The Phillies 25 Greatest Sluggers

25 years ago Mike Schmidt hit his 500th career homerun at Three Rivers stadium in Pittsburgh and so what better time is there than now to celebrate the 25 greatest sluggers in Phillies history. Starting at #25 we'll reveal 5 every Monday until we reach #1. First before we start let's briefly review what makes a great slugger. There are the obvious factors of course, for example batting average doesn't matter here, but that doesn't mean it won't be mentioned. Of course homers and RBIs are the most important stats, but is it the quantity or quality of each that matters most? In part both need to be considered especially when dealing with players from different eras. In that guise it would have been unfair to use career homer and RBI numbers as the sole criteria for players making the list. Likewise single season numbers by themselves would not be a fair criteria for all without taking a player's era into consideration. So a player from the deadball era could be considered a slugger with as little as a 10 homer season whereas someone playing after the deadball era would not be given as much herald. Finally, what about individual awards and honors? Do they matter here? Not really. After all, the MVP award in each league is given to the best all round player who is most valuable to his team, not the best slugger. Sure there is the silver slugger award, but you only have to be the leading slugger at your position to win that, which in and of itself does not necessarily mean anything. For example, Jimmy Rollins won a silver slugger award in 2007 and he's not a slugger. In the end after considering all of the above I was left with the following criteria:

      1. Phillies career Homer and RBI numbers - while not always fair it's still a good starting point

      2. Best single season numbers - not necessarily fair either but still another good starting point

      3. Longevity - the more sterling seasons the better

      4. Years with the Phillies - A player had to have been with the Phils at least 2 years to be considered

      5.  Memorable feats - walkoffs, milestones, rare occurences, firsts etc; 

All that said and without further adieu I give you the Phillies 25 greatest sluggers: No.s 25-21.

 

#25 Pete Incaviglia

  Career With Phillies:

  53 homeruns (Phils rank 51) 163 RBIs (Phils rank  131)

    

  Best Season:

  1993 - 274 BA. 24 homeruns 89 RBIs  

   

  Memorable Feats of Strength:

   - Multiple homeruns into the upper deck at the vet

   - Game tying solo shot in game 1 of 1993 NLCS

 

In 11 years in the majors Peter Joseph "Inky" Incaviglia was the definition of a pure slugger. He couldn't and didn't try to hit for average, was a liability in the field and on the base paths, and finished with far more career strikeouts (1277) then hits (1043). Yet, few players were more popular than Incaviglia was in his time with the Phillies. In fact, he may have been the most beloved member of the most beloved team in franchise history, the 1993 Macho Row Phillies. Such was the fate of the Italian guy playing in a then heavily Italian section of the city and the Phils knew it too. After leaving the team following the strike shortened 1994 season, he was brought back in 1996 to boost the flagging ticket sales of a hopeless last place team and I am not ashamed to admit I went out to a game with my father just to see him play one more time. He didn't disappoint bashing a homerun into the upper deck. He was the greatest power hitter in the history of college baseball and still holds the single season homer and RBI records. That led the Expos to select him 8th overall in the 1985 MLB draft. They then sent him to the Rangers who brought him straight to the majors in 1986 where he hit 30 homers and won rookie of  the year. He had 4 more 20 homer years with the Rangers, but was never quite that good again and by the time the Phils got him in 1993 he was but a novelty act, the fat guy who comes off the bench just to hit homeruns. Save for one glorious season he really never amounted to more than that for the Phils. So how did he make this list anyway? Simple. The leading homerun hitter on the 1993 Phils and my all-time favorite player had to make the list somewhere.

#24 Willie Jones

Career With Phillies:

180 homeruns (12) 753 RBI (12)

Best Season:

1950 - .267 BA. 25 homeruns 88 RBIs

Memorable Feats of Strength:

- ripped RBI single off Don Newcombe in the 6th inning of the final game of the 1950 season, giving the Phils their only run in regulation before clinching the pennant in 10.

- 06/19/51 vs. Pirates. registered a home run and an inside the park home run in the same game, both off Murrey Dickson.

