Phillies best individual seasons by number since 1950 (numbers 0 to 10)

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 15: The field is prepped between the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park on April 15, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. All players are wearing the number 42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. (Photo by Corey Perrine/Getty Images) /

Which Phillies seasons stuck out for each number worn?

The Major League Baseball season finally is soon upon us, albeit an abbreviated 60-game version. Before we get into the season, however, let’s take a fun look back at the top individual Phillies seasons, one for each uniform number.

This edition will be up through number 10, with the rest of the numbers covered in a series of articles.

Note that the list takes into consideration players only from 1950 to present.

0 – Al Oliver (1984)

Oliver was 2nd for NL Rookie of the Year for the Pirates in 1969 after batting .285 with 17 home runs and 70 RBI. He was one of the top pure hitters in the league for several seasons, hitting over .300 four times with three All-Star appearances through the 1977 season.

Starting in 1978, Oliver ran of a streak of six consecutive seasons above .300, two with the Rangers and four with the Expos. Along the way, he made four consecutive All-Star games. Oliver’s best season was in 1982 with the Expos, leading the league in hits (204), doubles (43), RBI (109), batting average (.331) with a career-high 22 home runs.

Near the end of a great career in 1984, Oliver hit .301 in 119 games, including .312 with seven doubles and 17 RBI in 93 at-bats with the Phillies in 28 games. After a combined 96 games with the Dodgers and Blue Jays in 1985, Oliver retired with 2743 hits, 219 home runs, 1326 RBI and a .303 average.

PITTSBURGH, PA – 1993: Richie Ashburn, radio and television commentator for the Philadelphia Phillies, looks on from the field before a Major League Baseball game between the Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates at Three Rivers Stadium in 1993 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ashburn played for the Phillies 1948-1959 and is a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images) /

The Phillies once had a player wear the 00

00 – Rick White (2006)

White makes this list over slim competition that includes only one other player, Omar Olivares who pitched to a 4.50 ERA in five games in 1995. As for White, his stop in Philadelphia was one of 11 different teams he played for over a 12-year career.

After two seasons with the Pirates in 1994 and 1995 to begin his Major League career, White didn’t make another appearance in the majors until 1998 with the Tampa Bay Rays. After pitching to a 3.81 in 145 games with the Rays, White was off to New York, compiling a 3.86 ERA in 77 games before on the move again.

The well-traveled White made stops in Cleveland, Chicago (White Sox), Colorado, St. Louis and Houston from 2002 through 2004 before returning to Pittsburgh for the 2005 season. After another solid season with the Pirates with an ERA of 3.71 in 77 games, White was again relocating.

This time in Cincinnati for part of the 2006 season, White finished the year with the Phillies. In Philadelphia, White appeared in 38 games, posted a 3-1 record with an ERA of 4.34.

White retired after the following season with 42 wins, 16 saves, and an ERA of 4.45 in 613 games.

1 – Richie Ashburn (1958)

One of only 15 Phillies to have worn number 1, Ashburn is one of the top players in Phillies history.

A member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Ashburn began his career in 1948. He started with a bang, batting .333 with 32 stolen base, finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting and made his first of five All-Star teams.

Ashburn was a key member of the 1950 Whiz Kids NL Championship squad, hitting .303 with a league-high 14 triples. An All-Star in both 1951 and 1953, Ashburn led the league in hits both seasons, while hitting .344 and .330, respectively.

He paced the NL in walks and on-base percentage in 1954 and led the league in both average (.338) and on-base percentage (.449) in 1955. Ashburn’s finest season came as a 31-year old in 1958. He led the league in hits (215), triples (13), walks (97), batting average (.350), and on-base percentage (.440).

Ashburn played one more season with the Phillies, two with the Cubs, and an All-Star season for the expansion Mets in 1962 before retiring with 2574 hits and a .308 batting average. Ashburn is remembered by many as part of the Phillies legendary broadcasting team with Harry Kalas.

10 Mar 1998: Infielder Rico Brogna of the Philadelphia Phillies in action during a spring training game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Grant Field in Dunedin, Florida. The Phillies defeated the Blue Jays 14-3. Mandatory Credit: Tom Hauck /Allsport /

The next two great Phillies seasons include a newcomer and an unconventional guy

2 – Rico Brogna (1999)

Brogna had his first taste of Major League play with the Tigers in 1992, hitting .192 with a home run in 29 at-bats. After spending the 1993 season in Triple-A, hitting .273 with 11 home runs and 59 RBI in 129 games, Brogna was traded to the Mets in exchange for Alan Zinter. After being called up after 67 minor league games in 1994, Brogna hit .351 with seven home runs.

During his first full season at the Major League level, Brogna hit .289 with 22 home runs and 76 RBI. Brogna dazzled in the field, committing only three errors for a .998 fielding percentage. A form of spinal arthritis limited Brogna to a .255 average with seven home runs in 55 games in 1996.

After being traded to the Phillies after the 1996 season for Toby Borland and Ricky Jordan, Brogna went on to have the best seasons in his career. Continuously showing great glovework, Brogna became remarkably consistent at the plate, belting 20 plus home runs in each of the next three seasons. His 1999 campaign was the best of them all, collecting 172 hits, 24 home runs, 102 RBI, and 90 runs, which were all career-highs.

