Datasets:
DioLiu
/
Test2

Dataset card Data Studio Files
xet
Community
text
stringlengths
0
3.86k
After the 1960 season , it was announced that the AL were going to create two new teams , one in Los Angeles and one in Washington , D. C. Although he was thought of as the Tigers ' best reliever during the season , Sisler was listed by the Tigers as eligible for the 1960 Major League Baseball expansion draft . The draft occurred on December 14 , 1960 and Sisler was selected by the Washington Senators with the fourth overall pick . The Senators received communication from several teams that were interested in Sisler , namely the Milwaukee Braves of the National League ( NL ) and the Athletics , but decided to trade their first pick in the expansion draft , Bobby Shantz , instead . New manager Mickey Vernon defined Sisler 's role with the team before the season began , designating him as their top relief pitcher . Sisler felt slighted by the Tigers , having been left unprotected by the team , and had considered retiring from baseball , but ultimately decided to sign with the Senators .
Sisler was solid for much of the first half of the season , not allowing an earned run until May 19 , and by June 5 he had an ERA of 0 @.@ 74 , a 1 – 0 record with seven saves . It was at the point that his effectiveness declined rapidly , allowing runs to score in four of his next five appearances . In a game against the Red Sox on June 18 , he relieved starter Carl Mathias , and immediately gave up bases on balls to the first two batters he faced , which forced in two runs , then gave up a grand slam to Jim Pagliaroni . He followed with another base on balls , and was relieved without having recording an out . Over the course of the next couple months , with his ERA steadily rising , his playing time was lessened , making just six appearances in the month of July , and five in August . He made his last major league start on August 31 against the Tigers , giving up seven hits and six earned runs for the loss . In 45 total appearances in 1961 , he had a 2 – 8 win @-@ loss record and finished sixth in AL with 11 saves . On September 16 , the Senators agreed to send $ 75 @,@ 000 ( $ 593 @,@ 900 current dollar adjustment ) and a player to be named later to the Cincinnati Reds of the NL for pitcher Claude Osteen . To complete the transaction , Washington sent Sisler to the Reds as that player named on November 28 .
= = = Cincinnati Reds = = =
The Reds were the NL champions in 1961 , and with the addition of Sisler , Dave Hillman , and Moe Drabowsky to ensure stability to their pitching staff in 1962 , the team 's management had high hopes of a return to the World Series . Sisler , who was expected to be used as a relief pitcher , joined a Reds team that already had his brother Dick , who was their first base coach . His father , still with Pittsburgh , mentioned that he was relieved that his son did not play in a recent series between the Pirates and Reds , recalling how the mixed emotions he felt when his elder son , Dick , helped defeat the Dodgers in an important game in 1950 by hitting a home run . The younger Sisler 's season did not begin well ; in his ten appearances by June 5 , he allowed a run in all but three , and had a 4 @.@ 97 ERA . On June 19 , Sisler pitched a scoreless inning in victory against the Pirates , the time first time George watched his son pitch as an opponent . Although Sisler 's season was a disappointment , he completed the season well , allowing just one earned run over the course of his final eight games , as well as earning the victory on September 23 , his final major league appearance . His totals for the season included a 4 – 3 record , a 3 @.@ 92 ERA , and one save in 43 ⅔ innings pitched .
For the coming 1963 season , manager Fred Hutchinson envisioned the same the role for Sisler , coming out of the bullpen with the idea that he would occasionally start . The Reds announced on February 9 that Sisler had signed for the 1963 season , although he did not make the Reds ' NL club and was optioned to their class @-@ AAA team , the San Diego Padres of the Pacific Coast League ( PCL ) . In 35 games pitched for the Padres , he started six , had a 6 – 9 record and a 3 @.@ 40 ERA in 90 innings . On March 18 , 1964 , it was announced that Sisler retired from baseball to join an Investment company .
= = Later life = =
After his baseball career , Sisler became an executive with the investment firm A. G. Edwards for more than 30 years , reaching the level of vice @-@ chairman . A. G. Edwards was a sponsor of a semi @-@ professional baseball team located in St. Petersburg , Florida ; when the " Stockbrokers " were invited to play in season @-@ ending tournament to decide a champion , Sisler , a senior executive for the firm , denied the funding for the team , forcing them to decline if no other monies were raised . It was an unexpected decision considering that Sisler was former baseball player , but he did not feel that A. G. Edwards was benefitting , with the costs of running the team becoming more than originally agreed to by contract .
