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Last night, Chris Coste served as the DH for the Phillies and went 0 for 4 and became part of a long string of mostly inept National Leaguers in the DH spot in the World Series.
Although the DH was adopted in 1973, it was not used in the World Series until 1976. Cincinnati used Dan Driessen as the DH in all four games and Driessen did a good job, going 5 for 14, including a home run off of Dock Ellis of the Yankees in Game 3. (Warning: potentially long and boring discussion that inolves Tom Goodwin after the jump.)
The next year for the DH was 1978 and the Dodgers tried Lee Lacy in three games, Rick Monday in two, and Vic Davalillo in Game 6. The Dodgers DHs combined for a 4 for 18 performance.
In 1980, Phillies manager Dallas Green hit upon the idea of using good hitters and poor fielders as his DHs and he happened to have three players on his roster who fit the bill: Greg Luzinski, Lonnie Smith, and Keith Moreland. Moreland was 4 for 12, but Luzinski and Smith did nothing as DHs.
Two years later, Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog used an effective platoon of Dane Iorg and Gene Tenace, along with some help from Steve Braun and Lonnie Smith and pinch running from David Green, to get some of the best use of the DH spot by any NL manager in the World Series. The Cardinals DHs were 12 for 28.
Kurt Bevacqua of the Padres had what is arguably the greatest moment in San Diego Padres World Series history with a 3-run homer off of Dan Petry of the Tigers in Game 2 to give the Padres their only win of the series. Bevacqua would also homer in Game 5 and went 7 for 17 overall. Bevacqua parlayed these heroics along with a feud with Tommy Lasorda into a period of semi-celebrity.
In 1986, the current format where the DH is used only in the AL park was adopted. The Mets could get just two hits out of the combined efforts of Lee Mazzilli, Danny Heep, and Kevin Mitchell. Heep drive in two runs off of Oil Can Boyd in Game 3.
By 1987, when Whitey Herzog had another shot at the World Series with the Cardinals, he tried Tom Pagnozzi, Tony Pena, and Terry Pendleton, and they were 6 for 13.
The Dodgers still won the World Series in 1988 despite having Mike Davis, Danny Heep, and Dave Anderson as DHs. Davis homered in Game 5.
In the A's sweep of the Giants in 1989, Ernest Riles was hitless as the DH. The next year, Hal Morris of the Reds went hitless as the A's were swept.
Lonnie Smith cemented his status as the greatest NL postseason DH by playing all seven games in the position for the Braves in 1991 and 1992. Smith had just four hits in those games, but one was a grand slam in Game 5 of the 1992 Series in Toronto.
Philadelphia's next shot at the World Series, in 1993, saw Ricky Jordan and Mariano Duncan get DH duty. They had three hits combined.
In the Braves appearances in the World Series in 1995, 1996, and 1999, Bobby Cox tried Ryan Klesko, Mike Devereaux, Mike Mordecai, Terry Pendleton, Ozzie Guillen, Jose Hernandez, and Keith Lockhart. They combined for 10 hits in 12 games and Klesko hit two homers in 1995, the record for an NL DH in the World Series.
Florida's 1997 World Series saw Cliff Floyd (who should be DHing in Game 2 tonight), Jim Eisenreich, Kurt Abbot, Alex Arias, and Darren Daulton handle DH duty and they got six hits.
In 1998, the Padres second, even briefer, appearance in the World Series saw Jim Leyritz and Greg Vaughn as DHs. Neither got a hit.
Two years later, the Mets used Mike Piazza in Game 1 and he went 1 for 5. Lenny Harris was 0 for 4 in Game 2.
In 2001, Arizona used Erubiel Durazo to start all three games at Yankee Stadium and Danny Bautista also got an AB. Durazo had four hits.
Dusty Baker used the motliest crew of DHs ever in a World Series in 2002: Tsuyoshi Shinjo, Tom Goodwin, Shawon Dunston, and Pedro Feliz. It almost worked as Dunston got one of the Giants three hits by a DH and it was almost the game-winning homer in Game 6. Almost. No NL DH has homered since then.
That brought us up to 2003 when Jeff Conine was the Florida DH for all three of its games in Yankee Stadium and Conine had just one hit.
St. Lous gave Reggie Sanders, Marlon Anderson, and So Taguchi shots as DHs against Boston in 2004. 0 for 6.
Jeff Bagwell concluded his major league career as a starter as a DH for the Astros in Games 1 and 2 of the 2005 Series in Chicago. Bagwell had one hit and got hit by a pitch twice.
Given another chance, Tony La Russa used Chris Duncan, Preston Wilson, and Scott Spiezio as DHs in 2006. Duncan had an RBI double in Game 1 and that was it.
And who was the DH for Colorado last year? Why, none other than Ryan Spilborghs. He was 0 for 5 in two games and struck out in all three at bats in Game 2.
Tonight's lineups:
Philllies
Myers SP
Rays
Shields SP
Chances of winning the W.S.
