Hamels: Approaching Season As 'Positive Influence, Catalyst'
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) --- When Cole Hamels was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the first-round of the 2002 MLB draft, the franchise was amid a brutal stretch. The Phils had not reached the postseason since 1993 and they didn't break their playoff drought until 2007.
Now, after five straight National League East titles and one World Series parade, the Phillies have finished in third, fourth, and last place in their division the last three seasons, respectively.
"To be able to come to an organization from square one you really get to see through a personal experience of what it takes to be a successful big league club," Hamels explained Tuesday on the 94WIP Mike & Ike Show, of his approach heading into the 2015 season. "You have to go through the tops and the bottoms of anything and all you really need to do---and for myself, the way I'm trying to approach it is to be that sort of positive influence and sort of catalyst in trying to provide the necessary information and sort of persona that I can take out on that field and to try to help guys win."
Listen: Cole Hamels on the 94WIP Mike & Ike Show
Hamels, called up to the big leagues in 2006, became a star pitcher during his tenure in Philly. Now, the 31-year-old, a nine-year veteran, World Series Champion, and MVP, is regarded as one of baseball's best pitchers.
However, as the Phillies officially began their rebuilding process this Winter, the trade rumors regarding Hamels swirled viciously. The composed lefty won't let that effect his game.
"I think if you want to play this game for a long time, you really have to know how to control what you can control," Hamels said. "And what I'm able to do is---in this clubhouse, in the weight room, out on the field, that's what we get to control and that's what we get to decide our fate. It's a game that you get to play and you want to be able to play it as long as you possibly can. The only thing or obstacle that you're going to have to deal with is obviously the outside. So if you can create a really good group with your teammates, with your family, you don't have to really listen to all the noise outside. You kinda silence it and you're able to get a better direct path."
Despite the recent decline of the franchise, the loss of the team's hits leader Jimmy Rollins and 2014 slugger Marlon Byrd, the injury to Cliff Lee, and Vegas' odds, Hamels remains optimistic.
"It's anybody's game," Hamels said. "When you really look at it, we all start zero and zero and it's just a matter of who makes the best out of the opportunities and the chances that you get. Sometimes, recently, we weren't able to get off to that hot start, but I think with what we have---we have a lot of good young guys that have some serious excitement. So I think you really have to look at that because there are a lot of jobs to be won."
