In January 1982 trade of light-hitting shortstops, the Phillies dealt away a future Hall of Famer

Embed from Getty Images

Sandberg was a 22-year-old prospect in January 1982

This latest installment of the “Phillies Hot Stove History” series was inspired by today’s 66th birthday celebration for Ivan DeJesus. While we may celebrate his birthday, few Phillies fans have ever celebrated the 1982 swap of shortstops that brought him to the team.

In short order this would prove to be one of the worst trades in franchise history. For younger fans who may have heard of the deal but not know how such a thing could happen, let’s take a quick look back at this key “hot stove” moment from the Phillies past.

As always, a little perspective is required to set the stage. At the time of the deal the Phillies were coming off a 1981 season in which they had been dethroned as world champions.

The veteran-laden 1980 Phillies had won the first World Series crown in franchise history. The following season was interrupted by a mid-season work stoppage, and the Phillies would return to the playoffs in 1981 thanks in part to a split-season format adopted by Major League Baseball.

In baseball’s first-ever Divisional Series, the Phillies were eliminated by the Montreal Expos in five games. Following that 3-2 series defeat, Owens looked over his roster and felt that an aging team that had won four of five NL East titles between 1976-80 needed more adjustments.

One key member of that 1970’s core group and 1980 championship team had already been dealt away when left fielder Greg Luzinski was sold to the Chicago White Sox at the end of spring training just prior to the 1981 season.

Owens decided that it was now time to turn the pages on the 36-year-old shortstop Larry Bowa, with whom he was having difficulty reaching agreement on a new contract.

THE GREEN FACTOR

Another pivotal factor in the trade was the man sitting in the General Manager’s seat on the Cubs side of the deal. Dallas Green had skippered the Phillies to that 1980 World Series title. Following the 1981 playoff defeat, Green was hired to become the new GM in Chicago.

Chase Utley to retire at end of 2018 season

Embed from Getty Images

Utley tips his cap to fans at Citizens Bank Park in July 2018

The story has been breaking across the internet in furious fashion all afternoon. Chase Utley, the former Philadelphia Phillies all-star and current member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, will hold a press conference later today to announce his retirement from Major League Baseball.

The Pasadena-born Utley had first been drafted by his hometown Dodgers in the 2nd round of the 1997 MLB Amateur Draft out of Polytechnic High School in Long Beach, California.

However, he chose to attend UCLA on a baseball scholarship instead. In the 2000 Draft, the Phillies made him their first round pick at 15th overall. The rest, as they say, is history.

Utley's big league debut on April 4, 2003 at Veteran's Stadium was entirely forgettable. With two outs in the bottom of the second inning and the Phillies already trailing the Pittsburgh Pirates by 6-1 at Citizens Bank Park, manager Larry Bowa called on Utley to pinch-hit for starting pitcher Joe Roa. 

Utley worked a full count, but ultimately struck out swinging against Bucs right-hander Jeff Suppan.

He wouldn't appear in a game for nearly three more weeks, getting his first start at second base on April 24, 2003 at The Vet against the Colorado Rockies. 

This one would prove far more memorable. Utley hit eighth in Bowa's lineup that day. He would go 2-4, scoring twice and driving in four runs. It was the manner in which he registered those first four career RBI that was most memorable of all. 

With two outs in the bottom of the third inning and the Phillies already in front 2-0, Utley stepped in with the bases loaded against Rockies right-hander Aaron Cook. He wasted no time, blasting the first Cook offering over the right field fence for a grand slam.

It was just the first of so many thrilling moments in a career with the Phillies that would span parts of 13 seasons. Utley now ranks ninth on the all-time franchise list for games played, at-bats, and hits. He is sixth in home runs and doubles, seventh in RBI, and 10th in Walks.

He was an NL all-star for five straight seasons from 2006-10, and then once more in 2014. Utley also received National League MVP votes each year from 2005-09. He was the NL Silver Slugger Award winner at second base each year from 2006-09.

And, of course, Utley was one of the most important pieces in the Phillies drive to a championship in 2008. His heads-up defensive play in the top of the seventh inning of Game Five of the World Series at Citizens Bank Park is one of the two greatest defensive plays in franchise history.

With two outs and the game with the American League champion Tampa Bay Rays knotted at 3-3, Utley threw Jason Bartlett out at the plate after deking him with a fake throw to first base.

Utley punctuated that championship with a particularly colorful expletive during the club's public post-parade celebration at the South Philly ball park. It only served to endear him even more to the title-starved multitude in attendance and watching on television.

