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You may be wondering why we are featuring Phillies’ reliever, Jim Kostanty today, a player most of you have probably never heard of…unless you’re a baseball history nerd like me! Vince Jankoski, in his third and final installment on the evolution of relief pitchers, shows how pivotal Jim was in the development of today’s the modern reliever. It’s a slice of baseball history we should all be aware of. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to read Vince’s interesting essay. -GL

Another Edition of Baseball’s Forgotten Stars!

The Phillies MVP Reliever,

Jim Konstanty

The previous essay on the evolution of relief pitchers merits a deeper dive into the Philadelphia Phillies’ 1950 pennant-winning season and the role bespectacled Casimir James (Jim) Konstanty had in bringing the flag (or phlag) to Philly.  The Phillies that year had a good, but not great team.  The previous season they finished third, eight games over .500.

They had some good players.  Richie Ashburn manned center field, Robin Roberts led the pitching staff.  Both are Hall of Famers.  In left field Del Ennis supplied power and led the league in RBIs.  Additional power was supplied by catcher Andy Seminick and third baseman Willie “Puddin’ Head” Jones.  Pitcher Curt Simmons supplemented Roberts’ efforts, winning seventeen games before being called into military service.  The Phillies, however, had one handicap – they refused to sign black players, placing them at a disadvantage to their main league rivals the Dodgers and Giants.

They did, however, have Jim Konstanty.  Jim was late to the major leagues.  He arrived in the bigs in 1944, pitching 20 games (12 starts) at age 27.  The next year was spent in military service.  When he resurfaced in 1946, he became exclusively a relief pitcher.  In 1950 he found himself on the Phils pitching staff at age 33, one of the oldest members of the “Whiz Kids.”

Konstanty came up big, going 16-7 with 22 saves and winning the league MVP, besting runner up Stan Musial by a fair margin.  It was his only appearance on the MVP ballot.  He was particularly effective against the contending Giants.  Against New York he went 4-1 with two saves and an ERA of 1.04.

The 6’1″, 202-lb. Strykersville, New York native also came through in the clutch.  In early May he saved three games in four days, all on the road, as the Phillies moved from fifth place into second.  His saves in consecutive games in early June ended the team’s three game losing streak and allowed Philadelphia to tie for the league lead.  He notched saves in the first two games in July against Brooklyn, keeping the Dodgers at bay and maintaining the Phils half-game lead.  On July 8, he beat Don Newcomb and the Dodgers keeping Philadelphia in first.  On August 8-9, he recorded back-to-back saves in Brooklyn.  He followed that with a win over the Giants on August 12.  He faded a bit in September as the Phils lost their last five games that month, setting up a face-off for the pennant on the last day of the season, October 1, with second place Brooklyn.  Notwithstanding their lack of black talent, the Phils won the game and the pennant, thanks to a tenth inning home run by right fielder Dick Sisler off Newcombe.

The World Series was scheduled to start October 4 against the American League champion New York Yankees.  Roberts, who won 20 games and was the ace of the staff, would not be pitching on a full three day’s rest, having pitched the season’s finale.  The number two starter, Simmons, was called into military service in September, and did not pitch in the Series.  That left manager Eddie Sawyer to choose from his remaining starters: Bob Miller (11-6, 3.57), Russ Meyer (9-11, 5.30), Ken Heintzelman (3-9, 4.09), and Bubba Church (8-6, 2.73).

Sawyer selected the none of the above options and tabbed Konstanty to start the opener. It would only be Konstanty’s second start since his rookie season in 1944.  Starting a reliever in the World Series was not unprecedented.  Firpo Marberry started Game Three in 1924.  It was, however, a gamble.  Konstanty did well – four hits, four walks, one run – in eight innings before being removed for a pinch hitter.  But his opposing number, Vic Raschi, was better, throwing a two hit shutout.  The Yanks won 1-0 on their way to a four game sweep.

Konstanty pitched in relief in Game Three, getting the final out in the eighth inning before again being removed for a pinch hitter.  He also appeared in the finale, replacing the ineffective Miller in the first inning and pitching shutout ball through the fifth, but tiring thereafter.  He surrendered five hits and three runs in 6 2/3innings of work.  For the series Konstanty pitched to an ERA of 2.40 in 15 innings and lost his only decision, 1-0.

Although the Series was a sweep, all of the games were close.  The Yanks won the first three by one run and in Game Four the Phillies rallied in the ninth, chasing New York starter Whitey Ford in his first World Series appearance.

The Phillies flopped (or phlopped) the next year, finishing fifth, eight games under .500.  Konstanty fell with them, going 4-11 with an ERA of 4.05 and only nine saves.  He never regained his full effectiveness.  In 1953, he started 19 games for the Phils, nearly half his career total of starts.  He did respectably, 14-10, 4.43.

He was waived to the Yankees the following season and in 1955 had a resurrection of sorts as a relief pitcher.  He went 7-2 with an ERA of 2.32 and leading the team with 12 important saves as New York won the pennant by three games.  However, Konstanty did not appear in the World Series that year. The following season he was released by the Yankees, and picked up by the Cardinals.  It was to be his last season.

In a sense, Konstanty’s 1950 season made relief pitchers what they are today.  From obscure afterthoughts on pitching staffs to highly compensated players to league MVP’s, Konstanty’s 1950 season made them all. Jim passed away on June 11, 1976, age 59.

Vince Jankoski

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