Which Phillies stars were the best home-run hitters in franchise history?
The Philadelphia Phillies are one of the oldest franchises in Major League Baseball, dating back to 1883. Having been the Phillies in Philadelphia for their entire history, they are considered the oldest continuous franchise in American pro sports.
However, compared to newer franchises (ahem, the Yankees), the Phillies don’t exactly have an impressive resumé. For example, they had a season with more managers (3) than they have total championships (2).
Let’s set championships aside, though, because those are incredibly difficult to win. And lack of championships does not equal lack of talent. So, let’s talk about talent, specifically, home-run hitting. Phillies batters have done a lot of that over the years.
These are the greatest home-run hitters in franchise history.
Honorable mentions:
Current stars Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper have each proven themselves to be great sluggers, but it’s hard to put them on an all-time list in the middle of their careers.
Jayson Werth hit 36 home runs in 2009 but was only in Philly for four seasons, and while Jimmy Rollins had a prolific 15-year career in a Phillies uniform, he only had one 30-homer season. Walking the line between career totals and individual seasons is difficult, but if this was a top-15 list, he’d be on it, no doubt.
10. Del Ennis, 1946-56 Phillies
Del Ennis spend the first 11 seasons of a 14-year career in Philadelphia and hit double-digit home runs in each of them. Between 1949-57, he hit the eighth-most home runs in the National League.
In 1948 and 1950, Ennis had the only two 30+ home run seasons of his career; in the latter, his slugging helped the Phillies to their first pennant in 35 years. That season, he hit two grand slams in the span of three days.
Until 1980, Ennis was the franchise leader in home runs, a title that has belonged to Mike Schmidt and his 548 career bombs ever since.
Two years after Schmidt took the home-run throne, Ennis was inducted to the Phillies Wall of Fame.