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00:00:00Hey, get me a Redman the Robot.
00:00:01You'd say, I'm sorry, we're all out.
00:00:03We're sold out, Mike.
00:00:04Who is Mike Schmidt?
00:00:06Who is Mike Schmidt?
00:00:08Bro, have some respect here, man.
00:00:09What are you talking about?
00:00:10I don't know who Mike Schmidt is.
00:00:13Come on.
00:00:14You don't know who Mike Schmidt is?
00:00:17He's only maybe the greatest third baseman in history
00:00:20and a legend in Philadelphia for all time.
00:00:23When you're the greatest player that's ever played in an organization,
00:00:27you know, name some of them.
00:00:28Ted Williams.
00:00:30Babe Ruth.
00:00:31Oh, jeez.
00:00:32Mike Schmidt.
00:00:33You know, come on.
00:00:37There's nothing Mike couldn't do on a baseball field.
00:00:40If you needed a homer, he got it.
00:00:42If you needed a hit, he got it.
00:00:43If you needed a play, he got it.
00:00:46548 home runs and almost 1,600 RBIs in the defense.
00:00:51We'd see plays that he made at third base.
00:00:54It was magical.
00:00:55He's regarded as the best third baseman in Major League Baseball history.
00:01:01I wish I'd played defense like him.
00:01:03I wish I'd power like him.
00:01:06Long drive to left field.
00:01:08He buried it.
00:01:09He buried it.
00:01:09Mike Schmidt was a star.
00:01:11Would you say you're best, Elsie?
00:01:13Well, would I say?
00:01:14All you got to do is look at the statistics and I'd have to say yes.
00:01:16This is the greatest player in the history of the franchise.
00:01:21Number 48, first step.
00:01:24Mike would be on that Mount Rushmore of sports icons in Philadelphia.
00:01:30Very few all-time greats, Tom Brady, Michael Jordan, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana.
00:01:41These all-time greats didn't get to play their entire career in one city.
00:01:46And if you have a guy that great and he plays his entire career in one city,
00:01:52it should be amazing.
00:01:54But it wasn't always.
00:01:59Instead, the story of Michael Jack Schmidt is, in fact, a complicated tale.
00:02:05A saga of a superstar and a city may be best encapsulated by the words of the man himself
00:02:11uttered along the way.
00:02:15Philadelphia is the only city where you can experience the thrill of victory one night
00:02:20and the agony of reading about it the next day.
00:02:24Philly was known as a great sports town if you performed.
00:02:30If you didn't perform, they would boo you in a minute.
00:02:34Sports fans in other cities enjoy sports.
00:02:39Sports fans in Philadelphia derive their life's joy from the outcome of games from their teams.
00:02:47Jump!
00:02:48Jump!
00:02:48Jump!
00:02:49If you're associated with the Philadelphia media or town, you look for the negatives.
00:02:56I don't know if there's something about their upbringing or they have too many hoagies or too much cream cheese.
00:03:00I think they appreciated him, but they wanted to see more emotions on your sleeve.
00:03:08I'm not saying he didn't want to win.
00:03:10He wanted to win as bad as I did, as bad as Bull did, as bad as anybody.
00:03:14But he kept things bottled up a lot.
00:03:16And I think he got punished for that by the fans.
00:03:19Philly is a blue-collar, passionate, we want to see your heart every game, every at-bat.
00:03:33And Mike was not like that.
00:03:35Fans, they want to see the human side of people.
00:03:43And that's where the vulnerability comes in.
00:03:45You have to open yourself up and let people see that.
00:03:49And he was very good at keeping people from seeing inside.
00:03:52You're trying your damnedest.
00:03:57You strike out and they boo you.
00:04:00I act like it doesn't bother me, like I don't hear anything the fans say.
00:04:04But the truth is, I hear every word and it kills me.
00:04:09I mean, it hurt me because this is my idol.
00:04:13This is the best player in the game.
00:04:14Why would you boo this guy?
00:04:15Can you imagine Mike Schmidt being so successful, and yet sometimes it wasn't enough?
00:04:22And then you start thinking, what is enough?
00:04:25That's an interesting question.
00:04:35Mike Schmidt was born and raised in Dayton, Ohio, where he grew up to be a star athlete in three sports.
00:04:42Baseball, basketball, and football.
00:04:47But a left knee injury his sophomore year ended his football career in high school.
00:04:53And when he later needed surgery on his right knee, too,
00:04:56it looked like any dreams of playing sports beyond that were over.
00:05:00So I started thinking about, well, what am I going to do with my life?
00:05:03And I went to school to become an architect.
00:05:05That was the one subject in high school that I really enjoyed.
00:05:09So that's one of the reasons that I went to Ohio University.
00:05:13I saw myself as an architect like Jason Alexander on Seinfeld.
00:05:19But Schmidt did try out for Ohio's baseball team.
00:05:23And he made it as a walk-on his freshman year,
00:05:26before becoming the Bobcats' starting shortstop as a sophomore.
00:05:31That was the turning point in my baseball life,
00:05:35where that job opened up for me to play shortstop on the varsity team.
00:05:38And from that point on, I became a player.
00:05:42I went on to become an All-Mid-American Conference player and an All-American.
00:05:47And I kept seeing more scouts in the stands at Ohio University.
00:05:51And my confidence rose.
00:05:52I just felt all of a sudden like it was a real possibility that I might get drafted.
00:05:57He'd be the first pick in the second round of the 1971 draft for the Philadelphia Phillies.
00:06:02Then, the lowliest franchise in baseball.
00:06:08Fight, fight, fightin' Phils.
00:06:12It's a tough, tough team to beat.
00:06:16You have to understand that Philadelphia, in the era he played in,
00:06:19nobody had ever won anything.
00:06:21The Phillies had never won a World Series.
00:06:23They were the losing-est franchise in the history of the sport.
00:06:29And here's Schmidt coming in as a guy who they hope can be the savior.
00:06:33They hope can be the answer.
00:06:35The focal point.
00:06:36The foundation of a team that will win and bring that first championship to Philadelphia.
00:06:41After a quick cameo in the big leagues in 1972, the highly touted prospect got the Phillies' starting third baseman job in 1973.
00:06:51But he struggled in the role.
00:06:56In the minor leagues, obviously he was such a great athlete, he dominated.
00:07:00But in the big leagues, it doesn't happen overnight.
00:07:04I wasn't able to make the necessary adjustments as a hitter.
00:07:07I hit under 200, under the Mendoza line, as they say.
00:07:13196.
00:07:141973, the Phillies are playing the Dodgers.
00:07:17And my brother's a pitcher for the Phillies.
00:07:19My brother, Kim.
00:07:20So my family goes to the game.
00:07:23And Schmitty struck out three times or something.
00:07:26And my brother, John, he says, God, that Mike Schmitt's terrible.
00:07:29He's terrible.
00:07:31And my brother, Kim, says to him, he says, you wait.
00:07:34This guy is going to be really, really good.
00:07:39So at least the potential was there in 73.
00:07:43And the year proved to be pivotal for Schmitt off the diamond as well.
00:07:48I met my beautiful wife at the end of the 1973 season, having lunch at a place where she was working.
00:07:55He came in after a golf game with Steve Carlton, and I think his name was Barry Lersch.
00:08:01I knew nothing about baseball.
00:08:03I'm the youngest of four girls and didn't care.
00:08:06As the place was basically empty, the waitress they had said, there's somebody that wants to meet you.
00:08:12He had sunglasses on his head.
00:08:15He was flipping his clog off his foot.
00:08:17And he was just as relaxed as can be.
00:08:20So, of course, I gave him my number.
00:08:22And we went out that weekend.
00:08:24And three weeks later, we were engaged.
00:08:26There may have been no hesitation about moving forward with Donna.
00:08:30But the reality was, his baseball career seemed a lot more uncertain.
