High Hopes: A Phillies Podcast - Mound Visit Ep. 7: The Top Ten Homeruns in Citizens Bank Park History

Episode Date: March 19, 2019

On episode 7 of Mound Visit, Tim Kelly is joined by Tom McCarthy, Scott Franzke, Chris Wheeler and Scott Graham to talk about the ten best home runs in CBP history. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Introducing TD Insurance for Business, with customized coverage options for your business. Because at TD Insurance, we understand that your business is unique, so your business insurance should be too. Contact a licensed TD Insurance advisor to learn more. You know what's great about ambition? You can't see it. Some things look ambitious, but looks can be deceiving. Some things look ambitious, but looks can be deceiving. For example, a runner could be training for a marathon, or they could be late for the bus. You never know.

Ambition is on the inside. So that goal to be the ultimate soccer parent? Keep chasing it. Drive your ambition. Mitsubishi Motors. This is the High Hopes Podcast. High Hopes. It's a bunch of baseball nerds.

Well, without the computers. Talking about the Philadelphia Phillies. On Radio.com and Sports Radio 94 WIP. Welcome to a very special edition of Mound Visit here on Sports Radio 94 WIP. I'm Tim Kelly. 2019 will be the 16th season that the Phillies have played their home games at Citizens Bank Park and with the additions of Bryce Harper and JT Real Muto along with the continued presence of someone like Reese Hoskins who has 40 home run power, the Phillies figure to have plenty of memorable home runs this season. But in the first 15 seasons, which included probably the best stretch in franchise history,

the Phillies hit quite a few memorable home runs at Citizens Bank Park. I'm joined in this episode by Scott Franski, Tom McCarthy, Chris Wheeler, and Scott Graham, who are on the call for some of the most important home runs in Phillies history to put together a list of the top 10 home runs hit by Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Let's kick it off with number 10. Number 10. Cliff Lee returned to the Philadelphia Phillies ahead of the 2011 season and made due on great expectations, finishing third in a very crowded National League Cy Young award race. But on July 9th, 2011, he paid dividends for the Phillies in another way, expectations, finishing third in a very crowded National League Cy Young award race.

But on July 9th, 2011, he paid dividends for the Phillies in another way, taking the late Tommy Hansen deep in a nationally televised game between the Phillies and the Atlanta Braves. We're not able to play you the call, but Tommy Hansen's home run was actually called by Braves ace Jair Juergens, who spent about 15 seconds saying, no, no, no. And that's one of the things that made this such a memorable moment and why it's on this list. Number nine. Chase Utley didn't make his 2012 debut until June 27th, but you can guess what he did in

that first at bat. In a bat against the Pittsburgh Pirates after homering in that first at-bat. In an at-bat against the Pittsburgh Pirates, after homering in his first at-bat in a minor league rehab appearance, Chase Udley hit a deep ball into the right center field stands, and Tom McCarthy, who was on the call for NBC Sports Philadelphia, remembered the magical moment. The thing about Chase is that he always understood the moment. That's what we always said.

Even when he came back from the Dodgers, he understood the moment. Even his first at-bat in the big leagues, he understood the moment. That's what we always said. Even when he came back from the Dodgers, he understood the moment. Even his first at-bat in the big leagues, he understood the moment. So to us, I think he was so amped up and he reads pictures so well that he got something that he could drive. It is incredible to me, though, to think about when the moment hits. Think about Game 1 of the 2008 World Series when he homered against the Rays and just what that did to the Phillies, too. So it didn't shock us at all that he did it.

I mean, in fact, I think a lot of us thought that he was going to do something special when he came back that day. Number 8. In 2008, Ryan Howard got off to an extremely slow start for the Phillies, hitting just 168 in April. That meant that somebody else had to step up and carry the offensive workload, and that's exactly what Pat Burrell did, homering eight times and driving in 24 runs in April of 2008.

That success carried into May, when on May 2, 2008, Burrell hit a 10th inning walk-off home run against Brian Wilson of the San Francisco Giants, who didn't yet have his beard. He hit that home run and it led to an iconic call by Harry Callas, where Callas just said, Pat Burrow, Pat Burrow, multiple times, like he was excited for Burrow, but also surprised at how good of a start to the season he had had. It turns out he was a huge fan of Pat Burrow,

and Chris Wheeler, Harry's longtime broadcast partner, talked about that dynamic. There's something that comes into play that, you know, people maybe they can hear it or see it or get a feel for it, but we all have our favorite guys. We all have guys that you like more than others. You know, you want them to do well when they're in your uniform, but they're not always as sweet, as, nicest, most fun people to be around.

