The Quakers advanced into the NCAA Tournament, but were unfortunately eliminated after two games.(File Photo)
1995. The year Michael Jordan came back to the NBA out of retirement, the NHL’s New Jersey Devils won their first Stanley Cup, Cal Ripken Jr. broke the record for most consecutive games played in the MLB, and the year of the most notable Penn baseball team to date.
That year, the Quakers went 23-18 overall and 13-5 in the Ivy League, which was good enough to earn them first overall in the Gehrig Division and in the Ivy League outright, the team's most recent Ancient Eight title. Penn was also able to record a program second-best 21 complete games.
The Quakers performed well enough to earn a berth in the NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament. Although they were eliminated in two games in a double-elimination format, their season was still successful.
Six Penn players were named first team All-Ivy, and three others were named to the second team. Senior pitcher Ed Haughey was named Ivy League Pitcher of the Year and led the League in wins and earned run average at 5 and 1.29, respectively.
Graduating from the Engineering School in 1995, Haughey has since been inducted into the Penn Baseball Hall of Fame.
The 1995 edition relied upon its defense and pitching to help win games. In the 41 games that were played that year, the Quakers only allowed their opponents to reach double-digits in runs six times. They were able to stymie many good teams along the way, including a No. 10 Auburn team that was only able to score two runs against the Red and Blue. Dan Galles finished his senior season with an ERA of 2.26, good enough for 30th in the nation for pitchers with at least 50 innings.
Galles graduated from the College of Arts and Sciences in 1995 and is also a member of the Penn Baseball Hall of Fame.
On the offensive side, the team was very powerful at the plate. Nationally, the Quakers came in seventh in triples, averaging 0.57 a game. Program-wise, the Quakers finished third best in hits with 452 and second best in at bats with 1,452.
Mike Shannon (File Photo)
Much of the Red and Blue’s success came from junior Mike Shannon, who finished the 1995 season with a batting average of .407, 31st in the nation. Shannon was also tied for second best in program history with five triples, third best in at bats with 172, second best with 70 hits, third best in runs batted in with 47, and third best with 107 total bases.
A 1996 graduate of the College of Arts and Sciences, Shannon went on to play in the pros, as he was signed by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1997. He was also inducted into the Penn Baseball Hall of Fame.m
Another notable player on the offensive side of the ball was Michael Green, who during his senior season was 11th in the nation, only striking out 28.5% of the time. Graduating from Wharton in 1995, Green is also a member of the Penn Baseball Hall of Fame.
Other editions of Penn baseball have come close in terms of meeting its success, but the 1995 team remains Penn's best of all time.
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