Cool Cole

Photo by David J. Phillips, AP


Cole Hamels is once again the definition of the world "cool" in the city of Philadelphia. He’s the “best thing since sliced bread,” Seriously, how cool a name is Cole Hamels? From his wife Heidi, to his World Series MVP trophy, Cole Hamels is the envy of all man.

It’s now September, Cole’s time to shine. With much of his ’09 campaign being average with mere flashes of brilliance, Hamels now seems ready for takeoff. His last five starts have reminded us of the type of pitcher that he truly is.
Hamels’ recent resurgence solidifies the top of the rotation heading into the playoffs giving Philadelphia a powerful 1-2 punch of lefties in Hamels and Cliff Lee.

Hamels’ last five outings have seen him go 3-1 with a 1.45 ERA; this is at exactly the most opportune time for a team mounting a 7.5 game lead in its year-long stranglehold on the NL East.

Hamels’ remaining three starts will tell, if all goes well, we could see Hamels and Lee roll into the postseason ready to take down any and all hitters from whichever opponent awaits. But as we’ve seen before, October proves to be a fresh slate in which everyone starts out equally, and one emerges from the pack as champion.

If Hamels’ last five starts are any indication, the postseason could very well, once again become,
“The Cole Hamels Show”, the only necessary platform for the Phightins to launch their second consecutive World Series march on Broad St. That’s right, the only way the Phillies repeat, is if Hamels brings his stuff as he did last fall, if that does happen, it's“Lights Out!” once again, as this Phillies team is better than last year’s.



On a brief side note, a quick congratulations to Juan Martin del Potro, the only man to defeat both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in the same tournament, leading to a U.S. Open victory for the Spaniard.