We See Ourselves in Chase Utley
Chase Utley may have come to Citizen Bank Park this week for the final time as a player, depending on the Playoff picture. Phillies fans have showered Chase with standing ovations throughout the series exemplifying the love adoration they still have for #26. How did this kid from southern California steal the hearts of so many Phillies fans? I’ll tell you. Many of us saw ourselves in Chase Utley.
Look back at that ’08 Championship team. The core four were Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, and Chase Utley. Those four our near and dear to all Phillies fans’ hearts, but there’s something about Chase Utley. I’m personally a Jimmy guy if I had to choose, but there’s no denying that there’s something about Chase. To this day, Chase Utley jerseys and shirts at Citizens Bank Park far outnumber Rollins, Howard, and Hamels. Chase’s good looks didn’t hurt his popularity, but more was at play. Chase was easily the most relatable to many of folks in the Delaware Valley.
We couldn’t see ourselves in Rollins. He was a physical and skilled freak jammed into a modest 5’7″ body. Rollin’s glove was one of the best in the game, earning him four gold gloves. He had a quickness that you don’t find on every baseball field in America, which enabled him to lead the league in stolen bases and triples. He’s a former MVP of the league. He was a vocal and flamboyant leader. Rollins was so good that he made the game look too easy at times. Some idiots misinterpreted that as laziness. He was that good. Too good for us to see ourselves in him.
We couldn’t see ourselves in Ryan Howard. Those only ones who may have were probably ex high school cleanup-hitters who weigh 300lbs and mash softballs in their local work leagues. Howard put up power numbers over five years that rivaled the likes of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. 99% of us could never hit once with the power of Ryan Howard, let alone consistently over a season. He’s a former Rookie of the Year and MVP.
Did many of us think we would or could be a 6’4″ lefthander with a changeup that, more often than not, left batters bewildered? I doubt it. He pitched a no-hitter, won a NLCS MVP and a World Series MVP, but we didn’t see ourselves in Cole Hamels. Playing every five games hurt Cole’s popularity and so did his voice and demeanor. Even though he was as cool as could be in the 2008 run, he just never seemed cool enough to a large portion of the Phillies fan.
That brings us to Chase Utley. There’s nothing freakish about his stature. He’s not overly tall or short. He’s got a more average frame at 6’1″ 190lbs. He is a Cali kid. He’s got average speed, an average glove, an average arm, and his career batting average is .275. He’s not a Rookie of the Year or an MVP of the regular season or postseason. He comes across as who took an average natural skill said and excelled with determination and hustle.
That’s an insult to Cole, Jimmy, and Ryan because it implies that they didn’t have the determination and hustle. That’s flat-out wrong. They did. You do not excel at the MLB level being lazy. Those guys just also happened to gifted with some freakish physical abilities be it their glove and speed, their power, or their arm and changeup.
Jimmy looked lazy to some people as he gracefully sped around the bases for a triple. Chase looked like Charlie Hustle, Jr. as he flailed his arms while trying to make the most of his below-average speed. And that’s the point. Chase Utley looked ordinary while being an All-Star.
He wasn’t amazing at any one thing, except getting hit by pitchers and that’s another jawn little leaguers think they could do. That just takes a little courage. Utley combined solid fundamentals and instinct with a rare intensity to make him one of the best second basemen in the last couple decades. For many, that’s something they could see themselves doing.
We could have been Chase Utley if something just went our way back in little league. Maybe if we practiced a little harder. Maybe if we just had the right coach. He’s the player the kids that weren’t the fastest, strongest, or best on their team could’ve been. It’s a bit delusional, but in a way it soothes our collective egos. We see ourselves in him. Chase Utley is the embodiment of thousands upon thousands of Average Joes’ childhood baseball dreams.