In 1972, lefty Steve Carlton had one of the finest seasons for a pitcher in major league baseball history. He posted a 27-10 won-loss record for a Philadelphia Phillies team that won only 59 games. Carlton was responsible for nearly 46% of his team's victories, His ERA was a microscopic 1.97. He won his first Cy Young Award that year. All of this is well documented, of course. What is less well documented is the role played in this record setting year by a journeyman catcher named John Bateman. Pitching to Bateman that year, Carlton went 20-4, 1.60. Pitching to all other catchers he was 7-6, 2.83. Carlton vastly preferred throwing to Bateman and he made his preference known.
Carlton, 27, famously came to the Phillies in February 1972 in a trade for Phillies ace, Rick Wise. Bateman, 31, who had spent most of his career with the Houston Astros, before being traded to the Montreal Expos, came to the Phillies on June 14, 1972, in a straight up trade of catchers, Tim McCarver going to the Expos. The Phillies were looking for a better defensive catcher than McCarver. The Expos were looking for some offense and planned to play McCarver at first base a lot. Bateman had lost his starting catcher position to John Boccabella and had appeared in just 18 games for the Expos, mostly as a pinch-hitter. Bill Conlin of the Philadelphia Daily News said of the trade, "The people who have been saying the Phillies could get nothing in a trade for Tim McCarver were right. Last night the Phillies got nothing in a trade for Tim McCarver." Manager Frank Lucchesi declared Bateman "the Phillies No. 1 catcher."
Bateman's first game behind the plate with Carlton on the mound saw Lefty pitch 10 shutout innings and record 12 strikeouts in a 1-0 extra inning loss to Houston in the Astrodome. Reliever Dick Selma gave up a walk-off home run to Jimmy Wynn leading off the eleventh. Bateman and Carlton really bonded, however, in their third game together in Montreal on June 26. In the fourth inning of a scoreless game, Expos pitcher Ernie McAnally plunked Phillies first baseman Joe Lis on the arm. In the bottom of the inning, Carlton retaliated by beaning the Expos Tim Foli. Foli started to go toward the mound but was restrained by Bateman. Meanwhile, Montreal manager Gene Mauch raced out of the dugout and threw a punch at Carlton. In the ensuing melee, Bateman, Roger Freed, and Jim Nash all got shots in at Mauch, who emerged bloodied and limping. Bateman got into a shoving match with Expos' coach Larry Doby, after Doby yanked Bateman off of Mauch by twisting his left arm. Mauch was ejected, both benches were warned, and Carlton and Bateman returned to work.
Bateman, nursing what would be diagnosed as a hyper-extended elbow, came to bat in the top of the fifth inning and launched a one-handed, wind-aided home run just out of the reach of Expos left-fielder, Ken Singleton. Carlton was up next and McAnally whizzed the first pitch behind his head. Carlton started for the mound but thought better of it. "Winning the game was more important. I didn't want to get thrown out." McAnally was ejected. Bateman, unable to lift his left arm, was replaced by Mike Ryan. Carlton then endured a 46-minute rain delay and still returned to the mound to complete a four-hit shutout. Manager Lucchesi said, "That was amazing. A long delay like that and he comes back with better stuff than when he started." Phillies pitcher Bucky Brandon said, "That's what being a superstar is all about. I was warming up next to Steve when it stopped raining, but I had to stop because he was embarrassing me."
Carlton said, "I'm sorry about Foli. I didn't mean to hit him in the head. And I'm sorry about Mauch. I meant to hit him all over."
Bateman kept catching Carlton and Carlton kept winning. On July 23, Carlton and Dodger lefty Tommy John engaged in a classic duel that Carlton won, 2-0, when he tripled home two runners in the seventh inning. Five days later at Veterans Stadium, Carlton again won 2-0 over the Cubs and Milt Pappas, when Willie Montanez launched a two-run walk-off home run in the ninth. In fact, in five consecutive starts with Bateman behind the plate from July 23 to August 9, Carlton did not give up an earned run. The one unearned run he did allow was, ironically, set up by a Bateman passed ball. On August 9, Carlton pitched a three hitter and hit a solo home run as the Phillies beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2-0.
For his part, Carlton was effusive in his praise for Bateman. He liked the way Bateman called a game. He liked Bateman's "mechanics" behind the plate. He considered him the finest catcher he threw to in his career. From the time Bateman arrived on June 16 until the end of the year, Bateman caught every game that Carlton pitched. That was 27 games. Carlton won 20 of those games, with just 4 losses, and three no-decisions.
At the end of the season, the Phillies called up Bob Boone from the minors to see if he was ready to catch at the major league level. He started most of the games in September and October, but he was never in the lineup when Carlton pitched. Carlton made it clear he preferred to throw to Bateman. On September 28, Carlton won his 26th game of the year over the Pittsburgh Pirates and Bob Moose, 2-1. The next day the Phillies travelled to Montreal for a three-game series. Bateman did not accompany the team. It seems that Bateman, as fine a defensive catcher as he was, was a little loose when it came to observing the law. According to Bill Conlin, he had left a trail of unpaid debts, traffic tickets, and even an abandoned loaner car in Montreal, and feared the authorities would arrest him when he crossed the border.
Satisfied that Boone was ready for the major leagues, the Phillies shopped Bateman to other teams. Finding no takers, they released him in January 1973. Carlton protested vehemently and tried to get the Phillies' brass to reverse the decision, but to no avail. Bateman retired and went on to play fast pitch softball and then catch for famed softball pitcher Eddie Feigner of The King and His Court fame. Bateman claimed to have made more money playing for Feigner than he did as a major leaguer.
In 1973, Carlton struggled. He led the league in losses, falling to 13-20. His ERA ballooned to 3.90. The rookie Boone shouldered much of the blame. It took many years before Carlton was truly comfortable with Boone behind the plate. In 1975, the Phillies brought McCarver back and he became Carlton's personal catcher for several years. Finally, in 1980, Boone and Carlton combined as the battery that led the Phillies to a World Championship.
Cornelius Joseph "Connie" Ryan may have been only the second most famous Connie affiliated with baseball in Philadelphia,* but on April 16, 1953, he wrote his name permanently into the Phillies' record book. That day the journeyman second baseman went six-for-six in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. He is the only player throughout the Phillies 130-year history to get six hits in a game. And what a game it was. Despite Ryan's heroics, the Phillies managed to lose, 14-12. Not only were 26 runs scored in the game, but 24 of those runs were scored in just two innings, the 4th and 5th. The Phillies rapped out 17 hits compared to the Pirates 15 but lost the game because they committed four errors that led to an astounding nine unearned runs.
