Phillies Should Retire Some 2008 Heroes' Numbers

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The Philadelphia Phillies’ policy of retiring only the uniform numbers of players elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame may face a stern test with 2008 heroes.

The Philadelphia Phillies franchise has been playing baseball for 134 seasons now. The team first began using uniform jersey numbers in the 1932 season.

Over the 85 seasons in which the Phillies have issued uniform numbers, just five men who played for the team have received the honor of having their uniform jersey number retired.

Those five legendary Phillies players and their retired numbers are, in numerical order: Richie Ashburn (1), Jim Bunning (14), Mike Schmidt (20), Steve Carlton (32), and Robin Roberts (36).

Along with the rest of Major League Baseball, the Phils have also retired uniform #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson.

At some point in recent decades the club developed a formal policy on retiring numbers. The Phillies would only retire the uniform numbers of players who were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Nine men spent at least five seasons with the Phillies, subsequently reached the Hall of Fame, but do not have a uniform number retired.

These nine all appeared with the club prior to the introduction of uniform numbers: Harry Wright, Sam Thompson, Ed Delahanty, Billy Hamilton, Nap Lajoie, Elmer Flick, Grover Cleveland “Pete” Alexander, Dave Bancroft, and Eppa Rixey.

NO NUMBER RETIRED FOR KLEIN

The lone Hall of Famer who played in a significant portion of his career with the Phillies, and yet does not have a formal number retired, is Chuck Klein.

Klein played with the Phillies in two stints, from 1928-33, and again from 1936-44. In his first four seasons, the Phils still were not issuing uniform numbers.

Klein was with the club when it began issuing numbers for that 1932 campaign. He was issued the number “3”, which he again kept in the 1933 season.

Traded in November 1933, Klein was reacquired in a May 1936 trade. He would be released in June 1939, and subsequently sign with the Pittsburgh Pirates for the balance of that season. But he was back with the Phillies the following year until his retirement.

Beginning with his 1936 return, Klein would play in parts of nine more seasons with the Phillies. Over those nine years he would wear seven different numbers, including his old #3 in the 1942 campaign.

Because he wore that #3 the most with the club, three seasons, the Phillies could have chosen to retire it in his honor. Instead, the Phillies have chosen to retire the official logo lettering used by the team during their tenures in honor of both Klein and Alexander.

2008 HEROES TO TEST THE POLICY

The Phillies enjoyed the greatest period of sustained success in franchise history during the period from 2001-11. During those dozen seasons there was just one losing record, and that 80-81 of 2002 may have been avoided had a game not been wiped out and never rescheduled.

From 2007-11 the Phils captured five consecutive National League East Division crowns. They won the 2008 World Series, and returned as NL Pennant winners the following year. In 2011, the team set a franchise record with 102 regular season victories.

The Phillies had a core of five players who proved to be the glue during the best seasons: Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Carlos Ruiz and Cole Hamels.

Now the question is beginning to be debated: should any or all of these players have their numbers retired by the Phillies?

The question could become moot if any of them should actually be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. None would appear to be a first-ballot HOF choice at this point, and each is likely to be debated for a number of years.

That surely will not be the case with Ruiz. The beloved “Chooch” will settle for the honor of a place on the Phillies Wall of Fame at some point. His #51 is likely to be returned to circulation after a brief period of respect.

Each of the other four appeared with the Phillies for a considerable portion of their careers. Each left behind a legacy of greatness.

THE CASE FOR CHASE

Utley’s 61.5 career WAR mark while in a Phils uniform is the highest of this group. His career included many great moments, including “Utley’s Deke” in Game 5 of the 2008 World Series. It is one of the two greatest defensive plays in franchise history.

Six NL All-Star Game appearances and four Silver Slugger Awards also dot the resume of “The Man,” as he respectfully and affectionately became known.

Utley is one of the top 100 players in the history of baseball based on WAR value. He is ahead of such legends and Hall of Famers as Ashburn, Robinson, Dave Winfield, Billy Williams, Mike Piazza, Yogi Berra, and many more.

Now back with the Dodgers, he is likely to move past Hall of Famers Andre Dawson, Willie McCovey, and Craig Biggio before this coming season is finished.

Utley has a real shot at the Baseball Hall of Fame. If he had a regular season or postseason MVP award on his mantle, he would be a slam dunk. Even without it, the arguments in his favor will be compelling.

