Our coverage of each franchise’s all-time greatest players began with the Chicago White Sox. This week, we continue with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Franchise Overview
The Phillies were founded in 1883. They are tied with the Giants as the sixth oldest franchise in big league history. They are one of the eight National League franchises that has existed longer than any American League team.
Their two World Series championships (1980, 2008) are the lowest total of any of the teams that predate the American League.
With a total franchise winning percentage of just 0.472, the Phillies rank fourth worst all-time.
When viewed through the lens of total playoff appearances, the Phillies fare only slightly better. They have appeared in the postseason in 10.3% of their total seasons, the seventh lowest mark in history.
It took the Phillies 98 seasons to win their first world championship. They only managed to win the National League two other times during that stretch (1915 and 1950).
To make matters worse, their crosstown rivals, the Athletics, won five World Series and eight total AL pennants during their years in Philadelphia from 1901-1954.
In the 38 years since they won their first championship, things have been considerably better in Philadelphia. Since 1980, the Phillies have made the playoffs nine times, winning five NL pennants, and the 2008 World Series.
Hitters
| Starting Lineup | Name | Position | B/T | bWAR/650 | OPS+ | Years Played |
| 1. | Bobby Abreu | RF | L/R | 5.3 | 139 | 1998-2006 |
| 2. | Ed Delahanty | LF (1B/2B) | R/R | 5.7 | 153 | 1888-89, 1891-1901 |
| 3. | Dick Allen | 1B (3B/LF) | R/R | 5.2 | 153 | 1963-69, 75-76 |
| 4. | Mike Schmidt | 3B | R/R | 7.0 | 147 | 1972-89 |
| 5. | Chase Utley | 2B | L/R | 6.3 | 122 | 2003-15 |
| 6. | Darren Daulton | C | L/R | 3.6 | 114 | 1983-97 |
| 7. | Richie Ashburn | CF | L/R | 4.7 | 111 | 1948-59 |
| 8. | Jimmy Rollins | SS | S/R | 3.2 | 97 | 2000-14 |
| 9. | Pitcher | P | ||||
| Bench | ||||||
| OF | Sherry Magee | LF/1B/CF | R/R | 5.2 | 142 | 1904-14 |
| OF | Sam Thompson | RF | L/L | 4.2 | 144 | 1889-98 |
| OF | Chuck Klein | RF/LF | L/R | 4.0 | 139 | 1928-33, 36-38, 39-44 |
| 1B | Ryan Howard | 1B | L/L | 1.2 | 125 | 2004-16 |
| IN | Scott Rolen | 3B | R/R | 5.4 | 126 | 1996-2002 |
| C | Mike Lieberthal | C | R/R | 2.3 | 102 | 1994-2006 |
Infield
Third Baseman Mike Schmidt is undoubtedly the greatest player in franchise history. Schmidt played his entire 18-year career in Philadelphia. With three MVPs, 12 All Star selections, 10 Gold Gloves, and six Silver Sluggers, Schmidt has a compelling case as the best third baseman in baseball history.
While Schmidt may be the only clear cut top tier all-time player, the rest of the Phillies position players are solid all around. The overall offensive production for the members of the Phillies All-Time Team has them pushing for the top-five among all franchises.
The Phillies won five straight NL East championships from 2007-2011. Not surprisingly, five members of those teams make the All-Time Phillies team. The Phillies pitching staff was dominant during that stretch, but nobody was more important to the team’s success than it’s double-play combination. The duo of Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins treated Phillies fans to a golden age of middle infield play for the better part of 12 seasons.
Even fans who follow the modern game closely might be surprised to find that second baseman Chase Utley crafted a solid Hall of Fame case during his 13 years in Philadelphia. He was a six-time All Star and won four Silver Sluggers.
Playing across the keystone from Utley, shortstop Jimmy Rollins was likewise one of the best all-around players of his day. The switch-hitting Rollins was a three-time All Star who won four Gold Gloves and a Silver Slugger for the Phillies. He was the National League MVP in 2007 as the Phillies won their first divisional championship in 14 years.
First baseman Dick Allen was among the most feared sluggers in baseball for the more than a decade. He spent the first seven years of his career in Philadelphia before returning for two more late in his career. Allen was the NL Rookie of the Year in 1964 when he led the league in runs, triples, and total bases. He also led the NL in OPS+ back-to-back seasons in 1966-1967. He was a four-time All Star for the Phillies. He went on to make three more All Star teams with the White Sox where he also won the 1972 AL MVP.