Ryan was already a ten-year veteran of the major leagues when he was traded to the Phillies from the Cincinnati Reds before the 1952 season. The Phillies also got catcher Smoky Burgess and pitcher Howie Fox in the deal. They traded away Whiz Kid heroes Andy Seminick and Dick Sisler. Ryan came with a reputation as a solid defensive second baseman with an adequate bat. He had averaged .246 in his years with the New York Giants, Boston Braves, and Reds. The Phillies hoped he would pair with shortstop Granny Hamner to give the team the solid defensive middle infield play they had been lacking. Ryan had a reputation as a "scrapper" and had famously had an on-field fist fight with new teammate Willie "Puddin' Head" Jones over a spiking incident at Cincinnati during the 1951 season. The two were now part of the same infield.
The April 16 game was just the third game of the season for both teams. The Phillies lineup still contained many of the Whiz Kids who had won the pennant in 1950, including Hamner, Jones, Richie Ashburn, Del Ennis, and Stan Lopata. Ryan was the leadoff hitter, while Ashburn batted second. The Pirates lineup featured slugger Ralph Kiner, second baseman Danny O'Connell, just back from military service, and catcher Joe Garagiola. The starting pitchers were Karl Drews for the Phillies and Howie Pollett for the Bucs. Drews had had a career year with the Phillies in 1952, going 14-15 with a 2.72 ERA. Veteran lefty Pollett had twice won twenty games for the St. Louis Cardinals, but his best years were behind him.
The weather for this early season game featured 36-degree temperatures and snow showers mixed with rain. A chilled crowd of 16,220 was on hand for the Pirates home opener. Ryan led off the game with a single, but after he was sacrificed up to second by Ashburn, he was stranded as Mel Clark struck out and Del Ennis grounded to third. The Pirates scored an early run when Cal Abrams singled, moved up on a Pete Castiglione bunt, and scored on a Kiner single. The run was unearned because catcher Lopata dropped a foul popup off the bat of Kiner before he stroked the base hit.
The Phillies threatened in the third when, with one out, Ryan singled, and Ashburn doubled him to third. The rally died when Clark again struck out and Ennis again grounded out to third base. The Phillies took the lead, briefly, in the fourth, scoring two runs. First baseman Earl Torgeson opened with a single and scored on a Hamner double. Granny was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a triple, a move that proved costly when Jones followed with a home run to right field. With the Phillies now leading 2-1, chaos broke out.
In the bottom of the fourth, Pirate first baseman, Paul Smith reached safely when Jones fielded his easy grounder and threw wildly to first. O'Connell and Garagiola followed with singles, and the score was tied. Pirate shortstop Dick Cole sacrificed the runners to second and third. Pitcher Pollet then singled driving in both runners and moving to second on the throw home. Abrams flew out for the second out. but Castiglione blasted a homer to left scoring Pollett ahead of him. Centerfielder Felipe Montemayor doubled and that was all for Drews. Manager Eddie Sawyer relieved him with Bob Miller. Kiner greeted Miller with a single that moved Montemayor to third and then both scored when Smith tripled to the gap in right-center field. Miller worked out of the inning, but the Pirates had scored seven runs, only one of which was earned.
Now trailing 8-2 the Phillies fought back in the top of the fifth. Ryan led off with his third straight single. Ashburn walked. Clark grounded into a force out at second. Ennis doubled to left, scoring both Ryan and Clark. Torgeson's single scored Ennis. Reliever Bob Hall replaced Pollet and issued consecutive walks to Hamner and Jones. Out came Pittsburgh manager Fred Haney again to replace Hall with Elroy Face. Face induced a popup from Lopata for the second out. Bill "Swish" Nicholson then batted for Miller and doubled, clearing the bases. Ryan's fourth hit and second of the inning, a double, scored Nicholson. Ashburn singled Ryan home. Johnny Wyrostek batted for Clark and worked a walk. Ennis singled scoring Ashburn. That was all for Face, as Johnny Hetki replaced him. Hetki walked Torgeson but got out of the inning when Hamner lined out sharply to left. The nine-run inning put the Phillies ahead 11-8. The lead didn't last long.
In the bottom of the fifth, Paul Stuffel** took the mound for the Phillies and promptly walked Dick Cole and pinch-hitter George Metkovitch. That was all for Stuffel, who was replaced by Andy "Swede" Hansen. Cal Abrams singled home a run and after Castiglione popped out, Montemayor also singled scoring Metkovitch and sending Abrams to third. Abrams scored when Hamner bobbled Kiner's double play ground ball to the shortstop hole. After Smith grounded into a force-out, O'Connell put an exclamation point on the rally with a home run. The Pirates had scored six (three earned) and now led 14-11.
From that point on the game calmed down as veteran Murry Dickson of the Pirates and youngster Steve Ridzik of the Phillies restored some order. Ridzik escaped trouble in the sixth thanks in part to an unusual 1-6-6-4-5-4 double play. After Cole doubled, he was caught off second when Dickson hit a comebacker to Ridzik. Ridzik fired to Hamner who chased down Cole for one out and then fired to Ryan at second where Dickson was attempting to move up. Ryan got Dickson in a run down and eventually tagged him out. The Phillies did add a single run in the seventh when Ryan led off with a double (hit number 5) and scored on a Wyrostek single.
Ryan led off again in the ninth inning and completed his perfect day with another single. That was the last gasp for the Phillies though as the next three hitters went out meekly. The final score, 14-12.
Ryan's six hits tied a then major league record. He was the 32nd major league player and the first Phillie to achieve the feat. The Pirates Rennie Stennett broke the record with seven hits in a nine-inning game in 1975.
In August of 1953, Ryan was sold to the Chicago White Sox. The move came as a surprise to many, but management felt that Ryan had slowed in the field and decided to move rookie Ted Kazanski into the shortstop spot and transfer Hamner to second base. Ryan played sparingly for the White Sox and closed out his major league career in 1954 appearing in just one game for the Reds. Ryan stayed in baseball as a coach and manager, mostly in the minor leagues, but he was a coach for the 1957 World Champion Milwaukee Braves and also had two brief stints as an interim major league manager.
*The most famous being, of course, Cornelius McGillicuddy, better known as Connie Mack, longtime manager of the Philadelphia Athletics
**Paul Stuffel had a very unusual pitching line for 1953. He appeared in just two games, faced two batters in each game, and walked all four. These four runners all scored, meaning that Stuffel allowed four earned runs without recording an out for an ERA of infinity.
