Mike Schmidt
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| Mike Schmidt | ||
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| Third baseman | ||
| Born: September 27, 1949 Dayton, Ohio |
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| Batted: Right | Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | ||
| September 12, 1972 for the Philadelphia Phillies |
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| Final game | ||
| May 28, 1989 for the Philadelphia Phillies |
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| Career statistics | ||
| Batting average | .267 | |
| Home runs | 548 | |
| Runs batted in | 1,595 | |
| Teams | ||
| Career highlights and awards | ||
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| Member of the National | ||
 Baseball Hall of Fame |
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| Elected | 1995 | |
| Vote | 96.5% (first ballot) | |
Michael Jack Schmidt (born September 27, 1949 in Dayton, Ohio) is a former professional baseball player who played his entire career for the Philadelphia Phillies. Schmidt was voted National League MVP three times, an All-Star 12 times, and received more votes than any other third basemen in 1999's Major League Baseball All-Century Team. In 1995, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame along with another Phillies great Richie Ashburn.[1]
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[edit] Career
[edit] The early days
Mike Schmidt graduated from Fairview High School in Dayton, Ohio, in 1967 and enrolled at the Ohio University in Athens. He quickly established himself as the Bobcats' best player, primarily at shortstop. He was successful in the classroom, as well as on the athletic field, majoring in architecture. He was a member of the Beta Theta Pi Fraternity.
The Phillies drafted Schmidt in the second round (30th overall) of the Major League Baseball Draft in 1971. The player selected immediately before Schmidt was another future Hall of Famer, George Brett.
The Phillies assigned Schmidt to their farm system where he rapidly progressed, joining the Phillies in 1972. In his first full season, 1973, Schmidt struggled, batting only .196.
[edit] Blossoming
Schmidt had a breakout season in 1974, leading the National League in home runs and demonstrating his prowess in the field. For the rest of the 1970s Schmidt excelled with bat and glove, winning two more home-run titles and a succession of Gold Gloves. He helped the Phillies win three straight division titles from 1976 to 1978, the team's first post-season appearances since 1950.
Schmidt had a powerful arm and was especially talented at fielding short grounders barehanded. His 404 assists in 1974 remain a record for third basemen. Schmidt also filled in at shortstop and first base when needed.
On June 10, 1974, Schmidt hit what many felt should have been a home run when the ball hit the public address speaker that hung 117 feet above and 329 feet away from home plate at the Astrodome in Houston. The ball hit the speaker, fell to the field, and, by the Astrodome's ground rules, remained in play. Since Schmidt had already started his slow home-run trot, he was held to a single. (There were runners on first and second when the ball was hit, and they each advanced only one base.) Many experts agree the ball would have traveled in excess of 500 feet.
In 1976, Schmidt hit 12 home runs in Philadelphia's first 15 games, including 4 in one game on April 17[1]. No one had hit this many home runs so quickly. The feat was later tied by Alex Rodriguez in 2007. Schmidt won his first of 10 Gold Gloves that year and carried the Phillies to the 1976 NLCS where he hit .308.
In 1980, Schmidt elevated his game, leading the league in home runs with 48 (by a margin of 13 over his nearest competition), and winning the National League's Most Valuable Player Award in a unanimous vote. The Phillies reached the World Series and, for the first (and only) time in team history, won it, defeating the Kansas City Royals, led by George Brett. Schmidt was selected as MVP of the World Series, hitting two homers and driving in seven runs.
Coincidentally, Schmidt broke the club record for home runs in a season, Chuck Klein's 43 in 1929. Schmidt's team record would stand for 26 years until first baseman and 2006 National League MVP Ryan Howard hit 58 home runs in 2006.
In 1981, the Phillies again reached the postseason and Schmidt won his second MVP Award. In 1983, in celebration of the team's 100th anniversary, Schmidt was voted by fans as the greatest player in the history of the franchise. That year, Schmidt led the Phillies back to the World Series, but they were defeated by the Baltimore Orioles.
In 1985, Schmidt played primarily first base from late-May through the end of the season. In 1986, Schmidt won his third MVP Award, a record for a third baseman. In 1987, Schmidt hit his career 500th home run in Pittsburgh, in the ninth inning of a game, providing the winning margin in an 8-6 victory.
[edit] Relationship with Fans
Philadelphia fans are a tough bunch, and sometimes they got under the skin of the sensitive third baseman. Schmidt once referred to the locals as "beyond help" and Veterans Stadium as a "mob scene, uncontrollable." When it came time to take the field after those comments, Schmidt came out wearing a wig and shades as a gag to hide from the boo-birds. The Veterans Studium crowd erupted in laughter and gave Schmidt a standing ovation.
