By Sam Bush
Former Phillies ace Cole Hamels is unhappy in Texas because the Rangers have gone with a six-man rotation:
“It’s not part of baseball … you might as well be in college.”
So, maybe it’s the right time for the pitching-poor Phils to being the 34-year-older back to town.
Hamels cited his conditioning and his own personal goals among the reasons why he is opposed to a six-man rotation.
“I know that’s the new analytical side of trying to reinvent the wheel, but I was brought up in the minor leagues on the five-man [rotation], and that’s what I’m designed and conditioned for.
“That’s the mental side of how you prepare, how you get ready for games, how you condition your body. You throw in the six-man, you might as well be in college. … That’s just not what MLB is to me. That’s not how I learned from my mentors, and that’s not the type of way that I’m here to pitch.”
Hamels went 11-6 with a 4.20 ERA in 148 innings over 24 starts last season with the Rangers. It marked the first time since 2009 that the left-hander did not log at least 200 innings in a season.
“Thirty-three or 34 starts are what I design; that’s what my goal is and that’s what I intend to do,” Hamels said. “This is what I’ve done. I’m a guy that pitches 200 innings. I know that’s something you don’t see as often, but that’s what’s made me, and that’s what I’m going to stick to.”