Most long-time Phillies fans remember Del Unser for his heroic contributions to the 1980 World Series Champions. Playing in the only post season series of his 15-year career, Unser batted .400 in the incredible five-game National League Championship Series, including two crucial hits in the Game 5 comeback. He then hit .500 going 3 for 6 in the World Series against Kansas City. including the double that started the Phillies four-run winning rally in Game 2. In Game 4, Unser doubled off Dan Quisenberry to drive in Mike Schmidt with the tying run and then scored the winning run on Manny Trillo's' single. In 1979, however, when his career appeared about over, Unser wrote his name permanently into the record books when he smashed home runs in three consecutive pinch-hit at bats, a record that still stands today.
When the Phillies signed Unser as a free agent before the 1979 season he was not even assured of making the team. Del had been released by the Montreal Expos after hitting just .196 as a first baseman/pinch-hitter. When the Phillies traded away first baseman Richie Hebner, however, a spot opened up for Del as a bench piece. This was Unser's second go-around with the Phillies. He was the team's everyday centerfielder for two years, 1973 and 1974, as the Phillies began to build a winning team under Paul Owens and Danny Ozark. Unser played well for the Phillies, hitting .276 and providing solid defense, but with the acquisition of Garry Maddox from the San Francisco Giants, Unser became expendable. In the winter of 1974, Unser was traded, along with catcher John Stearns, to the New York Mets for another player who would be crucial to future Phillies fortunes, Tug McGraw.
When Unser came to bat in the eighth inning of a June 30, 1979, game against the St. Louis Cardinals, he had one home run for the season. The score was 4-2 in favor of the Cardinals. Garry Maddox was on first with a single. Righty George Frazier came on to relieve Cardinal starter, John Fulghum. Unser batted for Larry Bowa. He smacked the first pitch from Frazier 400 feet into the sixth row in right center for a game tying home run. It was the Phillies first pinch homer of the year. The Phillies eventually won the game 6-4 in 10 innings. After the game, Unser said he was just trying to hit the ball hard. "When I try to hit home runs, I mess up my whole stroke. And my stroke has been messed up enough lately as it is."
Unser's next opportunity to swing the bat in anger came five days later on July 5. This game at Veterans Stadium against the Mets, featured the Major League debut of 22-year-old, Dickie Noles. After the Mets Joel Youngblood led off the game with a home run, Noles settled down and pitched well, but the Phillies trailed 3-0 to the Mets' Craig Swan when Unser batted for Larry Bowa in the bottom of the seventh with two out and Bob Boone on second. Unser launched another two-run home run. That was all Swan allowed, however, as the Phillies went down, 3-2.
Unser saved the best for his third straight. On July 10 at Veterans Stadium, the Phillies trailed the San Diego Padres 5-1 going into the bottom of the ninth inning. The Phillies rallied. With one out, Jose Cardenal singled, and Manny Trillo doubled, sending Padres starter Randy Jones to the showers. Rollie Fingers came on and was greeted by a Bob Boone single that drove both Cardenal and Trillo home. The score was 5-3. Tim McCarver batted for pitcher Doug Bird and scratched out a single to second base. Bud Harrelson ran for McCarver. Bake McBride forced Harrelson at second on a groundball behind second that shortstop Ozzie Smith flagged down. McBride just barely beat the relay throw to first to avoid the double play and keep the game alive.
Ozark now sent Unser up to bat for Bowa. Unser swung at Fingers' first pitch to him and drilled it on a high arc to centerfield. Padres centerfielder Gene Richards turned his back and ran to the wall, but he ran out of room. Del Unser's third consecutive pinch hit home run was a walk-off three-run blast off one of the legendary relief pitchers in the game. After the game, Unser explained his pinch-hitting philosophy to the press. "My father, Al, caught in the majors (1942-45) and he told me, invariably, the good pinch- hitters just come up swinging at the first thing that looks good. I had no idea it was going out, I just knew the centerfielder was going to have a long run."
Unser's next opportunity to pinch-hit came two night later on July 12. He again faced the Padres and Rollie Fingers. Fingers intentionally walked him. The next time Unser pinch hit was on July 23. Again, he faced the Padres. Again, the pitcher was Fingers. This time the game was tied 5-5. Unser struck out.
Unser had another good year in 1980, pinch-hitting at a .316 clip, which led to his post-season heroics discussed earlier. His production trailed off in the strike-shortened season of 1981 and he was released by the Phillies in June of 1982. After his retirement, Unser remained with the Phillies as a hitting instructor, major league coach and eventually farm director. Fired from that job in a general house cleaning in 1998, he remained with the Phillies as a scout.
Reflecting on his favorite games as a player, Unser mentioned the fifth game of the 1980 playoffs with the Astros, but his number one memory was that pinch -hitting appearance on July 10, 1979. "I knew when I hit the ball...that was terrific. But to hit a walk-off home run off Rollie Fingers, that made the whole thing incredible." It was also one for the record books.
As young kids we often rail against injustice crying, "That's not fair!" at anyone who will listen. As adults we learn that, yes, injustice is all around us, that life really isn't fair, and that we must pick our battles and fight injustice for issues of major importance. There is at least one of those minor injustices that I still cannot let go, however. I cannot understand how the Phillies great righthanded pitcher, Robin Roberts, was denied baseball’s Most Valuable Player trophy in 1952.
First some background. This was back in the day before the Cy Young Award for best pitcher was instituted in 1956. Lacking a specific award for pitchers, the baseball writers often awarded the MVP to pitchers. In fact, Roberts' teammate Jim Konstanty had won it in 1950 and the Philadelphia Athletics great lefty Bobby Schantz won the American League MVP in that same year of 1952 with a 24-7 record.
By 1952, Roberts had established himself as the premiere righthanded pitcher in baseball. He was a rookie in 1948, and then pitched the Phillies to the pennant in 1950, when he went 20-11 and beat the Brooklyn Dodgers on the last day of the season to send the Phillies to the World Series. He backed that up with a 21-15 record as the Phillies fell to fifth place in 1951.
In 1952, Roberts' performance was off the charts. It was the finest performance by a National League pitcher since Dizzy Deam won 28 in 1935. Roberts was dominant. His record was 28-7, with a 2.59 ERA. In his last 23 starts, he went 21-2 and both those losses came when the Phillies were shut out. He led the league in complete games with 30 and innings pitched with 330. He walked just 45 and struck out 148. He even worked two games in relief and recorded two (retroactive) saves.
All this was not good enough to get Roberts the MVP award. The Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) chose to give the award to Chicago Cubs left fielder, Hank Sauer. Sauer had had a very good season. He led the league with 37 home runs and 121 RBIs. He hit .270 for a Cubs team that finished 77-77 in fifth place. However, he ended the season in a prolonged slump, hitting just three home runs and driving in just nine runs in his last 30 games.
