Philadelphia Phillies History

The original Phillies started when the Worcester Ruby Legs were disbanded and the franchise was moved by the National League to Philadelphia. Al Reach became the clubs first owner along with John Rogers. Reach named the team Phillies, a take-off on the teams geographic roots, “Philly”.

The Phillies first game was on May 1, 1883 at Recreation Park with the club losing 4-3 against the Providence Grays. The club would win just 17 of 98 games that season, pitcher John Coleman losing 48 of them.

In 1884, the Phillies fortunes changed with the naming of Harry Wright as manager. Wright, a future Hall of Fame inductee, would lead the Phillies to respectability during the next decade with the team finishing out of first place just once during his reign.

Great players began to come to the Phillies. Charlie Ferguson, the first Phillies star, pitched the clubs first no-hitter in 1885 and won 99 games in four seasons before dying of typhoid fever at the age of 25. Ed Delahanty joined the team in 1888. The first of the Phillies great hitters, he hit over .400 three times, finishing his career with a .346 average, the fourth highest in big league history.

In 1894, the Phillies had three future Hall of Fame players in the outfield, each of them-Delahanty, Billy Hamilton and Sam Thompson -hit over .400. Hamilton set a still-standing Major League record in 1894 by scoring 192 runs and a club record by hitting in 36 games straight.

As the 20th century was approaching, the Phillies had become one of the stronger teams in the National League. The team had three future Hall of Fame players in the lineup with Ed Delahanty at first base, Nap Lojoie at second and Elmer Flick in right field.

Hopes of the teams first pennant soon went away, when the American League was formed in 1901. In a couple of years, the new league had signed not only the clubs three star players, but a handful of others, most of them going to the rival Philadelphia A’s. As it would turn out, the first five American League batting champions would be former Phillies with Lajoie winning three and Delahanty and Flick each with one.

The first City Series games between the Phillies were played in 1903. The series would be a popular attraction for Philadelphia baseball fans for more than 50 years.

In 1915, the Phillies finished the season with a 90-62 record led by manager Pat Moran , winning the NL pennant for the first time in franchise history. Grover Cleveland Alexander won 31 games and pitched four one-hitters, Erskine Mayer won 21, and Gavvy Cravath set a major league record with 24 home runs while also leading the league in runs scored and RBI.

In the early 1920s, Casey Stengel played with the Phillies. So did future Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Fame coach Earle (greasy) Neale. Phils pitcher Lee Meadows was one of the first major leaguers to wear glasses.

The best news of the decade came in 1928 when the team hired Burt Shotton as manager. The Phils also signed Chuck Klein for $5,000. Klein went on to become one of Philadelphia’s greatest players in history.

In 1929, Klein led the league with 43 home runs while also hitting .356 and driving in 145 runs. He was joined that same year by Lefty O’Doul , who led the league with a .398 batting average while collecting a club record 254 hits to go along with 32 home runs and 122 RBI. The Phillies team batting average was .300 as the team placed 5th, with a 71-82 record, the highest finish since 1917.

In 1930, the Phillies hit .315 for the third highest team batting average in National League history. Chuck Klein hit.386 with 40 home runs and 170 RBI in one of the best years any Phillie ever had. Lefty O’Doul added a .383 average. Five starters hit above .300, yet the team still lost 102 games, thanks to their pitching staff that had an ERA of 6.71 and gave up an all-time record 1199 runs.

In 1935, the Phillies met the Cincinnati Reds at Crosley Field in the first Major League night game. That year, second baseman Chile Gomez became the teams first latin American player. In 1938, the Phillies finally moved out of the Baker Bowl into Shribe Park.

In 1942, the Phillies needed an advance from the league just to go to spring training. The league forced owner Gerald Nugent to sale the team back to the league. The team was sold to a lumber broker named William Cox, who immediately set out to remake the squad. However, Cox stay with the team was short lived. Cox clashed with his manager Bucky Harris, then fired him. Out of revenge, Harris told the Philadelphia press, he had evidence Cox made bets on his own team. After an investigation, Harris was banned from baseball for life by Baseball Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Soon after, Cox sold the team to DuPont heirs Robert R.M Carpenter, who turned the club over to his son Bob Jr..

