October 27, 2011
October 27, 2011
October 27, 2011
October 24, 2011
October 19, 2011
If you're joining us late, never to fear. Here are all the links to the most important things we've posted so far:
Infield Matchups for 1911 World Series. Outfield matchups for 1911 World Series. Pitching matchups for 1911 World Series. Mathewson outduels Bender to take Game 1 (some very cool pics that match up with the writing in this one). Baker's big hit leads A's to win in Game 2. Baker establishes himself as "Home Run" Baker with a huge 9th inning homer in Game 3. There's not only some good info on the Series but some incredible photos as well. If you're just looking for the Cliff Notes, here they are: The Giants came into the Series with a great base stealing team, while the A's came in with a "$100,000 Infield". The Giants also have a superstar pitcher in Christy Mathewson, and he was excellent in Game 1, leading the Giants to a win. In Game 2, A's pitcher Eddie Plank was unhittable, and Frank Baker had a big homer to give the A's a lead they wouldn't relinquish. In Game 3, the Giants, looked to have the game locked up when Baker hit a 9th inning homer to tie it, and the A's won in extra innings. After 3 games, the rain started pouring in Philly, and shows no sign of letting up. Not a problem, as there are plenty of cool things to talk about while we've got a few days off.October 11, 2011
Before he was an alleged criminal, stealing people's money*, buying stolen cars*, and showing off his genitalia to housecleaners*, Lenny Dykstra was a hero. And it was on October 10th, 1993, that he sealed his fate as a Philadelphia immortal. The Phillies and Braves were tied at two games apiece, and the winner of Game 5 would be one win away from the World Series. It was a premier pitching matchup, as Curt Schilling faced off against Steve Avery, a 23-year old lefty phenom coming off an 18-6 year with a 2.94 ERA.
Schilling was masterful, and after 8 innings he had a shutout, giving up only 4 hits and allowing no runs. The Phillies went into the bottom of the 9th with a 3-0 lead. Then it all began to unravel. A leadoff walk by Jeff Blauser was followed by an error by Kim Batiste (the Phils defensive replacement at 3rd also had a crucial error in Game 1), and there were runners on first and second. Schilling was pulled and in came Wild Thing. Singles by McGriff, Terry Pendleton, and Francisco Cabrera tied the game at 3, and Mitch Williams almost earned his goat tag two weeks earlier than destiny would have it. But in the top of the 10th, Lenny Dykstra came up with one out and nobody on. The count went to 3-2, and Dykstra knew exactly what pitch was coming from reliever Mark Wohlers. The fastball came down the middle, and Dykstra took it for a ride over the right field wall.
Dykstra is the guy who always wants to do something and is never afraid to step up and shoulder the pressure.
"I'm a situation player," Dykstra said. "I like those big situations. There are players who like to be on the spot and have to make the play, and there are players who fear those situations. I'll just tell you, there is no fear here.
"I want to be like Keith Hernandez and Gary Carter were for that Mets team I played on back in '86. I want to be the leader. I want to be the guy that everybody looks to in the tough situations. I want to be the one who gets it done when it has to be done. As far as I'm concerned, it's never too late."
"I thought we wanted to get something done against them right there in that inning," Dykstra said. "We didn't want to mess with them too long."
The series would come back to Philly, where the Phils would knock off the Greg Maddux and the Braves in Game 6, with Dykstra scoring twice.
*allegedly
October 10, 2011
October 07, 2011
June 09, 2011
Beer Week rolls on. We came across this somewhat ridiculous beer can featuring none other than Phillies great, Richie Ashburn. As you can see, one side features a drawing of the center fielder, while the other quotes Ashburn on his self-described greatest moment: "The Throw." Released in 1980 by the Valley Forge Brewing Company, the Ashburn can was one of four that featured baseball Hall of Famers. The others were Whitey Ford, Duke Snider and Negro League star Monte Irvin.
June 09, 2011
June 08, 2011
If we don't win this one, I don't think I'd want to be on that plane ride home. Matter of fact, if we don't win, I'll walk back to Pittsburgh.Whoops. It didn't take long for the Phillies to get on the board. After a Randy Ready leadoff double in the bottom of the first, Von Hayes blasted a home run. Then, in the bottom of the third, Hayes cut the lead to 10-4 with another 2 run home run. In the next inning, a Steve Jeltz (yes, Steve Jeltz,) 2 run bomb made it 10-6. The Pirates added a run in the 5th, but Jeltz homered again in a 4-run 6th (Jeltz hit two of his five career Home Runs in this game!). In the bottom of the 8th, with the Pirates leading 11-10, John Kruk scored the tying run on a wild pitch. Darren Daulton followed that up with a go-ahead 2 run single and Curt Ford added two more runs with an RBI triple. The Pirates went scoreless in the top of the 9th and the Phillies won by a final score of 15-11. The next day, Three Rivers Stadium was flooded with calls asking whether Rooker followed through on his promise. After realizing people weren't going to let him live it down, Rooker agreed to do it. After the '89 season, Rooker strolled the 308 miles from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh over the course of 13 days, raising $81,000 for charity in the process. Just 10 days after the June 8th Phillies game, the Pirates were up 10-0 in St. Louis. Larry Fratare, the Pirates other announcer, laughingly asked Rooker "And if we lose this game?" Rooker's reply: "Yes, if we lose this game...our road record will be 11-23." At least he learned his lesson. Sidenote: Steve Jeltz's first home run in the 4th inning was hit lefthanded off Pirates right-hander Bob Walk. His second came righthanded off the lefty reliever Bob Kipper. Jeltz became the first player in the Phillies 107-year history to hit a home run from both sides of the plate in the same game. Tomas Perez (2001) and Jimmy Rollins (2006) are the only other Phillies to do the same. Of note, the first player in major league history to accomplish this feat was Wally Schang of the Philadelphia Athletics, who did so in 1916. Join Philly Sports History on Facebook!
June 08, 2011