Under the rules in effect at the time, 24 baseball beat writers had votes. They could name 10 players on their ballots. A descending number of points were awarded for first through tenth place positions on the ballot. Sauer got 226 points, Roberts 211, and the great Brooklyn Dodger rookie reliever Joe Black got 208. Sauer and Black got eight first place votes and Roberts seven.
Criticism of the choice was swift and vehement.
Oscar Fraley (UPI) - "Anybody who knows the difference between a bunt and a punt must be completely flabbergasted by the selection of Hank Sauer in the National League. Most of the voters obviously never heard of Robin Roberts...one theory is they were all on vacation and the ballot was filled in by the editor of the women's page."
Joe Cashman (Boston Record) "It's a ridiculous selection. Sauer cannot be mentioned in the same breath as Roberts or Black..."
Dan Daniel (New York World Telegram and Sun) "How can you pass up a pitcher who won 28 games for a team like the Phillies?"
Howard Rosenthal (New York Herald Tribune) "It was a travesty. Roberts won 17 and lost only one after the All-Star game."
John Debringer (New York Times) "I cannot understand how anyone can rate Sauer over Roberts and Black.
Arch Murray (New York Post) "In my book, the man was Robin Roberts."
Even Hank Sauer was surprised at the selection. "Yes, I'm surprised," he told the Philadelphia Inquirer, "but I can tell you I sure am tickled pink. I thought maybe the other guy, Roberts, would win it."
So, what happened? How could Roberts have possibly missed out? Theories abound. One good analysis was recently published by Travis M. Nelson on The Boy of Summer blog. Nelson's theory is that rookie relief pitchers Joe Black and Hoyt Wilhelm (who finished fourth in the voting) siphoned off votes that should have gone to Roberts. In fairness, Black, who won the Rookie of the Year award, had a great season. Some voters, particularly New York scribes, might have favored Black because he was the most valuable player on the team that actually won the pennant. In those days, many writers would only vote for players on winning teams. It's a good theory, nicely laid out in the article.
Another theory was prevalent right after the vote. Gayle Talbot, writing for the Associated Press argued that a bloc of Mid-Western writers colluded to "stuff the ballot box" for Sauer, while the eastern writers divided their ballots between Roberts and Black. One writer Talbot quoted as saying, "Those guys started planning this back in the middle of the year. That was when they started working on me, anyway." The general consensus of New York based writers was that Sauer's poor final month disqualified him from the award.
One more theory popped up in my research that is even more sinister. In his book, The Ten Best Years of Baseball: An Informal History of the Fifties, Harold Rosenthal points to the fact that one writer inexplicably left Roberts off his ballot altogether. Here's Rosenthal on the controversy:
Old timers still talk about the [1952 MVP] ballot. It was unusual one of the writers didn't have Roberts on the ballot at all, leading observers to wonder what he was looking at from his perch in the press box. It turned out that the errant elector was (a) a Philadelphia newsman who had himself pitched for the Phillies in an earlier era and (b) no particular admirer of Roberts to the point where he brushed him in their daily comings and goings.
From Rosenthal's description that sportswriter can only be former major league pitcher and Philadelphia Inquirer writer Stan Baumgartner. I cannot independently corroborate this account or even find any evidence that there was bad blood between Roberts and Baumgartner. To the contrary, Roberts was typically well liked by one and all throughout baseball, but this story surely puts an interesting twist on the controversy.
For his part Roberts felt that the best explanation was that the eastern writers split their vote between Black and he, while the western writers were solid for Sauer. He took the loss with his characteristic grace. In his biography Throwing Hard Easy he wrote:
I can't say I was all that disappointed. Awards were really not that important to me, and I accepted the outcome without giving it too much thought. I had won 28 games and that was all I really cared about.
Well, Robbie, you're a bigger man than I am. I am still angry at the injustice and think that if that MVP had been justly awarded, Roberts may have been inducted into the Hall of Fame sooner and his name would now carry more of the recognition it deserves as the greatest righthanded pitcher of the 1950s and one of the greatest pitchers of all-time.
Sportswriter John Posnanski, who listed Roberts as #72 in his The Athletic series on the 100 Greatest Players of All-Time, put it this way.
I think Roberts belongs in every discussion of the greatest pitchers ever. And he's never really mentioned in those. I think Roberts should be known by every baseball fan and he really isn't. He's not even the most famous Robin Roberts going, placing a distant second to the wonderful television broadcaster.
I rest my case - for now.
Sources
Harold Rosenthal, The 10 Best Years of Baseball: An Informal History of the Fifties, Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1979.
John Posnaski, "The Baseball 100: N0. 72, Robin Roberts," The Athletic, January 15, 2020.
Phillies fans of a certain age have a clear memory of right-handed pitcher Dick Ruthven on the mound as the Phillies clinched their trip to the 1980 World Series with an improbable 10-inning, 8-7, victory over the Houston Astros. This Phillies team, which had been the best team in the National League for five straight seasons, finally got over the playoff hump and advanced to the biggest prize of them all. Ruthven, normally a starter, pitched the final two innings of this gut-wrenching game, shutting down the Astros, six up, six down, using almost entirely fastballs. When the final out landed in centerfielder Garry Maddox's glove, Ruthven was mobbed by his teammates on the Astrodome mound.
Ruthven's journey to that moment began when the Sacramento native was the number one draft pick out of California State University, Fresno in the January 1973 secondary-phase draft. The 22-year-old featured a devastating 12-6 curve ball and a fastball that some scouts thought was not fast enough for major league standards. He would prove those scouts wrong.
After impressing in spring training, Ruthven was rushed straight to the major leagues by the pitching starved Phillies. Ruthven took a regular turn as the fifth starter behind Steve Carlton, Jim Lonborg, Wayne Twitchell, and Ken Brett. The Phillies, in their first season under manager Danny Ozark, improved by 12 games over their dismal 1972 mark, but still finished last in the NL East Division, 11 1/2 games behind the first place New York Mets.
The young pitcher with no minor league experience held his own. After a poor outing in his first start on April 17 (1 2/3 innings, five hits, two walks, four earned runs), he bounced back with fine outing on April 22, matching the legendary St. Louis Cardinal right-hander, Bob Gibson, pitch for pitch. Ruthven worked 7 2/3 innings to a no decision, in a game the Phillies eventually won, 2-1, with two out in the ninth on a Mike Schmidt walk-off home run. Ruthven did it without his curve ball, relying mainly on a good, well-located fastball. "Let those scouts tell me his fastball isn't good enough now," challenged Ozark.
