Hamels Excited, Emotional About Long-Term Commitment
Posted by Pat Gallen, Thu, July 26, 2012 06:13 AM | Comments: 9
Analysis, News, Opinion, Posts
The deal is done. (PHOTO: AP)
After weeks of speculation – actually, more like months – the Phillies and Cole Hamels came together on an agreement that will keep the left-hander in red pinstripes until at least 2018.
How and why was the move made? Let’s examine some quotes from all parties involved.
Cole Hamels
-On support of Phillies fans: “Seeing the type of turnouts that the fans have done, I think that’s been one of the best parts of playing the game of baseball. The city of Philadelphia has been absolutely outstanding…the 250 sellouts here is pretty impressive.”
-On being blown away by the fans after his last start: “It really showed me something the other day when I was pitching here. To be able to see the way they (the fans) came out…to see the way that they gave the support, that’s what I’ll ultimately remember every single time I go out there.”
-On the NATION of fans: I never thought I’d be in this position ever. I love this game so much, you just want to go out and play and enjoy it. And you want to play for a reason, and the reason is to win World Series’, to play in front of sellout crowds, to play in front of a Phillie Nation.”
JOHN BOGGS, HAMELS AGENT:
-When they knew it was close with the Phillies: “Probably after the second counter back we knew they were really serious. I think Cole started thinking about more in earnest, and at the same time, last game that he pitched here, I think he felt that this is probably the best place for me.”
DAVID MONTGOMERY:
-What Cole means to this franchise: “For us, Cole has certainly had an outstanding year. He was proving to us that the commodity that we thought. The reality is that combination of talent, character, competitiveness, and everything, was what we wanted to build around.”
RUBEN AMARO:
-Why they needed Hamels back: “It was the right thing to do, under the circumstance; with his performance, his age, the importance on our club. Our goal is to continue to try and be a championship caliber team for now and for the future, and so, as I said before, I think we have a much better chance with Cole in our rotation and as a major part of our club.”
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Thoughts: We always knew Hamels enjoyed living here, raising a family here. But his comments from Wednesday’s press conference go above and beyond that. You could hear the emotion in his voice when he reminisced about his last start and how the fans gave him a warm ovation, despite him giving up five runs. That seemed to stick with him and played a major part in him staying. The warmth, the love, Hamels felt pushed him over the top and allowed for the decision to be that much easier.
Montgomery also mentioned the fact that the time may very well exceed the luxury tax limit in 2013, if it means fielding a winning club. It’s likely they’ll have to as roughly $155 million will be spent on just 11 players.
With Hamels in tow, it’s easy to envision this team continuing to compete. The necessary move was to keep Hamels around long term, and the Phillies did just that. But beyond that, there appears to be a willingness to win at all costs – money is no longer an object. In the very near future, the Phillies will be rolling in even more money, thanks to an extremely lucrative TV deal, which will help offset any extra costs that might occur when reaching above the luxury tax line.
For now, it seems that all sides are happy and that’s really what matters. Cole is happy to be staying in the place he’s called home since he was a young ballplayer. Ruben is happy that he could keep one of the best pitchers in baseball at a relatively-reasonable price. David Montgomery is happy that one of his prized pieces, one that he saw grow with the team, will be sticking around. The fans seem to be happy that the Phillies are putting their money where their mouth is as they attempt to win for now and the future.
Posts: 0 Ken Bland
There’s a touch of irony in Cole putting significance in the fan reaction to his possible last game as a Phil last Saturday. When they had Airhead Night at the old ballpark, I guess it goes back to his first start of 2011, that home game against the Mets when he got knocked out in less than 2 innings, and the airheads in attendance gave him a blistering sendoff of boos as he headed off the mound. Rational minds were quick to dismiss it as a select few group of fans, and the Hamels quotes downplayed it completely. The appreciation now, the ignoring it then is what they call selective listening. Sometimes, I guess it’s a good thing.
Onto the A-T-L where Cole gets his 1st start since signing. Big, big weekend set against a club playing .500 baseball at home at 25-25. A significantly better record than the Phillies 24-25 road mark.
Posted: 06:51 AM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 0 Jose
Hey Pat, you wrote this in your pajamas?
But you got any details about that tv contract, it’s the first time I heard about it.
Posted: 07:38 AM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 1429 Pat Gallen
What do you mean Jose? Wrote it yesterday actually, just forgot to launch it under this morning.
Matt Gelb wrote about it a while back – been floating out there for a while: http://articles.philly.com/2012-02-13/news/31054999_1_phillies-phl17-local-tv-ratings
Posted: 07:48 AM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 0 TheDipsy
Atta boy Dave Montgomery! F that luxury tax! I knew they’d come around. @Pat – Do you think the time it took to get Cole signed was directly attributed to how long it took ownership to realize that they needed to go over the luxury tax?
The Dipsy
Posted: 07:52 AM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 1429 Pat Gallen
The time it took is just a direct reflection of negotiating tactics. Hamels held the upper hand and used that advantage to get what he wanted -what he thinks he deserved. But think about how much goes into it…
The number crunching, the scouting reports, the calls between teams, the trade talks. There is so much that goes into a situation like this.
Posted: 07:56 AM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 1053 Manny
I was there for his potentially last game (Sat. vs the Giants) and things got emotional. A memorable standing ovation following a mediocre outing. I appreciate the fact that he brought that up when discussing the reasoning for his extension. What a class act.
(Though certainly it’s not like he’s giving us a big hometown discount.)
Posted: 10:55 AM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 0 Mary Pat
Manny, I was there as well, and I couldn’t agree more. What a memorable day that was, despite the loss – between Photo Day, Cole’s FIRST homer and Vic’s 1,000th!
Posted: 11:19 AM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 0 Jaron B
Just want to make this clearer to me. Please confirm:
This new contract does not change the Phils’ luxury tax number for THIS year.
Posted: 01:29 PM on July 26, 2012
Posts: 0 Top Golf Pro Tips
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Posted: 08:08 AM on August 28, 2012