Under new owner Bob Carpenter, the Phillies began acquiring young, talented players and devoted time and resources to their farm system. During the 1950s the Phillies were dubbed “Whiz Kids”. Jim Konstanty, Curt Simmons, Dick Sisler, Richie Ashburn and Del Ennis were the nucleus of the Phillies in the 1950s. All of these players were products of the Phillies farm system and with a group of veterans, the team quickly became one of the franchises most beloved teams.

In 1950, the Phillies finished the season with a 91-63 record, their best since 1916. Pitcher Jim Konstanty was named the NL MVP, he appeared in a league-high 74 games with a league leading 22 saves. Another standout was Del Ennis who led the league with 126 RBI. Although the Phillies led in the standings for most of the year, a late season tailspin caused them to lose eight of their last 10 games forcing a one-game playoff against the Brooklyn Dodgers. The Phillies defeated the Dodgers to give the Phils their first NL pennant since 1915. In the World Series, the Phillies were no match for the Yankees. They were swept 4-1.

The Phillies played host to their first All-Star Game in 1952. In 1954, the Athletics moved to Kansas City and sold Shibe Park to the Phillies. In 1957 John Kennedy and Chico Fernandez became the first black players to play for the Phillies.

In 1964, the Phillies seemed destined to make it to the World Series. Gene Mauch’s Phillies, with help from Rookie of the Year third baseman Dick Allen (.318 average, 29 home runs, 91 RBI) and Jim Bunning, whose 19 wins included a perfect game against the Mets on Fathers Day, led the pack by 6 1/2 games with two weeks to go. They unexpectedly lost ten straight to hand the pennant to the Cardinals. The “Phold” as it is known, is one of the most notable collapses in sports history.

In the years that followed, general manager John Quinn tried desperately to bring a pennant to Philadelphia by signing aging veterans. It didn’t work as the Phils sank to the bottom of the standings. In 1966, Chris Short won 20 games and Bunning had his third straight 19-win season. In 1969, pitchers Jerry Johnson, Woodie Fryman, Grant Jackson and Rick Wise hurled four consecutive shutouts.

In 1970, the Phils played their last game at Connie Mack Stadium. They moved into the newly constructed Veterans Stadium the following year. That season Rick Wise hit two home runs while pitching a no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds and Deron Johnson hit 34 home runs, while Willie Montanez blasted 30. The Phils still finished the season with a 73-88 record.

Early in 1972, John Quinn, in his last move as general manager, traded Wise to St. Louis for Steve Carlton. Shortly afterwards, Paul Owens became GM and Dallas Green was promoted to farm director. Carlton had one of the greatest season of any pitcher in big league history in 1972 when he won 27 games, posted an ERA of 1.98 and became the first Phillies pitcher to strike out 300 batters, when he fanned 310. The team ended the season with a 59-97 record. Mike Schmidt made his first appearance in a Phillies uniform , and after the season, team president Bob Carpenter handed over the reigns to his son Ruly.

In 1974, with Danny Ozark managing the team, the Phillies had become a contender. The team led the Eastern Division early in the season before finishing in third place. Schimdt won the home crown with 36 while Jim Londborg won 17 games.

In 1975, the Phils finished in second place with a 86-76 record. Jay Johnstone hit .329, Schimdt again topped the circuit in home runs with 38 and Greg Luzinski led the league in RBI with 120 while cracking 34 home runs and hitting .300.

In 1976, the Phillies won a club record of 101 games, winning their division by nine games. The Phils also passed the 2 million mark in attendance for the first time with 2,480,150. The Club hosted the All-Star game with the National League winning 7-1. Schmidt won his third home run title with 38. Gary Maddox hit .330 and Johnstone batted .318, while Carlton and won 20 and Londborg 18.

In the NLCS, the Phillies were no match for the Cincinnati Reds. Led by manager Sparky Anderson, the Reds swept the Phils in 3 straight games.