Ruthven's first win came in his next outing on April 28, when he outpointed Cincinnati Reds ace Don Gullett, 1-0. He was spectacular in this game, allowing no runs and only one hit, while walking two and striking out 10. Relievers Billy Wilson and Mac Scarce closed out the victory for him. For this game, his curve ball returned. "I got back the curve ball nobody thought I had, or at least they were starting to doubt," said Ruthven. "That's the first time it's felt like a curve ball since the end of spring training."
Over the next two months, Ruthven had a few good outings and a few bad outings, but no victories. He was riding a five-game losing streak, when he faced off against the Cardinals and Gibson again on June 26, pitching six innings as the Phillies romped 10-3. In his next outing on July 1, Ruthven was again matched up against the daunting Gibson, this time at Busch Stadium, St. Louis. Dick responded with one of the greatest games of his career, besting Gibson with a complete game, 1-0 victory. After giving up two hits and three walks over the first four innings, Ruthven retired the final 17 hitters in a row. It was his third victory and first complete game.
Ruthven mostly abandoned his curveball in this game, using his new pitch, the slider, effectively. Phillies pitching coach Ray Ripplemeyer said, "He needed another pitch he could throw for strikes when the curve ball wasn't working." Greg Luzinski drove in the only run of the game with an eighth inning single that scored Bill Robinson, who had singled and moved up on a Denny Doyle sacrifice. For the record, the rookie Ruthven faced the veteran Gibson three times in 1973 and the Phillies emerged 3-0 in those games.
Over the next two years, Ruthven's lack of minor league seasoning seemed to catch up with him. He was a regular, if inconsistent, part of the Phillies rotation in 1974, but by 1975 he was replaced in the rotation by another young phenom, Larry Christenson. Along the way, "Rufus" as his teammates called him, had developed a reputation as a bit of a flake. Fined $50 for getting thrown out of a game by umpire Bruce Froemming, he sent a check to the league office that bounced. He could be surly to teammates while on the mound. Larry Bowa said, "He thinks everybody is on him, when we're just trying to help him. I feel sorry for him, because he has never been in the minor leagues." At the end of spring training 1975, that was corrected. Ruthven started the season at the Phillies Triple-A affiliate in Toledo.
After going 10-12, 3.18 at Toledo, Ruthven was back with the big club for August and September, but he did not pitch particularly well. The Phillies seemed to lose interest in him and traded Ruthven to the Chicago White Sox for Mike Buskey and Jim Kaat. The White Sox immediately turned around and traded Ruthven to the Atlanta Braves. After a couple of pretty good seasons with a very bad Atlanta team, even making the All-Star team in 1976, Ruthven returned to the Phillies in a June 1978 deal for popular and highly effective reliever, Gene Garber.
Ruthven forced the trade. He liked playing for Atlanta manager Bobby Cox, bur he hated Braves owner, Ted Turner. Ruthven accused Turner of making a pass at his wife and demanded an apology that Turner then turned into a public spectacle. Ruthven also felt hard done in salary negotiations with Atlanta, where his agent, Jim Bunning, was unable to convince an arbitrator that Ruthven deserved more money. At any rate, Cox promised to trade Ruthven, if he could. Ruthven slotted into the Phillies rotation right behind Carlton and Christenson and he was terrific. He had the best sustained stretch of pitching in his career going 13-5, with a 2.99 ERA in 20 starts as the Phillies again captured the NL East Division, He lost his only playoff start to Tommy John and the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-0.
Elbow problems cost Ruthven effectiveness and time on the disabled list in 1979, but he rebounded with a fine year in the 1980 championship year. He remained a regular in the Phillies rotation until he was traded to the Chicago Cubs for reliever Willie Hernandez in May 1983. He had one good season with the Cubs and was released in 1986.
Dick Ruthven had a 123-127 career won-loss record, 78-65 with the Phillies. Would Ruthven and the Phillies have been better off if the #1 draft pick had spent some time in the minor leagues learning his craft? Probably. Ruthven, himself, said that he was just a thrower in his first stint as a Phillie. After two+ years in Atlanta, he returned to the team as a more mature pitcher and a more mature human being. That grown-up Ruthven was on the mound when the Phillies needed him most that October day in 1980.
Here's a condensed version of that 1980 playoff game that ends with Ruthven on the mound for the Phillies. It was named the 18th greatest game in baseball history.
Pitcher Jack Sanford burst onto the scene with the Phillies in 1957 as an unheralded 28-year-old rookie, who had spent many years laboring in the Phillies minor league system. He pitched a fading group of former Whiz Kids into contention for half of the season, appeared in the All-Star game, and went on to edge out teammate Ed Bouchee as the Rookie-of-the-Year. His record was an excellent 19-8 with a 3.08 ERA that year and he led the league with 188 strikeouts. The following spring, Sanford reported to camp overweight and out of shape, and fell to 10-13 with a 4.44 ERA. The Phillies soured on him and traded him away that winter to the San Francisco Giants for catcher Valmy Thomas and pitcher Ruben Gomez. It would turn out to be one of the most inexplicable trades in Phillies history.
In 1947, the Phillies signed three pitchers who would have a major impact in the major leagues. Eighteen-year-old lefty phenom Curt Simmons was signed for a $65,000 bonus and rushed straight up to the major leagues. College grad, Robin Roberts, signed for $25,000, and after 11 starts in the minors, was promoted to the big leagues in mid-1948. Jack Sanford, the second-best pitcher on his Wellesley (Massachusetts) High School team, received no bonus and was assigned to the Class D Dover (Delaware) Phillies in the Eastern Shore League for $125 a month. Thus began Sanford's long odyssey through the minor leagues.
Lack of control kept Sanford in the minors for seven years. Lack of control of his hard sinking fastball and lack of control of his combustible temper. As he worked his way through the minors, Sanford routinely averaged 6+ walks per nine innings. Slowly, however, he learned to command his blazing fastball and by 1953 he was pitching for the Phillies top farm club, the Triple-A Baltimore Orioles. After a strong season at Baltimore (14-13, 3.69), Sanford was invited to the Phillies major league camp in the spring of 1954. Sanford thought he had pitched well enough to make the big club. When he was farmed out to Syracuse, he had an angry confrontation with the front office. Sanford's temper was, by then, well known by the Phillies brass. His temper affected his pitching ability. According to assistant farm director, Eddie Collins, Jr., if Sanford thought an umpire had missed a call, "He'd blow his top and it would unsettle him so much he would be unable to do what he wanted on the next pitch."*
After a poor season with Syracuse in 1954, Sanford was drafted into the army and was out of professional baseball for almost two years, although he spent most of his time in the service pitching for a camp team. After his discharge in 1956, Sanford, who had been working out with the Phillies by pitching batting practice, was activated and started his first major league game on September 16. He performed well. Against the Chicago Cubs, he pitched seven innings of four hit baseball, while walking eight, and was the winning pitcher, 4-1. Reliever Ron Negray earned a two-inning save. That performance put Sanford on the radar for 1957.
