There is quite the rich history of starting pitchers within the Phillies franchise. The names in our top 10 really span the entire 100-plus years of the team’s existence with prominent players popping up in every era.
Before we dive into the best of the best, here’s a look at the hurlers we ranked in the 11-20 range, just missing the cut.
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The Next 10
• Evan Macy: I am very curious to see where Aaron Nola ultimately ends up, as he’s set to continue pitching in Philly within reach of some big milestones. Only eight Phillies have ever won 100 games. He’s 10 away. Only 15 Phillies have appeared in 300 games, he is within sight of that. He’s already 17th all-time in innings pitched in Philadelphia, and is three strikeouts away from passing Chris Short for 4th all-time in franchise history. By sheer volume, he’s set to crack the top 10 very soon.
• Shamus Clancy: The 2023 MLB postseason certainly hurt Aaron Nola’s standing on this list. With his new contract locking him into Philadelphia for the foreseeable future, Nola is in a good position to climb up the all-time franchise pitching leaderboards. It’s what he does in future Octobers, however, that will define his place in the city’s history.
• Nick Tricome: This has kinda become the Nola section here. He’s been good, more than a lot of people want to give him credit for right now, and with a longevity and durability that isn’t all that common anymore. He signed on to basically be a Phillie for life over the winter, and if things even just stay as they are, he’ll be near the top on a lot of pages in the team’s record book by the time it’s all said and done.
And now our list of the 10 best starting pitchers in Phillies history:
1. Steve Carlton (1972-86)
241-161, 3.09 ERA | 3,031 Ks | 4 Cy Young, 7 All-Star, Gold Glove, Triple Crown, 1980 World Series Champion, Hall of Famer
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Evan Macy: What can I add to the resume above? He’s quite potentially the best pitcher of the baseball’s modern era. In 1972, his first season with the Phillies after they traded Rick Wise — an All-Star in 1971 by the way — for him, he went 27-10 with a 1.97 ERA and 310 strikeouts. My god did Philly win that trade.
2. Roy Halladay (2010-13)
55-29, 3.25 ERA | 622 Ks | Cy Young, 2 All-Star, Hall of Famer
Nick: Steve Carlton is the greatest, but I’ve only ever seen it through old tapes. Robin Roberts was great too, but I’ve only ever read about it. I saw Roy Halladay. I saw that cutter fan batter after batter. I saw all those complete games, those shutouts, the perfect game, the postseason no-hitter, and remember looking at the rotation schedule for those couple of years and just being able to assume that his starts would be automatic wins. I saw that greatness happen in real time, and looking back, I can say, with absolute certainty, that I will never see a pitcher as special as Roy Halladay ever again.
3. Robin Roberts (1948-61)
234-199, 3.46 ERA | 1,871 Ks | 7 All-Star, Hall of Famer
Nick: A Whiz Kid, a regular All-Star, and a dominant force on the mound, Roberts was a workhorse in every sense imaginable, leading baseball in innings pitched and complete games for five consecutive years, and more often than not, shutting down opponents and pushing the Phillies to wins.
4. Grover Alexander (1911-17, 30)
190-91, 2.18 ERA | 1,409 Ks | 3 Triple Crown, Hall of Famer
Evan: Grover Cleveland “Pete” Alexander had five one-hitters in 1915, the year the Phillies won their first pennant. He has the NL record for shutouts still (90), and he was the sole member of the Baseball Hall of Fame’s third class in 1938. He’s a legend.
5. Cole Hamels (2006-15)
114-90, 3.30 ERA | 1,844 Ks | 3 All-Star, NLCS MVP, World Series MVP, 2008 World Series Champion
Shamus: The Phillies, in their horrific history of more than 11,000 losses, have won the championship just twice. The MVPs of those World Series wins are 1. the best third baseman of all time and 2. a lefty with a nasty changeup who brought the first parade to Broad Street in a quarter of a century.
Retire his No. 35 while we’re at it.
6. Jim Bunning (1964-67, 70-71)
89-73, 2.93 ERA | 1,197 Ks | 2 All-Star, Hall of Famer
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Nick: An ace and the first to throw a perfect game in Phillies history, Bunning had the Phils in cruise control on the way to the pennant in 1964 – well, until they imploded down the stretch.
7. Chris Short (1959-72)
132-127, 3.38 ERA | 1,585 Ks | 2 All-Star
Nick: And Short, as a lefty, was right behind him with a 17-9 record and a 2.20 ERA in that ’64 season, but couldn’t help stave off the downfall alone.
8. Cliff Lee (2009, 11-14)
48-34, 2.94 ERA | 813 Ks | 2 All-Star
Evan: A slow start to his career is what kept Lee from a Hall of Fame career. He was as dominant a pitcher to ever suit up in red pinstripes. A look at some of his career ranks as a Phillie:
CategoryStatRankERA2.9418th Adjusted ERA +1325thStrikeouts per 98.84thWalks per 91.32ndSO to BB ratio6.61st
9. Zack Wheeler (2020-present)
43-25, 3.06 ERA | 675 Ks | All-Star, Gold Glove
Shamus: After finishing second in NL Cy Young voting with the Phillies in 2021, Wheeler hit another level during the next two postseasons in Philly. In 11 appearances over 63.1 innings, Wheeler sported a 2.42 playoff ERA with a strikeout-to-walk ratio (68-to-11) better than any single regular season campaign in his career.
Wheeler gets it done during the dog days of the summer and is his best when things matter most.
10. Curt Simmons (1947-60)
115-110, 3.66 ERA | 1,052 Ks | 3 All-Star
Shamus: Just 21 during the Phillies’ classic 1950 “Whiz Kids” pennant-winning campaign, Simmons had a great four-season peak from 1950-1954 with the Phils, posting a 3.06 ERA in 118 starts. That includes a season he missed in 1951 while in active military service during the Korean War.
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHO
