Phillies 2003 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Mike Lieberthal

Mike Lieberthal was drafted with the 3rd pick of the first round in 1990 and had been with the team since 1994. Jose Mesa was acquired before the 2001 season from Seattle. Bobby Abreu was traded from Tampa Bay for Kevin Stocker after the Expansion draft. Tomas Perez was picked up as a free agent a few years back.

Answer: Seattle Mariners

The Phillies faced Seattle from June 3rd until June 5th and were swept to kick off their interleague series. They were outscored 16-6 in that series. Kevin Millwood no-hit the Giants in 2003. They did not play the Yankees.

Answer: Casey Fossum

While Casey Fossum was playing for Boston in 2003, he was not a Philly in 2002. Robert Person was signed by Boston in the offseason after coming off shoulder surgery and has struggled in their bullpen. Jeremy Giambi was also signed by Boston when the Phillies chose not to keep him because of the Jim Thome signing. Mike Timlin, who was acquired in 2002 by Philly in the Scott Rolen deal, was also signed by Boston during the offseason and was part of their bullpen.

Answer: Ricky Ledee

Ricky Ledee was a member of the World Champion Yankees from 1998-2000 as one of their left-fielders. He then had stints on the Indians and Rangers before signing with the Phillies, where he was a solid man off the bench.

Answer: Johnny Estrada

The cash-strapped Braves said they were forced to deal Kevin Millwood because they simply could not afford him. The Phillies were more than happy to take him off their hands for Johnny Estrada, who was a minor league catcher, who had significant playing time in 2001 when Mike Lieberthal was out with an injury.

Answer: Duck Hunters

The Duck Pond was the name they use for Brandon Duckworth, not the Duck Hunters. Wolf Pack was used for Randy Wolf, Padilla Flotilla was for Vicente Padilla, and Joe's Millionaires was a short-lived group for Joe Roa who only started 2 games this year.

Answer: Doug Glanville

Doug Glanville signed with Texas when the Phillies decided they would rather bring up their highly-touted rookie Marlon Byrd. Byrd struggled at the beginning of the year and suffered a lacerated knee., before recovering to bat in the leadoff spot.

Answer: San Francisco Giants, 1-0, Jesse Foppert

It was against the Giants. The last Philly to pitch a no-hitter was Tommy Greene in 1991. Interestingly enough, the last 3 pitchers to pitch no-hitters vs. San Francisco were all named Kevin (Millwood, Brown and Gross).

Answer: True

Randy Wolf was the only Philly given an invitation to the All-Star Game. In 2002 they had 3 picks (Scott Rolen, Jimmy Rollins and Vicente Padilla). It seems to me they havdmore selections when the team was playing poorly than when they were playing well. In 2001, they also only had 1 pick.

Answer: Dan Plesac

Dan Plesac had been around since 1986 when he came up with the Milwaukee Brewers. He was acquired in 2002 in a trade with Toronto for Cliff Politte. He kept telling people he was going to retire but then changed his mind. Lieberthal had played since 1994 and Mesa had played since 1987. Terry Mulholland actually also started playing in 1986 but was not on the 2003 Philly roster.

Answer: 1

Only Jimmy Rollins came up through the minors. Thome was signed as a free agent prior to 2003 season. Polanco was acquired in the Scott Rolen deal. David Bell was signed as a free agent after playing in San Francisco. Among other starting Phillies, only Lieberthal, Burrell, Byrd, Wolf, Myers & Duckworth have done the same.

Answer: Tampa Bay Devil Rays

Strangely enough, almost all the players Philly lost after the 2002 season ended up on either Boston or Tampa Bay. In this case, Lee & Anderson went to play for Tampa Bay. Doug Glanville was the exception (Texas).

Answer: 52-40

They were 52-40 as of the All Star Break, which was good for second place in the NL East. They were leading the Wild Card race over Arizona.

Answer: Steve Bedrosian

Mesa took the record of 103 saves from Steve Bedrosian who had 102 in the late 1980s. Mitch Williams was the closer in the early 90s but was sent packing after 1993. Tug McGraw was the closer in the Phillies early 80s successes, but he was only 3rd on the list. Jeff Brantley was the main closer until Mesa came along. Brantley retired prior to the 2003 season, and joined the "Baseball Tonight" team on ESPN as a ananlyst.

Answer: Citizens Bank Park

The Vet will close up shop after about 32 years and the Phils will move into the new Citizens Bank Park. This was the inspiration behind signing big-name free agents like Jim Thome.