In 2004 , the possibility arose of his father 's record of 257 hits in a season being surpassed by Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners . Living in Dallas , Texas at the time , Sisler and his son Dave followed Ichiro 's progress throughout the season . Both had mixed feelings about the record chase ; they were happy that George Sisler 's name was being talked about and that people were re @-@ discovering him as a player , but both were hoping that , if the record was not broken in 154 games , there would be an asterisk noting that it took Ichiro more games to achieve it . Ichiro finished the season with 262 hits , and the Mariners extended an invitation for the entire Sisler family to attend the celebration at Safeco Field . The younger Sisler was prevented by an emergency heart procedure from travelling to Seattle . Both remarked that the Mariners were a classy organization for extending the invitation .
Sisler died on January 9 , 2011 of prostate cancer at the age of 79 in St. Louis , Missouri . He was survived by his wife Janet , son and three grandchildren .
= Cole Hamels =
Colbert Michael " Cole " Hamels ( born December 27 , 1983 ) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball ( MLB ) . He played in MLB for the Philadelphia Phillies from 2006 to 2015 .
Originally from San Diego , California , Hamels excelled in Rancho Bernardo High School both academically and athletically . The Phillies drafted him out of high school in the first round of the 2002 MLB Draft ( 17th ) , and he began his career in the Phillies minor league system . Numerous issues , including an injury sustained in a bar fight as well as other injuries , occurred during his first few minor league seasons . Having reached the Triple @-@ A level , he was the top pitcher in the Phillies ' minor league system in 2006 .
In May 2006 , Hamels made his major league debut for the Phillies . After securing a long @-@ term spot as a member of the Phillies starting rotation in his rookie season , he made large strides in the 2007 Major League Baseball season and won the Phillies ' top major league pitcher award . He was the top pitcher on the team entering the 2008 season , and during the Phillies ' postseason run , during which they ultimately won the 2008 World Series , he won the World Series Most Valuable Player Award . Since then , he has been a top starter in the Phillies ' rotation . After the 2008 season , Hamels signed a three @-@ year contract with the Phillies . His statistics declined over the next two seasons , struggling through a tumultuous 2009 campaign and somewhat bouncing back in 2010 , however still not approaching his 2008 numbers . Over the next few seasons , Hamels was joined by fellow all @-@ star pitchers including Roy Halladay , Cliff Lee , and Roy Oswalt , and flourished with them , putting up some of his top career seasons before suffering from poor run support in 2013 . With the decline of his aging teammates as the team missed the postseason for the next few years , Hamels remained one of the Phillies ' consistent stars . Hamels was traded to the Texas Rangers in 2015 where he sparked their run to the AL West title .
= = Early life = =
Cole Hamels attended Meadowbrook Middle School and Rancho Bernardo High School in San Diego . He was a " gifted student " , and scored a 1510 ( out of 1600 ) on the SAT . Scouts were interested in Hamels while he was in high school primarily because his fastball was clocked as high as 94 miles per hour ( 151 km / h ) , and his secondary offerings were considered advanced . However , some teams lost interest when Hamels broke his left humerus during his sophomore year . Nonetheless , Hamels was drafted in the first round of the 2002 Major League Baseball draft by the Philadelphia Phillies , who held the 17th overall selection .
= = Professional career = =
= = = Minor league career = = =
Hamels began his professional baseball career in 2003 , pitching for the Class A Lakewood BlueClaws of the South Atlantic League . Later that season , he was promoted to the Clearwater Threshers of the Class A @-@ Advanced Florida State League . He finished the year by receiving the Paul Owens Award , given to the best pitcher in the Phillies ' minor league system .
During the next two seasons , however , Hamels suffered through several injuries , and pitched only sparingly . He missed most of the 2004 season with elbow tendinitis , making only four starts . In 2005 , he broke his pitching hand in a bar fight before the season began ; after rehabilitation , he was assigned to Clearwater . In July , the Phillies promoted him to the Class AA Reading Phillies of the Eastern League , where he surrendered the first home run of his professional career in his first start . Subsequently , he was shut down for the remainder of the season with back spasms .
In 2006 , a healthy Hamels started again at Clearwater , and after a brief stint in Reading , he was promoted to the Scranton / Wilkes @-@ Barre Red Barons of the Class AAA International League . In three games at Scranton , he struck out 36 batters while giving up only one walk and one run . His minor league statistics included a record of 14 – 4 with a 1 @.@ 43 ERA and 273 strikeouts in 35 games pitched . For his performance , the Phillies promoted him to the major league club .