Sanford began the 1957 season in the starting rotation with Robin Roberts, Curt Simons, Harvey Haddix, and another rookie, Don Cardwell. He won his first four starts but was just warming up. On June 1, he shutout the Brooklyn Dodgers, 3-0, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out 11. On June 7, he shut out the Chicago Cubs, 1-0, on just three hits, striking out 13, tying a Phillies record for the time. He ran his scoreless inning streak to 20 innings in his next start on June 13, when he was finally scored upon by the St. Louis Cardinals, but he won that game, 8-1. That 8-1 score matched Sanford's won-loss record to that point, and the Phillies stood at 29-21 in second place, just 1/2 game behind the Milwaukee Braves.
By now, Sanford was the talk of the town and was attracting national attention. In a lengthy feature article by Edgar Williams in Baseball Digest, ** Roy Campanella, who struck out three times in that June 1 shutout by Sanford is quoted as saying, "You just can't throw a ball faster than he did. He threw it right by me. I couldn't get my bat around. What I want to know -- where have they been hiding a fellow like that?" After the Cubs shutout on June 7, manager Bob Scheffing moaned, "Now I know what it means to be Sanford-ized."*** Phillies pitching coach Whit Wyatt compared Sanford's fastball favorably to that of Bob Feller. Wyatt should know from fastballs. After facing Sanford, St. Louis Cardinals star Stan Musial told The Sporting News, "I don't believe I've seen a pitcher be able to ride that high fast one so effectively since Whitlow Wyatt at Brooklyn (fifteen years ago)."**** Former major league pitcher, Bullet Joe Bush, no stranger to the fastball himself said, "He throws aspirin tablets and he's just wild enough to keep everybody loose at the plate."
Sanford continued to pitch well, but the Phillies fell out of contention as their weak hitting began to take a toll on their generally effective pitching staff. The Phillies offense finished at or near the bottom of the league in most offensive categories and the team ended the season in fifth place with a .500 record, 77-77-2. Phillies teams would not approach .500 again for another five years. Sanford was named Rookie-of-the-Year for his performance. Astoundingly, he boasted a 2-to-1 strikeout to walk ratio, a figure he had never approached in the minor leagues.
In 1958, the Phillies fell to last place and Sanford pitched poorly. Sanford blamed himself. He told the San Francisco Examiner's Walter Judge, "I reported in Florida at 210 pounds. We had bad weather and I never did get down to my best playing weight. I guess I was a little more relaxed than I was the previous year. I thought I didn't have to push myself as much."**** The Phillies decided that Sanford was a one-year wonder and shipped him off to the San Francisco Giants for catcher Valmy Thomas and pitcher Ruben Gomez.
Gomez was the better-known player in the trade, but, perhaps surprisingly, Phillies general manager Roy Hamey said the trade was made primarily because the Phillies wanted a strong defensive catcher. He was very high on Thomas' defensive ability. The only question was if Thomas could hit. He couldn't. Thomas played a grand total of 64 games for the Phillies, failed to hit his weight, and was benched in favor of veteran Carl Sawatski. Thomas was unceremoniously sold to the Baltimore Orioles at the end of the season. Ruben Gomez was also a complete bust. He pitched to a 3-8 record with a horrendous 6.10 ERA. in 1959. After starting 1960 0-3, he was sold to the Cleveland Indians.
Meanwhile, in San Francisco, Giants manager Bill Rigney was salivating. "Sanford will be a 20-game winner for us," he said. Eventually, he was. Sanford won 89 games for the Giants over the next seven years and pitched them into the World Series with a spectacular 24-7 season in 1962. Sanford also pitched well in the World Series against the Yankees that year, but emerged with a record of 1-2, dropping game seven when Willie McCovey's smash line drive famously ended up in second baseman Bobby Richardson's glove.
Years after this ill-fated trade, Phillies owner Bob Carpenter called it, "The worst trade I ever made." While there is plenty of competition for that title, Carpenter is probably correct.
Jack Sanford had arm miseries late in his career and eventually was converted to a reliever, a role he did not enjoy. He retired with a record of 137-101 and worked for a time as a pitching coach for the Cleveland Indians, notably helping pitcher "Sudden" Sam McDowell improve the control of his blazing fastball. Sanford later worked as the manager of a golf club. He died in 2000, at age 70, from a brain tumor.
*Warren Corbett, "Jack Sanford," SABR BioProject. ** Edgar Williams, "The Phillies Hot Tot Trio," Baseball Digest, August 1957: 5 *** Scheffing is making a pun here. In those days, a men's shirt that had been "sanforized" had been pre-shrunk and guaranteed not to shrink further. **** Neal Russo, "Cardinals Spike Newk's Jinx, But Not Dodgers' Spell," The Sporting News, July 24, 1957: 6 ***** Walter Judge, "Sanford Pleased by Trade," San Francisco Examiner, December 4, 1958: 47.
When you read through team rosters on baseball history sites like Baseball-Reference.com, generally you will find a player whose position designation is UT. A UT is, of course, a utility player - a player who doesn't start a lot of games, but a player who can play many positions and is good enough to start for a week or two when one of the regulars gets injured. Utility players don't usually get much press, or even fan recognition, but they play a crucial role on any team. Currently, the Phillies have a fine utility player in Johan Camargo. Here is a decade-by-decade rundown of some of the Phillies' great utility players from years past.
Jimmy Walsh (1910 - 1913)
Nicknamed "Runt", the 5' 9", 174-pound Walsh was a player who helped define what a utility player should be. In 1911, he played every position on the field for the Phillies. While primarily an infielder, Runt was willing to play anywhere the manager asked. He volunteered to go behind the plate and caught four games in 1911. That same year he made his one appearance on the mound, pitching 2 2/3 innings and giving up eight hits and four earned runs in a 13-10 Phillies loss to the Boston Rustlers.
Walsh got one of his extended opportunities to play in 1911, when star left fielder Sherry Magee was suspended for attacking an umpire. Walsh filled in capably over 20 games hitting .271 and playing stout outfield defense.
Walsh was known for being an inveterate practical joker. He once pulled off a "snipe hunt" that was so successful that the poor young ballplayer who got left in the woods during the "hunt", James Conley, was known forevermore as "Snipe" Conley.
In 1914, Walsh accepted an offer from his friend and former Phillies' second baseman, Otto Knabe to jump to the Baltimore team in the newly formed Federal League. Knabe said of his recruit, "It may sound strange, but Runt Walsh is too good a ball player to be a regular. By using him where and when I need him most, I can get the most out of him." Such is the lot of the utility player.
