Phillies: Building the team through baseball cards
With baseball in hiatus, the thrill of baseball cards will continue. We opened a couple of packs to see which Philadelphia Phillies we could find.
With silent bats and ballparks across the nation, the one noise Phillies fans can still hear is the crinkling of a pack of baseball cards being opened.
The anticipation of what lies inside. Will you find your favorite player? Will there be a special themed card? Will there be a player who you’ve never heard of but will now know about?
Wanting a slice of baseball normalcy in my life, I stopped by my local sporting goods store to pick up some 2020 cards. Unfortunately, the latest they had was 2019 Series 2, but I still bought a couple of packs – 32 cards in total.
As I sifted through the many faces, I separated the cards into three categories – current or former Phillies, players the Phillies could use and players the Phillies could do without.
Here’s what I came up with:
Current or Former Phillies
The first category is current or former Philadelphia Phillies, be it major or minor leaguer.
Despite the odds, among my two packs of baseball cards was a Bryce Harper All-Star card.
The irony of getting a Bryce Harper “All-Star” card, which features interests and a miscellaneous fact on the back, is that Harper did not make the All-Star Game last season, ending a streak of four consecutive appearances.
Harper had a solid season overall, specifically with his 114 RBI (ranked eighth in the National League), .372 OBP and 35 HR, despite a low .260 BA.
As one of the Phillies’ star players heading into the second year of a long-term contract, a Bryce Harper baseball card was certainly a joy to find.
Current Phillies Hitters
From a starting outfielder to an outfielder trying to make the team, I came across a Nick Martini card.
The picture shows Martini wearing an Oakland Athletics uniform.
Martini made his MLB debut in 2018 with the Athletics, recording one HR, 19 RBI and batting .296/.397/.414 in 55 games.
He came up with one hit (a two-run home run) in 13 plate appearances for the Athletics last season before a bit of a journey.
Martini was designated for assignment in late August, being claimed off waivers by the San Diego Padres, who designated him for assignment in late November.
He was claimed by the Cincinnati Reds before being DFA’d again in January, claimed by the Phillies, who also designated him in February.
He cleared waivers and will now audition for a role on the major league Phillies.
Martini’s AAA stats are noteworthy, with 23 HR, 177 RBI and a .305/.401/.435 slash line across five seasons.
Also featured in my group of baseball cards are two former Phillies.
Catcher/infielder Willians Astudillo played for the Phillies’ Venezuelan Summer League team from 2009 to 2011 and Gulf Coast League team in 2012.
He also played for the Phillies’ minor league teams in Lakewood in 2014 and Clearwater in 2015, with a batting average above .300 in both.
Astudillo has now spent part of the last two seasons with the major league Minnesota Twins, with seven HR, 42 RBI and batting .297/.322/.424 in 87 games. Perhaps he would also fit well in the “players the Phillies could use” category?
The other former Phillie is catcher Jorge Alfaro, who spent time at both the major and minor league levels.
In 143 games across three seasons with the major league Phillies, Alfaro hit 15 HR, 51 RBI and .270/.327/.422.
Alfaro was part of last off-season’s trade with the Miami Marlins that saw J.T. Realmuto join the Phillies, and hit 18 HR, 57 RBI and .262/.312/.425 in 130 games last season with Miami.
Current Phillies Pitchers I Found
On the pitching side of things, a Vince Velasquez card was among my recently-acquired collection.
Velasquez has a 26-33 record, 4.70 ERA and 1.375 WHIP across four seasons with the Phillies, and had a 7-8 record last season, with a 4.91 ERA and 1.389 WHIP.
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Velasquez is currently in the mix for a starting spot near the back of the rotation, competing with Zach Eflin, Nick Pivetta, Ranger Suarez and Cole Irvin once spring training returns.
A New York Mets Citi Field card finds itself in my “current or former Phillie” pile. Why?
Listed on the back under “starting rotation” is Zack Wheeler.
Wheeler is also listed under “2018 team leaders” with a team-second 179 strikeouts for the Mets.
The right-handed pitcher signed with the Phillies during the off-season to a five-year $118 million deal that puts him right behind Aaron Nola as the Phillies number two starter.
Wheeler has a 44-38 career record, 3.77 ERA and 1.294 WHIP across five seasons with the Mets, including an 11-8 record, 3.96 ERA and 1.259 WHIP last year.
Pitchers the Phillies could use
For our purposes, let’s imagine that every other player in my two decks of baseball cards is a free agent.
Who would be a welcome addition to the current Phillies roster?
The two that stood out right away are both veteran starting pitchers.
With the Phillies’ rotation in question behind Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler and Jake Arrieta, of course two starters from another team would be of good use.
Masahiro Tanaka has a 75-43 career record, 3.75 ERA and 1.128 WHIP across six seasons with the New York Yankees. He joined the Yankees after seven seasons in the Japan Pacific League, where he had a 99-35 record, 2.30 ERA and 1.108 WHIP.
Philadelphia Phillies
Tanaka did not have his best year in 2019, with an 11-9 record, 4.45 ERA and 1.242 WHIP, but with solid career totals, he could certainly fit into the Phillies’ rotation.
