Phillies Nation

No, but Del Preston is No. 14.

Del looks like Karl Childers finishing up that picturesque hack.

10 year career… avg season somehere around .285, 25 HR, 100 RBI

for what its worth, I do not think that Bobby Abreu should be ranked ahead of Ennis, and Im starting to worry that Abrey is going to be in the top 10

My top 10 is still alive!

I think Abreu is coming soon.

Del Ennis was the Pat Burrell of his day —only a better player. The fans were very hard on Del. They expected a lot from him and he largely delivered. But it just was not enough to quench the desire and expectations. It is great to see him honored on this list, as he really was an outstanding Phillie. He is one of my all time favorites. A genuine gentleman.

Don, yes, it is closed.

When J-Roll, Utley, Howard and Hamels’ careers are over, they will be ranked higher, but this list is based on what they have done so far. Tim has tried to explain this but people don’t seem to want to listen.

I never saw Delmer Ennis play. His numbers and the positive comments submitted about him all appear to indicate that he deserves a high place on the list. He is probably the most bland and least reported on entry in the top 20, a real plain brown wrapper slugger. I would venture to say that the pre 1920 Phillie stars had more lasting things said and written about them. Even his teammate Whitey Ashburn almost never mentioned him in the many baseball anecdotes he delivered in the press and broadcast booth. He is almost completely ignored for HOF induction. Maybe he should have adopted a colorful nickname to bolster his image. How does “Home Boy” or “CornBread” Ennis sound. I think that might grab some attention. Seriously though, I second the motion that the guy demands respect.

Reluctantly I should mentiion this fact — as it points out how decent a man Del Ennis was. Del was a rookie in 1946 — right after WWII. He was of the Jewish faith and was on the receiving end of a lot of bigotry and slurs. He was not as talented as the legendary Hank Greenburg, a legend and also Jewish. Here are some facts that illustrate how good Ennis was as a ballplayer. He was among the TOP TEN in these categories: BATTING AVERAGE (three times), HOME RUNS (eight times), RBI’s (ten times), MVP VOTING (eight times), TOTAL BASES (six times). The bigotry is one reason that you don’t hear much about Del Ennis. Sad but true. He most certanly is one of those players who is very close to being a Hall of Famer in terms of talent and production — just a little short of it.

Neat fact: Up until ’80′s, Del Ennis ran a bowling alley in Huntingdon Valley, PA just west of the Fox Chase section (there’s a Genuardi’s there now). It had about 30 lanes, and was spotless when I was a kid. He was a classy, quiet guy, respectful to all of us local kids who hung out there on weekends. His red locker was stationed by the entrance, and I’d marvel at it, the glove, the bats, etc. Based on his stats and his 1950 season, I’m a little surprised he’s not in the top ten.

BurrGundy, can you give me any source that substantiates Del Ennis being Jewish? I’ve never seen him listed on any list of Jewish ballplayers.

Joe Carter — Being Jewish myself, my father used Del as an example of a good ballplayer who was also Jewish and he became one of my idols. I hope my father wasn’t bullshitting me or was mistaken. He used to deliver eggs to the Ennis family years ago as he had an egg route throughout the Northeast, Bucks and Montgomery counties. My father passed a decade ago and I know my uncles believed the same about Del and were very proud of him.

BurrGundy,

Here are links to two of the most authoritative lists. I’m sorry to tell you that he doesn’t show up on either:

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/legendary/Jewish_baseball_players.shtml

http://jewishmajorleaguers.org/

Very surprised that Abreu and Allen rank ahead of Ennis. Very. Look at the all-time offensive numbers in Phillie history and Ennis is all over the place.

Some Ennis numbers courtesy of baseball-reference.com…all-time Phillies history: 4th in hits, 3rd in total bases, 2nd in HRs, 3rd in RBIs, top 10 in doubles, triples, runs…5th in games played… 11 seasons as a Phillie and he received MVP votes in 7 of them.

Allen, by comparison, 8 seasons as a Phillie, only 4 with more than 122 games, MVP votes in 4 Phillie seasons (won the MVP with CWS), ranked in the Top 10 in adjusted OPS+ (2nd), also “adjusted batting runs” and “batting wins.” Modern statistics are kinder to Allen, but his career numbers as a Phillie don’t match Ennis.

Del Ennis was from a family that was Irish. Ennis in Gaelic means Island. Very doubtful that he was of the Jewish faith. I saw the man play for the Phils up close and relate that when he came to bat especially with men on, people at Connie Mack paid attention big time. He could open a game wide with one swing and everyone knew that. He was a threat to every team especially in a clutch situation. He could draw a walk or put one on the roof at 21st and Lehigh. No slouch with the glove either for a big man. Ennis was no showboat but he was the linchpin of the franchise more so than Whitey. He did not seek attention or media either. His numbers are hall of fame. Go look at Kiner or Slaughter or even Doby.

Кстати это все придумали приблизительно лет 10 назад .:

Del played in the old Connie Mack stadium, 330 down the lines and 347 to dead center. Had he hit in the little bandbox the Phillies play in now he would have averaged more homers per season. Having Ashburn hitting ahead of him helped him amass lots of RBI’s. Some criticized his lack of range as a left fielder. But that was silly. Had he had more range Ashburn would have called him off plays anyway. A little short of Hall of Fame credentials, but a great, solid ball player. On a par with Hank Bauer, Carl Furillo, and Enos Slaughter.