Outfield
Hall of Famer Ed Delahanty is the starter in left field. Although he played before the advent of MVP and All Star voting, he led the league in offensive bWAR three times as a member of the Phillies, and once more for the Washington Senators.
Fellow Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn gets the nod in center field. Ashburn played 12 seasons for the Phillies. An on-base machine who played the overwhelming majority of his career up the middle, Ashburn was a tremendously valuable player. He won batting titles for the Phillies in 1955 and 1958. He also paced the NL in OBP in those seasons as well as 1954. Ashburn made four All Star teams for Philadelphia.
Right fielder Bobby Abreu was among the most talented, and versatile offensive players of his generation. In nine seasons with the Phillies, Abreu made two All Star teams. He also won one Gold Glove, and a Silver Slugger. Abreu’s best seasons were right at the beginning of the sabermetric revolution, and at the end of the steroid era. His unique blend of power, speed, and on-base skills was largely undervalued during his career.
Darren Daulton starts at catcher. In 14 seasons with the Phillies, Daulton was a three-time All Star and won a Silver Slugger. In 1992, he was third among NL position players in bWAR, and led the league with 109 RBI. Amazingly, he is one of only two players (the only hitter) from the 1993 NL Championship team to make the Phillies All-Time team.
Bench
The Phillies have had a remarkable history of excellent outfielders. To reflect that distribution of talent, three outfielders were added to their bench.
Sherry Magee has a strong case to overtake Abreu as the starter in right field. He was an excellent offensive player over 11 years in Philadelphia. He led the NL in average, OBP, slugging, runs, and RBI in a fantastic 1910 season.
Joining Magee as extra outfielders are Hall of Famers Chuck Klein and Sam Thompson.
Klein had a stretch of three straight seasons finishing either first or second in the MVP voting from 1931-1933. He won the award in 1932. A two-time All Star, Klein was among the most feared sluggers in the NL throughout the early part of his career. He led the league in homers four times from 1929-1933.
Thompson played 10 years in Philadelphia before the turn of the century. He led the league twice each in hits, doubles, homers, RBI, and slugging during his years with the Phillies.
First baseman Ryan Howard spent his entire 13-year big league career with the Phillies. Howard burst onto the scene winning the Rookie of the Year in 2005. He led the NL in homers twice, and RBI three times. He was a three time All Star and won one Silver Slugger. In 2006 he hit 58 homers and drove in 149 runs to win the NL MVP.
Howard is difficult player to evaluate in a historical context because his career is a tale of two different players. From 2004-2011, Howard produced 138 OPS+, and was regarded as one of the most dangerous hitters in the game.
On the flip side, from 2012-2016 he played an additional 545 games in which he was a below-average hitter, and miserable defender. In total, the decline phase of his career cost him more than seven bWAR off his career total. In light of the terror he was at the start of his career, and the central role he played during arguably the best stretch in franchise history, I have opted to remember Howard at his best, rather than his worst.
As good as Philadelphia’s lineage of excellent outfielders has been, their legacy in the infield has been just as shallow. Third baseman Scott Rolen is the lone infielder on the Phillies bench. Rolen won the NL Rookie of the Year in 1997. He won four Gold Gloves and one Silver Slugger. He was selected as an All Star in 2002, just weeks before the Phillies would trade him to St. Louis. He remained a similarly excellent player for six seasons with the Cardinals.
Catcher Mike Lieberthal played 13 seasons for the Phillies. He was a two-time All Star and won one Gold Glove. He finished his career as a roughly average hitter at a premium defensive position.
Pitchers
| Starting Rotation | Name | B/T | ERA+ | Years Played |
| 1. | Steve Carlton | L/L | 120 | 1972-86 |
| 2. | Robin Roberts | S/R | 114 | 1948-61 |
| 3. | Grover Cleveland Alexander | R/R | 140 | 1911-17, 30 |
| 4. | Cole Hamels | L/L | 124 | 2006-15 |
| 5. | Chris Short | R/L | 105 | 1959-72 |
| Bullpen | ||||
| LR | Turk Farrell | R/R | 114 | 1956-61, 67-69 |
| RP | Ricky Bottalico | L/R | 115 | 1994-98, 2001-02 |
| RP | Mitch Williams | L/L | 119 | 1991-93 |
| RP | Tug McGraw | R/L | 120 | 1975-1984 |
| SU | Ryan Madson | L/R | 122 | 2003-11 |
| CL | Ron Reed | R/R | 122 | 1976-83 |
As good as the Phillies position players have been throughout their history, the pitching staff has been decidedly mediocre for an organization with such a lengthy history.
