West Philly’s Chestnut Street Gets Pedestrian Refuge Islands
The City of Philadelphia Streets Department aims to make pedestrian crossings safer along Chestnut Street in West Philadelphia. Construction began the week of March 10 to install refuge islands along the street.
Pedestrian refuge islands are designed as concrete raised medians at crosswalks. They’re intended to function as safe spaces for pedestrians on wide roadways and separate traffic lanes. These safety features reduce the distance it takes for pedestrians to cross streets and allow people to cross busy roadways in increments at a time.
According to a West Philly Local report, the work on Chestnut Street involves removing existing plastic delineator posts and replacing them with concrete pedestrian refuge islands in bicycle lane buffer areas. Work is expected to be completed by the fall.
In addition to the intersection of Chestnut and Farragut streets, the following intersections from 43rd Street to 62nd Street will receive the new pedestrian refuge islands:
- 43rd Street
- 45th Street
- 46th Street
- 50th Street
- 51st Street
- Each intersection from 53rd to 62nd streets
The 12 Greatest Home Runs In Phillies History
What are the greatest home runs in Phillies history? The times where with one swing of a bat, our players changed the game in a big way? When a team is around as long as the Phillies have been, there are going to be some unforgettable moments. Let’s talk about the best ones.
The Phillies Long, And Shaky, History
The Phillies have been around for a long time. Unfortunately, they have been incredibly mediocre for most of that time.
People my age, 31 and younger, have had it easy, seeing mostly great baseball. Yes, we had a decade of bad baseball before the run from 2007 to 2011. There was another decade without making it to the playoffs after that.
But with that said, most of our baseball-watching lives including Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard. Now we get Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Trea Turner. I will openly admit in comparison to what Phillies baseball has been for most of its history, my generation has it pretty easy.
Related: The All-Time Roster Of Phillies Players Acquired In Free Agency
I say this to explain why much of this list seems pretty recent. I didn’t forget about Mike Schmidt. He and a few people from before the 90s made this list.
But to be one of the greatest homeruns, the HR has to mean something. Outside the late 70s and early 80s, there was not much winning going on for the Phillies before 1990. The home runs I put on this list are ones that came in big moments. The type of homeruns we will still be replaying a decade after they happened.
Which ones made the list? Which players hit the greatest home runs in Phillies history? Did any notable home runs get snubbed?
Here Are The 12 Greatest Home Runs In Phillies History:
12) Mike Schmidt Buries It To Send Phillies To The Playoffs
It is hard to say any regular season HR is one of the most important ones in team history. But this Mike Schmidt HR vs the Astros deserves its spot on the list. It was this HR that clinched the NL East for the Phillies in 1980.
Remember in 1980 there was no Wildcard. There was an NL East, and an NL West. The winners of each division made the playoffs. Everyone else was eliminated.
If the Phillies lost this game, they still could have won the East in game 162. But Schmidt helped them skip that step and just sent them there with an extra innings bomb. Of course, the rest was history, and they went on to win it all. It was Schmidt’s regular season bomb though that ensured they had that chance.
9) Shane Victorino’s Grand Slam
In terms of importance, there are more important ones than the Grand Slam. It was only the 2nd inning of game 2 in the NLDS. They won game 1 and won the series in 4. They likely win the series even without the Slam. But it was still an iconic moment.
That Grand Slam was the start of the magic that eventually carried them to the second World Series win in team history. The buildup, with Brett Myers drawing a walk, was fantastic. The fact it was off CC Sabathia, who was one of the best pitchers in the game at the time, makes it even better. All of it just made the eventual Grand Slam a legendary moment in Phillies history.
8) The Rhys Hoskins Bat Spike
In terms of just vibes, it is hard to beat this moment. Apart from just being a big-time HR that put the Phillies firmly in the driver’s seat of this series, it was a true redemption story.
Fans were pissed at Rhys Hoskins coming into game 3 vs the Braves. It was his poor fielding that led them to blowing game 2 in Atlanta. Not to mention he had done very little at the plate in the playoffs at that point. But with 1 swing, and one unforgettable bat spike, he was back in the fan’s good graces.
Rhys crushed a ball off of a sputtering Spencer Strider for a 3-run HR to put the Phillies up 4-0. From there, the Phillies never lost control of this series. Harper followed it up with a 2-run HR of his own, and the Phillies cruised to a victory.
