guessed.

Sources
espn bottom line
baseball-ref.com

Happy Trails Brad Lidge

Last last night I heard the news that Brad Lidge is retiring. 



DayF Original Brad Lidge 1/1

This is one of  the favorite cards in the Phungo collection.  And Why not - it is a 1/1, marks a great moment in Phillies history and it is an original work of art by one of my favorite card bloggers DayF the Cardboard Junkie.

 

Brad Lidge will always have a permanent place in Phillies history for his contributions to the 2008 championship 48 for 48 in saves and the moment captured in the DayF work above - The final out of the game 5 clincher.

 

 

Last season I was pretty nervous when Lidge went to the Nationals. I honestly thought he had a few good years left in him.  Obviously I was wrong. Immediatley after the World Series Championship Season Lidge had an absolutely miserable 2009. 2010 and 2011 were mixed with Lidge bouncing on and off the DL and in and out of the closer role.  This past season he really was unable to contribute for the Nationals at all.

 

 

Lidge will be 36 by the end of this month and sadly Light Out must turn the lights out on his career. 11 Seasons, 225 career saves, averaged 11.9K/9 innings for career.  1 World Championship, Pitched in 3 World Series (05, 08 and 09)  His Post Season Numbers include an ERA of 2.18 with 18  Saves.

 

 

Past Lidge Postings   

 

 

The Original DayF Brad Lidge Posting is here.  Includes a couple of other great WS Cards. 

 

Brad Lidge Phungo Card here

 

Phillies 2008 WSC puzzle - featuring Lidge

2010 Phungo Cards - Ivan Rodriguez

Yesterday we published the 2011 Phungo card of Ivan Rodriguez.  Today we have his 2010 card. 

2010 Phungo #7 Ivan Rodriguez

This is more of an action shot which was taken in Baltimore.   This is not actually a live game action shot.  Had Pudge been tossing out a runner at 2nd, I am sure his catchers mask would be rotated around toward the near side of Rodriguez's head.  Here he is throwing down to 2nd following the pitchers warm up tosses preceding an inning.

Hall of Fame 

For me Ivan Rodriguez is a First Ballot Hall of Famer, Let's look at the Numbers. 

World Champion - 2003 Marlins (over the Yankees)
1999 AL MVP, 14 time All-Star, 13 Gold Gloves, and 7 Silver Sluggers.
311 Homers, 2844 Hits, .296 Career Average. 
2427 Games Caught (Most all-time)

Those are great numbers at any position, but at Catcher they are quite impressive. 

Phungo Games
By my count, I was able to catch I-Rod in 7 games including the 1996 All-Star game.  Rodriguez's teams  came out on the winning side on 3 of those 7 games.  Rodriguez Hit well in those games 9 for 27 with a pair of Home Runs.

Farewell and best of luck to Ivan Rodriguez - I am glad that I was able to see parts of his great career.

Sources and Links
2010 Phungo Cards Checklist
Ivan Rodriguez HOF Index 

2011 Phungo Cards - Ivan Rodriguez

Ivan Rodriguez officially announced his retirement Monday.  This marked the end of his 21 year playing career during which, I saw him play several times. 

2011 Phungo #21 Ivan Rodriguez

There are two Phungo cards of Pudge.  Multiple Phungo cards is pretty rare for a player that was never a member of the Phillies or Orioles.  This is the latter of the two cards and is from the 2011 set.

The Photo was take during BP of the Phillies 2010 home opener.  The card number is 21, which is a nod to Rodriguez's fellow coutnrymen Roberto Clemente.

Sources and Links
2011 Phungo Card Checklist
Ivan Rodriguez HOF Index  

2012 Phungo Cards - Happy Trails Bengie Molina

It has been reported that Bengie Molina has officially retired.   

None of them were ever Phillies but I have always enjoyed following the Molina clan and hope to see Bengie Stick around baseball in some capacity.

2012 Topps #31 Bengie Molina

This is the Bengie Molina card I put together for the 2012 Phungo Set.  He is catching a warm up toss from then Ranger Cliff Lee. 

I like this shot.   There are often pix of catchers in the crouch but they are always posed, or if in action from the side.  During warm ups it gives you the rare opportunity to see the catcher face front from relativley close range.  If you look in Molina's Mitt you see the baseball square in the pocket. 

