Philadelphia Phillies: 50 greatest players of all-time

Johnny Callison got his start in the major leagues with the Chicago White Sox but was traded to the Phillies after two seasons. He spent all the 1960s in Philadelphia and was a productive player for the entire decade, as the team came out on top in the trade for him.

During his 10-year career as a Phillie, Callison had a .271/.338/.457 line, 185 home runs, 666 runs batted in, 774 runs scored, 1,438 hits and a 122 OPS+.

Callison’s peak came from 1962 to 1965, earning three All-Star appearances and finishing as high as second in MVP voting. He won All-Star MVP in 1964. During this time, he had a .280/.336/.498 line, 112 home runs, 47 triples, 117 doubles, 366 runs batted in and a 132 OPS+. He led the league in triples in 1962 and 1965.

While his performance wasn’t as strong in the latter half of the decade, Callison remained effective with a 113 OPS+, 55 home runs and 223 runs batted in. Altogether, he was worth 39.5 wins above replacement during his time as a Phillie.

During his career, Callison led the league in triples twice and doubles once. Among position players in franchise history, he ranks sixth in triples, eighth in wins above replacement and 10th in extra-base hits.

Callison put together a nice career, but he couldn’t quite stack up to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He received just one vote out of 432 ballots in 1979. Callison joined the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame in 1997 and the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.