= = = Philadelphia Phillies = = =
= = = = 2006 = = = =
Hamels was called up to the Philadelphia Phillies in May 2006 . In his Major League Baseball debut on May 12 , he pitched five scoreless innings , allowing one hit , striking out seven batters , walked five , while earning a no @-@ decision against the Cincinnati Reds . In his second career start , Hamels was dominant until the seventh inning , during which he was pulled after he allowed several baserunners , but again received a no @-@ decision . A shoulder injury scratched Hamels from the lineup of what would have originally been his third major league start . He was put on the 15 @-@ day disabled list and returned on June 6 to defeat the Arizona Diamondbacks 10 – 1 for his first Major League victory . On August 14 , 2006 , Hamels had his best start of his rookie season , shutting out the New York Mets over eight innings and striking out nine in the Phillies ' 13 – 0 victory . He finished his rookie season with a 9 – 8 record , a 4 @.@ 08 earned run average ( ERA ) , and 145 strikeouts ( third among NL rookies ) in 132 1 ⁄ 3 innings ( sixth among NL rookies ) .
= = = = 2007 = = = =
Hamels entered the 2007 season having done significant work in the weight room in the offseason and at spring training . His tenacity came to fruition when , on April 21 , 2007 , Hamels pitched his first major league complete game , allowing one run on five hits and two walks while setting a career high with 15 strikeouts . Just three days before , the Phillies moved their opening day starter Brett Myers to the bullpen to be the closer , making Hamels the team 's number one starter . On May 16 , he carried a perfect game into the seventh inning , but then walked leadoff hitter Rickie Weeks and surrendered a home run to the next batter , J. J. Hardy .
For his strong performance during the first half of the season , Hamels was , for the first time in his career , selected a member of the NL All Star Team . As Hamels had been the Phillies only consistent starter to that point , even to the point that one columnist said the Phillies are a joke " as long as we are forced to look forward to someone other than Cole Hamels on the mound " , the Phillies acquired Kyle Lohse to supplement the rotation soon before the trading deadline . Several weeks later , Hamels was placed on the 15 @-@ day disabled list ( DL ) with a mild left elbow strain . After the Phillies activated him from the DL , on September 28 , he helped the Phillies take over first place in the National League East by striking out 13 Washington Nationals over 8 innings in a 6 – 0 win . Two days later , the team clinched a spot in the playoffs for the first time in 14 years . In the first game of the National League Division Series , he started for the Phillies , but surrendered three runs , three hits , and an " uncharacteristic " four walks , while striking out seven in 62 ⁄ 3 innings ; he was assessed the loss . Ultimately , the Phillies lost the series . Hamels finished with a regular @-@ season record of 15 – 5 , a 3 @.@ 39 ERA , and 177 strikeouts in 183 1 ⁄ 3 innings . The Philadelphia chapter of the Baseball Writers ' Association of America presented him the " Steve Carlton Most Valuable Pitcher " award .
= = = = 2008 = = = =
Before the season began in March , Hamels made a complaint about the Phillies underpaying him , saying it was a " low blow " and he was " caught off @-@ guard " with the gap between what he and his agent John Boggs felt was a fair reward for his performance in the previous season and what he was paid ( the Phillies paid him US $ 500 @,@ 000 , barely above the minimum salary for MLB players despite Hamels ' strong performance ) .
Though Hamels was the " clear @-@ cut ace " , Charlie Manuel penciled in Brett Myers as the Phillies ' opening day starter because Myers accepted his role as closer the preceding season , putting the team ahead of his personal wishes to start .
By the end of April , Hamels led the Phillies in most pitching categories , including wins ( 3 ) , ERA ( 2 @.@ 70 ) , and innings pitched ( 43 ⅓ ) . Continuing his dominance into May , Hamels recorded his first career complete game shutout against the Atlanta Braves on the 15th of that month . By June , Myers had been demoted to the minor leagues due to his ineffectiveness , leaving Hamels alone atop the rotation . Hamels was snubbed from a selection to the All @-@ Star Game despite strong numbers . For the season , Hamels was 14 – 10 with a 3 @.@ 09 ERA and 196 strikeouts in 227 1 ⁄ 3 innings ; he had the lowest on @-@ base percentage @-@ against ( OBP ) in the majors at .272 . FanGraphs also rated his changeup as the most effective in the majors .