[edit] Retirement
Injuries to Schmidt's rotator cuff caused him to miss much of the 1988 season. After a poor start to the 1989 season, Schmidt chose suddenly to announce his retirement in San Diego, on May 29. Known as "Captain Cool" by many in Philadelphia sports circles, Schmidt surprised many with an emotional, and occasionally tearful, retirement speech. Despite his poor start and subsequent retirement, or because of it, fans again voted Schmidt to the NL All-Star team.
[edit] Awards
Over his career Schmidt set a vast array of hitting and fielding records. In addition to his MVP Awards, Schmidt won ten Gold Gloves, led the league in home runs eight times, in RBI four times, OPS five times, and walks four times. He was named to twelve All-Star teams. Schmidt finished his career with 548 home runs and 1,595 RBI, two of the many Phillies career records he holds.
In the year after his retirement, Schmidt spent one season as a member of the Phillies broadcast team on the now-defunct PRISM network. He was known as a very candid and honest broadcaster despite his limited experience in the area.
In 1995, Schmidt was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame with what was then the 4th-highest percentage ever, 96.52% (Nolan Ryan and George Brett surpassed his percentage in 1999).
Schmidt opted, at first, to pursue a more private lifestyle after his career, rather than to become a manager or coach. He has written a number of articles on baseball for CBS and regularly participates in charity golf tournaments.
In 1999, he ranked number 28 on The Sporting News's list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, the highest-ranking third baseman, and the highest-ranking player whose career began after 1967. Later that year, he was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.
His uniform number 20 has been retired by the Phillies, and he has been honored with a statue outside the third-base gate at the team's new home, Citizens Bank Park.
[edit] Miscellaneous
Schmidt has publicly expressed his thoughts on various baseball controversies. He has been a vocal advocate for the reinstatement of Pete Rose to baseball. In July 2005, he appeared on Bob Costas' HBO show Costas Now to discuss steroids, and said, "Let me go out on a limb and say that if I had played during that era I would have taken steroids... We all have these things we deal with in life, and I'm surely not going to sit here and say to you guys, 'I wouldn't have done that.'" In his 2006 book, "Clearing the Bases: Juiced Players, Shrinking Ballparks, Sham Records, and a Hall of Famer's Search for the Soul of Baseball", he somewhat recanted that statement, saying that he understood the desire to get a competitive advantage even though he could not condone breaking the rules to do so.
In 2002, Schmidt was hired by the Phillies to work for several weeks as a hitting coach, each spring training. In October 2003, Schmidt was named the manager of the Clearwater Threshers in the Florida State League, a Single A team within the Phillies minor league system. He managed them in the 2004 season and then resigned.
[edit] Style of play
Schmidt demonstrated little emotion on the field and was perceived as being somewhat aloof.[citation needed] He had an unusual batting stance, turning his back somewhat to the pitcher and waving his posterior while waiting for the pitch. By standing far back in the batter's box, it was impossible to jam him by pitching inside. Schmidt was one of the best athletes of his time; teammate Pete Rose once said, "To have his body, I'd trade him mine and my wife's, and I'd throw in some cash."
[edit] Philanthropy
Schmidt continues to sponsor the Mike Schmidt Bahamas Winner's Circle Invitational. The first year of the event in 2001, he gathered a small group of friends and held a kick-off dinner, raising $27,000. Through 2007, the Mike Schmidt Winners Circle Invitational has raised over $1,000,000.
In 2008, Schmidt released a charity wine called Mike Schmidt 548 Zinfandel, a nod to his 548 career home runs, with all of his proceeds donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
[edit] See also
- List of Major League Baseball Home Run Records
- Top 500 home run hitters of all time
- 500 home run club
- MLB players who have hit 30 or more home runs before the All-Star break
- List of major league players with 2,000 hits
- List of Major League Baseball players with 400 doubles
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 runs
- List of Major League Baseball players with 1000 RBI
- List of Major League Baseball RBI champions
- List of Major League Baseball home run champions
- List of Major League Baseball runs scored champions
- Batters with four home runs in one game
- Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game
- Major League Baseball titles leaders
[edit] Bibliography
- Always on the Offense, Antheneum, 1982. ISBN 0-689-11165-7. (With Barbara Walder.)
[edit] References
- ^ Mike Schmidt. National Baseball Hall of Fame.
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or The Baseball Cube
- baseballhalloffame.org – Hall of Fame biography page
- mikeschmidt.com Official website
- mikeschmidtevents.com Mike Schmidt Winner's Circle
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