On June 15th, 1991, Phillies pitcher Andy Ashby threw an immaculate 4th inning (3 KOs on 9 pitches) in a 3-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. Then, on October 6th, 1991 Ashby had another 4th inning feat, this time getting 3 outs on 3 pitches in a 7-0 loss to the New York Mets. No other Phillies pitcher has had both an immaculate inning and a 3-pitch 3-out inning in a career, much less their 1st 8 big league starts. Ashby’s immaculate inning came in just his 2nd MLB game.
On June 15th, 2001, the Sixers lost game 5 of the NBA Finals 108-96 giving the Los Angeles Lakers the NBA Championship.
Did you know… The Sixers have made 9 appearances in the NBA Finals, winning 3. They have faced the Lakers in the Finals 6 of their 9 appearances, and are 1-5 against them.
Eric Desjardins – Flyers/D (1995-06) Eric “Rico” Desjardins joined the Flyers on February 9th, 1995 as part of the trade with the Montreal Canadiens that brought John LeClair and Gilbert Dionne in exchange for Mark Recchi and a 1995 3rd round draft pick. He became a mainstay on the Flyers blueline winning the Barry Ashbee Award for the Flyers best defenseman a team-record seven times. Rico was a two-time All Star and a two-time 2nd team All Star. Rico became the 12th captain in team history during the 1999-2000 season replacing Eric Lindros. Desjardins won the Yanick Dupre Award in 1999. Rico is the 2nd leading scoring defenseman in team history behind Mark Howe. Desjardins entered the Flyers Hall of Fame in 2015.
On this date… Flyers team Hall of Famer, defenseman Eric Desjardins was born on this date, June 14th, in 1969 in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada. “Rico” was a 7-time Barry Ashbee Award winner for the Flyers, and was the 12th captain in team history. Rico also played under 6 coaches in his 12 seasons in Philly. Desjardins is the only NHL defenseman to score a hat trick in the Stanley Cup Finals (June 3rd, 1993 w/Montreal Canadiens). Happy 49th birthday, Rico!
Ken Giles – Phillies/P (2014-15) Flamethrower Ken Giles and his 100 mph fastball rose quickly up the minor league ranks, making his Phillies debut on June 12th, 2014. Giles gave up a homer to Yasmani Grandal, the first batter he faced in his MLB debut. But there were bright spots during Giles’ time with the Phils. On September 1st, 2014, Giles was part of the Phillies combined no-hitter, when he, Cole Hamels, Jake Diekman, and Jonathan Papelbon combined to no-hit the Atlanta braves in a 7-0 Phillies win. Giles was 4th in NL Rookie of the Year voting for 2014.
Von Hayes – Phillies/OF-1B (1983-91) Von Hayes was a smooth hitting OF/1B known more for how he got to Phillies, than what he did for the Phillies. On December 9th, 1982, Hayes was traded to the Phillies from the Cleveland Indians for Julio Franco, Manny Trillo, Jay Baller, George Vukovich, and Jerry Willard. He quickly became known as “5 for 1”. While it was nearly impossible to live up to the hype of being traded for five players, Hayes did enjoy some success with the Phillies. Hayes was the first player in MLB history to hit 2 HRs in the 1st inning of a game, doing so on 6/11/1985. He smacked a lead-off dinger off Mets starter Tom Gorman, and later that inning he knocked a grand slam off reliever Calvin Schiraldi. The Phils won the game 26-7. Hayes led the NL in Runs and Doubles in 1986 and finished 8th in MVP voting. And Mr. 5-for-1 was a 1989 NL All-Star. Hayes was nicknamed “purple” by ESPN’s Chris Berman, calling him Von “Purple” Hayes.
On June 11th, 1985, Phillies Von Hayes hit two 1st inning home runs in a 26-7 win over the New York Mets. Hayes hit a leadoff HR against Tom Gorman, and later that inning hit a Grand Slam off Calvin Schiraldi. Hayes was the 1st player in MLB history to hit 2 first-inning HR’s. The 26 runs scored is a Phillies team record.
Jonathan Papelbon – Phillies/P (2012-15) Jonathon Papelbon was a polarizing figure in Philly sports. From obscene gestures to confrontational comments, love/hate has always been part of the Papelbon story. His etiquette may have been questionable, but his talent was not. Papelbon was a two-time All Star as a Phillie, and was part of their 2014 combined no hitter on September 1st (Hamels, Giles, Diekman, Papelbon). Papelbon became MLB’s 26th member of the 300-save club on June 10, 2014 vs. San Diego Padres. Though he only spent three and a half seasons in Philly, Papelbon is the team’s all-time save leader.