Veteran St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright would also be a good addition, despite being 38-years-old.
Wainwright has a 162-95 career record, 3.39 ERA and 1.230 WHIP across 14 major league seasons, all with the Cardinals. The ERA and WHIP are impressive considering the length of time.
Last season, he had a 14-10 record, 4.19 ERA and 1.427 WHIP.
While 2019 was not his best season, he could provide a veteran presence and does have a wealth of experience to offer.
Perhaps a bit of a wild card is Seunghwan Oh.
Oh signed to play in the Korea Baseball Organization after being released mid-last season. Again, for our purposes, let’s say he’s a free agent pursuing an MLB opportunity.
The former Colorado Rockies pitcher has a 16-13 record, 3.31 ERA and 1.152 WHIP across four seasons in the majors.
The ERA, in particular, could be better if not for mile-high.
The infamous hitter-friendly reputation of Colorado could play into the fact that he has a 5.67 ERA in 46 games with the Rockies, compared to a 2.85 ERA in 138 games with the Cardinals and a 2.68 ERA in 48 games with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Oddly enough, he has a 5-1 record with Colorado compared to a combined 11-12 record between the Cardinals and Blue Jays.
Brought back down to a lower altitude, Oh could be an asset in the Phillies rotation or bullpen.
Players the Phillies could use
On the hitting side, I came across a “AL Batting Titles” card featuring former Detroit Tiger Al Kaline and current Tiger Miguel Cabrera.
Cabrera can play both outfield and infield, where he could be a good option for the Phillies at third base. He has 477 HR, 1,694 RBI and a .315/.392/.543 slash line across 17 years in the majors, mostly with Detroit.
Despite it being his 17th season in MLB, he still hit 12 HR, 59 RBI and .282/.346/.398 last season. I rest my case.
Another special card titled “Up High, Down Low” shows the Houston Astros’ José Altuve and George Springer celebrating a Springer home run.
Astros scandal aside, Altuve would be a good addition (if fans would ever be willing to accept it).
Altuve could fit into the Phillies’ roster at second base and has 128 HR, 538 RBI and a .315/.364/.463 slash line across nine seasons, all with the Astros.
Again, the career hitting percentages say something (okay, an MLB investigation suggests he maybe knew some of the pitches coming his way, but still).
Last season, Altuve hit 31 HR, 74 RBI and .298/.353/.550.
If you look exclusively at his numbers and what position he plays, Altuve could fit in with the Phillies.
And the last card that piqued my interest as a player the Phillies could use is Yairo Muñoz.
Along similar lines with my other picks, I’m paying attention to the positions that need improvement.
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Muñoz is listed as a shortstop and outfielder on Baseball Reference, but the baseball card says he also plays second base (where he’s appeared in 29 games, along with 36 games at third base).
He has two seasons and 196 games of major league experience, all with the Cardinals. Muñoz has 10 HR, 55 RBI and a .273/.331/.391 slash line across those two seasons; not bad for early career.
In three seasons at the AAA level, he has 11 HR, 57 RBI and a .287/.319/.421 slash line in 94 games.
With some room for movement in the infield, the Phillies could use a young player like Muñoz.
Players the Phillies could do without
With the previous two categories of baseball cards off to the side, here are the other members of my new collection: players who have never been a Phillie but who they could do without.
Feel free to disagree here, you can always add a comment if there’s a player from this list who you believe the Phillies could use (*note: cards resemble 2019 team, but current team listed below):
– Dustin Fowler (OF, Oakland Athletics minor league)
– Nicky Delmonico (OF/1B, Chicago White Sox)
– Jace Fry (P, White Sox)
– Austin Romine (C/1B, Detroit Tigers)
– “(Yadier) Molina and Marcell (Ozuna) Celebrate” (2019 teammates, St. Louis Cardinals)
– Matt Moore (P, SoftBank Hawks (Japan))
– “Brilliant Base Stealers” Ty Cobb and Rickey Henderson (former major leaguers)
– “Franchise Feats” Nolan Ryan (former major leaguer)
– Cam Gallagher (C, Kansas City Royals)
– Chris Martin (P, Atlanta Braves)
– Pablo Reyes (OF/2B, Pittsburgh Pirates minor league)
– Mallex Smith (OF, Seattle Mariners)
– Aaron Sanchez (P, free agent)
– Magneuris Sierra (OF, Miami Marlins)
– Andrew Chafin (P, Arizona Diamondbacks)
– Josh Reddick (OF, Houston Astros)
– Félix Hernández (P, Braves)
– Alex Verdugo (OF, Boston Red Sox)
– Dexter Fowler (OF, Cardinals)
– Billy McKinney (OF/1B, Toronto Blue Jays)
While the exact date for the return of baseball is uncertain, fans will always have baseball cards.
The excitement and anticipation of sorting through the deck to see who there is and how many of your team’s players can be found.
What are your favorite baseball cards that you’ve found?
Let us know in the comments below and on social media! I still think my Bryce Harper All-Star card is a prime find!