Phillies Legend Dallas Green Dies

On Wednesday, the Philadelphia Phillies announced the passing of an organizational legend. Dallas Green (82) had been a player, scout, manager, and front office executive with the team.

The Phillies released an official statement announcing the sad news

“We mourn the passing of Dallas Green. The Phillies have lost a great man and wonderful friend. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.”

As a young pitcher, Green was 6’4″ and possessed a fastball nearly as big as his height. He was signed for the Phillies prior to the 1955 season out of the University of Delaware by legendary scout Jocko Collins.

Making his big league debut in 1960, Green would pitch in the big leagues for eight seasons. For the first five of those years, Green helped the Phillies go from doormats to near-pennant winners.

Green went 20-22 over 167 games in that stretch, making 44 starts. He compiled a 249/186 K:BB ratio in allowing 602 hits over 528 innings.

Green would appear in parts of three more seasons, one each with the Washington Senators and New York Mets. He then closed out his playing career with the Phillies in 1967.

MLB 2016 Prediction: First Manager Fired

While all of the predictions to this point have been for positive accomplishments, such as the teams favored to win a division or the World Series, or an individual picked to win one of baseball’s major awards, this time around we will be looking at an inevitable negative feature of every single MLB season – the first manager to be fired.

During the calendar year of 2015, five different MLB skippers were either fired or resigned. 

The unfortunate winner of this “first to be fired” race a year ago was Milwaukee Brewers manager Ron Roenicke, who was fired from his post on May 3rd. Roenicke had led the Brew Crew into his 5th season, and had a 342-331 record.

During Roenicke’s first season he guided the Brewers to a 96-66 record and a first place finish in the NL Central Division. The effort saw Roenicke finish 2nd in the NL Coach of the Year voting that season. 

But the Brewers then dropped to become basically a .500 team over the following three seasons, and were off to a miserable 7-18 start last year, leading to his dismissal.

Philography: Larry Bowa

Embed from Getty Images

Larry Bowa has seen it all with the Phillies over the last half-century

From his very first moment in front of Phillies scouts as a teenage ballplayer in California right through the current day, Bowa has been a fiery, emotional, heart-on-his sleeve, hard-working, straight-talking, blue-collar player and coach, the type that Philly fans have always embraced.

His father, Paul Bowa, had been a minor leaguer in the Saint Louis Cardinals system during the 1940’s, and a player-manager in that Cards’ system in both 1946 and 1947. Much as his future son, and in contrast to a grandson who would also reach the big leagues, Nick Johnson, Paul was a speedy, slick-fielding infielder.

In the off-season prior to his father’s debut as a  manager, on December 6th, 1945 in Sacramento, California, Larry was born. By the early 1960’s, the scrawny Bowa was trying out for the team at McClatchy High School in Sacramento. He would never make the team in the entirety of his high school days.

“It was very disappointing. The reason they gave me was not because I wasn’t good enough but because I was too small,” Bowa told saccityexpress.com early this month.

Ryne Sandberg Resigns: What Next for Phillies?

"This is a difficult day, a challenging day, and a tough day for myself. But I am stepping down as the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies."

With that fairly simple, straight-forward statement, Ryne Sandberg resigned his position as the skipper of the Phillies. 

He leaves the team having guided them to an overall 119-149 record in one full and parts of two other seasons.

Sandberg took over for previous manager Charlie Manuel in August of 2013, leading the club to a 20-22 record down the stretch of what became their first losing season in a decade. 

In his only full season a year ago, Sandberg's club went 73-89 and finished in last place in the NL East.

At the time of the resignation, Sandberg and the Phillies were 26-48 and buried in last place once again in the NL East. 

For the immediate future, such as the weekend series beginning tonight at Citizens Bank Park, the Phils will be led by Pete Mackanin, who was named the interim manager.

You have already seen many writers and media types step forward with their take on Sandberg's job performance, his approach, and the timing of this turn of events, some critical and some more supportive. 

My own take is that Sandberg was dealt a bad hand, and he played that bad hand poorly.

That said, I would caution anyone, and I have seen this opinion voiced, who thinks that Ryne Sandberg won't ever get another shot at a managerial job in Major League Baseball. 

Not only do I think that Sandberg could get a job, but I think there is a good chance that he will get a shot, and he just may succeed.

All Phillies fans have to do if considering why I feel this way is look into our franchise own somewhat recent past, remember a guy who fans were happy to see go by the name of Terry Francona. 

