1996 Bowman Phillies

In my opinion, 1996 Bowman was the last really good Bowman design. I did a full review of the design here, so I'll just concentrate on the players. Since Bowman has billed itself as the "Home of the Rookie Card" for many years, it's not a surprise that the 15 Phillies from the set are mostly rookies and minor league players (13 of the 15).

Remember that the Phillies had gone to the World Series in 1993. Their record for the next 4 years was:

1994: 54-61
1995: 69-75
1996: 67-95
1997: 68-98

They were not a good team. And based on what was coming from their minor league system (as evidenced by these Bowman cards), help was a few years in coming.

Jefferies was in the 2nd year of an $18 million contract with the Phillies. That was pretty big money for that time. Phillies fans never thought he was worth that kind of money and he was never real popular. He was traded in September 1998 to the Angels for Doug Nickle. Maybe the Angels thought Jefferies would be a help in their stretch drive. He hit .347 with 10 ribs in 19 games for the Angels so maybe he was. But they still finished 3 games out.
Lenny Dykstra was at the end of his career in 1996. He had season (and it turned out career) ending back surgery early in the season.
At one time this was a key card in the set but it hasn't held value. Rolen was the Phillies 2nd round draft pick in 1993 and made his debut in 1995. He was Rookie of the Year in 1996. He was a pretty good player with the Phillies and then for 2 years with the Cardinals, but his production has fallen off recently. It's hard to believe he's been around for 14 years. He and Marlon Anderson the only Phillies in the set who is still playing.
And speaking of Marlon Anderson. He was the Phillies #2 pick in 1995 and made his debut with the Phillies in 1998. He's a career .265 hitter and although he played 2nd base with the Phillies he's played just about every other position since he left the Phillies in 2003. He's been with the Mets for the past 3 years.
Wayne Gomes was the Phillies 1st round pick in 2003 and made his debut in 1997. Although he mostly started in the minor leagues he was strictly a reliever in the majors. His best year was 1999 when he had 19 saves. He ended his career in Boston in 2002.
Wendell Magee was the Phillies 12 round draft pick in 1994 and made his debut in 1996. In 4 years with the Phillies and another 3 years with the Tigers he was never more than a utility outfielder.
Ryan Nye, the Phillies 2nd round pick in 1994, made two starts for the Phillies in 1997 and one relief appearance in 1998 and that was it. He did hang around the Phillies minor league system until 2000.
Bobby Estalella was the Phillies 23rd round pick in 1992. He was never a full time player with the Phillies from 1996-1999. He did play 106 games with the Giants in 2000. On the back of this card it says "Nutrrition nut who carries a wok on road trips...Has gone from soft and overweight to lowest body fat in Phillies' organization". In the 2007 Mitchell report he was called "the poster boy for chemicals". It didn't seem to help his career any.
A 33rd round draft pick in 1993, Kevin Sefcik was a utility infielder for the Phillies from 1995-2000 and then for a year with the Rockies in 2000. He had two good years with the Phillies in 1998-1999, playing regularly and hitting .314 in 104 games in 1998.
My recollection is that Reggie Taylor was supposed to be the late 1990's version of Ryan Howard. He was a first round pick by the Phillies in 1995. He only played 14 games for the Phillies in 2000-2001 where he did nothing. The Phillies traded him in 2002 to the Reds for Hector Mercado. He was a starter for the Reds for 2 years but still didn't hit much. He's bounced around in a number of minor league systems since then and is now playing in Mexico.
Rich Hunter was 3-7 for the 1996 Phillies and went back to the minors until 2000.
Another disappointing 1st round draft pick, Dave Coggin was 10-12 in 3 seasons for the Phillies (2000-2002). He remained in the minors until 2007.
David Doster appeared in 39 games for the Phillies in 1996 and in 99 games in 1999. He hit .233 with 4 home runs.
Mike Grace was 16-16 in 40 starts for the Phillies in 1995-1999.
Matt Beech was 8-22 in 53 starts for the Phillies in 1996-1998.