Top 25 Phillies of All-Time: No. 1 Mike Schmidt

By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor

We've hit the moment you've been waiting for. The time has come to reveal the greatest Phillie of all-time on our list of Top 25 Philadelphia Phillies of all-time. This one shouldn't come as a surprise.

When you are arguably the best at your position to ever play the game, you easily get vaulted among the best players in your franchise's history. And in Phillies history, nobody embodied the franchise as a player quite like Mike Schmidt.

Among the Hall of Famers to play for the Phillies, only Schmidt spent his entire career in red pinstripes, all 18 years of it. And in those 18 years, he became not only the centerpiece of a team that went on to win a World Series, but also one of the greatest third basemen of all time and one of the most feared hitters in the game.

Schmidt was the complete package. He could hit for power, with 548 home runs in his career. In the prime of his career, Schmidt could hit for average as well and until the 2014 season was the Phillies all-time hits leader, surpassed by Jimmy Rollins. He was a 10-time Gold Glove winner, showing fielding prowess that made him a well-rounded player at the plate and in the field.

But more than anything, Schmidt was a leader. He played with passion. He played with energy. He had skill. He had heart. He played with a style that was relative to Philadelphia. And after 97 years without a championship in baseball, Schmidt was the most valuable player to a team that took the title and erased an unfathomable drought.

As a power hitter, Schmidt pales in comparison to some of the legendary sluggers. He never had a 50 home run season. He only hit 40 three times. But he led the league in home runs eight times, serving essentially as baseball's home run king in the late 70's and early 80's.

In the years after his career, which ended emotionally in May 1989 with a tearful goodbye and thank you to Phillies fans, he has been among the central figures in the franchise. Schmidt is a part-time broadcaster for the team, a spring training instructor and an ambassador of the game for the Phillies franchise.

When you think of players to suit up for the Phillies, the first one you usually think of is Michael Jack Schmidt — and yes, we expect you to have read that in Harry Kalas' signature style — and that's why he ranks at the top of our list of the greatest Phillies of all-time.

Career accomplishments

12-time All-Star (1974, 1976, 1977, 1979-1984, 1986, 1987, 1989)
World Series champion (1980)
Three-time NL Most Valuable Player (1980, 1981, 1986)
World Series MVP (1980)
10-time Gold Glove Award winner (1976-1984, 1986)
Six-time Silver Slugger winner (1980-1984, 1986)
Ranks 16th All-time in Home Runs (548), one of 27 players to hit 500 home runs
1995 Hall of Fame inductee, receiving 96.5 percent of vote on first ballot
No. 20 retired by the Phillies

Most memorable moment

Historical and clutch met on April 18, 1987 when Mike Schmidt hit a long drive to left field.

The Phillies were down 6-5 with two outs in the ninth inning to the Pittsburgh Pirates at Three Rivers Stadium when Schmidt turned on a 3-0 pitch from Don Robinson and put it deep in the left field seats for a three-run home run to put the Phillies ahead 8-6. It was Schmidt's 500th career home run.

The dramatic end not only produced the milestone home run for Schmidt and a win for the Phillies, but also perhaps the most legendary call from Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas.

Words can't really describe the moment, so we'll let HK do the talking. The video of Schmidt's 500th home run is below.

Reasoning for ranking

Schmidt recorded 14 seasons as a 2+ WAR player and a 5+ WAR player and four as an 8+ WAR player, totaling 149 points. He is the franchise's all-time leader in home runs and RBI, second in hits, third in doubles and sixth all-time in OPS. He is a 12-time All-Star, a three-time NL Most Valuable Player, a 10-time Gold Glove winner, a six-time Silver Slugger winner and a 1995 Hall of Fame inductee.

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Formula explained

The player rankings formula combines both traditional and advanced statistics/metrics and assigns a point total to each category. These statistics only reflect the player's Phillies career.

First, single season WAR is a primary factor in our rankings. According to WAR's calculations, 2+ WAR is considered a starter, 5+ WAR is All-Star caliber, and 8+ WAR is MVP level. We totaled the number of seasons that a player performed at a 2+ WAR, 5+ WAR, and 8+ WAR level and assigned a set point value for each category, (+1), (+3), and (+5) respectively. For example, in 1980, Mike Schmidt complied an 8.8 WAR. This was counted as a 2+ WAR season, a 5+ WAR season, and an 8+ WAR season. So, for 1980 alone, Mike Schmidt earned (9) points for WAR.

Second, we assigned a point value for amount of years spent with the Phillies. In order to be considered for this list, a player must have been with the organization for a minimum of (5) years.

Next, we assigned point values for being among the top 25 in particular statistical categories, such as batting average, hits, doubles, triples, RBI, home runs, and OPS for hitters, and ERA, Wins, and WPA (wins probability added) for pitchers.

Finally, all statistical categories were totaled up using our point based system and ranked accordingly, with historical columnist Matt Albertson and managing editor Tim Kelly reserving the right to move players up the list, within reason. An explanation of why a player is ranked in a certain spot will be provided, as will an overall score breakdown.