Hamels pitched in Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Brewers , pitching " eight spectacular two @-@ hit shutout innings " during which he struck out nine hitters , notching his first career playoff win , and the Phillies ' first playoff win since 1993 . He commented , " I knew the importance of the game . And it 's something where , because of last year , I learned what it really takes in trying to ... kind of mellow out , not to have that sort of excitement where you can 't really control everything . " He was named the Most Valuable Player ( MVP ) of the National League Championship Series , going 2 – 0 in the NLCS with a 1 @.@ 93 ERA and winning the series clincher on October 15 in Los Angeles .
Hamels was selected the Phillies starter for Game 1 of the World Series ; the Phillies won 3 – 2 , and Hamels earned his fourth win of the postseason . Hamels also started Game 5 , which was suspended due to rain after the top of the sixth inning tied at 2 @-@ 2 , and receiving a no @-@ decision ; when game five resumed the Phillies won 4 @-@ 3 to clinch the World Series . Overall , Hamels made five postseason starts in 2008 , going 4 – 0 with a 1 @.@ 80 ERA . Hamels threw a total of 35 innings during the postseason , and held opponents scoreless in 28 of them ; he never allowed more than one run in any of the seven innings in which he did not hold opponents scoreless . Hamels was named the 2008 World Series MVP .
Subsequently , Jayson Stark wrote ,
The names on the list are the names who have carved their legends in the month of October ... We know their names because October was their kind of month , and they belong on that list because they once did something very few pitchers have ever done . They all won four starts in the same postseason . And now they have company ... a 24 @-@ year @-@ old left @-@ hander named Cole Hamels . And with every time the Phillies handed him the baseball in October 2009 , it became more apparent that he is one of the sports ' most special talents .
The Philadelphia chapter of the Baseball Writers ' Association of America presented him the " Steve Carlton Most Valuable Pitcher " award for the second consecutive year .
= = = = 2009 = = = =
Hamels started his 2009 season by signing a three @-@ year , $ 20 @.@ 5 million contract with the Phillies . On February 14 , the first day of spring training for pitchers and catchers , when asked who the Opening Day starter would be , manager Charlie Manuel responded , " Yeah , you might as well go ahead and pencil him in . I don 't think there 's any sense in me playing games . Go ahead , pencil him in . "
However , Hamels left spring training on March 16 after feeling tightness between innings , and flew to Philadelphia to have his left elbow examined by Dr. Michael Ciccotti . " This will obviously set me back a couple of days , and I don 't think that should be a big deal " , said Hamels . Ciccotti found no structural damage in his arm , yet Hamels still did not pitch on Opening Day as expected ; Myers did for the third consecutive season . For the first time in his career , he went winless in his first four starts , and left back @-@ to @-@ back starts early due to injury in late April , sustaining a left @-@ shoulder contusion and an ankle sprain respectively . From June on , however , he returned to his previous form , recording two complete @-@ game shutouts ( tied for the NL @-@ lead ) , striking out at least 10 batters in two separate games , and amassing a 21 @-@ inning scoreless streak from August 21 to September 6 , while allowing just two home runs in his final eight starts . In July , the Phillies augmented their starting rotation by acquiring two former Cy Young Award winners in Cliff Lee and Pedro Martínez from a trade and a free agent signing respectively . Due to his early season injury struggles , Hamels posted a 10 – 11 record and a 4 @.@ 32 ERA in the regular season , his first major league season in which he posted a sub-.500 record , and the worst ERA of his career to that point .
Hamels started Game 2 of the 2009 National League Division Series against the Colorado Rockies , allowing four earned runs through five innings to take the loss . Nevertheless , the Phillies won the series , three games to one . He earned the win in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series as the Phillies beat the Dodgers , 8 – 6 . Hamels started Game 3 of the World Series against the New York Yankees , pitching 4 1 ⁄ 3 innings , allowing 5 earned runs and taking the loss as the Yankees won that game 8 @-@ 5 . Afterward , he told reporters , " I can 't wait for it ( the season ) to end . It 's been mentally draining . It 's one of those things where , a year in , you just can ’ t wait for a fresh start . " Later in the series , after the Phillies won game five , a confrontational Brett Myers mockingly asked Hamels : " What are you doing here ? I thought you quit . " The Phillies lost the World Series to the New York Yankees in six games .
