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...

Shortstop is the most crucial defensive position in the infield.  Well, it used to be.  Before the era of the infield shift.  Sure the shift was cool, back when it was an innovative way  to counter the threat of legendary left-handed hitter Ted Williams.  Now the shift is everywhere.  Infield positions have pretty much become interchangeable.  If you have a left-handed hitter, move everyone over to the right side of the infield.  If you have a right-handed hitter, move everyone to the left side of the infield.  I hate the shift.  The shift just encourages left-handed power hitters, in particular, to swing for the fences.  Sure, you could bunt down the third base line, and likely get a base hit.  But modern hitting coaches discourage that.  Personally, I find the modern game of power hitting and power pitching boring.  Moving runners over, manufacturing runs, to me that's exciting baseball.  Don't get me wrong, ho...

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...

I was considering what topic to write about for the blog this week.  Then it hit me.  Why not write about Roy Halladay?  The Phillies were set to retire his number this season.  Earlier in the week I saw an interview of Todd Zolecki by Tom McCarthy on YouTube where Zolecki spoke about Doc.  Doc had a very interesting career.  He had a very rocky start, and almost didn't make it.  But he worked hard, and now is a Hall of Fame pitcher.   I'm sure I could write an interesting story about him. So, I started with a Google search.  I wanted to see if I could dig up some older stories, and maybe find an interesting angle to write from.  I was surprised when the whole first page of results was about how he had drugs in his system and was engaging in dangerous trick flying when he died. Wait a minute?  Is that news?  I thought we knew this two years ago , not too long after his death. I checked the dates on all of the news repo...

Major League Baseball has been reported to be considering a unique plan to start the baseball season as early as May.  Multiple media outlets report that MLB is considering starting the major league season with all thirty teams playing in Arizona, essentially contained in an isolated bubble.  Should the plan be implemented, the league would restrict travel of all personnel from the hotel to the stadiums and back.  There would be no fans in the stands.  The players would not crowd together in the dug-out, but sit in the stands at least six feet apart when not on the field playing. Executing this plan would also require several changes to the way baseball is currently played.  There would be an electronic strike zone, for example, to eliminate the need for an umpire to peer over the shoulder of the catcher at home plate.  The automatic strike zone was tested in 2019 in the Arizona Fall League to mix reviews.  Commissioner Rob Manfred had planned on t...

As a Philadelphia Phillies fan, you know when a certain baseball player consistently plays well against your team.  It's the guy who gives you a sinking feeling in your stomach whenever he comes to the plate, or takes the mound against the Phils.  We call them “Phillies Killers.” One such Phillies Killer back in the late 1970s and early 1980s, whom I remember giving me agita, was Pirates relief pitcher, Kent Tekulve. Kent Tekulve Was a Phillies Killer To set the stage, in the five season from 1976 through 1980, the Phillies won the NL East four times.  The only year another team captured the division championship during that span was 1979, when the Pirates won the World Series. In fact, from 1976 to 1978, the Pirates finished second in the division, right on the tail of the Phillies.  During that time, their late inning relief workhorse was one Kent Tekulve. Kent Tekulve’s Time with the Pittsburgh Pirates Hailing from Cincinnati, Ohio, Telkuve debuted for the P...

The middle infield positions are the key to a team's defense.  With the ball coming at you fast, the second baseman mus be quick on his feet, and sure with his glove.  Of course it helps if the second baseman is talented with the bat, too.  Here are our top five picks for the best Phillies second basemen of all time. 5.            Juan Samuel Juan Samuel was fast.  In his first full season with the Phillies, 1984, he stole 72 bases.  He also batted .272, and made the All-Star team.  Over the next three seasons, he batted .264, .266 and .272 respectively, stealing 53, 42 and 35 bases.  He was an All-Star again in 1987.  In 1988, The Phillies tried to switch Sammy to the outfield, and his offensive number suffered because of it.  He hit .243 in 1988 and .246 in 51 games in 1989.  With his offensive numbers dwindling, Samuel likely brought his greatest value to the team in 1989, when the Phillies traded h...