Philadelphia Baseball History

At the end of the Nineteenth Century, the Phillies had one of the best outfields of all time: Ed Delahanty, Slidin' Billy Hamilton and Sam Thompson.  All three are in the Hall of Fame.  Nap Lajoie and Elmer Flick intimidated pitchers.  They are in the Hall of Fame.  For the 1930s, the Phillies are represented in the Hall by Chuck Klein.  Robin Roberts, Richie Ashburn, Jim Bunning, Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, Roy Halladay.  Most eras have some Phillies representation. But then you think about the early Twentieth Century, from 1901 through 1928 (when Chuck Klein joined the team).  Yes, there is Grover Cleveland Alexander and Eppa Rixey.  But both spent a considerable amount of time pitching for other teams.  There is Dave Bancroft.  But his numbers for his time in Philadelphia aren't impressive at all.  He made the Hall of Fame due to the strength of his time with the New York Giants.  Really, there aren't any great Phillies...

Pete Rose.  To say that he is a controversial figure is an understatement.  The mere mention of his name evokes strong emotional reactions, and not just from baseball fans.  Some people are extremely loyal to him.  He belongs in the Hall of Fame, and nothing will change their minds about that.  Some believe that he is a deeply flawed person, who doesn't deserve to be honored in his lifetime.  But, because his accomplishments on the field are so impressive, he does deserve enshrinement in the Hall, but only posthumously.  And then you have the people who feel betrayed by Rose, who find his moral character repugnant, that they have concluded that he should never be honored with Hall of Fame enshrinement.  Some in this category go so far as to try to minimize his professional accomplishments. For example, in 2016, Ichiro Sukui, an incredible hitter in his own right, passed 4,257 hits in his entire professional career.  Of course, this included...

Despite a career average of .292, 351 total home runs, 1,119 total RBIs, the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year award, seven All-Star appearances, and the 1972 AL MVP award, during his fifteen years of eligibility of 1982 through 1997, Dick Allen never garnered more than 20% of the vote from the BBWAA for Hall of Fame induction. The oft-cited reason for this has been the character issue. Baseball writers viewed Allen as a divisive figure in the clubhouse. Bill James has accused Allen of “manipulat[ing] racism as an explosive to blow his teams apart.” But far from manipulating racism, Allen was a victim of racism, who was saddled with an undeserved reputation because of his reactions to regrettable treatment by players and fans alike.  Allen broke into the major leagues in Philadelphia, a city Curt Flood described as “[t]he nation’s northernmost southern city.”  Philadelphia was infamous for its treatment of Jackie Robinson when he broke the color barrier in 1947. The Philli...

Joe Morgan set the baseball world ablaze this week when he emailed BBWAA voters a letter stating that known steroid users do not belong in the Hall of Fame.  Morgan argued that PED users cheated to post big numbers, and in the process made the numbers of players who were clean look small by comparison. Morgan claimed that his opinion represented his only his own thoughts.  But the fact that he signed it as the Vice Chairman of the Hall of Fame, used a Hall of Fame email address, and sent it to an email list only the Hall had led many to believe that Morgan was speaking on behalf of the Hall itself.  Sportswriters also argued that Morgan's letter represented an attempt to counter the rising support Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens have enjoyed, both having received over 50% of the vote last year. Morgan's letter erupted a firestorm of debate.  Some, like Intentional Talk host Chris Rose, criticized Morgan's letter as sanctimonious.  Others wholeheartedly agree...

Changes made last year to the Baseball Hall of Fame committee system may lead to the enshrinement of more modern players.  Whether that will include Dick Allen is an open question. There are two ways that a baseball player can be elected the Hall of Fame. The first way is by eligible voters who are members of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). Players become eligible for election five years after retirement. They will remain on the ballot so long as they receive at least 5% of the vote. In a year when a player receives less than 5% of the vote, that player drops off the ballot and can no longer be considered by the BBWAA. The second way player can become elected to the Hall of Fame is through the Hall’s committee system. For most of the Hall’s existence, this was known as the Veterans Committee. The Veterans Committee would consider not only players who were no longer eligible for election by the BBWAA, but would also consider executives, umpires, and ma...

