In the Phils' Season of the Pitcher, a familiar face and lifelong Phillie has stolen the show. His teammates call him, "Hollywood" and his box office numbers, this year, are 2nd to none-- even on his star-studded team. That's saying a lot when you consider the facts that defending Cy Young Roy Halladay pitches ahead of him and that Hamels, once the team Ace, pitches from the 4-slot in the rotation.That Hamels is the #4 pitcher for the Phils, of course, speaks more about the quality of talent on the staff than it does about his potential, value or respect around the league.
"We knew he was good, but I didn’t know he was that good," All-Star Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays said about Hamels when the Rays were handcuffed by him in a 3-2 loss in game 1 of the '08 World Series.
Hamels would go on to become World Series MVP after winning NLCS MVP, making him only the 5th player to win 2 postseason MVP awards in the same year. He pitched 5 postseason games that year, going 4–0 with a 1.80 ERA and was regarded as having baseball's best change-up.
"Cole’s pretty good, man. I’m glad he’s pitching for us," said Phillies manager Charlie Manuel then. "When I send Cole Hamels to the mound I expect to look good."
The '08 offseason brought a heavy schedule of TV appearances and celebrity engagements, including with model and wife Heidi Strobel and Hamels, the star, was launched.
The following season, '09, brought soaring expectations for Hamels. He was a CY Young favorite by many and was drawing widespread comparison to Steve Carlton both in and out of Philadelphia, which didn't sit well with me at all.
It was true that Hamels had shined in the postseason like few pitchers before. However, his regular season record was 14-10 for a 91-71 championship team, compared with Carlton's 27 wins, 1.97 ERA and 30 complete games for a last-place Phils club that went 59-97 in '72. Frankly, comparisons to Carlton seemed most unfair to Hamels himself. That was Carlton's 6th full-year in the Majors, this was Hamels' 3rd. Carlton was a Hall-of-Famer, Hamels' potential was, as yet, unfulfilled and perhaps still unknown.
Where would he go from here? The sky seemed the limit. However, expectations were sky high.Time would show that Hamels of '09 didn't resemble the player who had dominated the '08 postseason at all.
4.10.09 Hamels debuted for the season against the Rockies. He was pounded that night for 7 runs on 11 hits in just 3 2/3 innings. "I'm concerned about him," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said then. "He had a hard time locating pitches. He had a problem with his command, locating the ball where he wanted it."
On 6.4.09, I watched Hamels pitch at Dodger Stadium. He was brilliant. It was his best outing that year. In 9 innings, he shutout the Dodgers on 97 pitches. He struck out 5 and walked nobody. It was dominance, the kind he had made routine the previous Fall.
By August, however, he was reeling. He recorded no wins that month and in one 2-game span went a combined 10 1/3 innings, allowing 15 hits, 11 runs & 6 BB.
Yet, unflappably loyal manager Charlie Manuel continued to rely on Hamels in the playoffs, even after Hamels' dismal season: 10-11 for a 93-69, NL Champion team that was, literally, better without him.
Hamels lost game 2 of the NLDS vs. Colorado, allowing 4 runs in 5 innings, causing the team their only loss of the series. However, defying logic, Manuel stuck with him.
Since the Phillies were relying on him to pitch 1 more game of the World Series they still hoped to win, that comment stung, led to a physical confrontation with then teammate Brett Myers and caused a major backlash against Hamels for a large segment of the Phillies' fan-base. Hamels had gone too far, twisting the knife of a horrid postseason: 1-2 in 4 starts with a 7.58 ERA, the mirror opposite of his electrifying 2008 playoffs.
However, his manager understood with poise and patience:
"This is all part of the process," Manuel said. "This is the first time that things have not gone his way, and he's [struggling with it]. He's never been through this before, and it's something that he will get through and probably be even better."
Hamels' disappointing '09 season would serve as personal motivation for a renewed effort and work ethic to reclaim his competitive edge.
“As competitive as he is and as much as he wants to succeed, the answer is yes,” Jimmy Rollins said when asked if he thought Hamels was using '09 to push him to new levels of success in '10. “It’s about how badly he wants to be great. And he understands that in order to be great you have to make sure those things don’t happen again. You have to take away from it 'what not to do' and store it in the back of your mind.”
"Hamels has new pitches, but does he have a new work ethic? ... He has risen and fallen. This juncture is where the great ones separate themselves with big-time performance. This pivotal crossroads is the crucial year in Hamels' career."
Hamels' '10, was everything his manager had forecast. While his win-loss was only 12-11, making him an underwhelming 60-45 for his career, his ERA ranked 12th in the NL at 3.06 and he finished 6th in S.O. at 211, a career high. He had clearly learned from his mistakes and turned a corner-- the right one.
He punctuated his transformation with a knockout '10 postseason debut, 2-0 win vs. the Reds. Hamels allowed 5 hits in 9-innings, S.O. 9 and walked none against the league's #1 offense.
Hamels began 2011 with a regressive '09-like loss, allowing 6 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks in just 2 2/3 innings against the lowly Mets. Would Hamels be taking a giant step back? The Phils had buffered the rotation and slipped Hamels, their once-Ace, all the way down to #4. He was no longer required to dominate or be the stopper, but his success was crucial to enabling a smooth ride to the once-hitting, now reshaped pitching team's greatest potential.
It proved a mere stumble. Since his opener, Hamels has gone 7-1, including a gem against the Mets in his most recent outing on Saturday, 5/28, when he went 7 innings, allowed 2 runs, S.O. 10 and walked none. Vintage Hamels, dazzling in the present, emerging from the shadow of an awe-inspiring, albeit briefly, past and growing into a future that still holds his potential like a butterfly whose one wing majestically emerges before the other, its body still cocooned, giving glimpse of all its potential glory, before its total beauty is visible in full.
Hamels is 7-2 overall in '11 with a 3.01 ERA. If you deduct that 1st game outlier, his ERA falls to 2.38. He has 78 S.O. (5th in the NL) and just 15 BB. His WHIP is a career-best 1.02, 3rd in the NL. Nobody in the NL has won more games than him.
You can't say he has pitched better than teammate Halladay, but he does have a better WHIP (-.02) and K/9 ratio (+.22) and has allowed fewer hits (-14 in only 9 fewer innings).
Hamels was asked, earlier this month, if boos show that a fan cares. “Yeah, they do,” he replied. “That’s the way I see it. Mike Schmidt told me that, when I was younger in the minors. Shoot, he’s probably been the most-booed person in Philly [history], and he’s the best player.”That appreciation and understanding of Philly fans was a far-cry from Hamels' former claim that Philly fans were, "40% Passionate die-hards, 60% crazy lunatics and fair-weather fans."
But, then, this Hamels, version '11, is a far-cry from Hamels, version '09. If he continues on the path he's currently carving, he may find All-Star Games and more playoff glory ahead. For now, he seems appropriately focused on winning baseball games, one pitch at a time:
"I go for it every game," Hamels said. "I have high expectations of myself. I feel comfortable. I feel I’m meant to be out there."
"I was fortunate enough for the Phillies to draft me, knowing that they were trying to put together a really good team, and now being a member of what they were able to establish is something I can't thank them for enough.”
Note:
Rookie RF Dominic Brown, in his last 11 at-bats, is 7-for-11 with 2 doubles, 2 RBI and 4 runs scored.
No comments:
Post a Comment