Rob Neyer a sabermetrician and columnist for ESPN.com , contradicted anyone who asserted Hamels ' skills had deteriorated , instead commenting ,
" Last October , everybody was ready to anoint Hamels some sort of superhero . This was largely because he went 4 – 0 during the Phillies ' championship run , but also because he went 14 – 10 with a 3 @.@ 09 ERA during the regular season . Last season , Hamels ' strikeout @-@ to @-@ walk ratio was 3 @.@ 7 ; this year it 's 3 @.@ 8 . Last year , Hamels gave up 1 @.@ 1 home runs per nine innings ; this year he 's given up 1 @.@ 3 homers per nine . The only real difference between the 2008 Hamels and the 2009 Hamels is luck . "
Phillies ' pitching coach Rich Dubee and Hamels himself blamed Hamels ' demeanor for some of his decline , noting , " He is such a perfectionist … his approach wasn ’ t very good last year . His success won ’ t come back until his demeanor changes " and " The more angry you get , it 's that much tougher to execute your next pitch . I think I let [ expectations ] get to me " respectively .
= = = = 2010 = = = =
Entering the 2010 season , the Phillies traded away Cliff Lee , but in doing so , acquired Roy Halladay in a " mega @-@ trade " . They did not re @-@ sign Myers , and Halladay was named the Phillies ' opening day starter . Among Hamels ' season highlights were a start on June 7 against the San Diego Padres during which he threw 61 ⁄ 3 innings of no @-@ hit baseball , winning five consecutive starts including three consecutive scoreless starts from late @-@ August to mid @-@ September , and striking out 13 batters , tied for his second @-@ highest career total , on September 13 against the Florida Marlins .
The Phillies finished with the best record in MLB . Hamels started Game 3 of the National League Division Series against the Cincinnati Reds and , for the first time in his postseason career , pitched a complete game shutout . The Phillies advanced to the National League Championship Series facing the San Francisco Giants , where Hamels took the loss in Game 3 giving up three runs as the Giants ' Matt Cain shutout the Phillies , en route to the Phillies ' ultimate elimination in six games .
Statistically , Hamels rebounded from his previous season by posting a 12 – 11 record with a 3 @.@ 06 ERA , the latter of which was , at the time , a career @-@ best . He also struck out a career high 211 batters . Throughout the season , he was plagued by a lack of run support ; in 1 ⁄ 3 of his starts , the Phillies did not score a single run while he was in the game . Moreover , he received the fifth @-@ lowest run support in the NL . Nevertheless , he allowed three or fewer earned runs in 26 of his 33 starts . Jeff Nelson " facetiously " evaluated Hamels ' season as follows :
" Headcase . Immature . Soft . Unprepared . He wouldn ’ t pitch on three @-@ days rest if asked . He 's not a big game pitcher . He sounds like a whiny 7 @-@ year old – these were some of the descriptions I heard and read from many Phillies fans following Cole Hamels ’ disappointing 2009 season . Heck , some people even wanted him traded after what he said during the ’ 09 World Series . To the naked eye , Cole just wasn ’ t right two years ago . Fast forward a year later and Hamels all the sudden ‘ found his game . ’ He ‘ flicked a switch ’ or ‘ put his game face on . ’ He was more prepared heading in to 2010 or he was cured from the Verducci effect . "
= = = = 2011 = = = =
On December 15 , 2010 , Cliff Lee returned to the Phillies as he signed a free @-@ agent contract with Philadelphia for five years and $ 120 million with a vesting option for a sixth year . After this signing , the Phillies ' starting rotation consisted of Roy Halladay , Roy Oswalt , Cliff Lee , Cole Hamels , and Joe Blanton . This rotation was considered one of the best in pitching history by many . Halladay , Oswalt , Lee , and Hamels were dubbed the ' Phantastic Phour ' by fans and the media .
Hamels entered the 2011 season with a large amount of excitement and hype from fans and the media . By the All @-@ Star game , Hamels was 4 – 3 . On July 3 , when the rosters for the 2011 MLB All @-@ Star Game in Phoenix , Arizona were broadcast on TBS , it was announced that Hamels was voted onto the National League team along with fellow pitchers and teammates Roy Halladay , Cliff Lee , Plácido Polanco , and Shane Victorino . He was not eligible to play , however , because he had pitched the Sunday prior to the All @-@ Star Game . Hamels shared his dismay with this rule , saying , " It 's one of those things where people who don 't play the game make the rules . "
The Phillies finished with the best record in MLB for the second year in a row . In the 2011 National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals , Hamels started Game 3 which resulted in a 3 @-@ 2 win to give the Phillies a 2 @-@ 1 series lead , however the Phillies would lose Games 4 and 5 to be eliminated .
