Hunter Pence giveaway at Phillies has going-away message

THE PHILLIES have had a Shane Victorino Flyin' Hawaiian figurine day, complete with a lei, a Talkin' Harry doll night (for Harry Kalas) and Carlos Ruiz backpack giveaway.

They even had a Scott Rolen T-shirt day, with then-manager Terry Francona keeping Rolen out of the lineup that afternoon.

But it's safe to say Tuesday's bobblehead giveaway topped all of the past promotions. It came complete with a love letter from a long-lost pen pal.

Three weeks after the Phillies traded popular rightfielder Hunter Pence to the San Francisco Giants, the promotions department went ahead with the already planned Hunter Pence bobblehead giveaway. What else could they do with 45,000 dolls?

Pence was apparently on board with the plan.

"Thanks, Phillies fans," he wrote on a postcard stuck inside the box, "for the great memories. I'm glad my Bobble Figurine will still be given out even though I'm no longer in Philadelphia. I hope it will serve as a lasting reminder of my time there. It was a year of my career that I will never forget."

Pence, who played in fewer career Phillies games than Steve Lake or Gregg Jefferies, entered Tuesday hitting .211 with a .592 on-base plus slugging percentage in his first 19 games with San Francisco.

Apparently he left his bat with his bobble: at Citizens Bank Park.

- Ryan Lawrence