Rhys is no longer with the Phillies. But with this moment, he cemented himself into Phillies lore.
7) Ryan Howard Busts Game 4 Wide Open
I needed to have a Ryan Howard HR on this list, and also needed something from the 2008 World Series. Luckily I can kill 2 birds with 1 stone.
I don’t think we talk enough about how great Howard was in that series. Hamels was World Series MVP, but it could have easily gone to Howard, who had an OPS of 1.137 and hit 3 HRs in 5 games.
The most notable of which came in game 4. The Phillies were only up 2-1. Carl Crawford had just recently cut the lead in half with a solo shot. With Joe Blanton on the mound, a 1 run lead was not exactly comfortable.
Ryan Howard made things a lot more comfortable though. In the 4th inning, he busted the game wide open with a 3-run blast. He would add a 2nd HR later on for good measure, and Joe Blanton would famously add one of his own. But it was the 1st Howard blast that put the game away, helping them secure a 3-1 lead in the series.
6) George Vukovich Walks It Off
Only one Phillies player has ever hit a walk-off HR in the playoffs. Not Ryan Howard, Not Mike Schmidt, not Bryce Harper. George Vukovich.
It was game 4 of the 1981 NLDS vs the Expos. The game had gone to extra innings, but Vukovich didn’t let the game last long. In the bottom of the 10th, he roped a ball to right field and over the wall to end it there and then.
The Phillies lost the series in the very next game, which keeps it lower on this list. But his HR is still a moment worthy of the list.
5) Lenny Dykstra Wins It In 1993
The Phillies were close to being on the ropes in the NLCS in 1993. ‘Wild Thing’ Mitch Williams lived up to his name and blew a 3-run lead in the 9th. Had they lost that game in extras, they would have faced an elimination game in game 6.
Lenny Dykstra had something else in mind. He took Mark Wohlers yard, to give the Phillies a 4-3 lead. Then Larry Anderson came in to do what Mitch couldn’t and got the save.
They went on to win game 6 too, and kept that magical 1993 run alive. We know how it ended from there, but if it wasn’t for Dykstra they may have not had the chance to lose in such heartbreaking fashion in the World Series.
4) Shane Victorino Sets Up Matt Stairs
For someone not known for his big-time power, the Flyin’ Hawaiian showed up twice on this list. When we talk about the 2008 NLCS, we always talk about the Matt Stairs HR, which we will get to. But before he could hit a go-ahead HR, Shane Victorino tied it up with a HR of his own.
It was not a moonshot like the Stairs HR. It also does not have the iconic call to go with it. But it is arguably just as important. Who knows if the Phillies win that series, and go on to with the World Series, without this Victorino bomb.
3) Bake McBride Sets The Tone for 1980 World Series
The 1980 World Series almost got off to an awful start for the Phillies. They went down 4-0 early in game 1. But a rally started by Larry Bowa, and capped off by a Bake McBride 3-run blast, turned things around, and set the tone for the series.
They went on to win game 1 and eventually won the series in 6.
2) Matt Stairs Rips One Into The Night
Every single Phillies fan knows the phrase “Matt Stairs rips one into the night.” The call is as iconic as the HR itself.
The 2008 NLCS was in danger of going to 2-2. But as we already talked about, Shane Victorino hit a HR to tie it up, setting Matt Stairs up for the go-ahead bomb.
The moment it came in, the fact it was an absolute moonshot, and Joe Buck having a legendary call ready, makes this one of the best Phillies moments period. Over 15 years later, it still gets replayed all the time around the city. I will sometimes just pull it up for the sake of it.
1) The Swing Of Bryce Harper’s Life
Can anything compare to this one? It was not a walk-off, but it was as close as you can get without being one.
The Phillies were on the ropes in game 5. They blew the lead, thanks to poor conditions. It looked like the series was going back to San Diego. They would have still needed just 1 more win, but still, blowing that game to go back West would have been rough.
Bryce Harper was having none of it. With JT Realmuto on base, Harper stepped up and crushed a ball to left field off Robert Suarez. In an instant, the Phillies were back in the lead. A lead they held onto to win the game, and the series.
Putting it number 1 might be recency bias. But for me, it is the first home run I think of when I think Phillies. Like the Matt Stairs one, this is an HR I often look up just to watch it again.
