"Then Bowa Said to Schmidt. . .": The Greatest Phillies Stories Ever Told

by Robert Gordon

The ultimate reference book for any “Phillie phanatic,” this book provides a behind-the-scenes peek into the private world of the players, managers, broadcasters, and executives, taking readers into the clubhouse and onto the field. Author Robert Gordon takes fans inside the 1993 Philadelphia Phillies' run to the World Series, when first baseman John Kruk once told a fan, “I ain't an athlete, lady, I'm a baseball player;” back to 1980, when Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, and Larry Bowa delivered the team's first World Series title; and to 2008, when a new generation experienced the ecstasy of a World Series win. Written for every fan who follows the Phillies, this unique book captures the memories and great stories from more than a century of the team's history.

Genres: Sports

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Robert Gordon (b. 1961) is an American writer and filmmaker from Memphis, Tennessee. His work has focused on the American south—its music, art, and politics—to create an insider's portrait of his home, both nuanced and ribald.

Reviews

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Been reading this off and on in short bursts for the last 3 years - finally finished it! It was ok. I'm all about learning more of the history of my favorite teams from before I was alive or sports aware but I felt this book was a little heavy on the years before 1980, which is when the Phillies first did anything meaningful on the field. And that's the problem with the Phillies history - they were terrible for decades and decades, so getting through some of those mid 1900's stories was a bit of a bore, although it was fun to hear how the game has changed so much. It wasn't unusual for pitchers to hurl complete games every time out once upon a time, as an example. I'm glad the 93 team got some pages - definitely looking forward to reading specific books about that crazy team. I did love the mention of the middle of the night double header (game 2 started at like 1:30am - that would NEVER happen today) - I had forgotten about that one, but it's all people talked about for like a week after it happened. The Phanatic stories were terrific. Probably the biggest disappointment is that we actually don't find out what Bowa said to Schmidt - only a hint that it was pretty vulgar (they were arguing about whether a player was safe or not and Schmidt agreed with the umpire; Bowa didn't like it much - ha!). If you're a long time Phillies fan you'll probably get more out of it - if you're only interested in the modern teams there's probably better books to read.

[Gary · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is just a disjointed account of random interviews and partial histories. I probably would not have given it a second star were I not a Phillies fan. We deserve better.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must for Phillies fans - great history and behind the scenes stories.

[Chris Heim · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good read for Phillies fans old and young. I learned a good bit (or perhaps relearned some that I had forgotten...) about the old-time Phils. For example, the Phillies are the longest-surviving professional sports team whose name has never changed (since 1883). The book notes that there's not much to pre-1950 Phillies history, but the roller coaster ride really begins there, with the short-lived success of the Whiz Kids, followed by nothing substantially positive (eh-hem, '64 Phillies) until the mid/late 70's, leading up to the 1980 World Series winning team. (Younger) Cubs/Red Sox fans, take note: the Phillies went 97 years (from 1883 to 1980) before winning their first Series. The beloved '93 Beards, Biceps and Bellies Phils team gets a solid chapter plus some other mentions sprinkled throughout the book, but a notable omission - considering that the book was published in 2013 - is that of the 2008 World Series winning team. Surely there must be some stories coming out of that locker room, though the author does opine at least once that this team was relatively bland, personality wise. Still, the omission of the most recent successful era of Phillies baseball (2007-2012) looms large and is the reason I can't give the book four stars. That, and the writing is inconsistent: sometimes clever and well-done, and other times demonstrating no particular facility with words on the part of the author.

[Fred · Rating 3 out of 5]

too many typographical errors. I didn't like the disjointed add on stories in the middle of chapters. it was a disjointed ramble through dozens of players memories, so they could have easily been added sequentially in the chapters. that said, it offered a lot of windows into a lot of different eras of Phillies and that was appreciated. I know who to go after now for more information, and that's appreciated.

[S.J. Tyson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Phillies, and any book that has "Bowa" in the title has got me hooked already. The book is full of anecdotes and quotes from Phillies players and coaches from the Whiz Kids of the 50's to the Phillies in the new millennium. Recommended for any Phillies fans interested in today's Phils as well as those that came before.

[John]

I've abandoned this book - it was really hard for me to get in to it (despite being a big Phillies fan).

[Ann Mulholland · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't say I liked this. ...just could not get into it, and I'm a die hard Phillies fan. I'm glad I borrowed this from the library and didn't buy it.