1964 Philadelphia Phillies season

1964 Philadelphia Phillies
Team photo of the 1964 Philadelphia Phillies
Major League affiliations
National League (since 1883)
Location
Connie Mack Stadium (since 1938)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (since 1883)
Other information
Owner(s)	R. R. M. Carpenter, Jr.
General manager(s)	John J. Quinn
Manager(s)	Gene Mauch
Local television	WFIL
Local radio	WFIL (By Saam, Bill Campbell, Richie Ashburn)
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The 1964 Philadelphia Phillies season was the 82nd season for the franchise in Philadelphia. The Phillies finished in a second-place tie with the Cincinnati Reds. Both posted a record of 92–70, finishing one game behind the National League (NL) and World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals, and just two games ahead of fourth-place San Francisco. Gene Mauch managed the Phillies, as they played their home games at Connie Mack Stadium.

The team is notable for, after being in first place in the National League since the opening day, suffering a drastic collapse during the final two weeks of the season. The "Phold", by which it became known, is one of the most infamous collapses in baseball history.

Offseason

• December 5, 1963: Don Demeter and Jack Hamilton were traded by the Phillies to the Detroit Tigers for Jim Bunning and Gus Triandos.

The team

From 1919 through 1947, the Phillies finished last a total of 17 times and next to last seven times. A 1962 cartoon in a baseball magazine depicted a ballplayer arriving at a French Foreign Legion outpost, explaining, "I was released by the Phillies!"

Things began to change slowly beginning in 1960 when Gene Mauch was hired as manager to replace Eddie Sawyer, who had resigned after the club's opening game of the regular season. Although the Phillies slumped to 47–107 in 1961 (including a 23-game losing streak), they began to climb back to respectability in 1962 and 1963. The front office, headed by John Quinn as General Manager, had replaced most of the players of the 1950s with new, young talent.

Opening Day lineup
Number	Name	Position
8	Tony Taylor	Second base
6	Johnny Callison	Right field
15	Richie Allen	Third base
5	Roy Sievers	First base
25	Tony González	Center field
10	Danny Cater	Left field
11	Clay Dalrymple	Catcher
7	Bobby Wine	Shortstop
23	Dennis Bennett	Pitcher

Chris Short was a rookie on the 1959 team, and by the end of 1963 was the ace of the staff. He was joined by Art Mahaffey in 1960, Dennis Bennett in 1962 and Ray Culp in 1963 as starters. The bullpen had Ed Roebuck, who was purchased from the Washington Senators in April 1964, as the primary relief pitcher, along with John Boozer and Dallas Green. Rookie Rick Wise, primarily a reliever but also a spot-starter, joined the club in June. Jack Baldschun was the closer. The catching duties were platooned between Clay Dalrymple, who was the regular catcher since 1960 and Gus Triandos, who acted both as Bunning's personal catcher and as Dalrymple's backup, having come over from Detroit in the Bunning trade (below).

The infield had two fine shortstops in Bobby Wine and Ruben Amaro, and two fine second basemen in Tony Taylor and Cookie Rojas. Mauch could and did platoon them depending on the pitcher they were facing. Richie Allen (who years later would be called Dick Allen) came up in September 1963 as a rookie showing much promise, and during spring training, made the club as the starting third baseman. John Herrnstein was at first.

In the outfield Johnny Callison was in right field, Tony Gonzales in center, and Wes Covington was in left field. Covington was first platooned with rookie Danny Cater in left, however Cater suffered a broken arm in a game against Milwaukee on 22 July and didn't return to the lineup until late September.

The most important acquisition by the Phillies in the off-season of 1963 was the acquisition of Jim Bunning. Bunning had been with the Detroit Tigers since 1955 and was one of the best pitchers in the American League, throwing a no-hitter against the Boston Red Sox in 1958 and was a five-time All-Star. However, in 1963 he began having problems with the front office of the Tigers, and did not get along well with the Tigers' new manager, Charlie Dressen. Also, Bunning was having a mediocre season with Detroit, and Dressen believed that Bunning's career was over at the age of 31. Denny McLain, a rising star with the Tigers, began to get Bunning's starts in September and by the end of the season after going 12–13, Bunning was asking the Tiger management for a trade. His wishes were complied with, and he and Triandos were sent to the Phillies in exchange for outfielder Don Demeter and pitcher Jack Hamilton.

