Phillies Madness: An All-Time Phillies bracket

With no tournaments or sports, we break down the greatest Phillies of all-time

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced every major sports league and team, including the Phillies, to shut down indefinitely. Everything from spring training to the NCAA tournament has been shut down due to the virus.

To fill the time in between, we’re breaking out our own bracket to find the greatest, most beloved Phillies player of all-time.

To do this, we’re taking the top-30 players from our Top 50 Players in Phillies History story and creating a bracket for the fans to vote on.

The top-two seeds, Mike Schmidt and Steve Carlton, will each have a bye to start out. We will put out Twitter and Facebook polls for each matchup and let the fans pick.

Now, let’s break down the matchups.

16 Chris Short vs 17 Johnny Callison

Long-time teammates in the 1960s, Chris Short and Johnny Callison were part of the infamous 1964 Phillies that lost 10 straight games to miss a chance at the World Series.

Among all pitchers in franchise history, Short ranks third in starts, fourth in wins, innings pitched, shutouts and strikeouts, and sixth in pitching wins above replacement. Out of all players in franchise history, Short ranks 24th in wins above replacement.

He made two All-Star teams and had two top-30 MVP finishes. In 459 career games with the team, he had a 132-127 record, 3.38 ERA, 1.283 WHIP and 32.1 pitching wins above replacement.

Callison had a .271/.338/.457 line, 185 home runs, 666 runs batted in, 774 runs scored, 1,438 hits and a 122 OPS+ in 10 years with the Phillies. He’s eighth in franchise history with a 39.5 WAR and is in the top-20 for nearly every offensive category in team history.

5 Richie Ashburn vs 28 Tony Gonzalez

Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn is one of the greatest players in Phillies history and one of the greatest players in his era. Whitey has a career .311/.394/.388 line, with 2,217 hits, 1,114 runs scored, 499 RBI, 22 home runs, and 2,764 total bases.

During his career, Ashburn led the league in singles, walks and on-base percentage four times, batting average three times, games, triples and batting average twice.

Raw numbers aren’t enough to explain what Ashburn means to the Phillies. An all-time broadcaster and person in Philadelphia sports, he’s a beloved legend for generations of fans.

While not known by many fans Tony Gonzalez was a ferocious hitter for the Phillies.  In 1962, Gonzalez hit 20 home runs, drove in 63 runs, stole 17 bases, hit .302 and posted an .865 OPS. He earned MVP votes the next year with a .306/.372/.436 line and 133 OPS+.

Gonzalez played 1,118 games over nine seasons with the Phillies with 1,110 hits, 103 home runs and 438 runs batted in. He posted a .295/.359/.433 line with a 123 OPS+ in Philadelphia.

In franchise history, he ranks 18th in offensive wins above replacement, 24th in OPS+, 25th in batting average, 28th in total bases and 29th in hits.

12 Bobby Abreu vs 21 Cy Williams

A recent Wall of Fame inductee, Bobby Abreu just barely stayed on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot in his first year of eligibility.

In nine years with the Phillies Abreu had 1,474 hits, a .928 OPS, 139 OPS+, 195 home runs, 814 runs batted in, 891 runs scored and 2,491 total bases. He earned All-Star honors in 2004 and 2005, winning the Home Run Derby in 2005.

For a generation of fans, he was their superstar and introduction to Phillies baseball. His 47.2 WAR is sixth best in team history and his career hitting numbers are also among the best in franchise history.

Cy Williams played at the end of the Deadball Era and finished his Phillies career in 1930 with 217 home runs, 795 RBI, 1,553 hits and a .306 batting average. He sits among the Phillies’ all-time top-10 for hits, home runs, total bases and runs created.

13 Dick Allen vs 20 Scott Rolen

Dick Allen belongs in the Hall of Fame, and he could get his shot when his turn comes on the Veteran’s Committee ballots.

Allen is 10th on the Phillies all-time home runs list with 204, third in slugging and seventh in oWAR. Despite playing 50 years ago, he still holds Phillies’ rookie records for games played, runs, hits, total bases and slugging percentage after his Rookie of the Year season in 1964.

Scott Rolen will hopefully join Allen in the Hall of Fame, perhaps at the same time in 2021.

His career was cut short in Philadelphia due to the team’s lack of talent and his relationship with manager Larry Bowa, but Rolen remains one of the great Phillies of his time. In 844 games Rolen had 880 hits, 207 doubles, 150 home runs, and hit .282 for a team that finished last in three of his seasons here.

4 Pete Alexander vs 29 Carlos Ruiz

Grover Cleveland “Pete” Alexander is the greatest pitcher in baseball history that few fans have heard of. Many might even miss that he shares a name similar to our 22nd/24th President Grover Cleveland, the only US President to serve two non-consecutive terms.

Alexander pitched 8 of his 20 seasons in Philadelphia and won THREE CONSECUTIVE triple crowns, an unheard of accomplishment in today’s game. In Philadelphia he won 190 games, including three straight 30 win seasons pitching nearly 400 innings a season, twice as much as today’s pitchers.

Carlos Ruiz is one of the most beloved players in modern-day Phillies history, catching a World Series-clinching strikeout and four no-hitters, the most in baseball history.

The career numbers don’t put Ruiz among the all-time greats, but his ability to call a game and play behind the plate was superior to anyone else in the game. His 21.8 WAR is 27th in team history and his 10.4 dWAR is eight-best among all Phillies.

3 Robin Roberts vs 30 Roy Halladay

What a matchup here between not only two of the greatest pitchers in Phillies history, but two of the greatest workhorses in baseball history.

Robin Roberts pitched in 529 games over 14 seasons for the Phillies, starting in 472 of them. He threw an astonishing 272 complete games with35 shutouts and a 234-199 record. Roberts led the league in wins for four consecutive seasons and made seven straight All-Star teams as a Phillie.

Roy Halladay was a modern day workhorse in an era where being so was extremely rare.

In his first year as a Phillie, he was an All-Star, threw a perfect game, a postseason no-hitter and unanimously won the NL Cy Young award. Halladay led the league in wins, complete games, shutouts, innings pitched, walks per nine innings, and strikeout-to-walk ratio.

While he was only a Phillie for four years and his reign of dominance lasted for two full seasons, his number will be retired in Philadelphia.

14 Curt Simmons vs 19 Garry Maddox

In 13 years with the Phillies, Curt Simmons had a 115-110 record, 3.66 ERA, 109 complete games, 18 shutouts, 1,052 strikeouts, and a 1.332 WHIP. He did all of that despite missing time while serving in the military, yet still ranks fifth in wins and innings pitched, sixth in starts and shutouts, eighth in strikeouts and 10th in wins above replacement for pitchers in franchise history.

Garry Maddox, who like Simmons is also a veteran, won seven consecutive Gold Gloves with the Phillies in the 1970s and 80s. Known as the “Secretary of Defense”, Maddox is the best defensive center fielder in franchise history with an 11.1 dWAR, seventh-best in team history.

Playing 1328 games in Philadelphia, Maddox averaged more than a hit per game while stealing more than 22 bags in his first five seasons.

11 Ryan Howard vs 22 Shane Victorino

Two former teammates forever linked together thanks to their performances in 2008, we have another tight matchup with Ryan Howard and Shane Victorino.

Howard earned NL Rookie of the Year honors in 2005 and followed that year up with an MVP with a league-best 58 home runs. He’d have six consecutive seasons with at least 30 home runs and three with at least 47 home runs, twice leading the league.

Howard is second all-time in home runs as a Phillie with 382, third in RBI with 1,194 and fourth in extra-base hits with 680.

Victorino certainly didn’t put up the power numbers Howard did, but what he lacked in power he made up in speed and defense. He stole at least 30 bases four times in Philadelphia and consistently hit at least .280 atop the lineup.

Victorino is a top-25 player in 11 offensive categories in Phillies history and is in the top-50 in 32. His 24.0 WAR is higher than that of Larry Bowa, Darren Daulton, Pat Burrell and Greg Luzinski.

27 Darren Daulton vs 6 Chase Utley

This is another incredibly tough matchup between two of the most beloved figures in Philadelphia sports history. Two tough leaders who did everything for their teams.

