Offseason October 7, 1986: Tom Gorman was released by the Phillies. November 16, 1986: Rocky Childress was purchased from the Phillies by the Houston Astros. Regular season After getting off to a dismal 1–8 start, the season began to turn when Mike Schmidt hit his 500th career home run in Pittsburgh on April 18. Schmidt cracked the milestone long ball on a 3–0 count off the Pirates' Don Robinson with two men on base in the ninth inning, which rallied the club from a one-run deficit to an eventual 8–6 victory. Schmidt slammed three home runs in an 11–6 victory over the Expos on June 14 in Montreal, eventually finishing the season with 35 and 530 career homers. Phillies pitcher Kevin Gross was pitching against the Chicago Cubs on August 10, 1987. Gross was caught with sandpaper in his glove and suspended for 10 games. After going as high as six games over .500 in late August, the team crashed to a 13–21 finish and tied for fourth place in the NL East with the Pirates. Season standings Record vs. opponents Notable transactions April 2, 1987: Ronn Reynolds was traded by the Philadelphia Phillies to the Houston Astros for Jeff Calhoun. June 2, 1987: Jim Vatcher was drafted by the Phillies in the 20th round of the 1987 Major League Baseball draft. June 10, 1987: Mike Easler was traded by the Phillies to the New York Yankees for Keith Hughes and Shane Turner. June 24, 1987: Dan Schatzeder and cash were traded by the Phillies to the Minnesota Twins for Danny Clay and Tom Schwarz (minors). 1987 Game Log |- style="background:#fbb" | 1 || April 7 || @ Braves || 0–6 || Rick Mahler (1–0) || Shane Rawley (0–1) || None || 31,343 || 0–1 |- style="background:#fbb" | 2 || April 9 || @ Braves || 7–8 (10) || Gene Garber (1–0) || Dan Schatzeder (0–1) || None || 8,907 || 0–2 |- style="background:#fbb" | 3 || April 10 || Cubs || 3–4 || Ed Lynch (1–0) || Kevin Gross (0–1) || Dickie Noles (1) || 43,212 || 0–3 |- style="background:#fbb" | 4 || April 11 || Cubs || 1–9 || Rick Sutcliffe (1–1) || Joe Cowley (0–1) || None || 21,581 || 0–4 |- style="background:#bfb" | 5 || April 12 || Cubs || 9–8 (10) || Steve Bedrosian (1–0) || Lee Smith (0–1) || None || 23,769 || 1–4