The Phillies all-time rotation ranks 15th by average ERA+. They boast a trio of Hall of Famers at the front of the group.
The most iconic pitcher in Phillies history is Steve Carlton. “Lefty” earned 241 of his 329 career wins over the course of 15 seasons in Philadelphia. He won an incredible four Cy Young Awards during his Phillies career. He is fifth in big league history with 4.29 career Cy Young shares. He ranks fourth all-time in strikeouts. Carlton was a seven-time All Star for the Phillies, and was chosen 10 times overall. He was the ace of the 1980 World Series champions, winning two games in the series. Steve Carlton is probably among the five greatest left-handed pitchers in history.
Right-hander Robin Roberts pitched 14 seasons of his Hall of Fame career for the Phillies. Remembered for his exceptional control, Roberts was one of the best pitchers of the 1950s. He was a seven-time All Star, and received MVP votes in each of those seven seasons. Roberts led the league in bWAR for pitchers six times in his career.
Grover Cleveland Alexander began his exceptional career with the Phillies in 1911. A dominant pitcher of his day, Alexander led the league in both wins and strikeouts in five of his first seven seasons. He pitched the Phillies to 90 wins, and the pennant, in 1915. After the 1917 season, the Phillies traded Alexander to the Cubs. After missing most of 1918 while fighting in Europe during World War I, Alexander reestablished himself with the Cubs. This second act was a critical piece of his eventual Hall of Fame selection.
Cole Hamels was a consistently reliable force for the Phillies from 2006-2015. The lefty was a three-time All Star. He finished eighth, or better, in the Cy Young voting four times. In 2008, he led the National League with a 1.08 WHIP as the clear cut ace of a World Championship rotation. In the postseason, the Phillies won all five of his starts including two in the World Series.
Left-hander Chris Short rounds out the rotation. In 14 seasons with the Phillies, he helped anchor the pitching staff of some respectable teams. He was a two-time All Star, and received down ballot MVP votes in two seasons as well. He ranked in the top-five among NL pitchers in bWAR three times.
Bullpen
Despite a solid starting rotation, the bullpen of the All-Time Phillies is arguably the weakest unit in this entire exercise. The top three players on the organization’s all-time saves leader board were all placed on the rosters of other franchises. As a result, the Phillies unit that survived is a bit picked over.
Ron Reed gets the call at closer. An average starting pitcher for the first 10 years of his career with the Braves, Reed was reborn as a reliever. After he was traded twice in one season, he landed in Philadelphia. Reed was often dominant out of the Philadelphia bullpen. In 1980, he was one of manager Dallas Green’s most trusted relievers on the organization’s first World Championship team.
Ryan Madson managed an identical ERA+ to Reed in nearly identical bodies of work over the course of their Phillies careers. Like Reed, Madson was also one of the most trusted relievers on a Phillies World Series team (2008). Despite being frequently overshadowed by Brad Lidge, Madson was also a force over nine seasons with Philadelphia. He is third all-time in pitching appearances for the Phillies.
Left-hander Tug McGraw was among the game’s most accomplished relievers when the Phillies acquired him from the Mets after the 1974 season. In ten seasons with Philadelphia, he was mostly excellent, averaging 120 ERA+. Like Reed, he was relied upon heavily during the 1980 World Series run including nailing down saves in two of the four Phillies wins in the series. McGraw made one All Star team in Philadelphia, received Cy Young votes once, and MVP votes twice. He is fourth all-time in pitching appearances for the Phillies.
Mitch Williams was one of the most recognizable relievers of his generation. Wild Thing established his late-inning chops with the Rangers and Cubs before joining the Phillies in 1991. He was sixth in the Cy Young voting in his first season with the club. He then helped pitch them to the World Series in 1993. Although he only pitched three seasons in Philadelphia, he ranks fourth all-time in saves for the Phillies.
Ricky Bottalico played seven seasons over two stints in Philadelphia. He broke into the league with a bang. Over his first three full seasons, Bottalico posted a 139 ERA+, saved 69 games, and made the All Star team in 1996. The remainder of his career consisted of alternating respectability with struggles, and six different team changes.
The final spot in the bullpen went to Turk Farrell. Farrell played nine seasons over two stints with the Phillies. He was an All Star for Philadelphia in 1958. Between his stints in Philadelphia, he was a three-time All Star for Houston.