00:08:34I very easily could have been sent back down to AAA for another year of seasoning.
00:08:41But at the end of that year, they made a decision to send me to Puerto Rico.
00:08:45Mechanically, I had to make some adjustments.
00:08:48I had to figure it out.
00:08:50So in the Puerto Rican Winter League, I had a couple of at-bats that I decided to try to just take a nice, easy swing at the ball.
00:09:00Try and swing on balance at the ball.
00:09:02And sure enough, the first time I tried it, I hit a double off the left center field fence.
00:09:06So I took that whole thinking of just take a nice, smooth, easy swing.
00:09:10You don't have to fall off balance.
00:09:11You don't have to try to pull the ball.
00:09:13Let the ball go where it's going to go all by itself.
00:09:17And after that, I think I really learned to gain confidence in myself.
00:09:21And after the 73 season, I was ready for 1974.
00:09:25Spring training is a time of new beginnings.
00:09:28And that's just what Mike Schmidt needed after spending much of 73 in Danny Ozark's doghouse.
00:09:34Well, Danny and I didn't see eye to eye much.
00:09:37And he used to call me Dutch, which, as I understand, meant like dumb Dutchman.
00:09:43Of course, I didn't like that.
00:09:44I said, you're going to hit the way I want you to hit or you can take off.
00:09:47I said, your damn 198 average didn't impress me or anybody else.
00:09:50And your 245 average over there didn't impress me.
00:09:53I'm in the batting cage one day and I'm just taking a couple of swings.
00:09:57And Danny was standing behind the batting cage.
00:09:59And he said, Dutch, if you don't lay that bat flatter, in other words, lay it flatter like
00:10:05this, as opposed to how I naturally swing the bat, I'm going to send you out of here.
00:10:11I said, Danny, you can send me to AAA anytime you want.
00:10:14But I'm not laying my bat flat.
00:10:17I hit like this.
00:10:20Holding strong against Ozark would pay dividends.
00:10:261974 was different.
00:10:28I hit a home run off of Tug McGraw opening day to win the game.
00:10:31And from that point on, I feel like I might have had the best year of my career.
00:10:36I went from probably should have been in AAA baseball in 73 to one of the best players in
00:10:47the league in 1974.
00:10:49Come on, Mike.
00:10:50Nice and easy.
00:10:51I think the process let him take a deep breath and say, you know what?
00:10:57I can play with anybody up here.
00:10:59He led the majors with 36 home runs and raised his batting average nearly 100 points.
00:11:07Mike Schmidt, superstar, had arrived in the big leagues.
00:11:11And there was so much more to come.
00:11:15Program, fill a yearbook, scorecard lineup, run up, scorecard.
00:11:2175, after a great 1974 season, it was unusual.
00:11:25I did get off to a slow start.
00:11:28Mike Schmidt's struggles in 1975 would persist for most of the first half of the season.
00:11:33And for the first time in his career, he became a target for the fans.
00:11:39Come on, D.C.
00:11:40The fans at the vet, they don't want to hear about slumps.
00:11:44I remember the times where he got booed.
00:11:46I remember you stink.
00:11:49That negative stuff stays with you.
00:11:51He's very sensitive.
00:11:53Everyone wants to be loved.
00:11:54And they were harsh.
00:11:57And I'm a Philadelphian, so I know what harsh is.
00:12:02You know, you don't like it.
00:12:04It hurts.
00:12:04It hurts a lot.
00:12:06It feels like you've lost fan support.
00:12:09It feels like they don't care about you.
00:12:12It's like they don't understand how hard you were trying.
00:12:15He cared deeply, and sometimes I don't think that resonated with the fans who were watching about how much he really cared.
00:12:24He got to the point when he was having a hard time, we set up a batting cage kind of thing, very modest one in the garage, and he would be there until 3 in the morning.
00:12:35It was never that Mike Schmidt didn't care, but that he cared too much.
00:12:41Mike Schmidt was trying to defend his home run title.
00:12:45Maybe he was trying too hard.
00:12:47Mike Schmidt wasn't just a thinker.
00:12:50He was an over-thinker.
00:12:52The whole process of how he was going to go about an at-bat became the recurring plot line of Mike Schmidt's career.
00:13:04Paralysis by analysis is such a great way to sum up Mike Schmidt's mentality and, as he called himself, a head case.
00:13:14Paralysis by over-analyzing to a point where you can't perform.
00:13:18You can't get the job done.
00:13:19And that's the one thing I used to talk to Mike about all the time when he would start thinking about his hitting and all, about not to get too deep with it, just trust his work and his talent.
00:13:30We're playing at Wrigley Field, and the wind, it had to be blowing 45 miles an hour, blowing out, and he's talking with Danny Ozark.
00:13:39And he says, hey, Danny, he says, don't be afraid to put a hit and run on with me today because it makes me stay in and hit the ball the other way.
00:13:46And I turned around and I said, Mike, do you see that flag out there?
00:13:49You can hit a ball off your knuckles and it's going to go out.
00:13:52You've got to pick another ballpark for a hit and run.
00:13:54As it turned out, he ended up hitting, I think he had three home runs that day.
00:13:58But you're talking about over-analyzing and swinging everything.
00:14:01He felt he needed something to get him motivated and get going.
00:14:05But I said, wrong park, wrong time.
00:14:07He took the game so seriously, it was almost tunnel vision.
00:14:13So that he had to tune out me, the fans, everything, in order for him to be as good as he felt he should be.
00:14:21In my opinion, paralysis from analysis, I think analysis and adjustments and the thinking that I did, I think, allowed me to become the player that I became.
00:14:39The last half of the season in 1975, I got really hot and I did hit enough home runs to lead the league.
00:14:48My RBIs were down into the 90s, I believe.
00:14:51That's a pretty good feat in itself.
00:14:54The following year, Schmidt again got off to a slow start at the plate.
00:14:59This time, it would be veteran teammate Dick Allen who helped him come out of it.
00:15:04I had been in a really cold spell.
00:15:07It was in mid-April, so fairly early in the season.
00:15:10And Dick Allen, he kept me back in the clubhouse as the team went on the field.
00:15:14And Dick told me, let's have some fun out there, let's smile more, let's try to relax, you know.
00:15:19It's just a game, you know, that kind of an attitude.
00:15:22And surely I didn't play the game with that kind of an attitude until that day.
00:15:26I went out there and I hit a home run.
00:15:31And then I hit a home run.
00:15:35And then I hit a home run.
00:15:39And then I hit a home run.
00:15:42Here's Mike Smith.
00:15:43Don't tell me.
00:15:44Don't tell me.
00:15:46And Mike Smith has drilled his fourth straight home run.
00:15:52That is unbelievable.
00:15:53And that turned out to be one hell of a day for me.
00:15:57And in terms of the Phillies, I think we won like 50 out of the next 63 ballgames from that day on in 1976.
00:16:06He'd go on to have another all-star season.
00:16:09And the Phillies would stay hot all summer long.
00:16:12Looking to reach the postseason for the first time since the 1950 WizKids.
00:16:17They had a 15-game lead at the end of August.
00:16:21But a slump shrunk it to just three by the middle of September.
00:16:25That slump agitated the fans.
00:16:28And no one was free from their wrath.
00:16:30I remember one time someone was behind me and saying, you know, that Schmidt's wife, boy, is she ugly.
00:16:38And I do believe at that time I was pregnant, which is like hormones are at an all-time high.
00:16:43I mean, people are very cruel when they want to be.
00:16:46At the vet, where the cars were parked, we'd have to walk up this long tunnel and we'd be exposed to the fans.
00:16:55And Mike, he was the lightning rod of everything in Philadelphia.
00:17:00So people said some terrible things.
00:17:03Back then, ballplayers parked in a parking lot that was accessible to people.
