Phillies All-Decade Team of the 2010s: Breaking down the legends

7 of 8

PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 6: (L-R) Cole Hamels # 35, Cliff Lee #33, Roy Oswalt #44 and Roy Halladay #34 of the Philadelphia Phillies watch from the dugout during the Phillies game against the New York Mets in the third inning on April 6, 2011 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies won 10-7. (Photo by Miles Kennedy/Philadelphia Phillies/Getty Images) /

Starting Rotation

The 2010’s featured some of the greatest starting rotations in Phillies history, highlighted by a Hall of Fame ace atop the rotation.

Roy Halladay

The brilliance of Roy Halladay was lost too soon, but during his time in Philadelphia Halladay was as dominant as any pitcher in baseball. He won 55 games in four seasons, 40 in his first two before injuries caught up to him.

Doc would win his second Cy Young en route to a Hall of Fame career after tossing a perfect game and postseason no-hitter in 2010. He threw 18 complete games in his final four seasons, an astonishing accomplishment in today’s game.

Cliff Lee

If anyone was close to Halladay’s dominance in 2010 it was Cliff Lee during his reign. After an outstanding postseason in 2009 Lee returned to form a dominant rotation in 2011 where he won 17 games, struck out 238 batters, had a league-high six shutouts, and finished third in the Cy Young.

Like Halladay, Lee’s career was cut short by injuries, but he established himself as one of the great pitchers in Phillies history.

19 Feb 2015: Cole Hamels in middle looks on as Cliff Lee on left shows how his curve ball breaks downward during the Phillies spring training workout at the Carpenter Complex in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Cole Hamels

Perhaps the greatest homegrown pitcher in Phillies history, Cole Hamels return to dominance in the 2010’s after a slip up in 2009. He finished fifth in the Cy Young the same year Halladay and Lee finished in the top-three, ending the season with a 2.79 ERA.

Hamels had 1,158 strikeouts during the 2010’s, the most of any Phillies starting pitcher during the decade, and was one of two Phils pitchers with at least 150 starts during the decade.

Aaron Nola

The next generation of great Phillies pitching rests on the arm of Aaron Nola, whose 826 strikeouts hare only second to Hamels in the decade. In his short career Nola has already won 53 games and finished third in the Cy Young, setting himself up for a successful career as the Phillies leader in the rotation.

Kyle Kendrick

Let’s take a moment to recognize the guy who made 133 starts during the 2010’s with four complete games, 490 strikeouts, and 50 wins. While Kyle Kendrick certainly wasn’t a member of the Four Aces he was one of the longest-tenured pitchers in the rotation, leaving his mark on their successful years early in the decade.

Kendrick won at least 10 games in four of his five seasons with Philadelphia this decade and had at least 100 strikeouts three times.

Honorable Mention: Roy Oswalt, Vince Velasquez, Zach Eflin, Jeremy Hellickson, Vance Worley