PHILLIES NEWS

The Phils are off today so it is time to continue our list of the top 25 most memorable player nicknames, No.s 15-11.

15. "Mr.T" aka P Al Holland.
Yet another scary Phils closer who left town too soon. Let's just say you pitied the fool who had to face Holland at the end of a game. He was as sure a thing at the end of games for the wheez kids in 1983 as Brad Lidge was last season. That year as the Phils closer he went 8-4, with 25 saves, a 2.26 ERA and 100 strikeouts. Hitters that year hit just .188 against him. He was so good that he received both Cy Young and MVP votes. Then he carried it into the playoffs, getting the save in game 1 and closing out the decisive game 4 of the NLCS. He then got the save in game 1 of the world series, and tossed 2 scoreless innings to finish game 3 but it wasn't enough to lift the Phils to a title. Incredibly in the playoffs Holland appeared in 4 games without allowing a single run for a combined postseason ERA of 0.00. After that he had one more glorious season in red pinstripes in 1984, reaching his first all star games, and saving 29 games, but his ERA went up to 3.39, his strikeouts dropped to 61, and he was gone after just 3 appearances with the Phils in 1985. Ironically like Steve Bedrosian after him, he was never as good after the leaving the Phils as he had been with them. Ultimately, he goes down as perhaps the nastiest closer in Phils history.


14. "Chooch" aka C Carlos Ruiz.
Ruiz was given this nickname by teammates reportedly due to his apparent striking resemblance to Cheech marin, the Cheech of the famed 70s and 80s comic duo, Cheech and Chong. While no one can vouch for whether or not Ruiz is regularly in possession of any suspicious and perhaps illegal substances, or that he is under the influence of any while on the field, if he is he's sure fooled a lot of people. While, not greatest hitter in the world, he always seems to be that guy who gets the hits when it matters most. Take your pick. There's the solo homer and the game winning dribbler in game 3 of the 2008 World Series, there's the 5 hits and 2 RBIs in the 2008 NLCS and 6 hits and 3 RBIs in the world series, and heck even the 2 run double last night. In addition no one handles a pitching staff like Ruiz. He also excels in most if not all defensive facets of the game, blocking balls in the dirt, blocking the plate, throwing out basestealers and baserunners, and catching the rare pop fly behind the plate. He earns the respect of fans and teammates the old fashioned way, by the playing the game the way it is supposed to be. You can't argue with the results so far.


13. "JRoll" aka SS Jimmy Rollins
Why is JRoll a fitting nickname? Simple. When he's on a roll so are the Phils. When things are going well for the Phils they aren't said to be rolling, they are said to be Jrolling. At no time was this more evident during the 2007 season when he won the NL MVP While leading the Phils into the playoffs for the first time in 14 years and and rolling, er Jrolling through a season for the ages. All told that he year, using a rare combination of speed, power, and athleticism, he put up 38 doubles, 20 triples, 30 homeruns, and 41 stolen bases, making him just the 2nd man in Major league history and the 1st in NL history to have 20 or more in all 4 categories. He'd already had 10 or more in all 4 categories 4 times but this was a different animal. He also put up a 139 runs scored and 94 RBIs that season just for good measure. Moreover, along with the MVP award he also won the silver slugger and gold glove awards for his position. Somehow despite all that, like Lenny Dykstra in 1993, he was left off the all-star team, a membership he had already enjoyed 4 times in his career. Much was expected of him 2008, but thanks to injuries his numbers dropped. Still he won another gold glove award and was a key cog on the world champions, as his leadoff homer in game 6 of the NLCS sparked the Phils to a pennant clinching victory. As good a hitter as he can be at times he might be even better with the glove. In fact he is arguably the best defensive shortstop in the NL right now. Few make plays look routine as often he does and he rarely misses a game. In fact he played all 162 of them in 2007. For a while it was a struggle for him this season and late in the first half of the season the Phils began to struggle right along with him. Then he caught fire to start the 2nd half, as did the Phils, and together they remain on a Jroll.

12."Hollywood" aka P Cole Hamels
This was one was given to Hamels by teammate Ryan Howard when they were both still in the minors. Howard saw Hamels at the beach with sunglasses on looking all Hollywood, not a surprise considering Hamels is from California. While not the most flattering happenstance from which to create a nickname, the name has stuck with Hamels for a different reason. He simply is Hollywood cool under pressure, particularly when the stakes are the highest. In the 2008 postseason he was a perfect 5-0 with a 1.56 ERA, and 30 strikeouts. He won game 1 in all 3 of the Phils playoff series and copped the NLCS and World Series MVP trophies. He would actually have been 6-0, the first pitcher ever to win 6 times in a single postseason, if game 5 of the world series had not been rain-delayed for 2 days. Still, his performance in the 2008 postseason stands as perhaps the greatest in ML history. However, Hamels has long way to go to surpass the Phils original star Lefty . You know who I am talking about. So far he has to very good seasons to his name, with 15 wins and 177 strikeouts in 2007 and 14 wins and 196 strikeouts in 2008. This season has been tough to watch at times, as he recuperates from going over the 200 inning mark for the 1st time in 2008. At this point he has kept his composure just enough to tough out 7 wins and another 126 strikeouts and he could be well on his way to another masterful postseason.

11."The Bat" aka Pat Burrell
Okay so this one is pretty stupid. This was literally given to Burrell bynhis U of Miami teammates because he was one of the all-time great collegiate hitters and well Bat rhymes with Pat. Still, the Philly fans took to it after a while, and began chanting "Pat the Bat" fairly regularly, sometimes to mock a slumping Burrell and sometimes to cheer on a red hot Burrell with a chance to knock in some runs. With usually about 20 homers and 80 RBIs a season, those runs would often get across the plate. For a while he was looked at as a dissapointment though for the Phils. When they drafted him numer 1 overall in 1998 he was supposed to be the team's next all-time great. He never quite met expectations, with only a .256 career batting average and routinely suspect defense , mostly in left field, a position he was never supposed to play. In fact 3rd base was his natural position but it never materialized, because the Phils already had Scott Rolen at the hot corner, when Burrell was rushed to the bigs in 2000. So he wound up in left field and for a while it worked before leg injuries slowed him down, to the proverbial big bat in lineup, who gets replaced late in games for defense. Still despite his many ups and downs his Bat connected enough times in enough in key spots over the years to turn Burrell into a beloved figure as his tenure here came to close in 2008, but not before his bat connected one more time for a leadoff double in the 7th inning of game 5 of world series, to set up pinch runner Eric Bruntlett to score what would be the winning run in the world series. If not for wind gusting in from left field, it would have been a solo homer and even more unforgettable memory. As is stood, it was Burrell's only hit of the series and biggest of his career. Long live the Bat.

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