00:17:07And it was a game every night, how we escape the park without everybody seeing us.
00:17:16And we would go up some stairs in the boiler room or some crazy stuff.
00:17:21And I think the escape artist in us back then was sort of, what are we going to do tonight?
00:17:26One night, Mike looks at me and he goes, will you go get my car and pull it up?
00:17:31Because I don't want to walk out in front of all those people.
00:17:33I just want to get my car and go home.
00:17:35And I looked at him and I said, Mike, you know, I'm an all-star too.
00:17:40And he sort of looked at me like, oh yeah, I did go get his car.
00:17:46And I brought it, he got in it, and then I went and got my car.
00:17:49And we went and we had something to eat.
00:17:52But Mike wishes he could, after the game was over, tunneled underneath his home to media PA, wherever he's living,
00:18:01come up, be in his house, because that's just who Mike was.
00:18:05And the fans feel like they know you, and they want to get to know you.
00:18:12And I think that was probably the one strike against Mike.
00:18:15He didn't want them to get to know him.
00:18:17He wanted to just be great at baseball.
00:18:19In the end, the Phillies would hold on to win the NLE's title in 1976, with a franchise record 101 wins.
00:18:29And Schmidt leading the National League in homers for a third straight year and winning his first gold glove.
00:18:35But in the championship series, the Phillies were outclassed by the reigning World Series champs, Cincinnati's Big Red Machine.
00:18:43Low shot for right side.
00:18:44Here comes Concepcion.
00:18:45Oh, and Bruce did it all.
00:18:47And the 1976 pennant belongs to the Reds.
00:18:51The Reds have scored three in the ninth inning and have swept the Philadelphia Phillies.
00:18:57Although we got beaten in the playoffs by the Cincinnati Reds, 76, we might have had one of the best Philly teams ever.
00:19:05Unfortunately, we disappointed our fans in the postseason, as well as us, for sure.
00:19:13Opening day, 1977.
00:19:16Ladies and gentlemen, the 1977 that's put it up to Philly!
00:19:22As the 77 season dawned, Mike Schmidt was one of the best players in all of baseball.
00:19:28At 27 years of age, he was the savior Phillies fans had been waiting on for decades.
00:19:34But with superstardom, came heavy expectations.
00:19:37My responsibilities as a player on the team grew.
00:19:42You might say the pressure for me to perform grew.
00:19:46They said, I want that guy.
00:19:48But even when they got that guy, they weren't happy with that guy.
00:19:53You know, think about that.
00:19:54Like, wait a minute, you said that's what you wanted.
00:19:57No, we want more.
00:19:59Fans always want more.
00:20:01And the more they demanded, the more tense the relationship seemed to grow between Schmidt and the fans.
00:20:08Still, he had another all-star season.
00:20:11And the Phillies won 101 games and repeated as NLE's champs.
00:20:15Returning to the LCS.
00:20:17This time to face the Dodgers.
00:20:19The club split the first two games of the best of five series.
00:20:22And then in game three, the Phillies had a two-run lead with two outs in the ninth.
00:20:28Just two strikes away from a win that would put them at the precipice of, at long last, a World Series.
00:20:34Gene Garber in his third inning.
00:20:39A drag butt.
00:20:40It's a beauty by D'Avalio.
00:20:43Sizemore trying to pull it off with a scoop, but no chance of base hit for McD'Avalio.
00:20:49It's called Black Friday.
00:20:52This town never forgets anything.
00:20:54Usually in the ninth inning, when I'm going out, I see Jerry Martin running by me.
00:21:02And I see Bull running to the left.
00:21:03I said, what are you doing?
00:21:06And he said, I don't know if it was true or not, he said, Danny wants me out here because if we win it, he wants me to be on the field to celebrate.
00:21:12And I just went, oh, wow.
00:21:14It's a play the team had made over and over in taking Greg Lezinski out in the ninth and letting Jerry Martin go in as his replacement.
00:21:25I remember that like it was yesterday.
00:21:28That's the base runner, D'Avalio, first base, two outs in the ninth inning.
00:21:32The fans are on their feet.
00:21:35Fans are shouting defense.
00:21:37What an incredible crowd here at Veterans Stadium.
00:21:40A two-strike pitch, five-ball deep left.
00:21:44Lezinski going away back.
00:21:46And this ball is trapped by Lezinski.
00:21:50It's a double for Manny Mota.
00:21:52Gets away.
00:21:53Coming in to score, D'Avalio.
00:21:55Mota will hold a third.
00:21:57Lezinski could not pull it off, a double for Mota.
00:22:00And then an error as the ball got away.
00:22:02It's now a 5-4 ball game.
00:22:05And this game not over yet.
00:22:07To this day, he says he caught the ball.
00:22:08And I've seen the replay.
00:22:10It is hard to tell.
00:22:11But I personally don't think he caught it.
00:22:14But neither here nor there.
00:22:17Here's Davey Lopes' game on the line.
00:22:19Ground ball on Smith to Boa.
00:22:21A throw.
00:22:22Yes!
00:22:23No!
00:22:24Not in time!
00:22:25This game is time!
00:22:28Davey Lopes hit a ground ball to my left.
00:22:30It went off to my glove.
00:22:32Bounced straight to Larry Boa.
00:22:34Barehanded the ball.
00:22:35Threw it to first.
00:22:36And by all angles, Davey Lopes was out.
00:22:41To this day, I'll go to my grave.
00:22:44He's out.
00:22:44If we have instant replay, he's out.
00:22:46And we might have another ring on our finger.
00:22:48The Phillies went on to lose the game.
00:22:51And a day later, the Dodgers closed them out.
00:22:53And there ain't no sense sitting around worrying about one play or one call.
00:22:58You know, one call by the umpire or anything like that.
00:23:00It comes right down to, hey, we got a hit.
00:23:02If we're as good as people say we are and we deserve to be in the World Series and we're
00:23:05the best team in baseball and all that business, we've got to prove it right out there with
00:23:08our bat.
00:23:08The following season would only bring a painful rerun, with the Phillies winning the NL East
00:23:19for a third straight year, but then coming up short against the Dodgers again in the championship
00:23:24series.
00:23:26As for Schmidt, a pattern was developing.
00:23:29For the second straight postseason, he had no home runs and only one RBI.
00:23:33When the fans let him know how disappointed they were, his frustrated response came with
00:23:39unusual honesty.
00:23:40I've decided that I deserve to be booed.
00:23:43There's no question about it.
00:23:45If I had a boo sign in my back pocket, I'd pull it out and help them.
00:23:49I just want the people to know I would be booing myself.
00:23:53All I can do is go out there and swing my way out of it and hope the cream will come to the top.
00:23:5776, 77, and 78, I first admit that I didn't perform well in the postseason.
00:24:05I was a big part of us losing three in a row.
00:24:08I felt a burden of lack of performance in the postseason.
00:24:13We almost felt like, I don't know, that the pressure of the postseason was too much for
00:24:18us to handle.
00:24:19I know I felt that way.
00:24:20This late sports word just in, KYW Newsradio has confirmed that Pete Rose will sign with
00:24:33the Phillies.
00:24:35Pete was news.
00:24:36Pete had a story.
00:24:37Pete had an opinion of the game.
00:24:39He had all that stuff.
00:24:40For Mike, it was just absolutely heaven.
00:24:43He couldn't have asked for a better situation.
00:24:45He brought the press to him.
00:24:47They went to Pete's locker, not to my locker.
00:24:49And I was so glad that I didn't have that burden every night of speaking on behalf of
00:24:55the team.
00:24:56Pete Rose, 1979, was all about positivity.
00:25:00And Mike fed off Pete's positivity.
00:25:04And he fed off Pete's never-ending monologue about how good he was and how everybody in
00:25:11the league knew it except him.