Russ Wrightstone (1920-1928)
All observers agreed on one thing about Russ Wrightstone - he could hit. The problem for the right-handed throwing, lefty batting slugger, was finding a position on the field where he could play. Unlike most utility players, Wrightstone was not great at any defensive position. It was his bat that got him to the major leagues and his bat that kept him there for nine years. He was most often used as a third baseman, a position that was not considered an elite defensive position in those days, but also spent considerable time in the outfield and at first base. During his time with the Phillies, he played every position except pitcher and catcher.
Russ was a truly fine hitter. In five of his nine seasons, he hit over .300, topping out at .346 in 1925. In his one season as a regular, 1927, he hit .306 with 74 RBIs in 141 games at first base. The finest offensive game of his career came on July 11, 1926, when Wrightstone went 4-for-6 with two doubles, a triple, a home run and six RBIs in a game the Phillies won 13-11 over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Still, fielding issues kept him from being a full-time player. He once dropped an easy fly ball in left field with two outs in the ninth inning, the bases loaded and the Phillies clinging to a 6-5 lead over the Chicago Cubs. The muff cost the team the ball game. Afterwards, Wrightstone complained, "The ball was too damn high." You can read my full SABR biography of Russ Wrightstone here.
Barney Friberg (1925-1932)
Friberg (also known as Bernie) was primarily a third baseman when the Phillies picked him up on waivers from the Chicago Cubs in July 1925. He soon became a jack-of-all-trades, filling in all over the diamond. His one appearance on the mound occurred on August 25 that year, after the Phillies had fallen behind the St. Louis Cardinals 12-5. Barney pitched four innings, giving up just two runs on four hits and saving the Phillies bullpen in the process.
After poor offensive seasons in 1927 and 28, Barney almost became a full-time pitcher, but an injury to Phillies shortstop Tommy Thevenow, who broke both jaws and shattered his cheekbones in an automobile accident, gave Barney a chance to get regular playing time at shortstop. He responded by hitting .301 and playing decent shortstop. On Monday, May 13, Barney went 4-for-5 with a home run and a walk off two-run double in the bottom of the ninth as the Phillies beat the Cardinals, 10-9. At the end of the season, Phillies manager Burt Shotton declared Barney, "the most valuable player on our team." Friberg even got some votes for National League MVP.
In 1930, Friberg hit .341, while appearing in 105 games at various positions. He was with the Phillies until 1933, when he finished out his major league career with 17 games for the Boston Red Sox. In nearly 800 games in a Phillies uniform, Friberg hit a solid .274. You can read my post about Barney Friberg here.
Putsy Caballero (1944-45, 1947-52)
Whiz Kid Putsy Caballero makes this list if for no other reason than having one of the great names in baseball history. Ralph Joseph Caballero was born in New Orleans, Louisiana where he got his nickname at a young age, because he said, "People just called me Putsy, there was no special reason for it." A fine high school athlete in both basketball and baseball, Putsy was given a scholarship to Louisiana State University, but chose instead to sign with the Phillies. At 16 in 1944, Putsy had the advantage of being too young for the military draft. The Phillies, like all teams, desperate for players during the war years, brought Putsy right up to the major league team at the end of the season. Putsy was the youngest player in major league history to play third base and the youngest position player to appear in the post-World War 1 era.
Caballero spent most of 1945 and all of 1946 in the Phillies farm system, where he roomed with future Hall of Famer and Phillies broadcaster, Richie Ashburn. The two became friends and remained roommates when both were promoted to the Phillies in 1948. Putsy's exploits became fodder for broadcaster Ashburn after Richie had retired. One famous story that Richie told was how one Italian Philadelphia restauranteur who, assuming Caballero was Italian, would not let Putsy pay for a meal. Caballero, who was of French, Irish, and Spanish descent, kept quiet about his ancestry so he and his teammates could get a free dinner.
During his time with the Phillies, Putsy never played much. He was often used as a pinch runner or defensive substitute. His best season was probably 1948, when he appeared in 113 games and hit .245, mostly as a third baseman. Putsy did hang around long enough to be on the pennant winning 1950 team, however. He appeared in three World Series games against the New York Yankees, two as a pinch runner and one as an unsuccessful pinch hitter.
Cookie Rojas (1963-1969)
In November 1962, the Phillies traded problem child pitcher and charter member of the Dalton Gang, Jim Owens, to the Cincinnati Reds for unheralded utility infielder, Cookie Rojas. While it appeared to be a minor deal at the time (Mauch said, "Sometimes you add by subtracting."), Rojas went on to become, arguably, the best utility player in Phillies history and a fan favorite. It may be unfair to even call Rojas a utility man since he was in the starting lineup so often, but his versatility and willingness to play anywhere he was asked to play, endeared him to manager Mauch and earned him the playing time.
After an undistinguished 1963 season, Rojas established himself as a Phillies hero in the fateful 1964 season. In 1964, Rojas played every position on the field except catcher and pitcher. He spent most of his time in the outfield, being used as a right-handed hitting alternative to Tony Gonzalez or Wes Covington. On May 29 at Connie Mack Stadium, Rojas endeared himself to the Phillies fans forever. The young Phillies found themselves, surprisingly, in the pennant hunt, just one game behind the San Francisco Giants. On this day, Jim Bunning and the bullpen managed to blow a five-run lead to the Houston Astros in the eighth inning. Rojas, who already had three hits on the day, tripled to center field over the head of Rusty Staub, to drive home Gus Triandos with the go ahead run. Ed Roebuck shut down the Astros in the ninth and the Phillies had the victory.
Rojas had his best season in 1965 while most of the Phillies slumped after the 1964 tragedy. He hit .303 in 142 games and made the All-Star team. In 1967, Rojas made his only pitching appearance, when he pitched one shutout inning against the Giants in a 12-3 Phillies loss. Traded from the Phillies in the infamous Curt Flood-Dick Allen deal, Rojas had a poor season with the St. Louis Cardinals, before a trade that made him the regular second baseman for the Kansas City Royals and a perennial All-Star. Here is my full article about Rojas.
Terry Harmon (1967-1977)
In the 1960s and 70s the Phillies drafted a number of players out of Ohio University, including the highly touted Mike Schmidt (2nd round 1971) and Larry Hisle (second round 1965). Much less touted, but a player who ended up with a 10-year career with the Phillies was utility man, Terry Harmon (5th round 1965). Harmon was the quintessential bench player for the Phillies, as they continually improved in the 1970s. He never played in more than 87 games (in his rookie year of 1969) and never got more than 221 at bats (in his best year 1972). Harmon was, however, a very steady presence as a late inning defensive replacement at either shortstop or second base, as a pinch runner, and as a fill-in starter when a regular got hurt. In 1972, Harmon platooned at second base with regular Denny Doyle and responded with a fine .284 batting average. Harmon had very little power, hitting just four home runs in his ten years with the Phillies.