Hamels finished the 2011 season with a record of 14 – 9 , 194 strikeouts , an ERA of 2 @.@ 79 , and a 0 @.@ 986 WHIP . He finished fifth in the Cy Young Award voting behind Clayton Kershaw , Roy Halladay , Cliff Lee , and Ian Kennedy , respectively .
= = = = 2012 = = = =
During the 2011 off @-@ season , Hamels underwent elbow and hernia surgeries . Hamels had missed scheduled starts in August due to a stiff shoulder , and loose bodies were removed from his elbow to fix his problems . Hamels was ready to pitch by the start of Spring training 2012 .
On January 17 , Hamels and the Philadelphia Phillies agreed to a one @-@ year , $ 15 million contract to avoid arbitration . This was the highest salary ever paid to a pitcher eligible for arbitration before free agency .
On May 6 , Hamels was suspended for five games after hitting Bryce Harper in his lower back with a pitch , after admitting that it was intentional . On July 21 , 2012 , Hamels hit his first career home run off San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain , who had homered off of him in the top half of the same inning , the first time in MLB that two pitchers had hit home runs off of each other in the same inning .
Hamels would stay a Phillie when he agreed to a contract extension on July 24 . The six @-@ year , $ 144 million contract was the second @-@ largest contract ever signed by a pitcher . The deal included a vesting option for 2019 worth $ 24 million . If the option didn 't vest , it would have turned into a club option for $ 20 million that included a $ 6 million buyout .
Hamels finished the season with career highs in wins ( 17 ) and strikeouts ( 216 ) , and finished eighth in the NL Cy Young Award voting . His 3 @.@ 05 ERA ranked second @-@ best in his career ( behind only his 2 @.@ 79 ERA in 2011 ) . The Philadelphia chapter of the Baseball Writers ' Association of America presented him the " Steve Carlton Most Valuable Pitcher " award .
= = = = 2013 = = = =
Before the 2013 season in spring training , manager Charlie Manuel named Hamels the 2013 opening day starter , which Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote was a " long time coming " . In his first career opening day start on April 1 against the Atlanta Braves , Hamels surrendered five earned runs in five innings and took the loss .
Particularly early in the season , Hamels was plagued by a lack of run support ; as of May 27 , he had the fifth @-@ lowest in the major leagues . He lost his eighth start on May 27 , declining to a record of 1 – 8 , which one Sports Illustrated column attributed more to the Phillies poor offense than Hamels . Nevertheless , it was " easily ... Hamels ’ worst performance of his eight @-@ year career " . Aside from offensive struggles while Hamels was pitching , the Phillies defense struggled , though Hamels kept a positive attitude , once commenting that his luck should improve , as " I 've been doing pretty well on the plane in poker . " Towards the end of the season , however , Hamels " put it together " ; in his final 11 starts. he surrendered more than three runs only once . In total , he amassed an 8 – 14 record with a 3 @.@ 60 ERA in 220 innings and 202 strikeouts ( sixth in NL ) . Despite struggles from his teammates , Bill Baer noted that Hamels ,
" ... was worse at generating swings and misses . His strikeout rate declined by 2 @.@ 6 percent and his overall swinging strike rate declined by 2 @.@ 1 percent . That doesn ’ t seem like a whole lot , but consider that opposing hitters swung at 1 @,@ 774 pitches during the 2013 season . A 2 @.@ 1 percent decrease means 37 fewer swings and misses . That 's a combination of 37 more balls in play or foul balls prolonging an at @-@ bat . "
Despite Hamels ' poor record and ERA , 25 of his 33 starts were quality starts , and thus he gave his team a chance to win 25 times , yet only got eight wins .
= = = = 2014 = = = =
Before the 2014 season , Hamels announced that he would not be ready to pitch on Opening Day because of tendonitis in his biceps . On April 6 Hamels pitched in a Minor League Class A @-@ Advanced game , striking out four while allowing two earned runs on three hits in four innings . He made his first start of the season on April 23 .
Despite lack of run support contributing to a poor win @-@ loss record , Hamels was among the best pitchers in the National League , and was even mentioned as a Cy Young candidate . On September 1 , Hamels pitched six innings of a Phillies combined no @-@ hitter against the Atlanta Braves . Hamels was pulled for a pinch hitter in the top of the seventh due to having five walks , a hit @-@ batter , and 108 pitches through six innings . Overall , Hamels was the only consistent star on the Phillies , finished sixth in Cy Young voting , and was frequently mentioned as a candidate to be traded in the offseason to bolster the Phillies ' lackluster farm system , after he avoided being dealt at the July trading deadline .