00:25:12Mike Schmidt, you know, a lot of people seem to think he's nonchalant when he misses a
00:25:17ground ball.
00:25:18But Mike Schmidt is as dedicated baseball player as I've ever played with.
00:25:21And I played with some darn good ones.
00:25:22First thing Pete addressed to Mike was, you know, when we used to look across you in the
00:25:27field and see you at third, we said, man, this guy is special.
00:25:30And right away, you could see Schmitty's eyes light up, like, really?
00:25:35Because Schmitty never believed he was as good as he was.
00:25:37To me, that just made my chest come out further and made me feel more confident as a player.
00:25:43And he was a fantastic teammate.
00:25:45While Pete Rose was great for Mike Schmidt, his impact didn't show up in the standings
00:25:54in 1979, as the Phillies took a step back after three straight playoff appearances.
00:26:00And with the team languishing in fourth place in August, the club made a change at the top,
00:26:06bringing in Dallas Green as their new manager, with a look towards turning the page to 1980.
00:26:11When Dallas came in, Dallas was a disciplinary.
00:26:15They used to call him a yeller and a screamer and all that.
00:26:18We still only got one hit, man.
00:26:20Let's go.
00:26:21So he was not looking to be liked.
00:26:24Hey, come on, ball.
00:26:26He was looking to get the best out of his players, of course.
00:26:29Heck, and as it turned out, it worked.
00:26:34Here's a long drive to left field.
00:26:36Mike Schmidt has just unloaded.
00:26:39Come on, Mike.
00:26:39Mike Schmidt continued a hot streak of 17 hits and 28 at-bats, which included five homers.
00:26:47Schmidt with a long, high fly ball to deep left field.
00:26:50It's gone!
00:26:51A home run by Schmidt.
00:26:53In 1980, it was a year in my career that sort of defined me as a player.
00:26:59He is today the premier power hitter in Major League Baseball.
00:27:04Michael Jack Schmidt, Philadelphia's Sultan of Swats.
00:27:08With the help of Pete and Dallas, I think that whole year, he finally realized, you know
00:27:13what, I'm special.
00:27:161980's most valuable play.
00:27:18If I was that kind of player, I'd be saying, hey, look at me, look what I can do.
00:27:22Mike wasn't like that, but had a lot of drive and fire inside that people didn't realize that
00:27:27he had.
00:27:27If you look back at 1980, there were a lot of ups and there were a lot of downs.
00:27:35It wasn't like they sailed, right, to the division title.
00:27:39As Philadelphia yo-yoed half a game ahead and then half a game behind Montreal in the
00:27:45National League East.
00:27:46Main adversary that year was the Montreal Expos.
00:27:49As for the Expos, they gained a first-place half-game lead with three games remaining against
00:27:55Philadelphia the final three days of the season.
00:27:58We had to go up to Montreal, which was very difficult.
00:28:04They had a real good team, and we had to win two out of three.
00:28:07And in the opener of the do-or-die series, Schmidt made an immediate statement.
00:28:12In a tight game, the solo home run proved to be the difference.
00:28:27And the Phillies have moved into first place by a game.
00:28:32The Phillies win the ball game by a 2-1 score.
00:28:39The next night was a back-and-forth affair, with the Phillies tying the game in the ninth
00:28:44and then Schmidt coming to the plate in the top of the 11th.
00:28:50Everything was just kind of like a burden on my shoulder.
00:28:5476, 77, 78 postseason were awful.
00:28:56And I couldn't go on with the same record that I had leading up to that.
00:29:02Long drive.
00:29:03Watch that, baby!
00:29:05Way, way out of here!
00:29:07Home run!
00:29:09Mike Schmidt!
00:29:10Phillies lead six to four!
00:29:13Stan Bonson threw a fastball right down the middle, and I hit it.
00:29:17Or as Andy Musters said...
00:29:18He buried it!
00:29:20He buried it!
00:29:20Number 48 for seven!
00:29:22I have never seen Mike as excited as this!
00:29:26That trip around the bases was one of those rare times in Mike's career where he saw the
00:29:35real him, the boy in him.
00:29:36He didn't want to let that side of him ever come out.
00:29:39He couldn't help it there, because it was such a powerful moment.
00:29:44It was the first time in my career where I felt like I had proved, not only to myself,
00:29:51but to Philly fans that I could play the game and play it well under pressure, when the team
00:29:56really needed me.
00:29:57The Phillies have won it by a score of six to four on Mike Smith's over.
00:30:13The 1980 National League Championship Series.
00:30:21Live from Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, the Eastern Champion Phillies hosts the West
00:30:27Western Champion Astros.
00:30:28I don't believe there was ever a postseason more exciting than the Phillies and the Astros
00:30:34in 1980.
00:30:35That's the big man who really has been struggling with the one RBI in the series.
00:30:41In the final game of that series, we are down three runs in the eighth inning, and the little
00:30:47rally started.
00:30:48And it's a 5-4 ball game now, and the tension just grows as the crowd plants down.
00:30:56And here I come up to the home plate, and they bring a guy named Ken Forsh.
00:31:00The world is watching Mike Schmidt right now as Ken Forsh warms up.
00:31:06And Ken Forsh threw me a couple of sliders.
00:31:09Swing and a miss.
00:31:10Strike one.
00:31:11Strike two.
00:31:12Strike two.
00:31:13Strike three.
00:31:14What a pitch.
00:31:15On a cold third strike.
00:31:16Hard to believe, isn't it?
00:31:17It is hard to believe.
00:31:18There are no words needed for that picture of Mike Schmidt.
00:31:32As great a moment the home run in Montreal was, this was as bad a feeling on the other
00:31:39end as I could possibly have.
00:31:41But he was the guy that got us there.
00:31:42Without Schmidt, we don't get there.
00:31:45And, you know, at the time you try to say, hang in there, man, things are going to turn
00:31:48around.
00:31:49Chris Unser now with two out and the tying run at third.
00:31:54One of the biggest, biggest hits I ever got in my life.
00:31:59I didn't get it.
00:32:00Dell Unser got it.
00:32:01It's a base hit to right center and we're tied at five.
00:32:06We ended up tying the game that inning and in extra innings, we ended up winning it.
00:32:13The Phillies winning.
00:32:18So Dell Unser got the biggest hit of my career.
00:32:20I know I was some dead weight out there in that game today, Don.
00:32:24Some real dead weight and that proves what kind of heart this team has.
00:32:27It will be Philadelphia against Kansas City in the World Series starting Tuesday night.
00:32:33Mike went into that World Series feeling the weight of what had just happened.
00:32:50Schmidt looked to me like he was carrying all the pressure in the world in those playoff
00:32:55games.
00:32:56I think he was really frustrated.
00:32:58The Astros pitched him very well.
00:33:01I was wondering how Philadelphia was going to perceive him.
00:33:04He has been booted this town during the course of this year, but not at World Series time,
00:33:14at least not yet.
00:33:16There was so much pressure he put on himself always, but especially in that World Series.
00:33:26It was a burden to have not had any success in the postseason.
00:33:31Two teams who have never won a World Series square off in baseball's October Showcase.
00:33:38Kansas City Royals were supposedly the best team in baseball that year.
00:33:42George Brett had a fantastic year, an MVP year.
00:33:46The series was built up a little bit about Brett and myself.
00:33:49So I didn't like him.
00:33:50I really didn't like him at all.
00:33:52Hearing a lot about him in the National League as a third baseman, I was American League third
00:33:57baseman.
00:33:58And you play against him in the All-Star games.
00:33:59And I wanted to outdo him.
00:34:01I wanted to be better than him.
00:34:02And he upped me almost every game.
00:34:06He made some great plays in the World Series against us.
00:34:18He looked very calm and collective out there.
00:34:21Schmidt needed that 80 World Series, especially after failing big time in the NLCS, that he
00:34:27needed to bounce back.
