Phillies: 5 Unexpected-but-deserving Wall of Fame candidates

2. Phillies public address announcer Dan Baker

Public address announcers are also not on the Phillies’ criteria for Wall of Fame eligibility. But, for someone who will celebrate their 50th season behind the microphone in 2022, there is no doubt that Dan Baker should be honored.

This season would have been Baker’s 50th, however he addressed some health concerns during the shortened, fan-less 2020 season. In 1972, the area native secured a job with the Phillies as their public address announcer and has held the role ever since.

In a fall 2015 interview, Baker told me that he just loves his job so much, since it is fun — adding that when he was hired, he knew he found a home.

Baker takes pride in being the longest-tenured public address announcer in Major League Baseball, a distinction he has held since Bob Sheppard, formerly of the New York Yankees, retired after the 2007 season.

Only two other public address announcers in the majors have announced a team’s games for 50 years or more, according to Baker— Sheppard (1951-2007, 57 years) and Pat Pieper of the Chicago Cubs (1916-1974, 59 years).

Not planning to go anywhere anytime soon, Baker hopes to still fulfill public address announcer duties come the 2026 season, when Citizens Bank Park will host its first-ever All-Star Game. That year would be Baker’s 54th behind the microphone, meaning he would need just three more seasons after that to tie Sheppard, and five more to tie Pieper.

Undoubtedly, Baker has been a key member of the Phillies family for so long. Ask any fan who has ever been to a game, and they will say one of their favorite parts is hearing the icon announce the starting lineups, as well as individual players as they walk up to the plate.

Baker needs to be on the Wall of Fame.

3. Tom Burgoyne AKA the Phillie Phanatic

Another key member of the fan experience at Citizens Bank Park is no other than the most beloved mascot in professional sports, the Phillie Phanatic.

With the official title as Phillie Phanatic Entertainment Representative in the team’s marketing department, Tom Burgoyne has brought the mascot to life ever since the 1994 season — replacing the David Raymond, who portrayed him from 1978 to 1993.

All of the laughs and entertainment you have received from the Phanatic across the past nearly 30 seasons — whether you are watching the game in-person or at home — it’s all thanks to Burgoyne. The dugout dances, skits such as smashing opposing team’s helmets, ATV shenanigans, you name it.

Unofficially known as his “best friend,” there would be no Phanatic the way we know and love him without Burgoyne. That is why he should be on the Wall of Fame.

4. Ed Wade

Without former Phillies general manager Ed Wade, there would not be the core of young players that came together and won the franchise’s second-ever World Series championship.

Wade took over Lee Thomas’ Phillies general manager duties in 1998 but was let go after the 2005 season. And while Pat Gillick may have been at the helm of the front office in 2008, it was Wade – often overlooked – who drafted and essentially assembled many of the key pieces of that team, including World Series MVP Cole Hamels.

The Phillies never made the postseason under Wade, but without him, there still might be only one red flag waving in Ashburn Alley as we speak.

5. Larry Andersen and Scott Franzke

The Phillies have never inducted a duo to their Wall of Fame before, but it is fair to say that Larry Andersen and Scott Franzke deserve to be the first.

While Andersen had already been a member of the Phillies broadcast team since 1998, Franzke made his debut in 2006 as pre and postgame radio host — as well as assuming play-by-play duties in the middle innings. One season later, Franzke was named the main play-by-play commentator on Phillies radio broadcasts and has worked alongside Andersen ever since.

In 2007 and 2008, Andersen and Franzke were honored at the Philadelphia Achievement in Radio Awards for best live sports event coverage. In 2017, the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association presented the duo with the Bill Campbell Award for local broadcasting excellence.

Individually, Andersen has made an impact in professional baseball for many years prior, being a former relief pitcher who played 17 major league seasons — including 1983-86 and 1993-94 with the Phillies. Andersen holds the Phillies’ team record for longest consecutive scoreless innings streak by a reliever (32 2/3). In 1983 and 1993, he appeared with the team in the World Series.

After his playing career, Andersen spent three seasons as a Phillies minor-league pitching coach, both at the Double-A (1995-96) and Triple-A level (1997).

As for Franzke, he is a 2010 and 2015 recipient of the Pennsylvania Sportscaster of the Year Award. Before joining the Phillies, the Texas native worked radio duties in the Texas Rangers and then-Florida Marlins organizations.

It would be difficult to think what the Phillies would be as we know them, without Anderson and Franzke. Their voices filled the airwaves during the team’s 2007-11 postseason window. Hopefully, 2021 is the year this magic can return.