In my opinion, the uniform #26 should absolutely be retired in honor of Chase Utley once his career is finished.

ROLLINS HAS REAL HALL OF FAME SHOT

Rollins will have a lot of things going for him when the time comes to debate his Baseball Hall of Fame worthiness.

“JRoll” is the all-time franchise hits leaders for one of the oldest teams in the history of the sport. He spent 15 seasons excelling as the Phillies starting shortstop.

Rollins is 2nd in games to Schmidt on the Phillies franchise all-time list. He is 3rd in runs behind just Schmidt and Delahanty. He is 2nd in steals to Hamilton.

Rollins was the 2007 National League Most Valuable Player, also capturing a Silver Slugger Award that year.

He has won four Gold Glove Awards at shortstop, and is a 3x National League All-Star. He also received the 2014 Roberto Clemente Award.

For me, the uniform #11 should be retired by the Phillies in honor of Rollins.

BIG PIECE OF THE PUZZLE

The 2008 Phillies championship team was made up of a number of players who brought different skill sets as pieces to the whole puzzle.

Ryan Howard didn’t get his nickname of “The Big Piece” for nothing. He was physically big, sure. But the first baseman was also one of a handful of irreplaceables on that team.

Howard was the 2006 National League Most Valuable Player. He also won a Silver Slugger Award that year. He was the 2005 NL Rookie of the Year, and the 2009 NLCS Most Valuable Player.

In that 2006 season, Howard set the Phillies franchise single-season record by bashing 58 home runs.

Further padding his resume is that he was a 3x NL All-Star, and finished in the top 10 of NL MVP voting for six straight years.

He is second on the Phillies all-time career home runs list, third in RBI, and fourth in slugging percentage.

Howard is not going to make the Baseball Hall of Fame. He was arguably baseball’s most feared slugger for a half-dozen years. But his defensive shortcomings and late-career deterioration will add too many negatives.

Howard is a slam-dunk Phillies Wall of Famer, and is another whom I feel should have his uniform #6 retired in his honor.

COLE STILL GOING STRONG

It would be tough to argue that it is a coincidence that Cole Hamels broke into the Phillies rotation during the summer of 2006, and the club began consistently winning big at that point.

Hamels topped the 200 innings pitched mark in six of his eight full Phillies seasons. He topped 200 strikeouts in four of those seasons, just missing that mark three other times.

Four times, Hamels finished among the top eight in NL Cy Young Award voting. He was a 3x NL All-Star.

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On the Phillies all-time franchise leaderboards, Hamels is 3rd in strikeouts behind a pair of Hall of Famers, Steve Carlton and Robin Roberts.

And Hamels also has the twin 2008 postseason jewels on his resume of being named the NLCS and World Series Most Valuable Player.

Hamels will be an easy Phillies Wall of Famer. But he probably needs to pitch strong and healthy all through his 30’s in order to have any real Baseball Hall of Fame shot. I wouldn’t put it past him.

I would say that the #35 should eventually be retired in honor of Hamels. But I think he will be pitching still for some time to come, so his Phillies honors will have to wait until well into the 2020’s.

RETIRING 2008 HEROES JERSEYS: FINAL VERDICT

In conclusion, for me, it’s a “yes” on retiring the numbers for Rollins (11), Utley (26), Howard (6), and Hamels (35), and a “no” on the #51 for Ruiz. But how will the Phillies feel about things?

MLB Phillies insider Todd Zolecki explored the issue in a recent piece. Zolecki quoted Frank Coppenbarger, the Phillies current travel director. He managed the clubhouse from 1989 through last season, and was asked what would happen if a new player wanted one of these “frozen” numbers.

“We try to give guys their number. We try to take care of them. But there’s the hope you’ll get an established guy to take the heat off you because it’s a sensitive situation. I think it’s just a feel thing. Guys that had a significant impact with years on the team, it’s not fair to that guy and it’s not fair to the guy that gets his number. You’ve got to remember the player that was here in fairness to the new guy. You don’t want to strap a new guy with something like that.”

If the Phillies do ever try to give away one of the uniform numbers of these key 2008 popular players, expect there to be some major backlash from their fan base. Especially for many younger fans in their 30’s and below, these players are and will remain true heroes.

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