Phillies' all-time retired numbers

PHILADELPHIA -- The Phillies played their inaugural season in 1883, meaning they are one of baseball's oldest franchises. Still, they have retired only five numbers in that time.

Well, seven, if you include Grover Cleveland Alexander and Chuck Klein. Alexander never wore a number with the Phillies, so the Phillies selected the 1915 "P" as his symbol on the wall above Ashburn Alley at Citizens Bank Park. Klein wore 1, 3, 8, 26, 29, 32 and 36 while with the Phillies, so the organization selected a "P" to honor him, too. The Phillies have no official policy on retired numbers, although unofficially in the past couple decades they have said they will only retire players elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

The Phillies have hinted that policy could change in the future, particularly following the recent retirements of Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard.

Here is a look at the Phillies' retired numbers:

Richie Ashburn, OF: No. 1
Number retired: Aug. 24, 1979
"Whitey" is one of the most popular figures in Phillies history, not only because of his Hall of Fame career, but because of his standout career as a broadcaster alongside Harry Kalas. The Phillies inducted Ashburn onto their Wall of Fame in 1979. The Veterans Committee inducted him into the Hall of Fame in '95. Ashburn was a two-time National League batting champion (.338 in '55 and .350 in '58) and a runner-up twice (both to Stan Musial in '48 and '51). He batted .300 or better in nine of his 15 years in the big leagues. He had an on-base percentage of .400 or better six times. Whitey ranked 11th all-time in walks and 35th in hits when he retired after the '62 season. He also holds NL records for most years with 500 or more putouts (four times) and most years with 400 or more putouts (nine times).

Jim Bunning, RHP: No. 14
Number retired: April 6, 2001
Bunning was a nine-time All-Star. He started and won the ?rst game in Veterans Stadium history on April 10, 1971, a 4-1 victory over the Expos. The Phillies inducted him onto their Wall of Fame in '84, and he was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in '96. Bunning excelled over 17 seasons in the Majors, during which he pitched 3,760 1/3 innings, won 224 games, including more than 100 in each league. Upon retirement in '71, Bunning ranked second to Walter Johnson on the all-time strikeouts list. He threw a no-hitter for the Tigers in '58 and a perfect game for the Phillies on Father's Day in '64.

Dick Allen, 1B/3B: No. 15
Number retired: Sept. 3, 2020
For years, the Phillies retired numbers of players only in the Hall of Fame, but managing partner John Middleton corrected this policy in 2020. In his mind, why should the Phillies not recognize Allen’s storied career just because the Baseball Writers' Association of America and the Golden Days Era Committee failed to do it? Allen, who spent the majority of his career at first and third base, slashed .292/.378/.534 with 351 home runs, 1,119 RBIs, a .912 OPS and a 156 OPS+ in a 15-year career with the Phillies, Cardinals, Dodgers, White Sox and A’s. He won the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year Award. He won the 1972 AL MVP Award. He made seven All-Star teams, including three with the Phillies. He earned MVP votes in six other seasons. From 1964-74, he posted a 58.3 WAR, according to Baseball Reference. It tied Willie Mays for sixth place among position players in that 11-year span, behind Hank Aaron (68.8), Carl Yastrzemski (68.1), Roberto Clemente (64.7), Ron Santo (60.1) and Brooks Robinson (59.3). Pete Rose (58.0), Frank Robinson (55.4) and Joe Morgan (54.0) rounded out the top 10. Allen’s career WAR of 58.8 ranks 17th among third baseman all-time, with 10 Hall of Famers ahead of him. At first base, he's 21st with 13 Hall of Famers among those top 20.

Mike Schmidt, 3B: No. 20
Number retired: May 26, 1990
Schmidt is arguably the greatest third baseman in baseball history. He won three NL MVP awards (1980, '81 and '86). He held 14 Major League, 18 National League and 24 Phillies career records when he retired. He played in five NL Championship Series and two World Series. Schmidt was a 12-time All-Star, elected as a starter nine times. The Phillies inducted him onto their Wall of Fame in '90. He was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in '95, the 26th player to enter in his first year of eligibility. Schmidt led the NL in home runs eight times, RBIs four times, slugging percentage five times and on-base percentage three times. He holds the career record for home runs by a third baseman (509). He hit 548 homers overall.

