Batting Fourth: Ryan Howard- First Base

Philadelphia Phillies All-Time Line Up (Part 4 of a 9 Part Series)

Like his current teammate Chase Utley, Ryan Howard has already established himself as the top Phillies player at his position in a relatively short period of time. In what amounts to four and one half seasons, Howard has terrorized opposing pitchers around the league and accumulated many accolades while doing it.

After being groomed in the Phillies farm system, the team resisted trading him and Howard got his opportunity in the big leagues when Jim Thome went down with a season ending injury. He quickly answered any questions whether he was major league ready when he put together an "NL Rookie of the Year" campaign in just 88 games.

The Phillies elected to move fan favorite Thome in the offseason to clear space for Howard and have never looked back. He rewarded them with an MVP sophomore campaign, establishing a team record for home runs with 58 while driving in 149 runners. He also batted .313 with a .425 OBP and .659 SLG.

Needless to say, he was making quite an impression with his wildly impressive stat totals, but punctuated it all with some of the longest bombs in major league history. Over the past four seasons since his rookie campaign, Howard has averaged a staggering 50 HR's and 143 RBI's and has continued to be a "Sports Center" highlight waiting to happen.

Despite playing a position shared by some of the other most accomplished hitters around baseball, Ryan has been named to a pair of NL All-Star Teams and awarded the Silver Slugger in 2006. He has also finished in the top five in MVP voting in each of the last four years.

Howard, Utley, and Jimmy Rollins are central to the nucleus that has propelled the team to elite status over the past three years. At 30 years of age, the "Willie Stargell-with-better-wheels-like" slugger may have his best days still ahead of him as he cuts down on his strikeouts and continues to hone the art of hitting.

What a scary thought for opposing pitchers and teams. What an exciting prospect for the Phillies and their fans.

Statistics R HR RBI AVG SB OBP SLG

Phillies 465 222 640 .279 10 .376 .586

Career 465 222 640 .279 10 .376 .586

Honorable Mention:

John Kruk- The lovable player most likely to be voted "Best Guy to Hangout With" had an impressive stint with the Phillies. Over six seasons that included the 1993 NL Pennant winning team, Krukker hit .309 and was elected to the NL All-Star Team three times.

Jim Thome- The future Hall-of-Famer was great in his 2 1/2 seasons with the team, cracking 96 home runs in 361 games. Ironically, if the team had traded Howard and kept Thome, he might have been in the Dream Team starting line-up.

Dick Allen- No matter whether you called him Rich, Richie, Dick or Crash, Allen is arguably the most talented player ever to wear a Phillies uniform. The prodigious slugger played the first half of his career in Philadelphia and then later returned for a couple seasons. Unfortunately, his career was often interrupted by injury and controversy, but he still managed to amass 351 home runs and a .292 batting average. Allen was a seven time All-Star, the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year, and the 1972 AL MVP.

Philadelphia Phillies All-Time Line Up

Batting First: Richie Ashburn- Center Field

Batting Second: Chase Utley- Second Base

Batting Third: Mike Schmidt- Third Base

Batting Third: Mike Schmidt- Third Base

Philadelphia Phillies All-Time Line Up (Part 3 of a 9 Part Series)

Like Utley, this is an easy choice. Phillies fans as well as baseball players and pundits view Michael Jack Schmidt as the greatest player in team history. He has also been largely recognized as the best player to have ever graced the position in the rich history of the sport.

After an ignominious start to his career when he failed to break the "Mendoza line" with a .196 batting average and striking out more than once per game in 1973, Schmidt pulled a reverse "sophomore jinx" by emerging as an All-Star the next year. That season launched a phenomenal career that garnered many awards and culminated in a first ballot Hall of Fame selection in 1995.

Schmidt played before the "Steroids Era" that propped up stats, yet currently sits in 14th place on Major League Baseball's home run list with 548. He may end up back in the unqualified top ten if baseball officials elect to apply asterisks to some of the "juice" inflated totals of players after him.

Throughout his 18 year career (all with the Phillies), Schmitty collected a large amount of hardware for his mantel, including six Silver Slugger, 10 Gold Glove, and three Most Valuable Player Awards. He was also named to 12 NL All-Star Teams.

His best seasons coincided with the MVP trophies. In the Phillies 1980 Championship year, the smooth third third baseman clubbed 48 home runs and collected 121 RBI while batting .286 with .624 OBP.

Schmidt followed that up with what was on track to be his greatest season in 1981, but a mid-season strike eliminated more than 1/3 of the scheduled games. In just 102 games, he banged out 31 home runs and drove in 91. Additionally, he registered career highs with a .316 batting average, .435 on base percentage and a .644 slugging percentage.

For all his accomplishments, Schmidt periodically drew criticism from the Philadelphia fans and media for what sometimes appeared to be indifference. His calm demeanor and effortless style were occasionally misinterpreted as lack of hustle or intensity. Of course, another sore spot related to his high strikeout totals, but this also enabled him to draw a high number of free passes.

