The Phillies are leaning all the way into the Field of Dreams theme, and Sunday’s ceremonial first pitches come with a twist that fits the movie perfectly: four former players who reached the majors, wore the uniform, and still never got into a regular-season game for Philadelphia.
That group - Tim Gradoville, Tim Lahey, Jeff Singer and Will Toffey - will take the mound before Sunday’s game in a nod to the Moonlight Graham storyline from the 1989 film. It will also mark the first time any of them has stepped onto the field in front of the Phillies’ fanbase in this setting, with the ceremony serving as a tribute to the upcoming Aug. 13 MLB Field of Dreams Game between the Phillies and the Twins.
The movie connection runs straight through Graham’s arc. In the film, he is the old doctor who once appeared in one inning of an MLB game but never got a chance to bat. Later, the story brings in a younger version of Graham for the payoff at the field in Iowa.
Gradoville, Lahey, Singer and Toffey fit the Phillies’ version of that idea as “phantom ballplayers” - players who were on the active roster but never appeared in a regular-season game. Gradoville spent seven years in the minors as a catcher before getting called up in 2006.
Lahey logged six minor league seasons and worked as both a catcher and pitcher before being with the Phillies in 2008 as a bullpen arm. Singer and Toffey each got brief call-ups in 2022, with Singer listed as a pitcher and Toffey as an infielder.
There’s also a local angle to the tribute. Gradoville and Toffey both grew up near Veterans Stadium and Citizens Bank Park, with Gradoville from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and Toffey from Philadelphia.
It’s a fitting bit of creativity from the league and the organization ahead of a showcase built on nostalgia. After an off day Friday, the Phillies-Twins series will move to Minneapolis for games Saturday and Sunday.
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