Topic: Cole Hamels

Colbert Michael "Cole" Hamels (born December 27, 1983 in San Diego, California) is a left-handed starting pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. Hamels throws a four-seam fastball, a circle changeup, a curveball, and a cut fastball, which he added in 2010. He was named Most Valuable Player of the 2008 World Series and National League Championship Series after posting a 4–0 record in the playoffs.

Cole Hamels attended Rancho Bernardo High School in San Diego, California. According to Tony Gwynn, a lot of scouts were interested in Hamels while he was pitching for RBHS because his fastball was clocked as high as 94 mph as well as his advanced secondary offerings. However, he broke his pitching arm in his sophomore year, so teams, including the San Diego Padres, lost interest. Nonetheless, Hamels was drafted in the first round of the 2002 Major League Baseball Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies, who held the 17th overall selection.

Hamels began his professional baseball career in 2003, pitching at Single-A Lakewood. Later that season, he was promoted to Class-A Advanced Clearwater. After the 2003 season, Hamels received the Paul Owens Award as the best pitcher in the Phillies' minor league system.