Another Hall of Fame voting season has passed. Three players were elected by the BBWAA this year: Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines and Pudge Rodriguez. For a Phillies fan, it is interesting to note that a number of players from the dominant turn of the century teams, including the 2007 World Championship, are becoming eligible. This year, Pat Burrell and Matt Stairs were both on the ballot. But neither received a vote.  In the next three years, however, a number of Phillies players who deserve serious consideration will become eligible. It is possible that a few players who donned the red pinstripes may find themselves in Cooperstown soon.  Next year, two former Phillies, Jim Thome and Scott Rolen, will become eligible. Those, of course, spent most of his career with Cleveland. However, as indicated by his enshrinement in the Phillies Wall of Fame, he was a fan favorite in his time in Philadelphia.  Over the course of his twenty-two year career, Thome hit 612 home runs...

October 21, 1993, my seats were high up in the 700 level of Veterans' Stadium. I had to strain my neck to look behind me if I wanted to see the replay on Phanavision. Of course, it didn't matter. Nor did I mind that no one actually sat during the entire three hour contest. It was game five of the World Series. The night before the Phillies had just blown a five run lead to fall behind the Blue Jays three games to one. The Phillies play-off life was in the balance. To the mound, Manager Jim Fregosi sent Curt Schilling. Schilling had been named Most Valuable Player of the NLCS, despite not earning a single win in the series. Instead, he went eight innings in both games he pitched, giving up only two runs. Yielding the mound to the Wild Thing, Mitch Williams, Schilling watched from the dugout, towel over his head, as the closer blew both saves. His 1.69 ERA was still enough for Schilling to win the MVP. As Schilling took the mound, we the fans knew that he was determined to see i...

Even the casual Phillies fan knows about Mike Schmidt’s accomplishments.   In his 18 year career, he hit 548 home runs, knocked in 1,595 RBIs, and had 2,234 hits.   Up until 2014, Schmidt was the all-time Phillies hit leader, when Jimmy Rollins passed him.   He was an eleven time all-star, with a home run in the 1981 hit fest that took place in Cleveland.   Three times Schmidt earned the NL MVP award, and ten times he won the gold glove award for his defensive prowess at third base.   He was the MVP of the first Phillies World Championship in 1980, and elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1994.   In fact, many Phillies fans remember fondly the 1994 induction ceremony, when both Schmidt and Phillies favorite Richie Ashburn were inducted together. But Schmidt has one more amazing accomplishment.   He spent his entire 18 year career with one team, the Philadelphia Phillies.   To put into perspective how rare this is,...

    “Big Bertha” was the nickname given to large German artillery guns used during the First World War.   It was also the nickname given to a 6’ 4” tall, 240 pound navy veteran hailing from Tyler, Texas named Louis Napoleon Santop. Gifted with explosive power both behind the plate and at the plate, Santop was the premiere catcher and power hitter in African-American baseball in the pre- and early negro league era. In pre-game warm-ups, Santop entertained the crowd with an exhibition of his arm strength, throwing a baseball over the centerfield fence, and then randomly throwing to each of the bases, all while in the crouched position behind the plate. At the plate, Santop hit massive line-drives in the dead ball era.   It has been said that he could call his shots long before Babe Ruth did it in the 1932 World Series, and even hit one home run about 500 feet. At age twenty, Santop made-up half of the “kid battery” of the 1910 Philadelphia Giants,...

By:  William Kovatch Harry Stovey was a premier power hitter in the dead ball era when home runs were rare.  Still, he amassed 122 home runs during his 14 year major league career, retiring in 1893 as the career leader. Stovey played a vital role with the Philadelphia Athletics of the American Association, and would make a fine representative of a team that vanished when the league folded. Stovey is one of a class of players and executives nominated for consideration for induction by the Pre-Integration Committee when it meets this Winter. Harry Stovey's career statistics . Announcement of Nominees for Pre-Integration Committee consideration . Rules for consideration by the eras committee . #HarryintheHall