Tito managed the Phillies from 1997-2000, compiling a 285-363 record for a .440 win-loss percentage that was nearly as bad as the .428 managed by Sandberg.

We all know what happened after that. Francona took over the Boston Red Sox four years later. 

In his very first season at the helm, he guided Boston to their first World Series victory in 86 years. In 2007, Francona was at the helm as the Bosox then won yet another World Series crown.

From 2004 through last season, Terry Francona has managed in MLB with Boston and Cleveland in 10 of the last 11 years. He has yet to record a losing season, and his all-time managerial record now stands at 1239-1100, including those awful early Phillies clubs.

Ryne Sandberg was not only a player in the big leagues, like Francona, but even more, Sandberg was one of the best all-around players of his generation. He has been enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame, and is considered one of the greatest 2nd basemen of all-time.

He earned industry-wide praise when, wanting to manage following his playing career, Sandberg was willing to go down to the minor leagues and learn his craft. He earned his shot at the Phillies job with hard work and success there.

In six minor league seasons, his clubs went a combined 512-498. His first season team, the Peoria club in the Cubs system, went to the Midwest League title game. 

In 2010, Sandberg was named the Pacific Coast League Manager of the Year after an 82-62 season.

Hired by the Phillies as skipper at AAA Lehigh Valley, Sandberg guided that club to its first-ever postseason appearance in 2011, and was named as the Minor League Manager of the Year by Baseball America. 

In short, after a Hall of Fame playing career, Sandberg paid his dues as a minor league manager where he was extremely successful. Clearly, there is something there.

Sandberg also highlighted during his resignation press conference that he saw himself as "old school" in style. Perhaps that style simply doesn't mesh well with today's professional athletes, almost all of whom are making multiple millions of dollars each season.

This particular Phillies clubhouse has been noted by many in the media as leaderless, from a players perspective. It is never a good thing when the locker room has no voice willing to stand up as a peer and call players to accountability.

Much of the problem with these Phillies is that they are either aging, or limited, or injured. But whatever their individual circumstances, the vast majority are not self-motivators. The proof is in the results.

Sandberg did not help his own case, making a number of baffling moves, both in-game and in lineup decisions. He may have had good reasons for making those decisions, but if so, he rarely was able to communicate those in his post-game pressers. 

The fact may simply be one of inexperience in this position, and that he was overwhelmed by this particular job at this particular time.

"I'm 49, and I want to live to be 50." ~ Sawyer, the last Phils skipper to resign in 1960.

That Sandberg was unable to motivate this particular group may not necessarily mean that he cannot motivate any group at all. 

Remember, this team was left for dead before it ever got out of the starting gates. Everyone inside and outside that clubhouse expected them to lose, probably big, and to see a number of key veterans traded away.

The longer the losing has droned on, and the longer that the situation with players having to live with constant trade rumors over their heads has dragged on, the more the morale seems to have deteriorated.

"I'm 49, and I want to live to be 50." 

That was the statement made by the last Phillies manager to resign. That manager was Eddie Sawyer, all the way back in 1960. So this has not happened for over a half-century.

These Phillies have a lot of problems. The skipper was one of them, but he was not the only one, and he was far from the worst one. Those other problems remain, from the GM to the President to the players. 

Those other problems will need to be dealt with before this franchise can begin to seriously turn around, and regain the trust of its dwindling fan base.

Fightin' Phils Battle ALS

The Philadelphia Phillies bill their annual "Phillies Phestival" as a "fun-filled autograph and auction party for all ages", and this year's event will take place this evening at Citizens Bank Park on what is an open date in the Phils MLB schedule.

The goal of the Phestival is to raise funds to help battle the devastating, deadly, incurable neuromuscular condition of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) known in the colloquial as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

The latter designation comes from the New York Yankees legendary Hall of Fame 1st baseman Lou Gehrig, whose career and life were very publicly and tragically cut short by the disease back in 1941.

From June 1st, 1925 through April 20th, 1939, Gehrig appeared in a record 2,130 consecutive games, a record that would stand for more than five decades until broken by Cal Ripken Jr.

But during the 1938 season, Gehrig began to sense that something was wrong. By the start of the 1939 season, it was obvious to him and everyone else as his performance and physical condition began to seriously deteriorate. 

At the world-renowned Mayo Clinic, he was officially diagnosed with ALS on June 19th of that year, his 36th birthday.

Ryne Sandberg on the Early Hot Seat?