Through the repetitive opportunity that he provided, Schmidt is somewhat intertwined with former broadcast legend Harry Kalas through a trademark call. Phillies fans will always remember the congenial baritone voice excitedly exclaimed, "Its ha long drive to deep left field....that ball is outta here- Michael Jack Schmidt!"

Statistics R HR RBI AVG SB OBP SLG

Phillies 1506 548 1595 .267 174 .380 .527

Career 1506 548 1595 .267 174 .380 .527

Honorable Mention:

Dick Allen- No matter whether you called him Rich, Richie, Dick or Crash, Allen is arguably the most talented player ever to wear a Phillies uniform. The prodigious slugger played the first half of his career in Philadelphia and then later returned for a couple seasons. Unfortunately, his career was often interrupted by injury and controversy, but he still managed to amass 351 home runs and a .292 batting average. Allen was a seven time All-Star, the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year, and the 1972 AL MVP.

Previous Posts in the Series

Philadelphia Phillies All-Time Line Up

Batting First: Richie Ashburn- Center Field

Batting Second: Chase Utley- Second Base

Batting Second: Chase Utley- Second Base

Philadelphia Phillies All-Time Line Up (Part 2 of a 9 Part Series)

Although he is still in the prime of his career, Chase Utley has already clearly achieved the status as the greatest second baseman in Phillies team history. Despite hailing from laid back Southern California, Utley has won the hearts of Philadelphians with his blue collar, intense style of play almost as much as his rare combination of skills.

Chase is the proverbial "Five Tool" player and widely recognized as the top second baseman in the game today. He has been instrumental to the team's emergence as one of the very best teams in Major League Baseball with three consecutive National League Eastern Division titles, two NL pennants and the 2008 World Series Championship. Besides his remarkable contributions between the white lines, his legendary preparation and demeanor have been central to the Phillies winning team chemistry.

After being drafted in the first round out of UCLA, Utley joined the Phillies big club three years later in 2003 and quickly became a fixture. Since becoming a regular, Utley has averaged .301 at the plate with 29 HR's and 101 RBI's over the past five seasons- great production for any player, but especially for a middle infielder.

As impressive as his stat lines may be, Utley is tremendously admired for the many less tangible contributions that he makes towards winning games. The consummate gamer tires pitchers by working deep into the count, runs the bases with aggressive precision, and manufactures ways to get on base with his keen eye and his resolve to absorb pitches off his body.

Having just turned 31, the fan favorite likely has a great deal more yet to come, but has already accumulated an impressive resume. Utley has been recognized as a National League All-Star and Silver Slugger each of the past four years. He has also finished in the top 15 of the annual MVP voting for five consecutive years, while remaining one of the favorites to grab a trophy in the near future.

Statistics R HR RBI AVG SB OBP SLG

Phillies 602 161 585 .295 83 .379 .523

Career 602 161 585 .295 83 .379 .523

Honorable Mention:

Juan Samuel- The 1984 Sporting News Rookie of the Year was a fixture at the top of the line-up for 5 1/2 seasons and one of the most exciting players to ever wear the red pinstripes. He possessed a combination of power and blazing speed that is rarely found in a second baseman. He still holds the single season record for steals with 72 and often raced to stretch hits into doubles and triples. His best season was 1987 when he collected 37 doubles, 15 triples, 28 home runs, 100 RBI and 35 stolen bases while hitting .272.

Manny Trillo- Manny was a tremendous fielder with a whip-like arm who was one of the major's best at turning double plays. He won three Gold Glove Awards and two Silver Slugger Awards in his four Phillies seasons. Fans may remember him best for his MVP play in the 1980 NL Championship series.

Part 1

Phillies All-Time Line-Up

Batting First: Richie Ashburn- Center Field

Philadelphia Phillies All-Time Line Up

Part 1 of a 9 Part Series

The Philadelphia Phillies hold the distinction of the longest standing franchise in professional sports having been formed 127 years ago. As many Phillies fans will attest, the team has endured more than its fair share of lean seasons on its way to also setting the record for most losses with 10,167 and counting.

Of course, a great deal of that is ancient history as the team is currently considered one of the elite teams in baseball, if not professional sports. The present period of prosperity has included three consecutive National League Eastern Division Titles, two straight National League Pennants and the 2008 World Series Championship.

Besides the actual accomplishments, Philadelphia has transformed into a baseball destination spot. Night in and night out, arguably the best venue in sports is filled to capacity with passionate fans who come to see some of the very best players its sport has to offer.

As the team prepares to embark on another promising season, I have decided to take a look back through the Philadelphia Phillies checkered past to see how current players stack up against their predecessors. As part of that trip through time, I present to you the Philadelphia Phillies All-Time Line-Up. No rules, no guidelines– just my own personal anachronistic "Dream Team."