Just 38 games with the Phillies in 2000, the Phillies waived Brogna, who was claimed off waivers by the Boston Red Sox. He struggled in Boston, hitting under .200 in 43 games. After just three home runs with the Braves in 2001, Brogna retired at the age of 31 with 795 hits and 106 home runs.

3 – Bryce Harper (2019)

When the Phillies signed Bryce Harper for 13-year, $330 million last February, they brought in a six-time All-Star, Rookie of the Year and NL MVP. With much pressure on Harper to live up to the contract, he got off to a hot start, batting .500 with three home runs in the first week.

Over the next 38 games, Harper hit only four home runs and saw his batting average plummet to .222 with 60 strikeouts. Home runs on consecutive days against the Rockies in mid-May, including a monster shot over the brick wall behind centerfield at Citizen’s Bank Park gave Phillies fans a sign of what was to come later in the summer.

An average month of June which totaled a .250 average with 5 home runs and 18 RBI put Harper on pace for 29 home runs, still under his 162-game season total and less than the Phillies and their fans had hoped for.

Although Harper went deep only three times in July, he came up with a clutch, game-winning double against the Dodgers during a five-RBI game on July 16. When the dog days of summer came in August, Haper got hot, smashing 11 home runs in 26 games. The biggest blow was the “oh my God” walk-off grand slam against the Cubs on August 15. Harper would complete a three-game stretch in which he went deep four times with 10 RBI.

A six home run, 17 RBI month in September raised Harper’s totals for the season to .260 batting average, 35 home runs, 114 RBI, 98 runs scored and 99 walks. Although 2019 was a year that everyone seemed to be going deep, Harper’s home run total was second-highest of his career, and the 114 smashed his previous high of 100 in 2018.

PHILADELPHIA – OCTOBER 19: Lenny Dykstra #4 of the Philadelphia Phillies bats during Game three of the 1993 World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Veterans Stadium on October 19, 1993 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Blue Jays defeated the Phillies 10-3. (Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images) /

Lenny Dykstra and Pat Burrell each had big seasons with the Phillies

4 – Lenny Dykstra (1993)

Dykstra entered the Major Leagues in 2015 and hit .254 with 15 stolen bases in just over half a season. He became a key part of the 1986 Mets’ World Series-winning team, hitting .295 with 31 stolen bases.

His best season in New York came the following year, hitting .285 with 37 doubles and 27 stolen bases. After another 30 stolen base season in 1988, Dykstra headed to the Phillies along with Tom Edens and Roger McDowell in exchange for Juan Samuel.

Dykstra showed little in 90 games with the Phillies in 1989, but was an All-Star the following season, leading the league in hits and on-base percentage. Due to a car crash in 1991, Dykstra missed two months from his extensive injuries, which limited his time in both 1991 and 1992 to 148 games.

The following season, Dykstra came to camp in the best shape of his career, bulked up, leading to steroid use speculations, which he later admitted to using to lengthen his career. Nevertheless, he put together the best season of his career. Dykstra set career-highs in home runs, runs, hits, RBI, walks, and stolen bases, earning second-place votes for NL MVP.

Dykstra lasted three more injury-plagued seasons in Philadelphia, making All-Star appearances in 1994 and 1995. He retired with 1298 hits, 81 home runs, and 285 stolen bases.

5 – Pat Burrell (2002)

Burrell was selected by the Phillies first overall in the 1998 draft out of the University of Miami. After 57 home runs during his first two Minor League seasons and four home runs in 40 games at AAA in 2000, Burrell made his Major League debut with the Phillies on May 24, 2000. Burrell had a fine rookie campaign, hitting .260 with 27 doubles and 18 home runs, in 111 games. Burrell’s efforts were good enough for fourth place voting for NL Rookie of the Year.

In 2001, Burrell flirted with the 30-home run plateau, blasting 27 in 539 at-bats. He added 29 doubles, 89 RBI, and 70 walks. The following season proved to be the best of Burrell’s 12-year career. In 157 games, Burrell hit .282 with 96 runs, 39 doubles, 37 home runs, 116 RBI and 89 walks.

Burrell continued to be a power bat in the Phillies lineup, hitting 30 or more home runs three more times, including 33 for the 2008 World Series championship team. He hit a key double late in Game 5 of the World Series, which ended up being his final at-bat for the Phillies.

After spending time in Tampa Bay and San Francisco over the next three seasons, Burrell retired with 1393 hits, 292 home runs, and 976 RBI.

PHOENIX, AZ – JUNE 28: Maikel Franco #7 of the Philadelphia Phillies celebrates with teammate Ryan Howard #6 after hitting a solo home run during the fifth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on June 28, 2016 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /

Which season was Ryan Howard’s best as a member of the Phillies

6 – Ryan Howard (2006)

Howard hit 48 home runs during his first three Minor League seasons because taking off in 2004, breaking the Phillies Minor League record for most home runs in a season with 46. He was called up to the Phillies late in the season and hit two home runs in 42 at-bats.