- 05/24/56 vs. Dodgers. took hall of famer Don Drysdale deep in back to back at bats.

Where does one begin with the story of Willie Edward Jones? There always two sides to it. There's the power hitter not too many remember and then there's the image of the boneheaded fielder that just won't go away even though the poor guy died over 25 years ago. Remembering what this list is about, let's start with the power hitter. Unlike most power hitters he was actually a contact hitter and did not strikeout much which served him well early in his career. From 1949, his first full season, to 1953 he enjoyed 5 straight seasons with at least 18 homeruns and 70 RBIs. By today's standards that may not sound like much, but in his day guys who could hit 20 homeruns in a season were few and far between. So to be right there for all those years was quite an impressive feat at the time. His power numbers tailed off a bit in 1954 with just 12 homeruns and 56 RBIs, before he rebounded with back to back seasons of 16+ homeruns and 70+ RBIs in 1955 and 1956. Injuries derailed his career after that, but perhaps his most impressive performance as a Phillie came in 1958, his last full season with the team, when he played through injuries to produce another 14 homeruns and 60 RBIs. His best seasons were by far 1950 and 1951, with 25 homeruns and 88 RBIs and 22 homeruns and 81 RBIs respectively. Although he was never quite that good again, the remarkable consistency with which he played throughout his career when healthy was more than enough to get him on the list. So why he is only #24? Well that's where the other side of the story comes in. As a fielder he made so many stupid plays, racking up 52 errors in his first 2 seasons alone, that he earned the still infamous nickname 'Puddin Head'. Some things you never live down. 

#23 Scott Rolen

Career With Phillies:

150 homeruns (14) 559 RBI (28)

Best Season: 

1998 - .290 BA 31 homeruns 110 RBI

Memorable Feats of Strength:

- Took Randy Johnson deep 8/17/98 and 04/04/2000 

-  Multiple homeruns off Maddux, Glavine and Smoltz 

Oh what might have been. Just try to imagine a Phillies infield consisting of Scott Rolen, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard. How much sooner would the Phillies have gotten back to the playoffs and how many more rings would they have now were it Rolen patrolling the hot corner all these years, instead of Wes Helms, Pedro Feliz, and Placido Polanco? There would be no reason to wonder if Scott Bruce Rolen, had only struck around 3 more measly years. Instead he forced his way out in 2002 and is now universally hated by the same fans that once cheered him. It is truly a shame it had to end that way because it started out so well. After a decade and a half of god awful drafting - Brad Brink anyone - the Phillies got lucky with Rolen, finding him in the 2nd round of the 1993 draft. No one knew who he was then, but by the time he was ready to be called up to the majors in September of 1996 scouts had him pegged as the next Mike Schmidt, a power hitting 3rd baseman who could play flawless defense. Right from the beginning he really was the full package. In his rookie year, he blasted his way to 21 homeruns and 92 RBIs en route to rookie of the year honors. He was even better in 1998 with 31 homeruns and 110 RBIs and his first of 4 gold gloves as a Phillie. He struggled with injuries the next 2 seasons, but still managed 25+ homeruns and 70+ RBIs both years. Finally in 2001 after 4 losing seasons, the Phils built a winner around Rolen, and he delivered with 25 homeruns and 107 RBIs, collecting 3 homeruns and 21 RBIs in September and October with an NL East pennant on the line. In the end it wasn't enough as the Phils finished in 2nd place, 2 games behind the Braves. The losing returned the following season and Rolen could take it no more, forcing a trade to the contending Cardinals in late July. I hope he's happy now.

#22 Bobby Abreu

   Career With Phillies:

   195 homeruns(9) 814 RBIs(9)

   Best Season:

   2001 - .289 BA 31 homeruns 110 RBI

   Memorable Feats of Strength:

   - 2005 MLB all-star game home run derby champion

   - 5/24/2000 to 5/25/2000 vs. Astros homers in 3

   straight at bats over 2 days.

   - Like Scott Rolen, hit his last career home run as a Phillie  

  off Tom Glavine.

   - 8/27/2000 vs. Padres hit walkoff inside the park home run 

   off Aaron Fultz in the 10th inning of a tie game at the Vet.