The Phillies won 101 games again in 1977, capturing their division by five games. The team was led by Carlton’s 23 wins and Larry Christenson’s 19 wins. Bake McBride hit .339, Luzinski had a monster season hitting .309 with 39 home runs and 130 RBI. Schmidt hit 38 home runs again, and the team led the league in batting average hitting .279.

In the 1977 NLCS, the Phillies lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers three games to one, in a controversial series. The fourth and last game was played in pouring rain as Tommy John put away the Phils 4-1.

In 1978, the team clinched their division flag by just one and a half games as they reached the NLCS for the third straight year. Carlton won 16 games and Luzinski hit 35 home runs and 101 RBI.

In the NLCS, the Phils were defeated again by the Dodgers three games to one. The Phils lost the first two game before winning game three. In game four, the sure-handed Maddox dropped a fly ball, helping the Dodgers to a 4-3 win.

In 1978, the Phillies dropped to fourth place, despite the arrival of Pete Rose, who hit .331 and Mike Schmidt’s 45 home runs and 114 RBI. Late in the season, the Phillies fired manager Danny Ozark an replacing him with Dallas Green.

As good as Philadelphia’s Mike Schimdt had been in the 1970s, some Philly fans still consider him an underachiever. Although he had taken three consecutive NL home run titles and traveled to the playoffs three times, he had not claimed an MVP award or a league pennant.

The 1980 season, however proved to be a different kind of year for the 31 year old Schmidt. He set career highs with 48 home runs and 121 RBI and won the MVP Award.

The Phils finished the1980 season with a 91-71 record. Managed by Dallas Green, the Phillies were a veteran club that was strong up the middle. Their pitchers included Cy Young winner Steve Carlton (24-9), Dick Ruthven (17-10), and Tug McGraw (20 saves). Schimdt led the offense attack, but he had help from Bake McBride ( .309 and 83 RBI), Manny Trillo, Pete Rose, Larry Bowa, Gary Maddux, Bob Boone and Rookie of the Year Lonnie Smith.

In the NLCS, the Phils defeated the Houston Astros in a memorable series, with four of the five games needing extra innings. The Phils fell behind in the final game 2-1, but crawled back in the tenth inning on a game-winning hit from Garry Maddox.

In the 1980 World Series, the Phillies faced off against the Kansas City Royals. The Phils utilized the strengths that got them there, mostly Schmidt and Carlton. Schmidt hit .381 and seven RBI and Carlton won two games with a 2.40 ERA. Tug McGraw struck out Kansas City’s last batter in the sixth and final game to give the Phillies their first-ever World Series Championship.

After a disappointing season in 1981, manager Dallas Green resigned and the Carpenter family sold the team to a partnership headed by vice president Bill Giles.

By 1983, many players from the 1980 team where gone. However, the story in the NL was Philadelphia, a team loaded with aging stars like Pete Rose, Joe Morgan, Tony Perez, Tug McGraw, and Carlton, but the “Wheeze Kids,” as they were called-still had enough to win the NL East.

In the playoffs the Phillies defeated the Dodgers three games to one in the NLCS. Carlton won two of the three games, allowing a total of just one run. And in the World Series, the Baltimore Orioles took care of the Phillies in five games.

In 1985, the Phils finished the season with a 75-85 record. The Phillies clobbered the Mets in a memorable game 26-7 as Von Hayes hit two home runs, including a grand slam in the first inning to become only the second Phillies player to hit two home runs in the same inning. Glenn Wilson ended the year by leading NL outfielders in assist and drove in 102 runs.

Schmidt won his seventh and last home run crown and his third and last MVP award in 1986 after slugging 37 home runs and driving in 119 runs. Phillies legend Steve Carlton was released, while Von Hayes had a fine season batting .305 and driving in 98 runs. The Phils finished the season with a 86-75 record, missing the playoffs.