Harry absolutely loved Pat Burrell. I just, there was something about that. I did, too, to be honest with you. I had a great relationship with the guy because he could be a little surly sometimes with certain people. But Harry and Pat had a very, very good relationship. And I think any time Bur Earl did something or had success, because as you say, he had so many ups and downs in Philadelphia,

that Harry was openly, and there's nothing wrong with this, Harry was openly rooting for Pat Pearl to do things well. So when he hit that home run and he had the fast start that year, we were all really happy for him because we liked him so much and we knew what he had been through. Number 7. August 30, 2007 is one of the most memorable games in Phillies history as the Phillies completed a ninth-inning comeback

against former Phillies closer Billy Wagner on a walk-off single by Chase Aldy that allowed them to sweep the New York Mets in four games as the National League East race tightened up. In the first inning of that game, though, Ryan Howard completed another memorable moment, launching a home run to left center field that was initially estimated to be 505 feet. While modern technology says it went about 474 feet, it was still one of the most memorable home runs in Citizens Bank Park history and one that Scott Franski, the radio voice of the Phillies here on Sports Radio 94 WIP,

joined me to talk about. I mean, I think that was an area of the ballpark that we always thought Ryan Howard could reach. And, you know, you can't really guide him to get out of there. And I know he pulled a lot of them but he had such great opposite field power and great power to center as well and you know it's one of those things that just leaves you with your mouth sort of wide open gaping at it you know. Number six. Who hit the first home run at Citizens Bank Park? Well it depends upon who you ask. Jim Tomey hit the first home run at Citizens Bank Park,

a second-deck shot, and an on-deck series game. That game, of course, did not count. The first official home run at Citizens Bank Park came off the bat of Bobby Abreu. It was an opposite-field home run on April 12, 2004. These two home runs check in on the countdown as the first home runs at Citizens Bank Park, and I spoke to Chris Wheeler and Scott Graham in on the countdown as the first home runs at Citizens Bank Park. And I spoke to Chris Wheeler and Scott Graham about what it meant for the first two home runs at a new stadium to come from two of the greatest hitters to ever

play for the team. Yeah, because Bobby won the home run derby one year. Because Bobby could hit home runs if he wanted to. Bobby was one of those guys like Tony Gwynn. Those kind of players each row they say was like that too. They could have hit a lot of home runs, but that wasn't their style. That wasn't the way they

played. They were more alley-to-alley gaps type of guys. Bobby could really run too. Bobby could get doubles and triples. He wasn't a home run hitter. Jim Tomey was a home run hitter. Someone told me, I think it was Tito, Terry Francona told me before we got him, he says,

he even looks good when he swings and misses. He's got such a pretty swing, as Jim told me. I'll never forget that, because we saw him swing and miss a lot, because he struck out a lot. But to see both those guys hit home runs, you're right. They're two very, very different people that hit those home run balls.

Very different players, very different type of hitters. But the first in a ballpark was always kind of cool. He didn't have the ability to rise to a moment, regardless of what the situation was. I can think of a number of things that he did over the course of time when he was with the Phillies before they got to Citizens Bank Park. I mean, the hurricane game, the big home run that he hit in 2003,

or that unbelievable Saturday afternoon game against the Red Sox that Todd Pratt won with a three-run home run, told me he's home run twice to tie that game with the Red Sox in the lead, in the eighth and in the twelfth. So Jim was capable of rising to an occasion. Apropos, the first opportunity to hit a

ball out in the brand new ballpark that Jim kind of christened it. People remember Bobby was not with the home run derby at the All-Star game being the exception. He wasn't really a home run hitter per se. But what I remember most about that period of time was we were all so

completely in on the new ballpark that, and, you know, when we first got there for the first day that we played, you know, when we first got there for the first day that we played, you know, it was a period of time it was wet for the on-deck series. And there were still some things that had just been finished up. There was, you know, some dust from ceilings that was still on the floor. I mean, the place was literally just finished. And I think when you start looking at those types of moments, it makes it so that it's home a lot quicker.