00:34:29There's a pitch, drilled hard.
00:34:30Base set by Mike Schmidt on a 2-2 pitch.
00:34:33Is Mike Schmidt finally coming to line?
00:34:37I was in a bit of a flow, a bit of a hot streak.
00:34:42So I was feeling pretty good.
00:34:44Schmidt reached base three times in the Phillies' Game 1 win.
00:34:48Then in Game 2, he came to the plate in the bottom of the eighth, with the score tied
00:34:53and one of the best closers in baseball on the mound.
00:34:57There is Quisenberry.
00:34:59You talk about impressive.
00:35:01Just look at that last statistic.
00:35:03Dan Quisenberry was our closer.
00:35:05Rolaid's relief pitcher of the year for years.
00:35:08Right-handers just had trouble with him.
00:35:10And Mike was very analytical, very smart.
00:35:14It looked like he made up his mind.
00:35:16I'm not going to try to pull him.
00:35:17I'm just going to try to hit it up the middle.
00:35:20Right field, deep.
00:35:22Cardinal going back, back.
00:35:24That's going to be off the ball.
00:35:26It's a double for Schmidt.
00:35:28It's 5-4, Philadelphia.
00:35:30Quisenberry threw me a hard sinker down and in, and I lined it for the go-ahead run.
00:35:35Yay!
00:35:37We won the second game.
00:35:39Mike Schmidt has been hurt from.
00:35:41That may take a lot of pressure off of his shoulders.
00:35:44And I was right in the thick of it there, and it felt great to contribute in the postseason.
00:35:49Well, it's a great feeling.
00:35:51It's a great feeling to have.
00:35:53It's a real feeling of confidence.
00:35:56We won the first two games in Philly.
00:36:00And Kansas City won the first two games in Kansas City.
00:36:06And then it was a 2-2 and the fifth game in Kansas City.
00:36:19Years ago, I got something in the mail.
00:36:23And I'm going, who's sending me a book?
00:36:27Mike Schmidt sent me a book.
00:36:30I read it.
00:36:32I read it.
00:36:33I normally don't read stuff like this.
00:36:35I'll read a novel here and there.
00:36:37And I just got one question for you, Mike.
00:36:40When did you ever bunt?
00:36:43You never bunted in your frickin' life.
00:36:46And you're telling people how to bunt.
00:36:48Schmidt with a home run earlier in the fourth inning for the two Philly runs.
00:36:53We're winning by one run in the fifth game.
00:36:56He's leading off.
00:36:58And our manager, Jim Fry, says, hey, he tried to bunt earlier.
00:37:01Don't let him bunt.
00:37:02Bunts it down to third base.
00:37:04Line foul.
00:37:05How do you like that?
00:37:07Brett flips the ball up as if to say, what in the world is going on?
00:37:11So, sure enough, I play in a little bit.
00:37:14And he hits a rocket.
00:37:17Hot smash.
00:37:18Brett knocks it down.
00:37:20It's a base hit for Mike Schmidt.
00:37:21Tying run is on.
00:37:23And the threat of Mike Schmidt bunting kept George Brett in tight at third base,
00:37:28even with a bag.
00:37:29Next thing you know, they scored two runs and beat us.
00:37:32And now the Phillies head back to Philadelphia, leading in this series.
00:37:36Hey, after we wanted that game in Kansas City to go 3-2,
00:37:40I personally, I respect baseball.
00:37:45But we're coming home.
00:37:48We got 55,000 people.
00:37:52There's no way we're losing this game.
00:37:54They need just this one victory in game number six to become the world's champions.
00:37:59I remember seeing my dad's office the morning of the sixth game of the 80 World Series.
00:38:03And I said, Dad, wouldn't it be great to go to the game?
00:38:06And then he got two tickets, back row of the 648 section in the vet,
00:38:11but we went to that game.
00:38:12And that was one of the great, you know, father-son memories I have in my life.
00:38:18And there are nobody out.
00:38:21Bases are loaded, and Mike Schmidt, their big man in the batter's box.
00:38:25I think the ebbs and flows of Mike's career got him to that point in the World Series
00:38:31where he finally said, hey, you know what?
00:38:33Forget everything else.
00:38:34We're in the World Series.
00:38:35Base hit.
00:38:36Right field.
00:38:37Here comes one run in.
00:38:38Smith is going to score.
00:38:39And it's a 2-0 ball game.
00:38:42Jumping out to a lead in the sixth game of the World Series really relaxed us.
00:38:50He's had a big series thus far.
00:38:52Look at that reaction.
00:38:54He was allowed to let his hair down and show some emotion.
00:38:57And I think the fans of Philadelphia, they finally went, wow, this guy, he is down-to-earth type of guy.
00:39:04He shows emotion.
00:39:05The fans in this ballpark are beginning to smell their first World Championship.
00:39:12And that was kind of the defining point in Mike Schmidt's career.
00:39:17After struggling, after having these ups and downs, finally lived up to all the hype.
00:39:22The one, two, fifth, basketball got it quick.
00:39:25The Philadelphia Phillies are the champions of the world.
00:39:34He deserved it.
00:39:35He's so great for so long.
00:39:37He's just really happy for him.
00:39:41You know, Mike, you could just see, it was almost like a sort of a weight.
00:39:48It was sort of lifted, like we did it.
00:39:51Whew!
00:39:52It turned out to be one of the great things in Philadelphia sports history.
00:39:57It's not the greatest.
00:39:59And for me to be in the middle of it and winning the MVP of the World Series, I guess that's the pinnacle of my career, being on a world champion, having that ring.
00:40:09He performed under pressure.
00:40:11He won the championship.
00:40:13He saw the parade.
00:40:15He saw the fans cheering him.
00:40:18He saw how much they loved him.
00:40:21Like he's our champion.
00:40:24It was so much fun to look out from that parade and see all these faces.
00:40:30These were the fans that, you know, that rooted for us and probably a lot of the fans that had booed us and me.
00:40:36It was more of a jumping from the whole negative vibe of Philly into a more passionate relationship.
00:40:48I think that that, as much as anything else, calmed him a little bit.
00:40:52Like it didn't take away those moments where he still struggled, but I think being on that float and winning that championship, I think it did wonders for Mike.
00:41:03I never saw so many sincere faces in my life as I did in that parade today.
00:41:08Take this world championship and savor it.
00:41:12You all deserve it.
00:41:14Never forget that time.
00:41:16You know, there's this mantra that you never have to buy a beer ever if you win a championship in Philadelphia, if you're a manager or a coach or a player.
00:41:35I think Mike probably felt a lot better about himself and his space in Philadelphia and what he meant to the city.
00:41:44But, you know, it wasn't like he was going to stop playing.
00:41:48Every baseball player that puts a uniform on wants to have a World Series ring.
00:41:53And I guess once you get that first one, that's what we're here for now is to try and get that second one.
00:42:00As the 1981 season began, the Phillies set out to defend their World Series title.
00:42:06And a red hot Mike Schmidt led the team out to a strong start.
00:42:10Oh, there goes another one.
00:42:13Way out of here.
00:42:14Mike Schmidt, his ninth home run of the year.
00:42:17Even through the strike that interrupted the season for almost two months, Schmidt stayed hot all year.
00:42:23There it might be.
00:42:26It might be.
00:42:27It is.
00:42:28Oh, boy.
00:42:31He just had a swing, a swing path, and an approach that worked for him.
00:42:37He could feel it.
00:42:38He could replicate it.
00:42:39And he did that all year long.
00:42:42Mike Schmidt has averaged one home run every 15.06 times at bat.
00:42:47For me, statistically, it was my best season ever.
00:42:50I mean, I ended up in a 90-some game schedule driving in, you know, 93 runs.
00:42:56And I got to 31 home runs that year.
