Philadelphia Phillies: The Puzzling Case of Cliff Lee vs. Cole Hamels

I have to say, I’m very confused by Phillies fans sometimes. They are always the first to boo, and they always the first to applaud effort and giving 100 percent. 

Take Laynce Nix for instance.  Early in the game against the Mets Sunday, Nix went after a foul ball, dove straight out like a wide receiver trying to catch an overthrown pass, had it for a second and then lost the ball when he hit the ground.  It was a great attempt, and the Phillies fans let Nix know they appreciated the effort.  It didn’t matter he was seeking his first hit on the season. 

A few weeks ago, I mentioned the thought of trading Cole Hamels to bring an elite bat to the Phillies’ lineup and I was absolutely ripped.  Brandon Phillips was the hypothetical I tossed out since he too was knee deep in contract negotiations at the time like Hamels.  Since then, Phillips has been given a long-term, lucrative deal. 

Hamels has not been given one. 

As it stands right now, Cole will pitch for the Phillies this season and probably walk for absolutely nothing after this season.  This current Phillies nucleus would not have a fat diamond championship ring if it wasn’t for Hamels.  That is a fact.  Hamels was the MVP of the NLCS and the World Series.  When he started in the postseason in 2008, the Phillies went 5-0.

Last night, I did some research and wrote about the “All Phillies Team of the Past 20 years” and named the 2008 Cole Hamels as the left-handed starter with the 2011 Cliff Lee as the runner-up.  I am completely stunned at some of the feedback I have received for taking ’08 Hamels over ’11 Lee.

I mentioned that ’08 was not even Hamels’ best season.  Actually, ’07 and ’11 were probably better regular seasons for him personally. But the ’08 postseason was enough to edge out Lee in my opinion.

Why?

Cole has the ring.  He dominated much like Lee did in the ’09 postseason. Lee went 4-0 in the postseason in 2009 with an eye-popping 1.56 ERA vs. Colorado, L.A. Dodgers and N.Y. Yankees. Cole wasn’t the same pitcher in 2009 and made some comments in the World Series, saying he couldn’t wait for the season to be over with.  Yes, it was a selfish comment, but it was probably honest since his 2009 was nothing like 2008.

Lee was dealt after the ’09 season but got back to Philly as soon as he could for the 2011 season.  Phillies fans went wild about Lee choosing to come back to Philly and shunning the Texas Rangers and, more importantly, the New York Yankees. That was super cool, and Lee’s jersey is still in the top three sold in all of baseball.

But I have to ask, that loyalty and love towards Philadelphia that Lee showed in coming back here, does that buy him a free pass with the fans?

Is it forgotten or overlooked that the Phillies had a one-game-to-none lead over the Cardinals last season and a 4-0 lead in Game 2 with Lee on the hill, and Cliff could not close the deal?  He ended up allowing five runs in the game and the Cards evened the series up.  If Lee shuts St. Louis down in Game 2, like he should have and like he is paid to do, another World Series parade could have happened down Broad Street.  But that didn’t happen.

So do the majority of Phillies fans prefer Cliff Lee over Cole Hamels enough to forget about what Hamels did in 2008? Is it Hamels’ California cool personality vs. Lee’s good-ole-boy, workmanlike mentality that makes him more endearing to the hardworking Philadelphians? Could it be that Lee is locked up for many more seasons, so we choose loyalty to him, like he did to Philly, and we are scared to show that type of loyalty to Hamels without the extension?  Is it forgotten which one of these guys was drafted by the Phillies and has only been in this organization?

I’ve got to say, I am baffled, but ultimately, I’d take 2008 Cole Hamels over 2011 Cliff Lee any day.

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