Number five. On June 20, 2006, the Phillies lost 9-7 to the New York Yankees at Citizens Bank Park. But what's remembered about that game is that eventual NL MVP Ryan Howard drove in seven runs, including a three-run home run into the third deck in right field off of future Hall of Famer Mike Musina. In the Phillies dugout, Brett Myers and Ryan Madsen, two of his teammates, geeked out. In the other dugout, Yankees manager Joe Torre gave a deadpan reaction. Scott Franski, the radio voice of the Phillies right here on Sports Radio 94 WIP,

says this is the game that turned Howard into a national figure. And it was one of those things, again, that sort of the legend started to build with Ryan Howard at that point. I mean, you know, talk of him as a youngster coming through the system, getting a chance finally, you know, being moved out and giving Ryan that full-time chance. I thought that was one of those things that not only

cemented his legacy or really started his legacy with the Phillies, but I think it also started to open people's eyes nationally. Given that it was off a guy like Messina, off the Yankees, you get a reaction like Joe Torre's,

and then everybody starts to take notice. And I think that's when Ryan starts to sort of tip the scales into being not just a local star, but a national star as well. Number four. Ryan Howard broke Mike Schmidt's single-season Phillies home run record in 2006 by launching his 49th home run at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. While Phillies fans weren't there in person to see Ryan Howard's record-breaking home run, they got another treat a few days later when on September 3, 2006,

Ryan launched three home runs in a day game at Citizens Bank Park, making him the first Philly to ever hit 50 home runs. Scott Graham and Harry Callis were on the call, and Graham says, and Graham is on every network calling some level of football, basketball, he's called baseball. He says what Ryan

did in 2006 is still one of the most amazing things he's ever seen in professional sports. I mean, we were in the middle of a wave that was going on at that point that was unlike anything anybody had ever seen. I mean, I'd have to go back and take a look at my scorebook to know for sure, because every once in a while there was a Fox game where I would only do three innings of play-by-play, but I'm going to guess that I called almost every one of Ryan Howard's home runs that year.

And in that wave of what was going on, it appeared like he was capable of hitting the ball out of the ballpark in any at-bat, any pitch. in any at-bat, any pitch. And I remember being incredulous that he reached out and kind of poked at it almost. His ability to be able to generate power the other way was what was eye-popping about him when he first got to the big leagues. It was that ability to take that outside pitch and hit it with such authority in the other

direction, to the opposite field. We first saw it and it was like, wow, that's not bad. And then over the course of time, over the course of the year, it was amazing to the point where pitchers were starting to try to bust him inside to get his arms in and not have him be able to get the head of the bat out on a pitch away because he was so dangerous there. I remember that home run. I remember being on the airport.

I remember being amazed. And my first thought was, I believe, if I remember it correctly, I wasn't sure it was out. And it was out. It was out by a significant amount. But I think that the lack of belief on my part was, from my angle, it didn't look like the same kind of authoritative, I just hit this bomb the other way.

But at the same time, in part, it was also, he can't do this again, right? Number three. On June 14, 2004, Jim Tomey launched his 400th career home run into the left center field stands at Citizens Bank Park against the Cincinnati Reds. What a lot of people don't remember is that there was actually a 2-hour and 18-minute rain delay in that game before it became official, so there was a chance that the first iconic home run at Citizens Bank Park would come off the board, the game would be rained out,

and Tomey would have to hit his 400th home run a second time. I talked to Chris Wheeler and Scott Graham about that dynamic and also about not making the home run call bigger than what it was. Harry had the ability to capture a moment more than anybody I've ever been around. Maybe most guys would ever have done broadcasting for a living. And he was geared that night that if Tomey hit that home run, and it was an easy one to call for him because even though it went to left center field,

Tomey had that unbelievable power to left center, and you just knew when he launched one that it wasn't just going to be a fence scraper or something. So it's the ideal thing for a play-by-play announcer, having done it myself, that when you know it's gone, because you just know it, and then you can work on it. So in that case, he knew it was gone off the bat, and he just made a tremendous, tremendous call about it. You obviously did a lot of color work, but you also did play-by-play as well. What would it have been like for Harry to have gone through that moment,

made the call, and then the rain erases it and you have to do it over again? Harry always had a great ability to live in the moment. I'm sure that he would have been very, very disappointed the way we all would have been because there was some, but we kind of knew that night or the forecast had been because it was a summer type of a storm that it was thunderstorms coming through, and unless something stalled for three or four hours, you know, we weren't going into, we weren't going into a system that was going to sit there for the whole night and rain the game out.

So we thought it was going to be played later. But sure, that was always in the back of your mind that, oh no, all this and it's going to be gone just like that because of a rain delay. Harry would have been ready for it the next time because, as I say, he had an uncanny ability

to, when a moment arrived at a game, to rise to it and make tremendous calls. He was just so good at that. You know, we were all anticipating it. Obviously, you know, when you get to something like that, there's going to be a buildup. And we all knew that it could be coming at any time with any of that. So one of the things that you think about in one of those spots is, you know, this is historic. It's happening to a guy that is unquestioned, one of the most popular teammates I've ever been around for anybody.

