6 Phillies Hall of Famers who made their names elsewhere

Johnny Evers

Evers fulfills the criteria of being both barely a Phillie and barely a Hall of Famer, and so he makes perfect fodder for this kind of list. Best known as part of the famed “Tinker to Evers to Chance” double play triumvirate that patrolled the Cubs’ infield for many years, Evers won a pair of World Series in Chicago before moving on to the Boston Braves and adding another to his resume.

The Braves waived him during the 1917 season, which is when he was claimed by the Phillies. He would appear in 56 games for the team, putting up a .224 mark over 183 at-bats. That was essentially the end of his playing career, unless you really want to count the one game he played in 1922 for the White Sox or the lone inning he played in the field in the final game of the 1929 season for the Braves at age 48.

It’s hard to qualify how good of a player Evers was. In a time before things like All-Star selections and Gold Glove Awards, he wasn’t able to accumulate any individual accolades that modern observers can point to. He did seem to be an above-average second baseman, but his mediocre .270 career batting average and 1,659 hits don’t really leap off the page. Nor do the 12 career home runs that he cranked.

He would ultimately enter Cooperstown in 1947 courtesy of the so-called “Old Timers Committee,” who also installed his old teammates Frank Chance and Joe Tinker at the same time. Johnny Evers died four months before the ceremony.