Bob Kelly "Bobby" Abreu will always be a player Phillies fans remember more for what he didn't do, get the team to the playoffs, rather than what he did do, rewrite the Phillie's record books in almost every offensive

category. A true 5 tool player in his prime, Abreu coud hit for power and average, steal bases, and make all the plays in the outfield, but most Phillies' fans will tell you he seldom put all those tools to good use. They'll also tell you he wasn't a clutch performer and his inability to come up big late in the season cost the Phillies playoff berths again and again from 2003-2006. The fact that the Phillies finally breaking through to the postseason in 2007 almost literally coincided with him being traded away didn't help matters for him either. The sad truth is that all the criticisms were far from reality. He didn't go all out every night because he was so gifted athletically that he really didn't have to and he wasn't the only guy who failed in the big games in those early years. If there is one thing we can all agree on it is that he didn't hit for nearly as much power in a Phillies uniform as he could have because he simply didn't try to, preferring instead to hit ball the other way to rack up hits and keep up his average. When he did pull the ball though it usually went a long way. From 1999 to 2005 he enjoyed 7 straight seasons with at least 20 homeruns and in 4 of those 7 seasons he eclipsed 100 RBIs. He only reached the 30 homer plateau twice, in 2001 and 2005, but both years he recorded 30 steals becoming the Phillies only two time member of the 30-30 club. Put all that together and you'll find a player who is top 10 in Phillies history in all 3 major power categories, RBIs(9th), homeruns(9th), and Slugging Percentage(5th). So it was a no brainer to put him on this list, but unfortunately being the king of stats in the regular season only gets you so far here.

#21 Jayson Werth

Career With Phillies:

95 homeruns(25) 300 RBI(59)

Best Season:

2009 - .268 BA 36 homeruns 99 RBI

Memorable Feats of Strength:

- Phillies' record 11 career postseason homeruns

- 7 home runs in the 2009 postseason

- 5/16/2008 vs. Toronto homers in 3 consecutive at bats in 1 game and knocks in Phillies' record tying 8 RBIs

- Blasted the winning home run in the top of the 9th of game 5 of the 2010 NLCS

It is mindblowing to consider just how much Jayson Richard Gowan Werth did in a such a short time in a Phillies uniform. A first round pick by the Orioles in the 1997 draft at just 18 years old, he was a can't miss prospect by the time he ascended to the majors with the Blue Jays in 2000. Unfortunately things didn't work out with Toronto or the Dodgers with whom he spent 2 injury plagued seasons. After having his entire 2006 campaign wiped out by injuries, the Phils decided to give him one more chance and it was worth it. In just 94 games in a backup role he batted .298 with 8 homeruns and  49 RBI and was a key cog on the team that chased down the Mets from 7 games back in September. He began 2008 again as a backup, but ironically it would be injuries, first to Shane Victorino then to Geoff Jenkins, that would finally allow Werth the opportunity to play full time. He took full advantage amassing 24 homeruns and 67 RBIs to help the Phils to a 2nd straight NL East title. He then bashed 2 homers in the postseason, including 1 in game 5 of the world series as the Phillies won their first world title in 25 years. In the Phillies opening day lineup for the first time, he shifted into another gear in 2009 with 36 homeruns and 99 RBIs as the Phils rolled to their 3rd straight division title. From there he racked up 7 homeruns in the postseason while the Phils romped to their 2nd straight NL title. His numbers dipped a bit in 2010 with 27 homeruns and 85 RBIs, but that was enough to help the Phillies to a 4th straight NL East title. A 3rd straight trip to the NLCS ensued, but this time despite Werth's best efforts, with 2 homeruns including the game winner in game 5, the Phils fell short. He became a free agent after that and the Phillies, needing to cut payroll to reacquire Cliff Lee, were unable to convince him to stay. Instead he took the money and ran to Washington. Still, that's 4 straight NL East titles, 3 straight trips to the NLCS, 2 NL titles, and a world title in 4 years, all with Werth in the middle of everything. To date the Phils have yet to truly replace him.

Check back in next week for No.s 20-16.