Lieberthal Coming Back (for a day)

by dajafi on Apr 28, 2008 5:30 PM EDT

He's coming out of retirement, signing with the Phillies, then retiring again.

Mike Lieberthal, who spent 13 of his 14 major league seasons as a catcher with the Phillies, will retire as a member of the organization on June 1, the Phillies announced today.

The last player to retire as a Phillie in this manner was outfielder Doug Glanville in 2005.

Selected by the Phillies as the third overall pick in the 1990 draft behind Chipper Jones (Braves) and Tony Clark (Tigers), Lieberthal holds the franchise record for most games caught at 1,139, despite seven trips to the disabled list.

"Philadelphia has always been a second home to me, so I'm really looking forward to this," Lieberthal said in a statement. "I spent half my life there and still follow the team closely on television."

I know it's goofy, but I love stuff like this: it's a reminder that the players aren't just mercenaries. If it was good enough for Eagles greats Seth Joyner and Keith Byars , it's good enough for Lieby. Maybe Jerry Seinfeld is right that in the end, we're just rooting for laundry --but apparently there's at least a little bleed from the uniform to the men underneath.

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I always liked Lieby

He had an engaging personality that you witnessed if you caught games broadcast locally because he popped up in Phillies ads and a series of car commercials he did with Jeremy Roenick of the Flyers. Somewhere I have a scorecard of a game in which he hit two homers – a couple of years later I got him to autograph it. People dogged him because they thought he underperformed (and he had the typical California ballplayer’s stoic refusal to act out, i.e. Pat Burrell Attitude, which doesn’t bother me a bit but always goes over poorly in Philly), but really, how many great catchers have there been in the last ten years? Lieby was one of the better ones around. And anyone who takes the beating that playing catcher requires, for a franchise-record number of games, deserves our appreciation.

"I am the Walrus?..... I am the Walrus." - Donny Kerabatsos

by The Navigator on Apr 29, 2008 4:11 PM EDT reply actions

what he said

You really crystalized by thoughts and feelings on Lieby, Nav. Nothing else to add, except that he did YOGA, which I don’t think endeared him to the WIPiots, either.

by WholeCamels on Apr 29, 2008 4:59 PM EDT up reply actions