Regular season

Throughout the 1964 season, the Phillies seemed destined to make it to the World Series,. Since the beginning of the season, with 8–2 start, the team had been in first place, and had led the National League all season, sometimes by as many as nine or ten games.

During the season Johnny Callison was having a career year and was the top contender for the National League Most Valuable Player award. Richie Allen was the leading candidate for Rookie of the Year (which he won in the post-season). In addition to his pitching, Bunning also added another dimension to the club. Chris Short had been the ace of the staff prior to Bunning joining the club. However, he never was comfortable being the leading pitcher and having that responsibility. With Bunning joining the staff, the pressure was off Short and he thrived as the number-two starter.

The 1964 National League All-Star team had three Phillies: Chris Short, Jim Bunning, and Johnny Callison. Callison was named the game's Most Valuable Player, hitting a fast ball by Boston Red Sox ace Dick Radatz into the right field stands at Shea Stadium for a 3-run home run in the 9th Inning for the win. Then in early August, the Phillies acquired Frank Thomas from the New York Mets and Vic Power from Los Angeles Angels to shore up the bench for the pennant run in September. The Phillies were having their best season since the 1950 "Whiz Kids" giving Pennant Fever to its fans for the first time in 14 seasons.

Jim Bunning's Perfect game

From opening day, Bunning thrived in the National League being 6–2 in the first two months of the season, and becoming the ace of the pitching staff. On Father's Day he got the start for the first game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets, and on that day, 21 June, he threw the first perfect game in the National League since 1880.

Tracy Stallard started for the Mets in the first game of the doubleheader that day. As the game progressed, Philadelphia scored single runs in both the 1st and 2d innings and had a big inning in the 6th, scoring four runs to give him a 6–0 lead. On the mound, Bunning was having a strong performance against the Mets hitters striking out 10.

For perhaps the only time in the stadium's history, the Shea faithful found themselves rooting for the visitors, caught up in the rare achievement, and roaring for Bunning on every pitch in the ninth inning. His strikeout of John Stephenson for the last out capped the performance.

The "Phold"

Beginnings

On 1 September the Phillies held a 5 1/2 game lead over the Cincinnati Reds and it seemed were in cruise mode to clinching the pennant. TV Guide went to press with a World Series preview that featured a photo of Connie Mack Stadium. (Through the 1968 season, both first-place teams automatically went to the World Series, the only postseason play of that time.) On 7 September, Labor Day, the Phillies split a doubleheader with the Dodgers in Los Angeles while the Reds lost 2 games to the St. Louis Cardinals. That increased the Phillies' lead to 6 1/2 games with 25 left to play. Then things started to go wrong, first with a string of injuries. The next game, Frank Thomas broke his right thumb sliding into second base against Maury Wills, the Dodger shortstop. The number four starter, Ray Culp, started to have problems with his right elbow; Dennis Bennett began having a sore arm. Art Mahaffey began to have control problems, being taken out in the first inning on 8 September and then in his next start, against the San Francisco Giants, being taken out in the third.

Things appeared to settle down on 13 September when Bunning beat the Giants for his 17th win, and Short and Bennett followed up with wins over the Houston Colt .45s. However, Bunning replaced Culp for the start on the 16th for the last game against Houston and, pitching on two days rest, gave up a two-run home run by Rusty Staub and lasted only 4 1/3 innings (charged with 4 more runs). On 20 September, Bunning beat the Dodgers 3–2, throwing a five-hitter. Bunning remembered that the club had been shaky; the Phillies almost blew the game in the ninth when Vic Power made an error, leading to two unearned runs. Then Bunning finished the game by striking out the Dodger catcher, Johnny Roseboro. After the game, a reporter from Sports Illustrated photographed Bunning. It was to be on the cover of the magazine for its World Series edition in October.

