GaryMrMets
10-10-2003, 02:02 AM
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/phi/news/phi_news.jsp?ymd=20031006&content_id=566387&vkey=news_phi&fext=.jsp&c_id=phi
10/06/2003 4:59 PM ET
'Ya Gotta Believe' the 1983 Phillies
Looking back at the magical season in Philly
By Ken Mandel / MLB.com
PHILADELPHIA -- The roster contained six players who had turned at least 38 by the time October arrived in 1983, including the right side of the infield, the ace and the inspirational reliever who coined the phrase, "Ya gotta believe" exactly a decade earlier.
The Wheeze Kids had gotten this far on the strength of a 22-7 record in September and took the National League East by six games. In his final season in Philadelphia, Pete Rose again showed how far heart can take a team, as did Tug McGraw, who wore that heart on his sleeve despite being near the end of his career.
Rose was joined by Joe Morgan and Tony Perez. As members of the Big Red Machine, that trio swept the Phillies from the 1976 playoffs.
The '83 squad had much of the core remaining from the 1980 World Series championship team. In fact, Paul Owens, who assembled many of the players as the team's general manager, stepped in as the manager 75 games into the season. He took over the team with a 43-42 record and led them to a 47-30 mark the rest of the way.
Perez carried them for the first six weeks of the season, and Morgan's .410 average over the final few weeks took them the rest of the way. They finished 90-72.
Many Phillies had already accomplished personal goals which made the season a success -- ace Steve Carlton won his 300th game in St. Louis, John Denny won 19 games en route to a Cy Young Award and Mike Schmidt's 40 homers would lead the NL.
But there was more to do.
A daunting task awaited Philadelphia that October if it was to return to the big dance three years after capturing the franchise's first championship. The Dodgers loomed, a team that had won 11 of 12 meetings in 1983 and recorded five shutouts. The Phillies hit .187 against Los Angeles pitching that season and scored a grand total of 15 runs in 12 games.
For good measure, the Dodgers had knocked the Phillies out of the playoffs in 1977 and 1978, winning each series in four games. On paper, things didn't look good for Philadelphia.
The teams combined for one run in Game 1, but the Phillies finished on the right side of it. Philadelphia rode a first-inning home run by Schmidt and a combined seven-hitter by Carlton and Al Holland to a one-game advantage. The Dodgers evened the series the next night behind Fernando Valenzuela.
Gary Matthews, whose solo homer accounted for the only run in Game 2, smacked a home run and drove in four runs in Game 3, helping 24-year-old Charles Hudson to a 7-2 win. Matthews added a three-run homer in the deciding Game 4, and Carlton cruised for six innings.
Ron Reed, still effective at 40, worked 1 1/3 innings. He gave way to Holland, who arrived with Morgan in an offseason trade for Mike Krukow. Morgan, by the way, was acquired to play second base, a position made available when the Phillies dealt prospect Julio Franco as part of a package to bring in Von Hayes.
Holland whiffed Bill Russell for the final out, sparking a jubilant celebration.
"There were 60,000 fans screaming during that at-bat, but I couldn't hear a thing," said Holland, who focused only on catcher Bo Diaz. "That was one of the greatest moments of my career."
Another was pitching the final inning of Carlton's 300th win almost a month earlier and presenting him with the ball. But this was Holland's turn to celebrate with his teammates.
"I remember Mr. T trying to jump in my arms," said Schmidt. "I don't know how I lifted him up, but I did. I couldn't do that now."
In a season punctuated with events commemorating the 100th anniversary of the franchise, the Phillies were one step away from winning the World Series for the second time ever, not to mention the second time in four seasons, when they were matched up against the Baltimore Orioles.
Schmidt and company took the first game of the Series, 2-1, behind Denny, but dropped the next four. Schmidt went 1-for-20 in what would be the final World Series appearance for him and many of his teammates.
"That was a great team. We had people who were excited, young guys who got to win for the first time," said Schmidt, who went 7-for-15 in the NLCS. "And if you needed to, you could go lean on Tony Perez or Pete Rose, Joe Morgan. Those guys were always fun to be around. I loved that team. That was one of the neatest teams I've played on."
