That Balls Outta Here
FanSided

A complete history of Philadelphia Phillies playoff runs

By Gabrielle Starr

PHILADELPHIA, PA - OCTOBER 21: Mike Schmidt of the Philadelphia Phillies fields a ground ball during World Series game six between the Kansas City Royals and Philadelphia Phillies on October 21, 1980 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Royals 4-1. (Photo by Rich Pilling/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - OCTOBER 21: Mike Schmidt of the Philadelphia Phillies fields a ground ball during World Series game six between the Kansas City Royals and Philadelphia Phillies on October 21, 1980 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Royals 4-1. (Photo by Rich Pilling/Getty Images) /
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1983
PHILADELPHIA, PA – OCTOBER 16: Joe Altobelli, manager of the Baltimore Orioles, Series MVP, is seen in the locker room with the World Series trophy after World Series game five between the Philadelphia Phillies and Baltimore Orioles on October 16, 1983 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Orioles defeated the Phillies 5-0. (Photo by Rich Pilling/Getty Images) /

1983 Philadelphia Phillies: Pennant

Whereas in 1980, the 76ers had lost the NBA Finals and the Phillies had won the World Series, in 1983, their fortunes reversed; the 76ers won their third championship, a feat not repeated since.

In their centennial season, the Phillies returned to the postseason after winning 90 regular-season games.

In 1950, the Phillies had been the Whiz Kids due to the team’s overwhelming youth. This year, they were the Wheeze Kids, because they were a team of veterans. The 1983 Phillies had seven players between ages 38-42: Pete Rose, Tony Perez, Bill Robinson, Ron Reed, Joe Morgan, Steve Carlton, and Tug McGraw. 23 players on the roster were 30 or older.

Carlton briefly passed Nolan Ryan on the all-time strikeouts list in June, but Ryan would ultimately triumph. His 5,714 career strikeouts are an all-time record unlikely to ever be beaten, as no other pitcher has even reached 5,000. Carlton was second, with 4,136, but was eventually surpassed by Randy Johnson and Roger Clemens.

On September 28, the Phillies clinched the NL East and celebrated their 7,000th career win as a franchise.

In the NLCS, the Phillies finally bested the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had caused them so much pennant heartache in the 1970s. It was a stunning upset, as the Dodgers had won 11 of their 12 regular-season matchups that year.

In a perfect twist of fate, the Phillies – who had lost both the 1977 and 1978 NLCS to the Dodgers three games to one – triumphed over the Dodgers three games to one.

The 1983 World Series was notable for a comical reason: it was the first Fall Classic in which the teams didn’t have to travel by air since 1956. With Baltimore and Philadelphia a little more than 100 miles apart, the series was nicknamed “The I-95 Series” for the interstate that connected the two cities.

Unfortunately, this World Series wouldn’t turn out like the last, as the Baltimore Orioles bested them four games to one. But while the Orioles haven’t reached the World Series since, the Phillies have had a bit of success since then…

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