Chase Utley returned to Philadelphia yesterday, fresh off of his honeymoon, to meet with the media and discuss his new 7-year, $84 million dollar contract. If you are a Chase Utley fan (and if you are not, what the heck is wrong with you?), there are plenty of links for you...
Print:
- Jim Salisbury of the Inquirer unearths a little known fact: Freddie Mitchell -- FredEx, Mr. 4th and 26 -- introduced Chase Utley and his wife Jennifer to each other on Valentine's Day 2000 in their UCLA days. Another amusing anecdote: at some point during their courtship, Jennifer's father asked Chase what his plans were for life in case baseball didn't work out. I think he's going to be OK. You have to wonder though, was Feddie at the wedding?
- Paul Hagen in the Daily News writes that Utley plays all out, all the time, even in meaningless exhibition games in Japan.
Electronic media:
- Video of the press conference at Citizens Bank Park [for Firefox users, this may work better in Internet Explorer]. Two good quotes: "I came all the way from California, I didn't expect this weather, but I'm here, and I'm here for another seven years," and later, "I want to retire a Phillie."
- Radio interview with Jody MacDonald on WPEN 950 AM. As much as we like Utley, many of his quotes come from the Crash Davis School of Media Relations. But in this interview, I found it interesting that while he bats left-handed, he plays golf right-handed, and he feels like golf helps his baseball play because it teaches him patience. Also, when asked about Pat Burrell, Utley said, "Pat is one of my better friends on the team...People don't realize how hard he works...He has a great mental approach to the game."
In hindsight, with all the talk of Utley and his new contract, we are reminded of something Harry Kalas observed in the summer: "Chase Utley, you...are...the...man!" [original post].
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More on Utley at BS&S.com...
...Utley collides at home plate with Dodgers catcher Russell Martin. [image]
...The Repressivley Coping Chase Utley [one of the more popular pages on this site].
...Chase Utley index page and search page.