During the month, the club had gone 12–9 and the lead over Reds remained at 6 1/2 games with 12 games to play. However, the win over the Dodgers on the 20th would be the last win by the Phillies in September.

"The Curse of Chico Ruiz"

On 21 September, the team returned to Philadelphia to begin a three-game series (a sweep of that series would've clinched the flag for the Phils) against the Reds as part of a seven-game homestand, which included four against the Milwaukee Braves. Then the Phillies would go on the road, play three games in St. Louis, and end the season with 2 games in Cincinnati.

Art Mahaffey began his first start since a 9–1 loss to the Giants on the 12th, pitching against John Tsitouris in the first game against the Reds. It was a pitchers' duel until the 6th inning when Chico Ruiz hit a single which was followed up by Vada Pinson hitting a line drive through the pitcher's box and past second base until Johnny Callison got the ball and threw out Pinson as he tried to reach 2d base. Ruiz made it over to third on the play. Frank Robinson then came up to bat, and swung and missed for strike one. Ruiz, on third, noted that Mahaffey had not checked him before pitching. On the next pitch, Ruiz broke for home plate. Surprised, Mahaffey pitched high and wild and the Phillies' catcher, Clay Dalrymple, jumped high but missed the ball, which went back to the screen. Ruiz successfully stole Home Plate, giving the Reds the lead and the game's only run. Richie (later Dick) Allen said of the play: "The play broke our humps."

Chico Ruiz's steal of home has evolved into a popular culture legend. Some Philadelphia sports fans still refer to the "Curse of Chico Ruiz" as the reason for many of their teams' misfortunes.

The Collapse

In the next game, manager Gene Mauch rode Robinson, Ruiz and the rest of the Reds hard from the dugout, yelling over at them constantly about Ruiz and his stealing home the night before. The Reds responded with Frank Robinson hitting a two-run homer off Chris Short, who had to be taken out in the fifth inning. The Phillies lost and their lead was down to 4 1/2 games. In the third game of the series with the Reds, things went from bad to worse, when Dennis Bennett lasted six innings with a sore arm as the Phillies lost again, 6–4, with Pinson and Ruiz hitting home runs. The lead was now down to 3 1/2 games.

Milwaukee came in next and Bunning was the starter in game one. Joe Torre drove in three runs with two triples due to misplays in the outfield in a 5–3 loss, the fourth in a row. Then Chris Short pitched on two days rest in the next game, the Phillies lost, and the losing streak was at five, with the lead now down to a game and a half. The Braves then beat the Phillies, 6–4 (Art Mahaffey starting for the Phillies), and the lead dropped to a half-game over the Reds. Bunning then came in for game four, also pitching on two days rest, and lasted three innings in a 14–8 loss. With the fourth loss against the Braves and the 7th loss in a row, the Phillies dropped to second and the Reds, having swept a doubleheader, took first place by 1 game. The Cardinals were right behind, a game and a half out of first place. The Phillies had lost every game of their last homestand of the season.

The crucial series came when the now second-place Phillies traveled to St. Louis to play the Cardinals after their losing home stand. They dropped the first game of the series to Bob Gibson by a 5–1 score, their eighth loss in a row, dropping them to third place. The Cardinals would sweep the three-game set and assume first place for good.

The losing steak ended in Cincinnati during the last two games of the season with wins of 4–3 and 10–0 over the Reds. However, there were no playoffs in 1964 and the second-place Phillies ended the season at 92–70, tied with the Reds. It was the best season by the Phillies since the 1950 pennant winning Wiz Kids, but there was no joy in the city of Brotherly Love. The "Phold," as the ten-game loss streak is known, is one of the most notable collapses in sports history.