00:42:58And I think I hit .316.
00:42:59It was the only year I hit over .300.
00:43:03It all amounted to Schmidt's second MVP award.
00:43:06And the Phillies, who'd had the best record in the league over the first half of the strike-interrupted season,
00:43:11earned a spot against the Montreal Expos, the top second-half team, in the first-ever National League Division Series,
00:43:19with expectations sky-high in Philly that Schmidt could lead the club back to the World Series.
00:43:26I really believe that if you're a home run hitter and you hit a lot of home runs, you've got to hit home runs.
00:43:31And all of a sudden, you go to the playoffs and you don't hit a lot of home runs.
00:43:35It was like you choked.
00:43:37I wasn't a home run hit.
00:43:38All I had to do was get a single.
00:43:39And I'm having a good day.
00:43:41A single is not going to be a Mike Schmidt hit, you know.
00:43:44And all of a sudden, you start pressing and you start gripping the bat a little tighter, a little tighter, a little tighter.
00:43:49While Schmidt did eventually manage to hit one homer on his way to a respectable 4-for-16 over the series,
00:43:56the fans' frustrations again boiled over, ending Schmidt's brief honeymoon even before the club succumbed to the Expos in five games.
00:44:04Schmidt wins the MVP in 1980. He's the World Series MVP.
00:44:08And maybe in some cities, that's going to buy you a little bit of a grace period, a honeymoon period.
00:44:13No, not for Mike Schmidt, not in this city, not in Philadelphia.
00:44:16He was a guy who the expectations now were higher.
00:44:20So when he struggled, he hurt it.
00:44:26Two seasons later, the Phillies made another big push for a championship, bringing in two more aging stars from Cincinnati's Big Red Machine,
00:44:34Joe Morgan and Tony Perez, which earned the 1983 Phillies the nickname the Wheeze Kids.
00:44:41Mike, what was your reaction when you learned that the Phillies would have Joe Morgan and Pete Rose in the same infield?
00:44:46Joe, I'm very excited about that.
00:44:48And the chance to play with Joe Morgan, Tony Perez, Pete Rose, all in the same team.
00:44:52A bunch of old guys, so to speak.
00:44:54That's a big theme of our team this year, that everybody's too old to win.
00:44:57I think we're going to show everybody that they age like fine wine.
00:45:00The Wheeze Kids ultimately proved they still had life yet, with the Phillies winning the NL East,
00:45:07and then defeating the Dodgers in the LCS, with Schmidt hitting almost 500 in the series.
00:45:13If you had a great LCS, I'm like, I think you hit around 500, probably your best.
00:45:18Would you say your best LCS?
00:45:19Well, would I say?
00:45:20All you got to do is look at the statistics, and I'd have to say yes.
00:45:23Any time you think you have the game conquered, the game will turn around and punch you right in the nose.
00:45:29He'd had another MVP caliber season, and dominated in the LCS, lifting expectations in Philly for another unforgettable World Series.
00:45:41But then, sure enough, the game again punched him in the nose.
00:45:46We won the first game in Baltimore, and we lose four in a row.
00:45:52I mean, I think I got one hit in the entire World Series.
00:45:56Mike is now 1 for 17.
00:45:59So you're telling me that they started booing them again at the World Series in 83?
00:46:04That's absurd. That's absurd.
00:46:06He's the reason they got that far.
00:46:09I'm glad I never played in Philadelphia.
00:46:12Philly is a great sports town, but when things are not going good, it's not a lot of fun.
00:46:20Ground ball to third.
00:46:22Crews up with it, fires across, and that's the first ground ball out.
00:46:25Another serenade for Mike Schmidt.
00:46:27That's what happens to you when you're 1 for 18.
00:46:29For me, it felt like they expected me to be good every day, be good every at bat.
00:46:35No one wanted that to happen more than me.
00:46:38I just couldn't live up to, you know, the expectations of the Philly fans.
00:46:47And he strikes out.
00:46:51People probably put the blame on Smitty more so than others because he was the guy you expect to carry the team.
00:46:58And you face good pitching like that, you don't expect to go 1 for 20, but it happens.
00:47:03And I think it was really hard for him.
00:47:06This man shouldn't be booed.
00:47:08Agreed.
00:47:09But it's been that way for Mike ever since he came up with the Phillies in 73.
00:47:14To sit back and hear it, it's mind-boggling.
00:47:17Like, people, this guy, you know how good he is.
00:47:22We'll talk about Schmidt series, glowingly in 80, and 1 for 20 in 83.
00:47:28One end of the spectrum to the other.
00:47:30What can I say?
00:47:31I mean, I don't know how to even address that.
00:47:34I think that the Boo Birds are the loudest people at the park.
00:47:38They're not the majority, obviously, but they're the most obnoxious.
00:47:41And I think that no matter what he does, they're going to have something to say about it.
00:47:46But I don't know. They can be cruel.
00:47:49The Liner and the Orioles are the world champions.
00:47:55The thing is, is I felt the same way.
00:47:58You don't know how many times I would have booed myself.
00:48:011983 World Series was one of those times.
00:48:06And that was a low period.
00:48:10You talk about this public image that you're going to try and improve a little.
00:48:14Right.
00:48:15It's not your basic nature to be outgoing, to do those kind of things.
00:48:18Is this going to be a difficult thing for you to do?
00:48:20I don't know.
00:48:21Hot streak, cold streak, winning streak, losing streak.
00:48:24I'm going to do my best to change how I feel the Philadelphia public in general feels about me.
00:48:30It's hard to have any real positive feelings about me because not many people know me.
00:48:35But I've just decided, I don't know, just come out a little bit and get to know people.
00:48:39Let people get to know me.
00:48:40Despite Mike Schmidt's best intentions, his team's decline toward mediocrity in 1984 and 1985 would have a familiar consequence.
00:48:52A lot of boos from Phillies fans and the loudest ones reserved for their third baseman.
00:48:57By the summer of 1985, after a slow start at the plate himself, Schmidt had reached another boiling point and sounded off to reporters after a loss in Montreal.
00:49:08Yeah, these are some harsh quotes from me.
00:49:11I guess I just let it fly.
00:49:13They're a mob scene.
00:49:16They're uncontrollable and beyond help.
00:49:19I'll tell you something about playing in Philadelphia.
00:49:21Whatever I've got in my career now, I would have had a great deal more if I'd played my whole career in Los Angeles or Chicago, you name a town.
00:49:29Somewhere where they were just grateful to have me around.
00:49:34They've seen me playing well more than badly.
00:49:37I've achieved excellence in baseball in front of those people.
00:49:40They want to see excellence on a regular basis, and I can't do that for them.
00:49:45In the past, it affected me.
00:49:47I was angry.
00:49:48I tried too hard.
00:49:49I couldn't understand it and felt sorry for myself.
00:49:52But this season, I could care less.
00:49:55Whoa, there's a lot in there.
00:49:58The one thing you can never do as a player is go back at the fans.
00:50:03I think the one thing that really sucks about it for Mike is he's really a good guy.
00:50:09Unfortunately, he's honest to a fault.
00:50:13And sometimes when there were things that would bother him, he would just come out.
00:50:19Yeah, with a hell of a lot more pain in the ass media attention.
00:50:22To zip it.
00:50:24It's funny how I see it now from a different side and realize that it shouldn't have ever been this serious, right?
00:50:35But I just took everything so internally and seriously back then.
00:50:40God, I wish I had it to do all over again.
00:50:43A few days later, the Phillies returned home for the first time since Schmidt's comments.
00:50:49The tension in the ballpark was everywhere, including the clubhouse, where everyone knew what was in store.
00:50:55There was like 25,000 people in the stands that night, and they were getting ready to wear me out.
00:51:03You talk about booing, they were getting ready to boo me out of the stadium.