Everybody loved Jim. So, you know, it was one of those moments. And were we going to get? Was the weather a problem? Yeah. In a baseball season, that kind of thing happens. If I remember correctly, all I was thinking about for mine was trying to make sure that

I didn't try to make the call more than it was. When you've got something that's a 400th home run in somebody's career and a guy who ultimately, as it turns out, is on his way to better than 600 home runs in his career, you try not to insert yourself too much into that moment. Number two.

Joe Bland finished his major league career with a 106 regular season batting average and an 071 average and 14 career postseason at-bats. By all accounts, Blanton was not a good hitter. And yet, as Jeremy Frank points out on Twitter at MLBRandomStats, he actually has more World Series home runs than arguably the greatest hitter of all time in Ted Williams. Why? Because in Game 4 of the 2008 World Series, Blanton went deep out of nowhere in the fifth inning

in one of those moments that made you think, this is going to happen. Scott Franski and Tom McCarthy both shared memories of one of the most electric experiences at Citizens Bank Park ever. I think it gets to be even more iconic with Harry being on the call of that. I think, you know, I think he said, can you believe it or something along those lines. And, yeah, I think it was one of those things where the stadium felt that.

Because it was, you know, one of those swing games and you sort of, you know, the Phillies were showing off their power at that point. They were kind of, I don't know, about stepping on the throats, but they were certainly taking command of that World Series with that game and with such an emphatic win over Tampa in that particular game. I think you're right. I think it let everybody know that, man, everything is going right for us right now. This has to happen for us right now.

We always call him Big Joe. So, obviously, that's one of the things that we always talked about, is that if he could lean into one. But that place was so electric. I mean, think about some of the things that happened in that series. I mean, Victorino's Grand Slam, which I think was one of the biggest home runs that the ballpark has ever seen. It was just good for the guys because the game was out of reach,

but they were so relaxed that it just added to the sort of party. Obviously, I don't think the other dugout thought that, but I think it just added to the whole party and the whole setup. I mean, it was just a, when Citizens Bank Park is filled up, there is not a better ballpark that has that electricity. And I think, you know, the Victorino home run and the Blanton home run, that showed it right there. Number one.

As Tom McCarthy alluded to, number one on the list is Shane Victorino's Grand Slam in Game 2 of the 2008 NLDS against the Milwaukee Brewers. A Grand Slam alone in this setting would have cracked the list. But what made it number one? Brett Myers earlier in the inning had worked a nine pitch at bat. And this came against CeCe Sabathia along with the Grand Slam. CeCe Sabathia, who won a Cy Young Award with the Cleveland Indians, has spent now a decade with the Yankees

and may still be remembered the most for his three-month stint with the Milwaukee Brewers when he became arguably the greatest trade deadline accusation in MLB history, going 11-2 with a 165 ERA, seven complete games, three of which were shutouts in 17 starts. And yet, when it came time to face the Phillies, he ran out of gas. Brett Myers and Shane Victorino specifically made him pay. Victorino, I mean, as home runs go, again, that was one of those that I think signaled to everybody

at the start of the playoff series that, look, hey, like we may really do this. It was, again, I'm not going to use that same word again, but it was another emphatic moment that followed on the heels of Brett Myers and what he had done. The crowd was at such a fever pitch at that point. The crowd was just so over-the-top loud at that moment. It's one of those things where, you know, even looking back now as I think about it, I still get goosebumps thinking about the way the crowd reacted.

goosebumps thinking about the way the crowd reacted. And I think it was an early signal to everybody that the 08 playoffs were going to be a lot different than the 07 playoffs were, which obviously were very short-lived. You know, I was thinking about that, you know, and I think significance-wise, I think you're right. I think it has to be up there. If it's not one, it's two. And I think the Myers at bat has to be connected to it in some way, shape, or form

because the noise at the ballpark, I mean, it was absolutely deafening. I was down the left field line because the secondary press box was down the left field line, and I was down there getting ready to do an interview with somebody, was down the left field line, and I was down there getting ready to do an interview with somebody, and I got a chance to see the trajectory of the ball from left field and the reaction of the crowd. It was incredible. I get chills even when I think about it now. And again, I think a lot of it is because the Myers at bat has to be tied to it because it was so significant in the success of the team in that game.