Epilogue

Richie Allen

Richie Allen (later known as Dick Allen) had one of the greatest seasons by a Rookie ever in major league baseball in 1964. He led the National League in runs (125), triples (13), extra base hits (80) and total bases (352); he finished in the top five in batting average (.318), slugging average (.557), hits (201), and doubles (38); and won Rookie of the Year. Allen boasted a powerful and muscular physique, and 18 of his 29 home runs cleared Connie Mack Stadium's 65-foot-high left field Grandstand, and twice cleared that park's 65-foot-high right center field scoreboard, a feat considered virtually impossible for a right-handed hitter.

Allen was also one of the most controversial players in Philadelphia for some notable non-baseball incidents. Allen spoke his mind, combatted racism, and bucked organizational hierarchy; he almost ended his career in 1967 after mangling his throwing hand by pushing it through a car headlight. Allen was fined $2,500 and suspended indefinitely in 1969 when he failed to appear for the Phillies twi-night doubleheader game with the New York Mets. (He would be reinstated, and, despite wanting to be traded, agreed to finish the season with the Phillies.) Allen had gone to New Jersey in the morning to see a horse race, and got caught in traffic trying to return. He was traded in 1970 to the Cardinals for Curt Flood, and even this caused controversy, though not of Allen's making. Flood refused to report to the Phillies and subsequently sued Major League Baseball in an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the reserve clause and to be declared a free agent (Flood's lawsuit failed, however the reserve clause was thrown out in 1975). After leaving the Phillies, he asked to be called "Dick", saying Richie was a little boy's name. He played for several teams, and then went into a controversial retirement in 1974.

Early in the 1975 season, Phillies general manager Paul Owens wanted a right-handed power hitter and a first baseman. Both Mike Schmidt and Dave Cash lobbied Owens to acquire Dick Allen. Allen had to be persuaded by several of his future teammates that both the organizational and racial climate in Philadelphia had changed for the better since his 1969 departure from the team. On May 4, the Phillies traded their first baseman Willie Montañez (who came from the Cardinals in 1970 as compensation after Curt Flood refused to report as part of the Allen trade) to the Giants for Garry Maddox which provided a bat for the outfield and opened first for Allen. The Phillies acquired Allen three-days later on May 7, 1975.

Allen found Veterans Stadium much to his liking, putting several home-run balls into the far parts of the upper deck. He was part of the 1976 Phillies National League East Championship team, before leaving for the Oakland Athletics for his final season in 1977. Many people believe that Allen is the best major league player not in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Jim Bunning

The perfect game was the highlight of the Philadelphia career of Bunning, who became a fan favorite and the club's ace starter for the next four seasons, being one of the most dominant pitchers in the Major Leagues. From 1964 through 1967, Bunning led MLB pitchers in fWAR and innings pitched, ranked second in the NL in wins, ranked second in the NL in games started, and ranked third in the NL in ERA. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates prior to the 1968 season, was briefly with the Dodgers, then returned to the Phillies for two mediocre seasons during 1970 and 1971. He pitched the first game at Veterans Stadium in April 1971, beating the Montreal Expos. Largely on account of the perfect game and three 19-win seasons (1964–1966) with the Phillies, today Bunning is memorialized in the Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame (1984), and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans' Committee in 1996.

Thirty years later, Bunning, by then a member of Congress, talked about The "Phold" to David Halberstam and said that to understand what happened, you had to be there and be caught up in the emotions and excitement of the pennant race. Also, there was a belief by the Phillies that they could prevail simply by sheer will. Pitching on short rest, the injuries, and the reality that pitching with a good deal more fatigue than he recognized all led to a loss of confidence. Players began to have doubts when before there were no doubts. The team began to run the bases poorly and throw badly, missing easy plays and making errors they would not normally have made.

Rick Wise

Rick Wise, who won the second game against the Mets after Bunning's perfect game, became a solid starter and the ace of the Phillies pitching staff in the years after the 1964 season. In 1971 he threw a no-hitter against the Reds and hit two home runs in the game at Riverfront Stadium. As a result of a salary dispute, he was traded by the Phillies in the spring of 1972 to the Cardinals for Steve Carlton, who was also having salary issues. Carlton went on to anchor the Phillies pitching staff for the next thirteen seasons, ultimately winning 329 games and a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Wise went from the Cardinals to the Red Sox in 1974. He was the winning pitcher for the Red Sox in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series over the Cincinnati Reds, considered by some to be the greatest Series game ever played.