Ken Mandel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/images/2003/10/06/I5LpHEKl.jpg
All-time hits leader Pete Rose was 42 years old during the 1983 season. (David Fields/AP)
10/06/2003 4:59 PM ET
'Ya Gotta Believe' the 1983 Phillies
Looking back at the magical season in Philly
By Ken Mandel / MLB.com
PHILADELPHIA -- The roster contained six players who had turned at least 38 by the time October arrived in 1983, including the right side of the infield, the ace and the inspirational reliever who coined the phrase, "Ya gotta believe" exactly a decade earlier.
The Wheeze Kids had gotten this far on the strength of a 22-7 record in September and took the National League East by six games. In his final season in Philadelphia, Pete Rose again showed how far heart can take a team, as did Tug McGraw, who wore that heart on his sleeve despite being near the end of his career.
Rose was joined by Joe Morgan and Tony Perez. As members of the Big Red Machine, that trio swept the Phillies from the 1976 playoffs.
The '83 squad had much of the core remaining from the 1980 World Series championship team. In fact, Paul Owens, who assembled many of the players as the team's general manager, stepped in as the manager 75 games into the season. He took over the team with a 43-42 record and led them to a 47-30 mark the rest of the way.
Perez carried them for the first six weeks of the season, and Morgan's .410 average over the final few weeks took them the rest of the way. They finished 90-72.
Many Phillies had already accomplished personal goals which made the season a success -- ace Steve Carlton won his 300th game in St. Louis, John Denny won 19 games en route to a Cy Young Award and Mike Schmidt's 40 homers would lead the NL.
But there was more to do.
A daunting task awaited Philadelphia that October if it was to return to the big dance three years after capturing the franchise's first championship. The Dodgers loomed, a team that had won 11 of 12 meetings in 1983 and recorded five shutouts. The Phillies hit .187 against Los Angeles pitching that season and scored a grand total of 15 runs in 12 games.
For good measure, the Dodgers had knocked the Phillies out of the playoffs in 1977 and 1978, winning each series in four games. On paper, things didn't look good for Philadelphia.
The teams combined for one run in Game 1, but the Phillies finished on the right side of it. Philadelphia rode a first-inning home run by Schmidt and a combined seven-hitter by Carlton and Al Holland to a one-game advantage. The Dodgers evened the series the next night behind Fernando Valenzuela.
Gary Matthews, whose solo homer accounted for the only run in Game 2, smacked a home run and drove in four runs in Game 3, helping 24-year-old Charles Hudson to a 7-2 win. Matthews added a three-run homer in the deciding Game 4, and Carlton cruised for six innings.
Ron Reed, still effective at 40, worked 1 1/3 innings. He gave way to Holland, who arrived with Morgan in an offseason trade for Mike Krukow. Morgan, by the way, was acquired to play second base, a position made available when the Phillies dealt prospect Julio Franco as part of a package to bring in Von Hayes.
Holland whiffed Bill Russell for the final out, sparking a jubilant celebration.
"There were 60,000 fans screaming during that at-bat, but I couldn't hear a thing," said Holland, who focused only on catcher Bo Diaz. "That was one of the greatest moments of my career."
Another was pitching the final inning of Carlton's 300th win almost a month earlier and presenting him with the ball. But this was Holland's turn to celebrate with his teammates.
"I remember Mr. T trying to jump in my arms," said Schmidt. "I don't know how I lifted him up, but I did. I couldn't do that now."
In a season punctuated with events commemorating the 100th anniversary of the franchise, the Phillies were one step away from winning the World Series for the second time ever, not to mention the second time in four seasons, when they were matched up against the Baltimore Orioles.
Schmidt and company took the first game of the Series, 2-1, behind Denny, but dropped the next four. Schmidt went 1-for-20 in what would be the final World Series appearance for him and many of his teammates.
"That was a great team. We had people who were excited, young guys who got to win for the first time," said Schmidt, who went 7-for-15 in the NLCS. "And if you needed to, you could go lean on Tony Perez or Pete Rose, Joe Morgan. Those guys were always fun to be around. I loved that team. That was one of the neatest teams I've played on."
Ken Mandel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/images/2003/10/06/I5LpHEKl.jpg
All-time hits leader Pete Rose was 42 years old during the 1983 season. (David Fields/AP)