Steve Carlton, LHP: No. 32
Number retired: July 29, 1989
"Lefty" was the first pitcher in baseball history to win four Cy Young Awards (1972, '77, '80 and '82). He was selected to 10 All-Star teams. He played in five NLCS and two World Series with the Phillies. Carlton earned the win in the World Series-clinching Game 6 in '80, the organization's first of only two championships. The Phillies inducted him onto their Wall of Fame in '89. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in '94, his first year of eligibility. Only Warren Spahn (363) won more games as a left-hander than Carlton (329). He ranked ninth all-time in wins when he retired. He won 27 games in '72, becoming the fifth pitcher to win 20-plus games for a last-place team. Carlton was a six-time 20-game winner and ranks fourth on the all-time strikeout list (4,136). Carlton held six Major League pitching records, 12 NL records and 10 LCS records when he retired.

Roy Halladay, RHP: No. 34
Number retired: Aug. 8, 2021
Halladay spent four seasons with the Phillies (2010-13), winning the National League Cy Young Award in 2010 and making a pair of NL All-Star teams (2010-11). The right-hander also threw two of the greatest games in club history, furthering his legacy in Philadelphia. Halladay pitched a perfect game against the Marlins on May 29, 2010, just the second perfect game in Phillies history (Jim Bunning, 1964). Then on Oct. 6 of that same year, Halladay threw the second no-hitter in MLB postseason history, dominating the Reds in Game 1 of the NLDS. Halladay, who died tragically on Nov. 7, 2017, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., in July 2019.

Robin Roberts, RHP: No. 36
Number retired: June 18, 2008
Roberts pitched in seven consecutive All-Star Games from 1950-56. He started in five of those games, sharing the all-time record with Lefty Gomez and Don Drysdale. Roberts was named the Sporting News' Player of the Year in '52. He was named their Pitcher of the Year three times before the Cy Young Award was established. The Phillies unofficially retired Roberts' number in '62. He was inducted onto their Wall of Fame in '78, the organization's first inductee. The National Baseball Hall of Fame enshrined Roberts in '76. Roberts won 20-plus games in six consecutive seasons (1950-55) and never pitched fewer than 304 1/3 innings in a season in that span. He pitched 28 consecutive complete games in 1952-53 and is the franchise's career leader in games pitched, complete games and innings pitched. Roberts led the Phillies in wins and strikeouts until Carlton passed him.

Grover Cleveland Alexander, RHP: the letter "P"
Number retired: April 6, 2001
Alexander joined nine others in the National Baseball Hall of Fame's inaugural induction class in 1939. The Phillies placed him on their Wall of Fame in '81. He averaged 27 wins and 356 innings pitched during his first seven seasons with the Phillies. His 28 wins as a rookie in 1911 remains the modern rookie record. Sixteen of his 33 wins in '16 were shutouts, which remains a Major League record. Alexander's 190 wins were a franchise record until Roberts passed him. He pitched in the Phillies' first World Series in '15, earning a win. During his Phillies career, "Old Pete" led the NL in innings pitched six times; wins, shutouts and strikeouts ?ve times; and ERA three times. He holds the club record with 61 career shutouts. His 373 wins are tied for third all-time.

Chuck Klein, OF: the letter "P"
Number retired: April 6, 2001
Klein won the NL MVP Award in 1932, the first Phillies player to receive the honor. He is the franchise's only player to win the Triple Crown, which he won in '33. He hit .368 with 28 home runs and 120 RBIs. The Veterans Committee selected him to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in '80. The Phillies inducted him onto their Wall of Fame the same year. Klein hit .359 and averaged 132 runs, 46 doubles, 36 home runs and 139 RBIs during his first five full seasons with the Phillies ('29-33). He was the NL home run leader four times and his 43 homers in '29 remained a Phillies record until Schmidt hit 45 in '79 and then 48 in '80. His 170 RBIs and 445 total bases in '30 are still NL records for a left-handed hitter.

Note: On April 15, 1997, the Phillies joined every team in MLB in retiring No. 42 in honor of Jackie Robinson.