00:51:06Fans came to the vet tonight ready to boo Mike Schmidt for what they thought were some harebrained remarks by Schmidt, criticizing them.
00:51:13And everybody was saying, you should get a costume to put on.
00:51:16You should get something where the fans can't tell who you are.
00:51:20And so Larry Anderson brings out a wig, this long black wig, and some sunglasses.
00:51:27I just went to him and said, Schmidt, you've got to put this wig on.
00:51:30He's like, what?
00:51:31You've got to be kidding me.
00:51:32I didn't realize it was that serious.
00:51:34It was like, Schmidt, you're going to get crushed.
00:51:37You know it.
00:51:38You've got no chance.
00:51:40I said, just put it on.
00:51:41Go out there.
00:51:42Let them see like that.
00:51:44Schmidt took the field wearing one of pitcher Larry Anderson's fright wigs.
00:51:48That turned the boos to cheers.
00:51:52I was known for doing goofy stuff and being crazy, but this was it.
00:51:57He had this wig on, put on his sunglasses, but he walked out in the field like this and took infield at first base.
00:52:06I ran out with that wig on, and they don't know what to do.
00:52:09They're dumbfounded.
00:52:10Then all of a sudden, an ovation occurs, and diffused the whole crowd that night by wearing that black wig.
00:52:18Quite a sense of humor, and he got a standing ovation.
00:52:21Well, that ought to break the ice a little bit.
00:52:23That's right.
00:52:24It worked.
00:52:25I think they accepted him after that.
00:52:27I really do.
00:52:28I think the fans say, hey, this guy's cool.
00:52:30You know, he knows he shouldn't have said what he said in Montreal, and this is him basically apologizing.
00:52:37I think that helped Mike with relationship to the fans.
00:52:42The good feelings carried over to 1986, when at 36, Schmidt would have one of the best seasons of his career.
00:52:50Leading the NL in home runs and RBIs, earning his tenth and final gold glove, and winning his third MVP award.
00:52:58By 86, Philadelphia Phillies fans grew to appreciate Schmidt.
00:53:03Once you've recognized that this is true greatness here, that you'll never see a player of his caliber.
00:53:08He was happier about that season than any season of his career.
00:53:13He was curious about his future.
00:53:16He told me he thought probably the next season was going to be the last season of his career.
00:53:22Schmidt entered 1987 with 495 career home runs.
00:53:27A lot of people here in Clearwater have been asked to make predictions when Mike is going to hit his 500th home run.
00:53:33Certainly in April.
00:53:3524th.
00:53:3625th.
00:53:37I'd say Saturday the 18th in Pittsburgh.
00:53:41Who knows when you need to hit five home runs, how long it might take to hit those five home runs.
00:53:48Schmidt.
00:53:50Long drive.
00:53:51Home run.
00:53:52Mike Schmidt is 496th of his career.
00:53:56Well, sure enough, it didn't take long at all.
00:53:59Home run Michael Jack Schmidt.
00:54:03Number 497.
00:54:06Well hit left field.
00:54:10498.
00:54:11That might be 499.
00:54:15It is out of here.
00:54:18Michael Jack Schmidt.
00:54:20The home run watch will really be on now every time he goes up there to swing the bat.
00:54:26I had to call my wife, Donna, and say, hey, hon, you better get over to Pittsburgh as fast as you can because I may hit my 500th home run.
00:54:34Hi, it's Millie.
00:54:35Are you coming to Pittsburgh?
00:54:37I remember the phone ringing and it would be Mike and he sounded anxious and he said, Donnie, you have to come to Pittsburgh.
00:54:44And I'm like, you got to be kidding me.
00:54:46I have two sick kids.
00:54:47Well, like I said, it's up to you.
00:54:50You can't leave unless you got somebody to watch the kids, number one.
00:54:54And you got to find a flight and you got to disrupt whatever plans you might have.
00:55:00And I can't guarantee I won't hit a home run sometime in tomorrow's ball game.
00:55:05The odd thing is that he would have known somewhere in the back of his head that that would be the game.
00:55:12I mean, I'd be very superstitious saying, I'm not going to call that game.
00:55:16I'll call you in the morning, 8 o'clock, 8.30 when I get up.
00:55:19All right.
00:55:20I'll talk to you then.
00:55:21I love you.
00:55:22All right.
00:55:23Bye-bye.
00:55:24I made a flight and came the next day, but I was hoping I'd have to stay two weeks on a road trip.
00:55:30You know, I didn't have enough clothes for that.
00:55:32In Pittsburgh, we have a gorgeous afternoon for baseball.
00:55:37I had a few Phillies fans around here today, Harry, to hopefully to see Mike Schmidt hit his 500.
00:55:42I hope today's the day that Michael Jack gets that 500.
00:55:45It'd be a hell of a thrill, you know that?
00:55:49But for most of the afternoon, Saturday, April 18th, didn't appear to be the day Mike Schmidt would hit number 500.
00:55:56He went hitless in his first four plate appearances and then stood in the on-deck circle with two outs in the ninth.
00:56:03The Phillies trailing 6-5.
00:56:06Mike Schmidt waiting on deck with two outs.
00:56:09It's up to Von Hayes.
00:56:10My last time up that game, I was either going to make the last out and we had to go to another day for him to break it or somehow try to get on base.
00:56:18Ball four and Mike Schmidt is going to bat.
00:56:21Seeking home run number 500 with runners at first and third, two down in the ninth.
00:56:26And you talk about a home run being important.
00:56:29There were two men on base and Don Robinson threw me ball one, ball two, ball three.
00:56:36Three and nothing to Schmidt.
00:56:38Who looks down at Jim Davenport and undoubtedly has a light.
00:56:42He's got the green light and it's going to be a guy that I felt.
00:56:49And it's a 3-0 count and he threw a fastball right down the middle.
00:56:54It's a long drive!
00:56:56There it is!
00:56:57Number 500!
00:56:58The career 500-pole run for Michael Jack Schmidt!
00:57:05This was a milestone.
00:57:06This is a culmination of all the years and all the batting cages and all the analogies of your swing that it was just a fabulous moment.
00:57:16What a time to pick for number 500.
00:57:19The whole dugout's out there.
00:57:21You don't see Schmidt get very emotional going around the bases on a home run.
00:57:28What in the hell happened here?
00:57:31Mike Schmidt?
00:57:32I mean, it was the greatest thing.
00:57:36He kind of puts his head down and does the choo-choo train run.
00:57:39Yeah, it was pretty cool.
00:57:41It was cute.
00:57:43I liked it.
00:57:44That is a storybook 500-pole run, no doubt about it.
00:57:51You couldn't hit it in a better spot.
00:57:53Two outs, down to the last out.
00:57:55Did that work out first?
00:57:59Only first one.
00:58:01And the Phillies have dramatically won eight to six on Michael Jack's 500th career home run.
00:58:10Harry Callis, call this moment.
00:58:12One of the greatest calls of Harry Callis' career.
00:58:16There it is!
00:58:17Number 500!
00:58:19The career 500th home run for Michael Jack Schmidt!
00:58:24Harry called him Michael Jack.
00:58:26He didn't call Mike.
00:58:27He called him Michael Jack.
00:58:29It wasn't just after career home run number 500.
00:58:33He called him that all the time.
00:58:36The name Michael Jack Schmidt gets put on baseballs now when I'm signing.
00:58:41Harry linked me to the Philly fans in a wonderful way, which is still there today.
00:58:47All those rocky times, all those boos, all those ups and downs that he'd experienced in Philadelphia.
00:58:56Suddenly, it dawned on everybody what they were watching.
00:59:01This is one of the greatest players and greatest hitters in the history of the sport.
00:59:08And if you're looking for that moment when everything changed, I think that was that moment.
00:59:15Michael, you hear it every day.
00:59:17You hear it everywhere.