In an article today for CBS Sports, MLB insider Jon Heyman put Phillies skipper Ryne Sandberg near the top of his "MLB Managers on the Hot Seat" list. 

But is Sandberg really in danger of losing his job this season?

Normally to lose your job as a manager in Major League Baseball, one of a handful of situations has developed. 

Your team disappoints, falling short of expectations. The loftier those expectations, and the worse the performance, the greater the chances of a firing.

"No way he should take the hit for what's gone on over there." ~ Heyman on Sandberg

The other principle ways to get fired are to reveal yourself to simply be incompetent, or to perform an act or say something that is so egregious that you leave management no other option, or to have just been around for awhile without reaching a certain level of success.

It would be extremely difficult to fit Sandberg into any of these categories. 

The team's own upper management wrote them off months ago. The national press sees them as the likely worst team in baseball this season. You cannot fall short of expectations when there are no expectations.

It is highly unlikely that Sandberg commits an act or makes a statement that gets him fired. He is a consummate professional. A disciplined Hall of Fame player who fought his way back up the chain, becoming a winning manager at the minor league level, positioning himself for just this very opportunity. No way he blows it on stupidity.

You cannot say that things have gotten stale around him, since this will only be his second full season at the helm. 

And look at the roster that he inherited: a once-great but aging core of high-salaried veterans, and marginally talented youngsters.

For anyone in a position of responsibility with the Phillies to have the temerity to hold Sandberg as incompetent because he could not win in this dysfunctional situation would be the height of chutzpah. 

He certainly did not have any part in creating this horrific roster situation - but they did.

There is only one excuse for firing Sandberg: the scapegoat scenario. The team is awful and losing at an embarrassing pace, the fans are staying away in droves and complaining up a storm, and there appears to be no hope.

In such situations, certainly Ruben Amaro and Pat Gillick are not going to resign, admitting the truth, that it was mostly their fault. No, it is much more likely that the old adage "you can't fire the players" will come into play.

If the people who hired Ryne Sandberg really believe that he was the right man for the job, then they should not even consider dumping him until they give him some real talent with which to work.

For me, the jury is still out on Ryno longerm. But no matter how bad it gets in 2015, the problem is not likely to be in the manager's office.

Ryne Sandberg and Paul Molitor to Make History

This afternoon at 1:05pm, the Philadelphia Phillies are scheduled to play hosts to the Minnesota Twins at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Florida.

That might normally not be a matchup to elicit a great deal of interest outside of the two organizations, or their most hardened fans. 

But thanks to a couple of Baseball Hall of Famers, there will be a larger spotlight on the proceedings than usual this afternoon.

The Phillies are managed by Baseball Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg. The Twins are managed by Baseball Hall of Famer Paul Molitor. 

It is believed that this will be the first time that two Hall of Fame players have matched up against one another as a manager.

The two ballplayers are contemporaries, though they starred at the same time in opposite leagues at a time when there was no Interleague play. 

However, both Sandberg's Cubs and Molitor's Brewers did hold their spring training in Arizona, so it's not as if they were strangers.

Ryne Sandberg, as most around here know, began his career as a Phillie. He was the Phils' 20th round selection in the 1978 Amateur Draft, breaking in with the team for a 13-game cup of coffee at the end of the 1981 season. 

He was then dealt to the Chicago Cubs along with Larry Bowa for shortstop Ivan DeJesus. Sandberg went on to play 15 seasons in a Cubs uniform, becoming one of the greatest 2nd basemen of all-time. 

He was the 1984 National League MVP, an NL All-Star for 10 straight years from 1984-93, an NL Gold Glover at 2nd base for 9 straight from 1984-92, and was the NL Silver Slugger winner at 2nd base in 7 seasons.

Molitor played for three different organizations, all in the American League, over the course of a 21-year MLB career, making a lasting mark with each of them. 

He began with the Milwaukee Brewers, who made him their 1st round selection, the 3rd overall pick, in the 1977 Amateur Draft, a year before Sandberg was picked by the Phils.

Molitor was drafted a year before and then entered the Hall of Fame a year before Sandberg

He broke in with Milwaukee in 1978, finishing 2nd in AL Rookie of the Year voting as a 21-year old. 

He played for 15 seasons with the Brew Crew, helping lead the 1982 team to the American League pennant, the organizations only ever World Series appearance.

After moving to Toronto, Molitor helped the Blue Jays win their 2nd consecutive World Series crown in 1993, and was named the Most Valuable Player of that '93 Series against the Phillies. 