This pitcher seems a little up in the zone.  Which may have been ominous as Lee got lit up by the Baltimore Orioles that day.  O's rookie third baseman Josh Bell was the hero of the day as he hit his first and 2nd career Homers both of of Lee.

Bengie Molina retires the owner of 1 and half World Series Rings.  He won one with the 2002 Angels and was awarded one by the 2010 Giants who he played a half a season for, before being traded too the Texas Rangers squad that lost to the Giants. 

Molina carreer spans 13 seasons, he retires with 144 career homers and a respectable .274 average. 

Happy Trails Ryan Madson

Ryan Madson is leaving the only organization he has been associated with for his entire professional career.  Madson will be going to the Cincinnati Reds as a Free Agent - He will open the season as the Reds closer and likely hope that he can use 2012 as a springboard to a big payout contract for 2013 (as if $8.5 MM isn't enough)

2010 Phungo #46 Ryan Madson 

 

Madson was mixed as the Phils interim closer over the last few campaigns, yet I have a great degree of fondness for Madson. 

 

Obviously, I am a fan of any member of the 08 World Championship team - but it was the Madson games that I was fortunate enough to see that really made me a fan.  During the 08 championship runa and the 09 World Series I was was able to go to 5 playoff games.  The Phils won all 5 and Madson participated in all 5 - I have seen the Phils on the Winning end of two world series games Madson pitched in both and saved one (he did blow a hold in game 5 of the 08 World Series but the Phils came back).  And way back in 2006 when Madson was still a starter we got to seem him shutout the Orioles in an interleague contest. 

 

In 2004 when Madson first came up he was a big unknown form the Phils minor league system.  He wasn't a huge prospect (9th round pick) that we had heard about for years.  But he pitched very well and would become a critical pitcher in there bullpen, but....

 

Late in 04 Madson got one of his two freak injuries.  He injured his pitching hand when he ran into a wall chasing a ball in BP.  Then in 2010 Madson broke his toe kicking a chair in the locker room following a blown save in San Francisco.  So Madson is known as a bit of an idiot around Phungo HQ as well.  

 

The above Phungo Card is from the 2010 set, stay awake, I heard a rumour that the 2012 cards are lurking....

 

 

 

Happy Trails Rocco Baldelli

Rocco Baldelli never really got to have a chance to have the career that he could have.  His career cut short by a rare neuromuscular disease.  He was one of the Rays I can remember from back when they were the Devil Rays.  One of the few guys one could name from those terrible pre-Longoria pre-Price days.
    

2011 Phungo #5 Rocco Baldelli

Team Phungo has been very lucky to see a couple of big moments in Baldelli's career.  The photo on the Phungo card above was taken shortly after Baldelli hit his last career Home Run off Orioles reliever Mike Gonzalez. 

I also got to see Baldelli's final post season At-Bat.  A Game tying Home Run in the7th inning of the 5th game of the 2008 World Series.  Fortunately Pat Burrell and Pedro Feliz would got a pair of key hits in the bottom of the inning to retake the lead and clinch the Series.


Baldelli will always be one of my favorite non-Phils and I am glad that I got to see some of his big moments.  I am glad to hear he is staying in baseball and hope he can help out the Rays in his new roll as a member of their front office.  
  

Farewell Davey Lopes

Davey Lopes, October 2008

Last week the Phillies announced that they could not come to terms with First Base Coach Davey Lopes on a deal for 2011. I have no idea what the salary of a first base coach is versus a hitting coach. The Philly Inquirer Reported that Lopes said he was not asking hitting coach money - well in my opinion he should of been and to me, he would of been worth it.

Lopes turned the Phillies raw players like Shane Victorino into a very efficient base running machine.

Perhaps he wore out his welcome with the players in Philadelphia, but the margin for the top teams in the NL East and beyond is very slim. I would hate to see Lopes go to a competing squad and flip what little edge the Phils have.

I could see Lopes returning to the Dodgers organization - They are going coaching changes and should be a lot closer to winning then they were in 2010. Lopes working with some of their young talent could be a very helpful.