In 1987, Schmidt hit his 500th home run off Pittsburgh Pirates Don Robinson. Steve Bedrosian registered 40 saves to win the Cy Young Award. Schmidt hit 35 home runs and 113 RBI, Samuel had 28 home runs and drove in 100 runs and Milt Thompson hit .302. Still the Phillies finished the season with an 80-82 record and missed the playoffs for the third consecutive year.

In 1988, Lee Thomas was named Phillies general manager. In 1989, John Kruk hit .331, switch-hitter Steve Jeltz became the first Phillie to hit a home run from each side of the plate in the same game, and Schmidt retired with 548 home runs. Schmidt retired as the Phillies all-time leader in games (2,404), at bats (8,325), runs (1,506), hits (2,234), home runs (548), RBI (1,595), walks (1,507) and total bases (4,404).

In 1993, the Phillies finished the season with a 97-65 record, winning their division. The team was led by Lenny Dykstra, Darren Daulton and John Kruk and Curt Schilling, and for the first time, the Phillies drew more than three million fans.

In the NLCS, the underdog Phillies beat the braves four games to two, coming from behind to win the last three games. Curt Schilling was the MVP of the series as the Phillies became only the third team in the 20th century to leap from last place in the previous season to first. In the World Series, the Phils faced off against the Toronto Blue Jays. The Phillies battled the Blue Jays until Joe Carter’s three-run home run off Mitch Williams in the bottom of the ninth inning in game six gave the Blue Jays an 8-6 victory and the series victory.

In 1994, Steve Carlton was inducted into the Hall of Fame. In 1995, Mike Schmidt and Richie Ashburn were inducted, and in 1996 Jim Bunning also was inducted into the Hall of Fame.

In 1997 the club hired Terry Francona as manager and Bill Giles stepped down as team president, passing the reigns to Dave Montgomery, and Schilling set a NL record for a right-hander with 319 strikeouts.

The 2000 season began with high expectations after the acquisitions of Andy Ashby and Mike Jackson, but the club fizzled early and finished 65-97 to end Terry Francona’s four year run as manager.

Former Phillie Larry Bowa took over as manager in 2001 and led the club to 21-game improvement and a second place finish with a 86-76 record. Rookie shortstop Jimmy Rollins was a sparkplug for the 2001 team, leading the league in stolen bases with 46. Scott Roland produced his third and second straight Gold Glove season and Bobby Abreu became the first Phillie to record a 30 home run, 30 stolen base year.

On September 3, 2003, the Phillies played their last game at Veterans Stadium, and gave the place an emotional sendoff. Appearances by Paul Owens and Tug McGraw made the night magical, as both would pass away in the following months.

Slugger Jim Thome was a member of the Phils in 2003, and led the NL with 47 home runs. He also knocked in a career-best 131 runs. Kevin Millwood also arrived in a trade from Atlanta and won 13 games. The Phillies contended all season and led the wild card race by a 1/2 game, but a 1-7 stretch ended their postseason dreams.

For the Phillies, 2005 marked the third straight winning season, but a 12th straight year missing the playoffs. Ryan Howard enjoyed a breakout season at first base, hitting .288 with 22 home runs and 63 RBI in just 88 games, winning him Rookie of the Year Award. Pat Burrell also came alive, hitting 32 home runs with 117 RBI. The Phillies enjoyed some good stretches in the season, but their downfall came when they lost six straight to the Astros.

In 2007, the Phillies became the first MLB team to lose 10,000 games. Three Phillies were named to the 2007 All-Star Game in San Francisco, CA. Chase Utley was the starting second baseman for the National League and center fielder Aaron Rowland was named as a backup. Starting pitcher Cole Hamels also appeared in his first All-Star Game.

On September 12, the Phillies were seven games in back of the New York Mets. It appeared as if their division hopes were gone. However, the Mets started a slide that would become legendary. The Phillies beat the Mets in eight consecutive encounters and overtook the Mets by one game. The Mets would lose their final game of the season, as the Phillies won theirs, giving the Phils their first Division title in 14 years. After their historic comeback,they lost to the Colorado Rockies in the NLDS in three straight games, marking the the first time since 1976 that the Phils were swept out of the playoffs.