Background and career
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 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 was also 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 as a "dirty" player, particularly for an overly aggressive baserunning style which included a 2015 incident where Utley intentionally slid into New York Mets shortstop Rubén Tejada, breaking his leg. 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.
Chase Cameron Utley was born on December 17, 1978, in Pasadena, California, to David and Terrell Utley. He was raised with his younger sister, Taylor Ann, in Long Beach, California. 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. 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. 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. 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.
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 Detroit Tigers for pitcher Ugueth Urbina and infielder Ramón Martínez. Now a full-time starter, Utley had a breakout season, hitting .291 with 28 home runs, 105 RBI, and 16 stolen 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. In November, he traveled to Japan with other major league stars to compete against Japanese All-Stars in an exhibition tournament. During the 2006 season, Utley maintained a 35-game hitting streak—the second-longest streak in Phillies history behind teammate Jimmy Rollins, who hit for 38 straight games between 2005 and 2006 (36 games in 2005 and two in 2006). Utley tied Luis Castillo, who had a 35-game hitting streak in 2002, for the longest hitting streak by a second baseman. Utley's streak was also the longest for a purely left-handed hitter since Tommy Holmes' 37-game streak in 1945. As a result, Utley was named the National League Player of the Month for July 2006. On September 24, Utley hit two home runs in a 10–7 win over the Florida Marlins. It was his seventh multi-home run game of the 2006 season, tying a franchise record set in 1968 and tied by Ryan Howard in 2006. Utley combined with Jimmy Rollins in 2006 to become the first pair of middle infielders in National League history to hit 25 home runs each in the same season; Utley hit 32, while Rollins hit 25. He later received the Silver Slugger Award for being the best hitting second baseman in the National League. He also batted .309 in 2006 with 32 homers and 102 RBI.
On January 21, 2007, the day after his wedding, Utley signed a 7-year, $85 million contract extension with the Phillies. After starting the season hot, Utley was again selected by the fans to be the starting second baseman in the 2007 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, which was his second All-Star selection. However, on July 26, Utley was hit by a pitch thrown by Washington Nationals pitcher John Lannan; he broke the fourth metacarpal bone in his right hand. "I'll be back. Don't worry, guys," Utley said after the game. "It's a break, but not that bad of a break. I definitely expect to be back ... this season." He had successful surgery on his hand, but as a result of the surgery, he was placed on the 15-day disabled list. Utley returned to the lineup on August 27, hit a home run and an RBI double, went 3 for 5, and drew a curtain call from the hometown crowd. Utley finished the season with a .332 batting average, 22 home runs, 103 RBIs and 48 doubles (second in the National League). He helped the Phillies to their first playoff appearance in fourteen seasons as the team capped a dramatic comeback by clinching the National League East division title on the final day of the regular season. Utley's offensive performance also earned him a Silver Slugger Award for the second consecutive season. He had two hits in 11 at-bats as the Phillies were swept in three games by the Colorado Rockies in the 2007 National League Division Series.
