Philadelphia Phillies: 50 greatest players of all-time

Only two Phillies have been a part of two no-hitters/perfect games during their time in red pinstripes: Roy Halladay and Cole Hamels. The kid dubbed “Hollywood” wrote a storybook ending to his career in Philadelphia by being responsible for the franchise’s last two no-hitters, starting a combined no-hitter on Sept. 1, 2014, and throwing one of his own in his final Phillies start less than a year later on July 25, 2015.

Few could have imagined what fortunes Hamels would bring to Philadelphia when the club drafted him with the 17th overall pick in 2002 out of Rancho Bernardo High School. A staple in Philadelphia’s rotation for 10 years, Hamels led the way in 2008 to the club’s first World Series championship in nearly three decades.

In 2008, Hamels was masterful in the postseason, throwing 35 innings with a 1.80 ERA and earning World Series MVP honors. He shutout the Milwaukee Brewers over eight innings in game one of the NLDS and allowed no more than two runs in each of his next four postseason starts.

Four times he finished with top-10 Cy Young consideration and he earned three trips to the All-Star game.

Hamels ranks among the top-five in career stats in 11 categories and is sixth all-time with 114 wins. He joins Steve Carlton and Robin Roberts as the only pitchers in franchise history with 100 wins and 1,800 strikeouts. By most measures, Hamels is the third-greatest live-ball era pitcher in Phillies history.