50 Years Ago
By: Larry Shenk
Tags: Baseball, Philadelphia Phillies

“The Phillies select shortstop Michael Schmidt from Ohio University.” Paul Owens made that announcement on the telephone 50 years ago today in the annual summer draft. Little did anyone know it would go down as their greatest selection.

Michael Jack Schmidt’s road from Dayton, OH, to Philadelphia wasn’t a smooth one.

First as a six-year-old, he fell out of a tree. While slipping, he grabbed onto un-insulated wires carrying 4,000 volts. Fortunately, he was wearing sneakers. The juice went right through him into the ground. Aside from some burn scars, he survived and was back in school the next day.

Twice in high school football, as a sophomore and the following year, he sustained injured knees, the right one first. Off to Ohio U. with two bad knees to study architecture and possibly play basketball. During his freshman year, an athletic trainer, team doctor and insurance consultant told Mike he’d have to drop off the team because he was too much of a risk physically.

Told to strengthen each knee, Mike began physical therapy and two months later he was a switch-hitting shortstop on the baseball team.

The late Tony Lucadello, the Phillies scout in the Midwest, had followed Mike starting in high school. He knew he was a good athlete. Tony once reported, “Mike played hard and didn’t like to lose. He had trouble hitting off speed and breaking stuff, but he’d battle you. He was always out there before the game, working hard. He loved the game.”

As the 1971 summer draft approached, Owens, then the director of minor leagues and scouting, went to see Schmidt play. Lucadello had Mike rated as his number one prospect and Owens wanted to see for himself.

Reported Owens, “He hit a home run and had two or three other hits in a doubleheader. He was a shortstop but to me he was going to make an ideal third baseman.” On Owens list of the top prospects, he moved Schmidt to number two behind a 6–5 right-hander from California, Roy Thomas.

The Phillies had the sixth overall selection in the first round and chose Thomas. He signed with the Phillies, never pitched for them but as GM, Owens put him a package to acquire veteran lefty Jim Kaat in 1975.

In the second round, the Phillies had the 30th pick. The White Sox had the 25th to start the round. Owens held his breath. Kansas City was 29th and when their turn came, they grabbed a third baseman who would become a Hall of Famer, George Brett. With the 30th pick, Owens was glad to announce Mike’s name.

Schmidt made his debut in AA ball at Reading that summer and hit a home run against the Phillies in an exhibition game. He spent most of 1972 in AAA but was called up in September. Mike never saw the minor leagues again although many thought he belonged there when he batted .196 in 1973, his rookie season. From there, his career trended skyward.

Mike wound up as the greatest player in Phillies history and a Hall of Famer on the first ballot. His name dominates the Phillies record book, including wearing the pinstriped uniform for 18 seasons. No one else has matched that.

1965 was the first year of the draft. The Phillies took RHP Joel Adamson in the first round and a high school outfielder from Lucadello’s territory, Larry Hisle, in the second round.

Prior to 2000, other second-rounders include OF Mike Rogodzinski (1969), LHP Tommy Underwood (1972), LHP Kevin Saucier (1974), LHP Bruce Ruffin (1975), RHP Lance McCullers (1982), RHP Marvin Freeman (1984), SS Kevin Stocker (1991), 3B Scott Rolen (1993), 2B Marlon Anderson (1995), SS Jimmy Rollins (1996) and LHP Randy Wolf (1997).

Biggest impact from that group was Rollins who wound up as the franchise’s all-time leader for hits. Schmidt is second. Two second-rounders went a long way.

Larry Shenk