That was, oh boy. You know, anybody who was lucky enough to be there that night will never forget the energy in the ballpark that night. CeCe was a pitch on three days rest that night because Milwaukee had had a tough time getting there. They needed him in games, so he wasn't like he was real well-rested coming into that. And it's funny, I was in a golf tournament this year

and spent some time with Brett, and I hadn't seen him for a while, and we got to talking about that at bat. And, you know, Brett Myers had a pretty good career, nothing great, but he had some games that he pitched really, really well in. To this day, Tim, he loves talking about that at bat. I think as much as anything that ever happened to him in his career, of what he did with Sabathia and how he just kept trying to keep the ball in play,

trying to keep the at bat alive. Because as he said as a pitcher, he knew what that takes out of you, especially when it's a pitcher doing it to you because sooner or later you just want to say, here, hit it. You know, make it out. And he just wouldn't put one in play. And then finally walks, and then Shane comes up, and early in the count hits that slam.

And the crowd was just so wired at that point because of what Brett had just done. Because our fans get it. They realize they had just witnessed an unbelievable situation of a pitcher because you know you're wearing the other guy out. And this is your pitcher up there doing that. And here comes Shane, and he gets that down, and then I think it was a breaking ball slider. I still remember the pitch was down and in,

and he just dropped the head of the bat on it, and it was out when he hit it because the most dangerous spot for a pitcher to throw to a hitter is down and in. They go the furthest. And that pitch was down and in, and he golfed it out, and it went out really fast. And I'll tell you what, I've been there for a lot of moments of noise and excitement and adrenaline.

But what a rush that was in that game after that. That was one of my favorite all-time moments in all the years I was with the Phillies. Wow, what a journey it's been putting this podcast together. I want to thank Scott Franski, Chris Wheeler, Tom McCarthy, and Scott Graham for taking the time to be a part of this project. Also want to give a special thank you to Jack Fritz for producing the show along with myself. Him and Joe Giglio helped in some consultation on the list. Ultimately, the list was my decision, but they certainly helped,

and so too did many of my Twitter followers. At Tim Kelly Sports, John Bartscher did a tremendous job, as he always does, with the voiceovers. If you disagree with me, I'd love to hear you again. I'm on Twitter at Tim TimKellysports. The show is at High Hopes Pod. And you can email me, TSK, at TimKelleyMedia. Before we go, I do want to mention some home runs that just missed the list.

I put them here at the back end. The first is on May 16, 2008, what really proved to be his first breakout game as a Philly. Jason Werth homered three times against the Toronto Blue Jays. Any of those could have been listed. Reese Hoskins had a scorching hot start to his career in 2017. He hit 18 home runs in his first 170 games. Any of those that came at Citizens Bank Park could have been listed.

Certainly the one where Tom McCarthy goes, it is incredible as the ball lands in the left center field stands. That was a great call. Just missed the list but I certainly think when this list is updated perhaps as soon as next offseason Reese Hoskins will probably have a home run on this list. Dominic Brown homered 12 times in May of 2013

which propelled him to the All-Star game. Any of those home runs could have been featured although the way the rest of his career played out, it's kind of hard for people to get excited about him on a list like this or to put him on a list like this. The one that I really struggled to keep off the list, and if someone wants to complain about anyone not being on the list, it was Ryan Howard's home run in Game 1 of the 2011 NLDS.

I think that's really the last classic home run of the second golden era of Phillies baseball. So if you want to complain about that, that's fine. I do think some people just have tried to erase that series. It's kind of like in Harry Potter, they say, Lord Voldemort is he who must not be named. That series is the series that we just don't talk about because of how it ended for the Phillies and really a symbolic way ended perhaps the greatest run in Phillies history. Chase Utley's home run off of Derek Lowe in Game 1 of the 2008 NLCS

really set the tone for that entire series, that entire postseason. Utley did home run three times in the World Series in Citizens Bank Park in 2009 as well. I will go to my grave thinking Chase Utley should have won MVP in that series. And finally, Mike Calfranco's walk-off home run in 2018 with the powder blue jerseys and him flipping his helmet off. Super memorable moment. The problem is the rest of the season really went poorly for the Phillies. So it's hard to put that on this list over a couple of...

Perhaps I just enjoyed that Cliff Lee home run with the Jair Juergens narration and certainly look that up if you don't remember because it is a great call. But I really appreciate everyone listening to this, sharing this, and again, everyone that chimed in on Twitter and everyone that helped me put this together. I'm Tim Kelly. I will catch you guys next time. All-Star Closer, Kenley Jansen, we have a question. What's the best podcast of all time? Baseball isn't boring, baby. I'm Rob Bradford, and every single day I'm sitting down with the biggest names to show you this great game is the greatest game it's my podcast it's my passion it's a cause

i started more than two years ago and it's now the most prolific national daily baseball pod there is another fact so jump aboard the bib express follow and listen to baseball isn't boring presented by wasabi hot cloud storage on the free odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts