September 28, 1983: Phillies capture NL East Division title with resounding win over Cubs

On September 28, 1983, the Philadelphia Phillies were on the verge of clinching their fifth National League East Division title in eight seasons. That afternoon they were scheduled to play the rubber match of a three-game series at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs. A victory against their division rivals would secure the title, and a set up a match with the West Division winner for the National League championship.

The Phillies had undergone significant changes in the months since their Opening Day loss to the New York Mets. Two veteran World Series champion players had lost their spots in the starting lineup, and a new manager was providing a different perspective to the team.

Forty-two-year-old Pete Rose began the season in right field, moved to first when Joe Lefebvre was acquired from the San Diego Padres in May, then shifted to a part-time role when rookie Len Matuszek was recalled from the minors in September. Forty-three-year-old Tony Pérez, who opened the season at first base, had played sparingly since July. “You can only put eight guys in there. I understand that. And we’ve got a lot of talent,” said Rose.1

The managerial change occurred on July 18 when general manager Paul Owens fired second-year skipper Pat Corrales and assumed the on-field position. It was the second time since Owens was promoted to the general manager chair in June 1972 that he fired the manager and took the reins as field manager.2 He felt the move was needed to propel the Phillies – who were tied for first in the logjammed NL East at the time, despite a 43-42 record – to new heights. “I wouldn’t have come down to field level if we didn’t have a good chance to win it,” Owens said.3

The Phillies showed improvement under Owens’ leadership, especially with Matuszek’s promotion. On the morning of September 6, only a half-game separated four NL East contenders: the Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Montreal Expos, and St. Louis Cardinals. Philadelphia then won 18 of 21, including 11 in a row from September 16 through 26. Entering play on September 28, the Phillies needed just one more win to close out the second-place Pirates and claim the division title.

Chicago’s starting pitcher was former Phillie Dick Ruthven. A first-round draft pick of the Phillies in 1973, he won 17 games for Philadelphia’s 1980 World Series champions. Ruthven began the 1983 season in Philadelphia but was traded to the Cubs on May 22 for relief pitcher Willie Hernández. He had beaten the Phillies with a five-hit complete game on August 16 at Wrigley Field.

Joe Morgan led off against Ruthven with a double to right field. The two-bagger was part of a four-hit day for the two-time National League  MVP. Since celebrating his 40th birthday on September 19 by going 4-for-5 against the Cubs at Veterans Stadium, Morgan had played every game and raised his batting average almost 30 points. “Personally, I had a lot of ups and downs, a lot of injuries,” he said. “But I never lost my confidence.”4 Morgan advanced to third on a single by Matuszek and scored on Mike Schmidt’s groundout.

Chicago responded with two runs in the bottom of the first off 24-year-old Charles Hudson, a member of Philadelphia’s rotation ever since he made his major-league debut on May 31. Ryne Sandberg – originally a Phil but sent to Chicago with Larry Bowa for Iván de Jesús in the clubs’ January 1982 shortstop swap – reached first when de Jesús booted his grounder.

Bill Buckner roped a double to center, plating Sandberg with the tying run. Buckner moved to third on a groundout and scored on Ron Cey’s sacrifice fly. The first inning ended with Chicago on top, 2-1.

In the second, both teams scored with catchers involved in the runs. With one out in the top of the inning, the Phillies’ Bo Díaz blasted a home run to knot the score, 2-2. Díaz, who was in the lineup because of his excellent defensive skills, entered the contest batting .228. De Jesús tripled and scored on Morgan’s single to right.

Cubs catcher Jody Davis stroked a double to center leading off the bottom of the inning. Rookies Joe Carter and Dave Owen executed successful bunts to plate Davis with the tying run. Owen’s RBI was the first of his career.

“I think that was the turning point in the game,” Phillies manager Owens said later. “When we saw them bunting twice to score a run we got fired up.”5

Philadelphia came out swinging in the third and doubled its run total. Schmidt blasted a leadoff home run, his 40th of the season, the third time in his career he had achieved that mark. Lefebvre reached on an error and two outs later, Díaz stroked his second home run of the game. “Man, it was just one of those days where I saw the ball really good, and I hit some balls that carried,” Díaz said.6 Mike Proly relieved Ruthven to secure the final out.