Situation: Current
Phillies: 53.22%
Rays: 46.78%
Situation: Phillies Win Game #2
Phillies: 74.85%
Rays: 25.15%
Situation: Rays Win Game #2
Phillies: 40.03%
Rays: 59.97%
A 34.82% swing in probabilities of winning the World Series on tonight's game.
vr, Xei
And why, dare I ask, did they not use it at all for three years and then only use the DH in alternating years until '86 Bob?
vr, Xei
Because the AL and NL were more autonomous at the time. And they liked to disagree.
I assume you had a happy birthday yesterday!
Clearly Bob overlooked one of the classics.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0268483/
and yes I did, thank you Bob! The only problem was realizing that the last time the Phils won a WS game I was only 1/3 of the age I am now....woah...
I was told that there would be no algebra on this thread.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3660700
I don't know. He's been laughing at the program recently. This probably made him laugh out loud.
It means they draft and develop, or trade for, an effective extra hitter and train him for that particular task. The AL team's best hitter is often its DH, while the NL often uses one of its worst hitters in that role, or makes a defensive substitution that adds a worse (than the AL) player to the lineup.
Is the AL edge nullified by the non-use of the DH in the NL park? I don't think so. The overall offensive capability of an American League team is better because of the DH. Whether the DH sits or another player sits while the DH takes the field, you've got a starting player available for pinch-hitting and double switches, while the NL manager has a bench comprised of one or two pinch-hit specialists and late-inning defensive replacements.
The presence or absence of that one little player changes the nature and strategy of a team. The amplitude of the adjustment is greater for the NL team than the AL.
It's not a solvable problem, unless both leagues adopt a consistent policy on the DH.
Hey Bob...whatever happened to World Series DH Damon Minor?
Yes, it will and hopefully UCLA is the biggest benefactor of that.
11 , so you'd prefer we say "The first time the Phillies won the World Series"?
Floyd seems like the quintessential DH type. Aybar was quite a find for Tampa Bay. Where'd they dig that guy up? Some team must have a lot of depth in their farm system if they could let go of a hitter like that. ;)
If only Van Halen sang about Venezuela.
Or are Buck and McCarver like Billy Mumy's character in the "Twilight Zone?"
I believe I read more of a two-year guy, but could possibly go after one.
Not that it helps much. I'd be curious as to what the worst record for that is in a 9 inning game.
...after rambling for about three innings about how good the '83 Phils were thanks to Tony Perez and (somehow) Dave Concepcion...
yes, um, whatever you say is right, Bob.
Both Baseball-Reference.com and MLB.com list Ruiz from Panama and Navarro from Venezuela.
It's not like Bob just made that up. McCarver and Buck were wrong.
Morgan is calling this game, for ESPN Radio.
I think you missed the joke there, Eric.
Nahhhh! not likely.
Boston does to an extent like the Dodgers but it comes down to the guys you surround your young players with.
The Phillies have more guys that they drafted in their everyday lineup and they only one have one million dollar plus free agent signing (Feliz) playing regularly for them.
Wheeler was almost used in "smokejumper" fashion.
I don't think Wheeler is as bad as people think. He pitched poorly in Game 5 against the Red Sox, but he also did a great job in Game 2.
And in the 2005 NLDS, he did a great job in the Game 4 marathon for the Astros against the Braves.
Yes, smokejumper was kinda what I was thinking.
1, 2, 3 strikes your out.
Tim Hudson was the last pitcher to lose a CG in the postseason. He did it in 2000 for Oakland against New York in Game 3 of the ALDS.
And it's by Willie Mays.
Game 4 of the 1951 Series.
Last year, Game 4 by Bobby Kielty of Boston.
First ever pinch hit homer by a Phillie in the World Series.
All three of Mays' GIDPs in Game 4 of the 1951 Series came immediately after Bobby Thomson reached base.
George Shuba, 1953
Dusty Rhodes, 1954
Chuck Essegian, 1959 (2)
Jay Johnstone, 1981
Some guy in 1988
Bill Bathe, 1989
Eric Bruntlett, 2008
I think you missed the joke there, Eric
It wasn't the first time, and it certainly won't be the last! :)
4-0 when Price entered the game.
There haven't been all that many in the World Series.
The AL list is:
Yogi Berra, 1947
Johnny Mize, 1952
Hank Majeski, 1954
Bob Cerv, 1955
Elston Howard, 1960
John Blanchard, 1961
Bernie Carbo, 1975 (2)
Chili Davis, 1991
Ed Sprague, 1992
Jason Giambi, 2003
And Bobby Kielty in 2007 as the Beaver.
I would hate being the umpire trying to enforce that.
Yeah, it's not really a feasible idea.
Oh Yeah!
Ryan Howard's pretty ridiculous on defense btw
The Phillies got an infield hit with a runner in scoring position tonight, but it didn't drive in a run.
vr, Xei
Is there any subject that this man feels that he is not the final authority on?
Little man syndrome. Ken the Anti-Bob.
And we'd all be living it up during our one-week stay in Toronto, where the World Series would be played in climate controlled comfort.
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