A three-time All-Star, Darren Daulton was the heart of the 1993 National Leauge Championship team. He was just as important at the plate that season with 24 home runs and 105 runs batted in.

In Phillies history, Daulton ranks 26th in WAR, 22nd in offensive WAR, 33rd in defensive WAR, 42nd in on-base percentage, 45th in OPS, 16th in home runs, 26th in runs batted in and 12th in walks.

Chase Utley is the greatest modern day player in Phillies’ history. From 2005-08 he had at least 100 RBI, 20 home runs, and a batting average of at least .282, though twice during that run he hit well over .300. Utley made five straight All-Star teams and won the Silver Slugger Award each season from 2006 through 2009.

If not for injuries and his desire to play the game as hard as he could on every play, Utley would have put together one of the greatest careers for a second baseman in baseball history.

Among all second basemen who played at least 1,500 games Utley is seventh in home runs with 259 and 14th in WAR, essentially tied with Craig Biggio.

7 Jimmy Rollins vs 26 Willie Jones

Jimmy Rollins remains one of the greatest hitters in Phillies history with a franchise-record 2,306 hits and 479 doubles.

Rollins the only post-Deadball Era player in Phillies history with 2,000 hits and 400 stolen bases and is one of only two Phillies (Mike Schmidt being the other) with 200 home runs and 400 doubles.

Rollins rates in the top-10 in 26 career categories in Phillies history, including hits, doubles, home runs, WAR, games, played, at-bats, stolen bases and RBI.

Willie Jones played 13 years for the Phillies and had eight consecutive years with double digit home runs. His career 24.1 wins above replacement is 24th in team history and he’s 17th among all players with 1,400 hits.

Additionally, Jones is currently 11th in games played, 18th in runs scored, 15th in total bases, 14th in runs batted and 13th in home runs.

23 Von Hayes vs 10 Curt Schilling

Von Hayes developed into one of the great run producers in Phillies history during the 1980s, earning an All-Star selection and MVP consideration.

From 1984 Hayes played in 1,084 games hitting .273/.365/.432 with118 home runs, 536 runs batted in, 1,080 hits, and 182 stolen bases.

Hayes finished his Phillies career 10th in stolen bases, 11th in walks, 17th in home runs, 21st in doubles and extra-base hits and 25th in hits and total bases.

A likely Hall of Famer, Curt Schilling had 61 complete games in nine seasons for the Phillies.  He made three consecutive All-Star teams in Philadelphia, but most of his success came later when he finished second in the Cy Young races three times in Arizona and Boston.

In Phillies history Schilling ranks fourth in strikeouts per nine innings, fifth in pitching wins above replacement, strikeouts and strikeout-to-walk ratio, seventh in wins, starts, and WHIP.

15 Jim Bunning vs 18 Del Ennis

Philadelphia Phillies

The Hall of Famer Jim Bunning did most of his damage on the ball field as a Detroit Tiger, but like Roy Halladay, Bunning put together a historic stretch and a perfect game that helped push him into Cooperstown.

Bunning put together three consecutive years with 19 wins and had two more double digit win seasons as a Phillie in his six seasons with the club. With the Phillies Bunning had a 2.93 ERA with 65 complete games, 23 shutouts, 1.111 WHIP and a 3.64 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 226 games and 1520.2 innings pitched.

The former U.S. Senator ranks fourth in Phillies history for WHIP, is fifth in shutouts, sixth in strikeout-to-walk ratio and seventh in strikeouts.

Over 11 years with the Phillies, Del Ennis hit 259 home runs, drove in 1,124 runs, scored 891 runs, racked up 1,812 hits and posted a .286/.344/.479 line.

A three-time All-Star who received MVP consideration eight times, Ennis averaged 25 home runs, 109 runs batted in, 176 hits and 84 runs scored in his 14-year career.

Ennis ranks fourth in total bases, fifth in hits, sixth in games played, at-bats, plate appearances and extra-base hits, and 10th in offensive wins above replacement and runs scored in franchise history.

Check back later for the results of our first round!