Check here for a brief 2008 commentary on Lopes (and Victorino)

Happy Trails JA Happ

2010 Phungo #43 JA Happ

It is definitely a happy occasion as the Phils are bringing in the Astros Ace Roy Oswalt. But I will miss the quality player in JA Happ who is headed the other direction. Happ's numbers speak for themselves, As a Phil the young lefty has been a competitor, a winner and he will always be a member of the 2008 World Series Championship Phillies team.

This photo was taken during a game on Saturday June 20th 2009 in a game versus the Orioles. It was one of the better games that I have seen where the Phils lost. Happ Pitched well scattering 10 hits over 6 innings yielding 2 runs. The big moment was a pinch hitting appearance by Ryan Howard, who was suffering from the flu. On a night when a dozen ball died at the track, He hit one of the most majestic home runs I have ever seen. The Homer capped a 5 run 7th inning which gave the Phils a 5-3 lead. Unfortunately in one of his early test runs as a Closer Ryan Madson would blow a save in the 9th. The Orioles pesky second baseman Brian Roberts hit the game winner on a 2 run shot to the RF power alley.

Sometimes you see great games when your team loses. It's tough to take at the time, but I am glad I was there.

Happy Trails Geoff Jenkins

2009 Topps Chrome #13 Geoff Jenkins (Refractor)

Today Geoff Jenkins will retire as a Milwaukee Brewer. Jenkins spent 10 seasons with the Brewers but to me he will always be a member of the 2008 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies.

Jenkins struggled most of the 2008 season and would eventually cede his side of a Right Field platoon to an emerging star, Jayson Werth.

But, Geoff Jenkins disappointing season was totally turned around by a single at bat.

Jenkins last career at bat was a pinch hit double in the 6th inning of game 5 of the 2008 world Series. He would then come around to score a critical run to help the Phils to a 4-3 victory in that decisive 5th game.

Geoff Jenkins has not picked up a bat in a Major League game since since that night in October of 2008. Despite his 200+ career Home Runs he has been unable to find a home since the end of the Phils incredible 2008 season, today he is hanging up the spikes.

Happy Trails Ken Griffey Jr

1989 Sports Collectors Daily #3 Ken Griffey

This is one of those cards inserted into magazines as a sheet during the late 80s. In 1989 SCD chose to use the 1964 design as their template. There are a number of reasons I love this card, the retro design, the kid when he was "the Kid" and then there is the back. You may have to click on this to enlarge it, but check out the underlined text. Glad to see the "experts" at SCD were on the ball.

For the Collector

1989 Sports Collectors Daily #3 Ken Griffey (b-side/click to enlarge)

For the record the 1989 UD Griffey card is holding steady at near it's typical $20.00 price. Recent sales of the 1989 Fleer and Donruss Griffey cards on the Bay have been for under $2.

I have some mixed emotions about Junior. One of my baseball buddies and I both came up with an inside-ism that "Griffey hates Philadelphia". He blew off the 1996 All-Star game which we attended. Griffey would have been one of the premier attractions in those pre-interleague play days. There was also the night Jim Thome would hit milestone Home Run #400. It was in Philadelphia versus the Reds. At the time Griffey at 499 Homers and was staring at his own milestone, but once again he elected not to play.

I did get to see Griffey play a few times. All after 2004, He was rather poor 1-17 in the games I saw without any of his 630 homers. In the games I attended Griffey and the Reds were 1 and 4, with the only win being on April 12 2004, the Day the Phillies opened Citizen's Bank Park.

Now that Griffey is officially retired Jim Thome is the Active Career Home Run Leader among Left Handed Batters.

Here is a link to a great article in the Slate about the 1989 Upper Deck #1 Ken Griffey Jr Card.

The Happy Trails Randy Johnson Phungo Challenge

(click to enlarge)

Ok in honor of the Big Unit retiring (300 Wins, nearly 5000 Ks, and 5 Cy Young Awards) Team Phungo invites all you internet Baseball-Reference research junkies to play Name the Game!

This is a quad sticker that was offered in a Topps Bazooka product. In the SouthEast corner you can see Randy Johnson tossing a pitch. Can you guess the date of the game Johnson is pitching in?

No Prizes - Just the Honor of Winning the First Phungo Challenge of the new Decade.

Curt Schilling Retires

2000 Pacific #332 Curt Schilling

Curt Schilling announced his retirement via his website today. He has had an excellent career, but I like most Phils fans have mixed emotions about Schill.

The Phils won and NL Title with him and then had to jettison him from a poor team. He spent more time with the Phillies then he did on either team for which he won the World Series.

Schilling is now retired, not sure he stays retired......But one thing I am sure of, even if he remains retired, it won't be the last we see and hear from number 38. I am sure he will show up on plenty of TV and Radio.

Phungo Cards - Pat Burrell

Fielder's Choice has reported that Pat Burrell has signed with the Rays, and Dave sounds pretty excited about the news. I agree, Burrell will be a nice addition to the Rays lineup.

For the past nine years Burrell has put on a Phillies uniform and gave the team his best effort every single night. The man may have some holes in his game but he ends every year with around 30 dingers, 100 RBI and you can't forget the 100 walks he works each year. Burrell will forever be the starting Left Fielder for the 2008 World Champions and he will be missed.

I am glad to have watched his career unfold over the past 9 years and very happy that I was there for his last game as a Phillie and witnessed his final hit - a double he crushed high of the left centerfield wall in Citizens Bank Ballpark. The hit would be the eventual clinching run in the 2008 World Series.


2009 Phungo #5 Pat Burrell

This is my Pat Burrell card. You can see Burrell is wearing the patriotic blue Phillies cap. This game was played on September 11th and all Major League teams were wearing the caps in memorance of the tragedies victims.

The card number is 5 to match Burrell's uniform number. On Phungo Cards I have designated the specific Outfield position (LF here) rather than the generic OF. Not sure why the card companies would have any trouble doing this - get with the new century folks. The shot was taken early evening at a bit of a distance, hence a little graniness.

I am happy that Burrell signed with the Rays. They were a likable series opponent, who will be coming to Philadelphia in 2009 and I look forward to seeing him play for them.

Here are the pix that wound up on the cutting room floor of Phungo Card HQ. Both photos were taken prior to Game 5 (part 2) on October 29th.




For a very good profile of Pat check PTBNL's entry on Auto-Matic for the People.

Greg Maddux Penultimate Game

At the time we didn't really know. An astute observer may have suspected.

Yes, when Greg Maddux came into game one of the NLCS on October 9th, he was making one of his final appearances. He would be called upon only one more time, in Game 5 of the series, for a long relief stint.

The Picture above is of Maddux warming up to pitch in game 1. It was the last appearance Maddux would ever make on the road. Penultimate is defined as "next to last", thus October 9th 2008 was Greg Maddux's penultimate performance.

I feel lucky to have been there.

Happy Trails Mike Mussina

This week Mike Mussina formally announced his retirement from Major League Baseball. The fact that Oriole's Card "O" the Day, 30-Year Old Cardboard, Dinged Corners, and Fielder's Choice have all written about his retirement tells us a lot about Mussina's impact.

2004 Upper Deck USA USA-134 Mike Mussina

I have always been a fan of his for several reasons. During the mid 90s he was a key cog in the Orioles staff and since then he has been the steadiest pitcher on the Yankees staff. His 270 wins rank behind only Maddux, Glavine, Clemens, and Randy Johnson among pitchers from his era. He has finished top 10 in his league in wins 9 times, top 10 in ERA 11.

Despite never winning a World Series ring he did pitch fairly well in the post season. He played for nine different playoff teams. One of Curt Schilling's (11-2) two losses is against Mussina. Same for Josh Beckett (7-2 in the playoffs). And Mussina left the critical fifth game of the 2004 ALCS with a lead, in the 7th inning against Pedro Martinez, before Mariano Rivera blew the save.

Beyond the post season he provided plenty of other great moments. I can still remember watching his near perfect game on Sunday Night Baseball in September of 2001. And this year he started and won the last game I will ever see at Yankee Stadium.

Yes he may be Mr Almost. But he was not just pretty good. He was really really good.

I would like to close by mentioning that Mike Mussina is considered by many accounts to be a real decent guy off the field. Each winter he returns to his roots in rural Central Pennsylvania to help out in his community. Sports needs more stories like this and we need to remember and honor those stories.

I would like to also remind everyone that Sunday is Spot The Sig! Night. I expect to post the next Sig around 10:30 tonight. Stop back then and see if you can guess the Auto!