The problem was the blocking Howard from the first base job for the Phillies was Jim Thome, who was coming off two 40-plus home runs seasons. However, when Thome went down with an injury in 2005, Howard got the nod and made the most of it. In 88 games, Howard hit .288 with 22 home runs in 312 at-bats. He was recognized by earning Rookie of the Year honors.

The 2006 season was Howards best. In fact, he shattered Mike Schmidt’s Phillies single-season home run mark of 48, eclipsing it on August 31. With a month to go, Howard was on pace for a 60-home run season. Although he fell short of the mark, Howard’s 2006 numbers were eye-popping. He hit .313 with 104 runs, 108 walks, with a league-leading 58 home runs and 149 RBI.

Howard went on to have three more consecutive seasons of over 40 home runs. Although his production fell in 2010 and 2011, he still hit a combined 64 home runs during that stretch. Injuries cut into his effectiveness after that, and Howard was out of Major League baseball after the 2016 season, retiring with 382 home runs and 1194 RBI.

7 – Maikel Franco (2018)

Franco started in the Phillies’ organization as a 17-year old in the Rookie League in 2010, batting .222 in 51 games. Franco progressed to be a big-time prospect, hitting .320 with 31 home runs and 103 RBI in 2013. After 16 home runs in 133 games in AAA in 2014, Franco made his Major League debut on September 2 against the Atlanta Braves.

During his rookie season in 2015, Franco hit .280 with 22 doubles and 15 home runs in 80 games. Playing full time at third base in 2016, Franco showed star potential, batting .255 with 25 home runs and 88 RBI. Franco showed power consistency in 2017 with 24 home runs and 29 doubles, but his average dipped to .230.

Entering the 2018 season as a 25-year old, it appeared time for Franco to show he could take his game to the next level. He ended up putting together his best overall season, hitting .270 with a .467 slugging percentage, with 22 home runs in 433 at-bats.

Unfortunately, Franco took a step back in 2019, hitting only .234 with 17 home runs and a woeful on-base percentage of .297. Franco was released and signed with the Kansas City Royals in 2019.

PHILADELPHIA, PA – AUGUST 09: Former manager Charlie Manuel of the Philadelphia Phillies talks about being inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame as fellow members, Dallas Green, Jim Bunning, Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt, Larry Bowa, Dick Allen, Greg Luzinski, Garry Maddox, Tony Taylor, Bob Boone, Juan Samuel, Darren Daulton, John Kruk, Mike Lieberthal and special guest Roy Halladay, listen in during a ceremony before the start of a game against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park on August 9, 2014 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

These three Phillies were the stars of their generation

8 – Juan Samuel (1987)

Samuel showed the makings of a five-tool player during his three-seasons during four seasons in the Phillies Minor League system. He put together a combined 82 home runs and 195 RBI. He had a cup of coffee with the Phillies during the 1983 NL Championship team, hitting .277 with two home runs in 18 games.

More from That Balls Outta Here

During his rookie campaign in 1984, Samuel became an All-Star, hitting .272 with 36 doubles, a league-high 19 triples, and 72 stolen bases. Samuel was second in NL Rookie of the Year voting. Over the next two seasons, Samuel was positioning himself for the finest season of his career. He posted a combined 67 doubles, 25 triples, 35 home runs, and 95 stolen bases.

Although the Phillies were going through a down-time, Samuel was on the rise. In 1987 he was an All-Star for the second time. For the season, he hit .272 with 37 doubles, a league-best 15 triples, 28 home runs, 100 RBI, and 35 stolen bases.

After one and a half more seasons in Philadelphia, Samuel headed to New York via trade. He ended up playing for five more teams over the next ten seasons, retiring with 102 triples, 161 home runs, and 396 stolen bases.

9 – Von Hayes (1986)

Hayes was part of the five-for-one trade with the Cleveland Indians. Although never quite living up to the unrealistic expectations of the deal, Hayes had some very productive years in Philadelphia.

In 1983, Hayes had a mediocre season, hitting .265 with six home runs and 20 stolen bases. The following year, Hayes posted a career-best 48 stolen bases, while hitting .292 with 16 home runs. His production dipped a bit in 1985, hitting 13 home runs with 21 stolen bases. However, a highlight was a two-home run first inning, including a grand slam in the Phillies 26-7 triumph over the Mets.

The best overall season of Hayes’ career came in 1986. Although he didn’t make the NL All-Star team, Hayes led the league in doubles with 46 and runs with 107. In addition, he hit 19 home runs with 98 RBI and a .305 batting average.

Hayes hit 21 home runs in 1987 before tailing off to six in 1988. His best power-production came in the 1989 season when he hit 26 home run and made his first and only All-Star team. Injuries derailed Hayes in 1991 and retired at the age of 33 in 1992 with 143 home runs and 253 stolen bases.

10 – Darren Daulton (1992)

Daulton struggled for his first four Major League seasons as a backup, hitting only .208 with 16 home runs combined. His playing time increased to 131 games in 1989, but still hit only .201 with eight home runs and 44 RBI.

Phillies: Best Individual Seasons By Uniform Number (0 – 10)