00:59:18Mike Schmidt is all around the greatest third baseman ever.
00:59:22Ever.
00:59:23That's a huge word.
00:59:24Looking back over your career, do you have any argument with that?
00:59:27I'm not going to argue.
00:59:29I'm not going to argue with that statement.
00:59:30I've heard that a few times.
00:59:32By 1989, it was hard to argue.
00:59:37With eight home run titles, ten gold gloves, and three MVP awards.
00:59:43But as the season got underway, Mike Schmidt began wondering more and more about what the end might look like.
00:59:52I started thinking about it.
00:59:55If I had done enough, if I'm still able to play at my level.
01:00:00And when you start thinking about retirement, you're darn close.
01:00:05We were playing a Sunday game in San Francisco.
01:00:08Robbie Thompson, in on first and second, hits me a double play ball to get us out of the inning.
01:00:14And it goes right through my legs.
01:00:17Will Clark's the next hitter, and he hits the first ball for a grand slam home run.
01:00:21And I said, okay, that was it.
01:00:23That's what I was looking for.
01:00:26Michael, step up.
01:00:29All right, bear with me on this, because this isn't easy.
01:00:34When Mike knew it was time to hang up his gloves, he called me and he said,
01:00:39can I go over my speech with you?
01:00:42And he couldn't make it through it.
01:00:45Some 18 years ago, I left Dayton, Ohio, with two very bad knees.
01:00:52And a dream to become a Major League Baseball player.
01:01:05I thank God that the dream came true.
01:01:17I think it got the fans.
01:01:18He showed that he is an emotional guy.
01:01:20Where the fans finally realized, hey, this guy's one of us.
01:01:26Five years later, he'd returned to the spotlight.
01:01:28And give the fans another chance to celebrate him.
01:01:31As he waited on a phone call that felt inevitable.
01:01:36What do you think?
01:01:37What do you think, Howard?
01:01:38What's your bet?
01:01:43Hello?
01:01:46Yeah, is this Paul?
01:01:48Hey, Paul, how are you?
01:01:49Thanks a lot.
01:01:51Thanks a lot.
01:01:52444 of 460.
01:01:57I thought to myself, he's not just in the Hall of Fame.
01:02:00He's at peace with all of it.
01:02:04Okay, the ride is finally going to be smooth.
01:02:07And then Mike said the stuff he said to Philadelphia Magazine.
01:02:12And I thought, oh no, here we go again.
01:02:18It's hard for me to be positive, to have real good things to say about a town that never did anything for me, and in general, made life miserable for me.
01:02:27That quote right there might be the worst thing I ever said.
01:02:34His quotes not only threatened to shatter all the progress he'd made with Philadelphia fans, but also made an issue of his upcoming ceremony in Cooperstown, and the kind of response he'd get when he was introduced.
01:02:49For a lot of what Schmitty did in his career, I think that was always in the back of his head. Am I going to get booed? Am I going to get cheered?
01:02:59And now you go in the Hall of Fame and still have that question?
01:03:04I can't imagine what would be going on in my head.
01:03:07That was in his head.
01:03:08He did not want to get booed on that podium.
01:03:11Nobody gets booed on their Hall of Fame induction day.
01:03:14But this was Mike Schmidt.
01:03:15This was Philadelphia.
01:03:17You never knew.
01:03:22Ladies and gentlemen, Mike Schmidt.
01:03:30There was some fear about how the fans would react, and it didn't happen.
01:03:36I don't think I heard one boo.
01:03:42Wonderful.
01:03:46What a great day.
01:03:49I said some things early in my speech that smoothed it out.
01:03:53Try and put the whole Mike Schmidt versus Philadelphia fans thing to bed.
01:03:57I know you know this, that everywhere I go, I'm asked about you fans.
01:04:02I'm asked about what it was like to play in Philadelphia.
01:04:05Let me say this and make it as short and sweet as I possibly can.
01:04:10If I had it to do all over again, I'd do it in Philly.
01:04:14If I had it to do all over again, the only thing I would change would be me.
01:04:19I felt that there was a lot left on the table with my time in Philadelphia because of me.
01:04:28I'd be less sensitive.
01:04:31I'd be more outgoing.
01:04:33I'd be more appreciative of what you expected of me.
01:04:36I was the one to blame for being miserable.
01:04:41The things they said and did didn't have to make me miserable.
01:04:43It was my fault that I was miserable, not their fault.
01:04:49My relationships with Philadelphia fans has always been misunderstood.
01:04:54Can we put that to rest here today?
01:04:56That was one of the great days in Philadelphia baseball history.
01:05:09Generations of Philadelphians assembled in Cooperstown for that moment.
01:05:13You know, Mike didn't always handle the moments, but he nailed that one.
01:05:26And that's the bottom line.
01:05:29Just like today, you're here.
01:05:33Back then you were there.
01:05:35And I know you care.
01:05:38And for that I thank you.
01:05:43Just for Michael personally, I think his own personal growth, really cool thing for him to do.
01:05:52And I think that there's a new level of respect that he gained.
01:05:56To me that's probably a catalyst as to why he's so much more appreciated now.
01:06:01Ever since that day in Cooperstown, it feels like Mike Schmidt has finally found peace in Philadelphia.
01:06:08It might have taken a baseball lifetime, but today his place in history as an icon for the only franchise he ever played for seems more secure than ever.
01:06:21It's hard to believe, but as much of an icon as he was when he retired, he's even more so now.
01:06:27Mike Schmidt!
01:06:28People really understand just how privileged we were to be able to watch him.
01:06:35To hear him on TV and say what he has to say or tell a story.
01:06:39What's happening, fanatic? How are you?
01:06:43Fans just, they relate to it now.
01:06:45It's touching to see what he finally got.
01:06:47I guess the best word is deserving.
01:06:51These young kids, their parents have said, that's Mike Schmidt, greatest third baseman ever.
01:06:58And that's the legacy right there.
01:07:01Even in a journey that had as much regret as joy, the truth is, there's no need to try to do it all over again.
01:07:10When you end up where you were always supposed to be.
01:07:14It's a great reward for a guy that poured his heart and soul out to the city his entire career.
01:07:20It's what should happen.
01:07:22It's the evolution of what happened.
01:07:24You know, it gives you goosebumps when you see him go out and get standing ovations now.
01:07:29Mike Schmidt!
01:07:31I always say to Mike, Mike, you hear that right?
01:07:34You hear what they're saying?
01:07:36They're telling you how much they love you and what you did as a filly.
01:07:40He's a beloved figure, and he should be.
01:07:45Swing and a long drive!
01:07:48Out of here!
01:07:50Michael Jack Schmidt!
01:07:53He's Michael Jack Schmidt!
01:07:55He's earned the right to be loved, and he is.
01:07:59It was just a rocky road trying to get there.
01:08:04All of the setbacks that I've had in life outside of baseball, in baseball, I have been able to turn into positives.
01:08:15We've talked a lot about me playing in a tough city, Philadelphia, and me saying the wrong things at the wrong time, and I ended up surviving them.
01:08:26All of these people now have seen the real me.
01:08:30You know, a side of me that would never have been divulged.
01:08:33And to me that makes me feel good.
01:08:37I've had so many things going on in my life that no one man deserves.
01:08:43Man, I have had a wonderful ride, a wonderful ride.
01:08:47I've had an outdoor ride.
01:08:54Thank you very much.
01:08:55Fan hosts and Give me your father K experience.
01:08:58We need to ride.
01:09:00We do a five therapy contestant to catch prices from 3их.
01:09:03You know, if you wizards, you can find the future them in some places that are out of the late the month of the month of the year.
01:09:07Now as you get into a photo, here's my father, my father, I will focus on several times andwives the weekly editor's video realm.
01:09:11I feel like, falei, Steven, if you've had a good day.
01:09:13I'll begin.
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