Terry's finest game may have been on May 7, 1972 at Veteran's Stadium, when he went 4-for-4 and scored three runs as the Phillies beat the San Francisco Giants, 8-3 behind Steve Carlton. After years toiling with poor Phillies teams, Harmon finally made his one and only appearance in a playoff game in 1976, when he appeared as a pinch runner for catcher Bob Boone during Game 3 of the League Championship Series against the Cincinnati Reds. Harmon scored the go ahead run on a Dave Cash sacrifice fly, but the Phillies lost the game and the series, 6-5, 3-0.
Greg Gross (1979-1988)
Pinch hitter par excellence Greg Gross is the only lefty thrower in this group of super subs. While most utility players are infielders, who may play a little outfield, Gross was an outfielder who played a little first base. Gross' claim to fame was more his hitting than his defense, but he filled in capably in all three outfield positions and at first. A slap hitter without a lot of power, Gross hit just one home run in his 1819 plate appearances with the Phillies. That home run was a game winning two-run shot off Lance McCullers of the San Diego Padres at Jack Murphy Field on May 27, 1987.
One of Gross' best games for the Phillies came as the team drove to the pennant on August 19, 1983. He went 2-for-4 with a triple, single, sacrifice fly, and three runs batted in, while playing both right and left field as the Phillies beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-1. Gross may be best remembered for the bunt single he laid down in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series in 1980 as the Phillies came from behind in the eighth inning against Nolan Ryan to tie the score and eventually win the game in 10 innings, in what may be the greatest single Phillies game ever played.
In the tradition of many utility players, Gross even took the mound for the Phillies in a blowout game in 1986. He struck out two (Casey Candaele and Herm Winningham), walked one, and gave up one hit in 2/3 of an inning work. After his playing career, Gross was the hitting coach for the Phillies for several years.
Mariano Duncan (1992-1995)
During his four years with the Phillies Mariano Duncan played every infield position, and perhaps surprisingly, 65 games in left field. Duncan was a key member of the "rowdy team of misfits" that won the National League pennant in 1993. That year Duncan platooned with Mickey Morandini at second base and filled in at shortstop for the struggling Juan Bell, until Kevin Stocker was brought up from the minor leagues.
Duncan's finest moment as a Phillie came that year. On May 9 at Veterans Stadium against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Phillies trailed by 5-2. In the bottom of the eighth inning after the first two batters made outs, Darren Daulton singled and Wes Chamberlain doubled. Cardinals manager Joe Torre called on reliever Lee Smith to replace starter Bob Tewksbury. Smith walked Milt Thompson to load the bases and bring up Duncan. Mariano blasted Smith's first pitch to the deep left center field seats for a game winning grand slam home run. The Phillies rode the momentum from that victory all the way to the pennant.
Duncan showed that he fit right in with '93 Phillies feistiness, when he charged the Cubs pitcher Ron Castillo on the mound after he was low bridged by a pitch. The benches cleared and after the dust had settled, Duncan was ejected.
Here is Mariano’s grand slam.
Kevin Jordan (1995-2001)
KJ, as he was known to teammates, played his entire seven-year major league career with the Phillies after coming over to the team with pitcher Bobby Munoz in a trade with the Yankees for Terry Mulholland. Jordan was an oft-used pinch hitter with the Phillies and played second, third, and first base. Jordan's finest season with the Phillies was 1999 when he hit .285 in 112 games, filling in capably at third base after Scott Rolen was injured.
On April 28, 1998, KJ had a shining moment in a wild game at Cinergy Field in Cincinnati. With the score tied 8-8 in the 10th inning, Jordan came to the plate with two men on and two men out. He blasted a Stan Belinda pitch out of the park to give the Phillies an 11-8 lead. Reliever Darrin Winston, the last pitcher in the bullpen, preserved the lead for the only save of his major league career. After the game Jordan told reporters, "That was one of those games where you feel every emotion. We were happy, we were sad, we were angry. The game had everything you could possibly see."
The only grand slam of Jordan's career also came as a pinch hitter. The blast came on April 20, 2001at Veteran's Stadium, against the Atlanta Braves. Jordan took Oliver Perez deep with the bases jammed in the seventh inning as the Phillies won, 8-3. That was Jordan's final year in the major leagues. After two seasons in the minor leagues, Jordan finished out his career playing three seasons across the Delaware River with the independent Camden River Sharks.
Tomas Perez (2000-2005)
In his six seasons as a Phillie, Tomas Perez established himself as a fan favorite. He was a man who seemed content in his role as a utility player, a joyous personality, and the man who put himself in charge of post-game victory celebrations. Perez famously led his teammates after a victory by anointing the game's hero with a cream pie to the face, often while the "star of the game" was doing a post-game interview. Tomas was easy to like. He was also a pretty good ballplayer. Primarily a shortstop/second baseman, Perez played all the positions in the infield, made a few appearances in the outfield and one appearance on the mound, pitching 1/3 of an inning against Houston in a 17-3 Astros blowout on May 13, 2002. Perez faced two batters, one of whom reached on an error by Jason Michaels.
Perez reached his offensive peak with the Phillies when he hit .304 in 62 games during the 2003 season. Other seasons he honed closer to being the career .240 hitter he was. On July 24, 2001, Tomas blasted two solo home runs at the Vet as the Phillies crushed the Montreal Expos, 10-2. They were Perez' first two home runs of the year and the only time in his career he hit 2 home runs in a game. Remarkably, Perez hit one home run batting left-handed against Tony Armas and the other home run batting right-handed against lefty Joey Eischen. This matched the feat of Steve Jeltz (1989), later equaled by Jimmy Rollins (2006) as the only Phillies players to hit home runs from both sides of the plate in the same game. All three players were playing shortstop at the time they achieved this feat.
Even in pain, Perez could bring a smile to a teammates' face. On August 24, 2001, at the Vet, in the eighth inning, with the Phillies leading the Arizona Diamondbacks, 6-5, Perez took a mighty hack at a Byung-Hyun Kim slider. The ball broke wickedly and hit Perez in what announcer Harry Kalas called a "sensitive place." While Perez doubled over in pain and disbelief, the camera shot to Doug Glanville in the dugout. Doug could not contain a broad smile. Here's video of the incident.
So, there are ten of the top utility players in Phillies' history. I am sure I have left out some favorites. Who would you add?