Wise was the last member of the 1964 Philadelphia Phillies team to be active in the major leagues, pitching 2 innings of relief (7th & 8th innings) for the San Diego Padres against the Los Angeles Dodgers on 10 April 1982.

Echoes of the 1964 Season

The Phillies finished sixth in the National League in 1965, and began to slide back into mediocrity. It was not until the 1976 season, twelve seasons later, that the Phillies won the National League Eastern Division Championship; losing to the Reds in the playoffs (Dick Allen and Tony Taylor were part of the '76 Phillies). The 1977 and 1978 teams also won the National League East, but both lost to the Dodgers in the playoffs; it wasn't until the 1980 Philadelphia Phillies (managed by '64 alumnus Dallas Green along with Bobby Wine and Ruben Amaro as coaches) won both the National League Pennant against the Houston Astros and also the World Series against the Kansas City Royals that the stigma of the 1964 "Phold" was fully erased after sixteen seasons.

The '64 Phillies are immortalized in American pop culture via numerous book chapters, magazine articles, and newspaper columns. At least three full-length books are devoted to the '64 Phillies: non-fiction books The 1964 Phillies: The Story of Baseball's Most Memorable Collapse by John P. Rossi and September Swoon: Richie Allen, the '64 Phillies, and Racial Integration by William C. Kashatis; and a novel based on the '64 Phillies collapse titled '64 Intruder, by Gregory T. Glading, which centers on a Phillies fan going back in time and preventing Chico Ruiz from stealing home in the "Phold's" first loss. A 2014 Twitter feed @epic64collapse provides a day-by-day account of the entire season.

The Philadelphia Baseball Wall of Fame honors no less than five 1964 Phillies players: Richie Allen, Jim Bunning, Johnny Callison, Dallas Green and Tony Taylor. Manager Gene Mauch is also honored.

Notable transactions

• April 6, 1964: Darrell Sutherland was selected off waivers from the Phillies by the New York Mets as a first-year waiver pick.
• June 19, 1964: Joe Lis was signed as an amateur free agent by the Phillies.
• August 7, 1964: Wayne Graham, Gary Kroll, and cash were traded by the Phillies to the New York Mets for Frank Thomas.

Season standings

National League	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
St. Louis Cardinals	93	69	0.574	—	48–33	45–36
Philadelphia Phillies	92	70	0.568	1	46–35	46–35
Cincinnati Reds	92	70	0.568	1	47–34	45–36
San Francisco Giants	90	72	0.556	3	44–37	46–35
Milwaukee Braves	88	74	0.543	5	45–36	43–38
Pittsburgh Pirates	80	82	0.494	13	42–39	38–43
Los Angeles Dodgers	80	82	0.494	13	41–40	39–42
Chicago Cubs	76	86	0.469	17	40–41	36–45
Houston Colt .45s	66	96	0.407	27	41–40	25–56
New York Mets	53	109	0.327	40	33–48	20–61

Record vs. opponents

1964 National League Records Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
Team	CHC	CIN	HOU	LAD	MIL	NYM	PHI	PIT	SF	STL
Chicago	—	6–12	11–7	10–8	8–10	11–7	6–12	9–9	9–9	6–12
Cincinnati	12–6	—	12–6	14–4–1	9–9	11–7	9–9	8–10	7–11	10–8
Houston	7–11	6–12	—	7–11	12–6	9–9	5–13	5–13	7–11	8–10
Los Angeles	8–10	4–14–1	11–7	—	8–10	15–3–1	8–10	10–8	6–12	10–8
Milwaukee	10–8	9–9	6–12	10–8	—	14–4	10–8	12–6	9–9	8–10
New York	7–11	7–11	9–9	3–15–1	4–14	—	3–15	6–12	7–11	7–11
Philadelphia	12-6	9–9	13–5	10–8	8–10	15–3	—	10–8	10–8	5–13
Pittsburgh	9–9	10–8	13–5	8–10	6–12	12–6	8–10	—	8–10	6–12
San Francisco	9–9	11–7	11–7	12–6	9–9	11–7	8–10	10–8	—	9–9
St. Louis	12–6	8–10	10–8	8–10	10–8	11–7	13–5	12–6	9–9	—