In the bottom of the fourth, Chicago knocked Hudson from the box. Another former Phil, Keith Moreland, doubled and scored on center fielder Greg Gross’s two-base error on Davis’s fly ball.   Davis scored on back-to-back fly balls from Carter and Owen. After rookie pinch-hitter Dan Rohn doubled, Hudson was replaced by Hernández, who retired Sandberg on a fly ball to preserve the 6-5 lead.  Hudson deserved better support from his defense; three of the five runs he surrendered were unearned.

Philadelphia broke the game open with four runs over the next two innings. In the fifth, September call-up Bill Johnson relinquished three consecutive singles to load the bases, then was replaced by Bill Campbell. One out later, Morgan stroked a single to drive in two. In the sixth, Schmidt tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly. A walk and two singles plated the second run. The frame ended with the Phillies on top, 10-5.

Larry Andersen pitched a scoreless sixth but was touched for a run in the seventh. Buckner belted a two-out double to center and scored on a single by Mel Hall. Andersen pitched to two batters in the eighth before yielding the mound to closer Al Holland.

Holland struck out Gary Woods on two rising fastballs and a breaking ball7 and retired Mike Diaz, no relation to Bo, on a grounder to third. “I was pumped,” Holland said. “I’ve never been that nervous in a game before.”8

With the lead secured, Philadelphia tacked on three runs in the ninth. Alan Hargesheimer, Chicago’s seventh pitcher of the game, loaded the bases on two singles and a walk, then was replaced by former Phil Dickie Noles. Matuszek singled to drive in two and Lefebvre stroked a double to right to plate the final run.

Holland allowed the first two batters to reach base in the bottom of the ninth, then recovered to retire the next three on fly outs. Morgan dashed to the mound to give a bear hug to Holland. “I told [Morgan] a week ago, ‘This is ours, man,’” Holland said. “Me and Joe have been together three years now9 and we just wanted to celebrate together.”10

The 13-6 win was Philadelphia’s 88th of the season. Fifth-place Chicago’s record fell to 71-88. “Our guys played their hearts out,” said Cubs manager Charlie Fox. “When you score six runs, you’re supposed to win. We just couldn’t hold them.”11

Philadelphia returned home for its final three games, reveling in the glow of a division championship. “I just can’t remember anything more satisfying for me,” Owens said.12 The Phillies went on to defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Championship Series for the Phillies’ fourth pennant in franchise history.13

Acknowledgments

This article was fact-checked by Troy Olszewski and copy-edited by Len Levin.

Photo credit: Bo Díaz, Trading Card Database.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball Reference.com and Retrosheet.org for information including the box score and play-by-play.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN198309280.shtml

https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1983/B09280CHN1983.htm

Notes

1 Jayson Stark, “Change of Place,” Philadelphia Inquirer, September 29, 1983: C1.

2 Owens fired manager Frank Lucchesi on July 9, 1972, and became field manager for the last 80 games of the season.

3 Stan Hochman, “Happy Days Are Here Again,” Philadelphia Daily News, September 29, 1983: 83.

4 Peter Pascarelli, “Phils Blitz Their Way to the Top,” Philadelphia Inquirer, September 29, 1983: C1.

5 Fred Mitchell, “Phils Get Cubs in a Clinch,” Chicago Tribune, September 29, 1983: 4,1.

6 Pascarelli, “Phils Blitz Their Way to the Top.”

7 Bill Conlin, “It’s a Clinch for Phils,” Philadelphia Daily News, September 29, 1983: 84.

8 Conlin.

9 Morgan and Hernandez were teammates in San Francisco in 1981 and 1982 before linking up again in Philadelphia in 1983.

10 Jayson Stark, “Change of Place.”

11 Mitchell, “Phils Get Cubs in a Clinch.”

12 Pascarelli, “Phils Blitz Their Way to the Top.”

13 The Phillies lost the World Series to the Baltimore Orioles in five games. The Cubs, under new manager Jim Frey, replaced the Phils as NL East champions in 1984.