Chase Utley

Chase Cameron Utley (born December 17, 1978), nicknamed "the Man" and "Silver Fox", is an American former professional baseball second baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 16 seasons, primarily for the Philadelphia Phillies.

He also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

He also set a school single-season record with 14 home runs Utley was drafted in the second round of the 1997 Major League Baseball draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers with the 76th pick, but turned down a $850,000 offer by the Dodgers to attend UCLA.

A star shortstop in high school, the Bruins instead moved him to second base because his arm strength was more of a liability at shortstop.

While at UCLA, Utley played collegiate summer baseball for the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod Baseball League in 1998, and returned to the league in 1999 to play for the Cotuit Kettleers where he was named a league all-star.

He hit .382 with 22 home runs as a junior at UCLA in 2000 while leading the Bruins to the NCAA Super Regionals.

He was selected to the All-Pac-10 team and the Sporting News and National Collegiate Baseball Writers first team All-American teams.

Utley was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the first round (15th pick) of the 2000 amateur draft.

At the time, the team's scouting director claimed he was a combination of Jeff Kent and Adam Kennedy.

He signed on July 29, 2000, for a $1,780,000 signing bonus.

Utley played for the Phillies' farm system with the Batavia Muckdogs of the Class A-Short Season New York–Penn League in 2000, the Clearwater Phillies of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League in 2001, and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons of the Class AAA International League in 2002 and 2003.

He was selected to the All-Star Futures Game in 2001 and made the International League post-season all-star team in 2003.

Utley made his major league debut on April 4, 2003, as a pinch hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

He was struck out swinging by Jeff Suppan in his first at-bat.

In his first major league start, on April 24 against the Colorado Rockies, Utley recorded his first major league hit, a grand slam off Aaron Cook.

He was optioned back to the minors on April 30 recalled by the Phillies again in August 2003, to replace Plácido Polanco at second base (Polanco was moved to third to compensate for the loss of third baseman David Bell to the disabled list).

Utley scored the final game winning RBI in Phillies history at Veterans Stadium, on September 27, 2003.

Utley recorded the final at-bat at Veterans Stadium by grounding into a game-ending double play on September 28, 2003.

In 43 games, he had a .239 batting average.

By the end of 2004, it became evident to management that Utley was the team's future second baseman (Utley often credits Tom Gresh for helping him improve his hitting).

However, a roster spot was not permanently available; his path to the majors was effectively blocked by Polanco.

Despite out-playing Polanco for much of the season, he remained on the bench despite Phillies fans and media commentators questioning why he was not playing more.

He played in 94 games for the Phillies in 2004 (which included 13 at first base) and hit .266 with 13 homers and 57 RBI.

In June 2005, the Phillies traded Polanco to the Tigers for pitcher Ugueth Urbina and infielder Ramón Martínez.

As a full-time starter Utley hit .291 with 28 homers and 105 RBI and also stole 16 bases.

He was selected by the Philadelphia chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America as the co-recipient of the 2005 Mike Schmidt Most Valuable Player Award.

Utley was a member of Team USA in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, and was selected by fans to start at second base for the National League at the 2006 Major League Baseball All-Star Game at PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

He is a six-time All-Star, won a World Series with the Phillies in 2008, and was chosen as the second baseman on the Sports Illustrated All-Decade Team for the 2000s.

He batted left-handed and threw right-handed.

After becoming a permanent fixture as the Phillies' second baseman, Utley demonstrated versatility, spending some time at first base as well.

As his fielding improved, he and shortstop Jimmy Rollins were regarded as one of the best middle-infield combinations in the NL until Rollins was traded to the Dodgers in the winter of 2014.

Utley was considered by fans to be a team leader of the Phillies, alongside Rollins and Ryan Howard, and he has been noted for his leadership qualities with the Dodgers.

Utley was known for his quiet understated demeanor, instead setting an example for teammates with his exhaustive preparation in the video room and the batting cage.

He has been criticized by some former players for an overly aggressive baserunning style.

Utley's seven career World Series home runs are the most for a second baseman, and he shares the record of five home runs in a single World Series with Reggie Jackson and George Springer.

Utley was born in Pasadena, California, and was raised in Long Beach, California, with his younger sister, Taylor Ann.

He is the son of David and Terrell Utley.

Utley played baseball at Long Beach Polytechnic High School, alongside former MLB player, Milton Bradley and at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) for the UCLA Bruins.

In high school, his coach said that Utley had "the fastest hands he had ever seen on a high school player."

He hit over .500 his senior year, with a slugging percentage of over 1.000, struck out just twice in 80 at bats, and earned high school All-American honors.