He then finished up his career with three seasons for his hometown Twins, the team he now manages.

Over his career, Molitor amassed 3,319 hits while scoring 1,782 runs and stealing 504 bases. He was a 7x AL All-Star, won 4 Silver Sluggers, and had nine Top 20 MVP vote finishes, including as the AL MVP runner-up during that 1993 campaign in Toronto.

Molitor was elected to the Hall of Fame on his first ballot in 2004 with 85.25% of the vote. 

Sandberg was elected to the Hall of Fame on his third ballot in 2005 with 76.2% of the vote. 

And so, Molitor was drafted a year before Sandberg, and ultimately reached the Hall of Fame a year ahead of him as well.

On getting the Phillies full-time gig beginning last season, Sandberg was just the 2nd Hall of Famer to ever be named a manager after being enshrined, the first having been Ted Williams with the old Washington Senators way back in 1969.

A number of men were named as managers prior to their being eventually enshrined as players at Cooperstown. 

Included among them were Yogi Berra, Bob Lemon, Tony Perez, and Frank Robinson. 

Of course, there was no Hall of Fame until 1936. A number of players later enshrined were managers before it's inception, including Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, Walter Johnson, and Christy Mathewson.

The game today will be televised back to local Philadelphia viewers on The Comcast Network. The game will be aired again at midnight our time, 9pm Pacific time, on the MLB Network.

Ryne's Hope

There is no individual in a Phillies uniform more directly invested in a turning of the page from the 'Glory Years' of the previous decade to a new beginning for the franchise than manager Ryne Sandberg.

Hired to replace Charlie Manuel, who himself had gone from a hick country buffoon in the eyes of many fans to the beloved World Series-winning "Uncle Charlie" in the span of just a couple of seasons, Sandberg has been stuck with the aging, high-salaried nucleus of Manuel's once-great championship team.

Now the Baseball Hall of Famer, who was a winner throughout his minor league managerial career, is looking to mold the Phillies in his style. 

Yesterday, Sandberg welcomed the entire team for the first official day of full squad workouts, and he spoke to them about the direction and manner in which he wants to lead them this season.

"We had a nice meeting this morning, organizationally. We obviously have a lot of new faces in camp so that goes a long way with the new players, recognizing everybody, meeting everybody in the organization. Also, I was able to set some parameters and things that I'm going to be looking for in the spring and some of the priority things. So that was loud and clear."

Those parameters specifically addressed issues that have plagued the team, and which the skipper is determined to change immediately and into the future as long as he is at the helm. 

"We want to be a good baserunning team, we want to be a good situational hitting team." He said that one of the keys will be to stress "doing all the little things right."

"I was able to set some parameters and things that I'm going to be looking for in the spring and some of the priority things. So that was loud and clear." ~ Ryne Sandberg

Doing those little things right consistently - working the count, situational hitting, going the opposite way, taking the extra base, bunting, fielding balls cleanly, proper defensive positioning, hitting cutoff men - consistently well over the course of a full 162-game season will often prove the difference between winning and losing, between getting buried in the standings and contending for the playoffs.

A year ago, the Phillies finished with a 73-89 record and in last place in the N.L. East division. They scored 619 runs and allowed 687 runs against. That 68-run differential was the 7th-worst in all of baseball. But when you break it all down, the reason for his emphasis on those "little things" becomes apparent.

The 2014 Philadelphia Phillies scored an average of 3.82 runs per game, while allowing an average of 4.24 runs per game. That's about a half-run per game difference. 

If Sandberg can find a way for his team to score another run per game and/or allow a run less, by playing more fundamental baseball, then he has a winner instead of the last-place loser that most prognosticators are envisioning.

Sandberg has a guaranteed contract through next year, and an option for the 2017 season. Taking into account all of the circumstances surrounding the team in his tenure thus far, many of which are continuing into this season, he has been given some length to his rope by fans, media, and most importantly by the very management that has publicly proclaimed a rebuild.

While his job does not appear to be in imminent danger, the fact is that he is a professional sports manager. They all have an expiration date. If the 2015 team should collapse, that won't all be laid at the feet of the players. The manager will have to answer for at least a part of such a development.

It was clear from his statements yesterday and in his public attitude that Ryne Sandberg remains hopeful that the Phillies can surprise the fans and pundits, and even their own management in the coming season. 

A big part of his own responsibility will be finding a way to extend his hope to the fans, and the way his team plays will go a long way towards accomplishing that, win or lose.