Game log

Legend
	Phillies win
	Phillies loss
	Postponement
Bold	Phillies team member

Roster

1964 Philadelphia Phillies
Roster
Pitchers 27 Jack Baldschun 59 Dave Bennett 23 Dennis Bennett 19 John Boozer 14 Jim Bunning 37 Ray Culp 18 Ryne Duren 46 Dallas Green 45 Johnny Klippstein 55 Gary Kroll 19 Bobby Locke 28 Art Mahaffey 26 Cal McLish 17 Ed Roebuck 35 Bobby Shantz 41 Chris Short 58 Morrie Steevens 18 Rick Wise		Catchers 11 Clay Dalrymple  9 Gus Triandos Infielders 15 Dick Allen 20 Rubén Amaro 62 Vic Power 31 Costen Shockley  5 Roy Sievers  8 Tony Taylor 45 Frank Thomas  7 Bobby Wine		Outfielders 12 Johnny Briggs  6 Johnny Callison 10 Danny Cater 43 Wes Covington 25 Tony González 22 John Herrnstein 26 Alex Johnson 54 Adolfo Phillips 16 Cookie Rojas Other batters 29 Pat Corrales 12 Don Hoak		Manager  4 Gene Mauch Coaches  3 Peanuts Lowrey  1 George Myatt  5 Bob Oldis  2 Al Widmar

Player stats

= Indicates team leader

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted In; SB = Stolen bases

Pos	Player	G	AB	R	H	Avg.	HR	RBI	SB
C	Clay Dalrymple	127	382	36	91	.238	6	46	0
1B	John Herrnstein	125	303	38	71	.234	6	25	1
2B	Tony Taylor	154	570	62	143	.251	4	46	13
3B	Dick Allen	162	632	125	201	.318	29	91	3
SS	Bobby Wine	126	283	28	60	.212	4	34	1
LF	Wes Covington	129	339	37	95	.280	13	58	0
CF	Tony González	131	421	55	117	.278	4	40	0
RF	Johnny Callison	162	654	101	179	.274	31	104	6

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted In; SB = Stolen bases

Player	G	AB	R	H	Avg.	HR	RBI	SB
Cookie Rojas	109	340	58	99	.291	2	31	1
Rubén Amaro	129	299	31	79	.264	4	34	1
Gus Triandos	73	188	17	47	.250	8	33	0
Danny Cater	60	152	13	45	.294	7	26	0
Frank Thomas	39	143	20	42	.294	7	26	0
Roy Sievers	49	120	7	22	.183	4	16	0
Vic Power	18	48	1	10	.208	0	3	0

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Jim Bunning	41	284	19	8	2.63	219
Chris Short	42	221	17	9	2.20	181
Dennis Bennett	41	208	12	14	3.68	125
Art Mahaffey	34	157	12	9	4.53	80

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Ray Culp	30	135	8	7	4.13	96

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Jack Baldschun	71	6	9	21	3.12	96
John Boozer	22	3	4	2	5.07	51
Ryne Duren	2	0	0	0	6.00	5

Farm system

See also: Minor league baseball

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Arkansas Travelers	Pacific Coast League	Frank Lucchesi
AA	Chattanooga Lookouts	Southern League	Andy Seminick
A	Bakersfield Bears	California League	Moose Johnson
A	Miami Marlins	Florida State League	Bobby Morgan
A	Eugene Emeralds	Northwest League	Bob Wellman
A	Spartanburg Phillies	Western Carolinas League	Dick Teed

References

• 1964 Philadelphia Phillies team page at Baseball Reference
• 1964 Philadelphia Phillies team page at www.baseball-almanac.com