Chasing Ghosts: Recent Playoff Misses Reminiscent of 1964 Pennant Collapse
“Sometimes you gotta go back to move forward. I don’t mean going back to going back to reminiscence or chase ghosts, I mean going back to see where you came from.”
While Matthew McConaughey’s advice from his infamous 2014 Lincoln commercial is pretentious and a bit dated, it resonates with the Philadelphia Phillies’ playoff drought. The past 3 seasons have all seen the Phillies’ playoff hopes dashed by brutal records in the month of September: 8-20 in 2018, 12-16 in 2019, and 13-17 in 2020. The most recent regular-season collapse — marking the 9th straight year without a playoff berth — warrants a look back to one of the most notable disappointments in franchise history: the infamous “Phold” of 1964. Perhaps McConaughey is right and reflecting on a disappointing finish to a season 56 years ago will somehow help the Phils avoid the same fate that’s plagued them in recent years. Perhaps I’m just finding a way to find a silver lining in our team’s frustrating mediocrity.
Either way, on September 20th, 1964, the dominant Phillies held a commanding 6.5 game lead over the Cincinnati Reds in the NL Pennant Race with only 12 games left in the regular season. Survival of these next dozen games would earn the Phils a trip to the World Series. (Up until the 1969 season, the two 1st place teams avoided those pesky playoffs and jumped straight to the World Series).
Alas, in what is now typical Phillies fashion, the team lost 10 straight, surrendering the NL pennant to the eventual World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals — a team that hadn’t been in 1st place until the final week of the regular season.
So what happened? More importantly, why should we care?
The reason lies in the eerie similarity of the ‘64 ‘Phold’ and 2020’s disastrous ending. While the ‘64 Phils were a far better team than this past season’s iteration, both teams could practically taste the playoffs before watching their chances slip from their hands (the 2020 Phillies were the NL’s 7th seed with a week left in the regular season).
Photo: Mike Carlson/Associated Press
Three factors contributed to the late-season slide in both years: injuries, pitching woes, and a fateful series sweep. In ‘64 it was Frank Thomas’ broken thumb, the sore arms of pitchers Ray Culp and Dennis Bennet, and starter Art Mahaffey’s sudden loss of control. The injuries echoed in 2020 with the loss of 1st baseman Rhys Hoskins, starters Spencer Howard and Jake Arrieta, and limited availability of sluggers Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto. Similar to the September decline of ace Aaron Nola, the once-dominant ‘64 rotation slipped late in the season, leading to the final factor of each year’s collapse — the 3-game series sweep. The first fatal blow was delivered by the Cardinals in ‘64 and 56 years later, it came at the hands of the Tampa Bay Rays.
Important to note, too, is the element of promise. Just as 2020 offered the best chance of ending the 9-year postseason plight, so too did the 1964 season sparked the hope of October baseball for the 1st time in 14 years. Squandering a playoff berth in the final games of the regular season would be disappointing for fans of any franchise, but when in the midst of playoff drought, it’s devastating. Nothing in professional sports fandom exacerbates more of a psychological toll than that of an MLB playoff race. The anxiety mounts as the end of the regular season grows closer — could this finally be our year? Your disposition is determined by the outcome of each critical game.
These cruel twists of fate perpetuate the cynicism inherent to being a Phillies fan — why should we get our hopes up only to have them crushed at the last minute?
The answer, quite simply, is because we can’t help it. As the years tick by, our memories and appreciation for the golden days of the 2007-2011 Phillies’ age like a fine wine. Our city yearns for the passion and unity found in October baseball, reminiscing of NLCS victories over the Los Angeles Dodgers, parades on Broad Street, and that time when Jimmy Rollins declared us “the team to beat”.
Maybe we’re just chasing ghosts and the Phils are destined to mire in the bog of the regular season for 9 more years. Maybe we’re not.
Only time will tell, leaving fans with the one thing we’ve got left — hope.
Featured Image: Mike Carlson/Associated Press
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