Richie Ashburn: A Baseball Life

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Richie Ashburn is arguably the most beloved figure in the long and storied history of Philadelphia sports. He thrilled fans for over a decade with his exploits on the baseball diamond, then spent the rest of his life entertaining generations of Phillies fans from the broadcast booth. His Midwestern wit and dry sense of humor seemed to be in sharp contrast with the gritty atmosphere of East Coast baseball, but "Whitey" won over this tough town with his straightforward approach and playful charm. Richie Ashburn: A Baseball Life chronicles an amazing journey that takes us from his humble beginnings in Nebraska all the way to his enshrinement in the halls of baseball immortality at Cooperstown, New York. It's a story told by his family and friends, teammates and colleagues, and by Richie himself in the form of archive interviews, broadcasts and rare Ashburn home movies. It's all lovingly narrated by his best friend and broadcast partner, fellow Hall of Famer Harry Kalas.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• Phillies
• Richie
• Ashburn
• Movie
• trailer
• MLB
• Documentary

[P38Jim]

Richie and Harry are gone. Heaven's got a helluva broadcast team. I type this with tears flowing down my checks. These guys were a constant source of joy. Whatever the final score you won a measure of happiness when you listened to Whitey and Harry call a game. Truly a gift from God. I thank the Lord for letting me be a Philly Phan who's entire life so far has been filled with their presence. I can't believe the ride is over.

[zach6171]

Together at last!! have fun guys!

[jadedmastermind]

I'm speechless. Harry's voice is like a magnet. RIP

[xxguitarhero48xx]

I don't cry. But when Harry Kalas' voice.. it all comes down man. Damn

[daveywaikiki]

One of the things I remember is when he did play-by-play after a third out toward the end of a game he'd say full innings "after seven full innings, it's the Phillies five and the Giants one." It was suspenseful. Or when Harry Kalas called a guy nearly getting hit by a liner "Here's a line shot.." Ashburn would say "Oooh!" like someone almost got injured. They were a great team and are missed.

[bestmenonearth]

HE IS MY UNCLE!!!!

[s0undch4ser]

My favorite Richie Ashburn quote "The kid doesn't chew tobacco, smoke, drink, curse or chase broads. I don't see how he can possible make it."

[vaibanez17]

Someone help me out here. I never got to see this guy play because i'm only 26...based on his stats and the way people talk about him, was he like an Ichiro type player? Make all the catches, run fast, hit for average???? Looks like it on the stat sheet but is that the type of player he was???

[OldsVistaCruiser]

@UncleMikeNJ - At least you don't wind up at Geno's!

Celebre's is a quick 15-minute walk from Ashburn Stadium...err...Citizens Bank Park, and is only 2 blocks from Pattison station on the BSL. Walk north one block to Packer, turn left, one block to Celebre's on the left.

Oh, BTW - I must come clean. "OldsVistaCruiser" and "AshburnStadium" are one and the same person. I just happened to be signed into my classic car screen name rather than my screen name for sports and Philly stuff.

[UncleMikeNJ]

@OldsVistaCruiser Not yet. I keep telling myself I'll go, but every time I go to Philly I end up at Pat's Steaks instead. I'm 66 miles away, but I don't have a car, and that's a short ride on a bus followed by a long ride on 3 separate trains. (NJ Transit, SEPTA and the Broad Street Line.) At least I tried Chickie's & Pete's crab fries at the Trenton Thunder's ballpark, but I wasn't impressed.  Bull's Barbecue, now THAT'S impressive.

[OldsVistaCruiser]

There is only one person who was more beloved than Richie Ashburn in Philadelphia sports history. It is none other than the narrator of this video, Whitey's best friend.