When you look at Rolen’s stats as a Phillies, they are very good. He was Rookie of the Year in 1997 and after that had some really good years. His best was 1998 when he hit .290/.391/.532 with 31 HR and 110 RBI. He also had 14 stolen bases and won the Gold Glove that year. His career “slash line” for his Phillies years was .282/.373/.504, which is very nice, indeed. His stats with the Cardinals is almost identical. Of course, his fielding was probably the best part of his game. He was an excellent fielder. Looking at his career stats he was in the top few in various fielding categories, including the “advanced metrics” that the stat people like so much. I recall one longtime Philly baseball columnist even said he was a better fielder than Schmidt, which is debatable, of course. For a big guy, he had great athletic ability and range.  If he had fewer injuries in his career, he could have been a bubble Hall of Fame candidate.  You can see his stats here.

Part of the process is a fan vote. They select the top three, and then the final choice is picked by the organization. You have to wonder, when Rolen officially retires, if the fans would vote him into the top three.  Rolen didn’t leave on the friendliest of terms, which is a shame because he was very much admired by fans up until that point. He was an earlier version of Chase Utley; a player that hustled and played the “right way”. One that didn’t say much and just went out and played. Looking back on it, from what I remember, what Rolen said was basically true, that the Phillies weren’t committed to winning at the time. The team didn’t get to the World Series for another six and a half years after he left. I guess it’s how he said it; of course no one, including Philly fans, liked to be spurned. Things didn’t work out too well in St. Louis, either, though.  If he does get voted in, you also have to wonder if he would be comfortable coming back. I guess at that point, though, it would be a big enough sign from the fans that they would welcome him back. It’ll be interesting once he does appear on that ballot. The choices for this year were pretty slim, other than Curt Schilling I must say:

• Curt Schilling
• Larry Christenson
• Jim Fregosi
• Rick Wise
• Greg Gross
• Von Hayes
• Jim Constanty
• Fred Luderus
• Danny Ozark
• Ron Reed
• Pinky Whitney
• Harry Wright

But “Lieby’s” gracious and humble remarks won me over.  He was clearly shocked and thrilled to be honored by his former team and when he thanked legendary broadcaster Harry Kalas and beloved coach John Vukovich, I was a goner.

NICE JOB, MIKE. CONGRATS!

And then, of course, as if I needed more reason to cry, there was still a baseball game to be played.  But this game, like the induction ceremony before it, was a welcome blast from the past.

Roy Halladay pitching  like the Halladay of old allowed just one run on two hits in eight brilliant innings.  The only ones brought to tears last night were the Cardinals hitters as the “Doc” struck out eight and did not issue a single walk.  He retired the last 12 batters he faced and 16 of the final 17.  Over his last two starts, he is 2-0 with a 0.60 ERA.

But it all could have been for naught if not for another Phillie who seems to be turning back the clock lately.  Chase Utley, looking more and more like the player we feared we might not see again, blasted a two-run shot in the bottom of the eighth to give Doc and the Phillies the lead.

Jonathan Papelbon got his 25th save and the Phils went on to win 3-1.  All in all a great night at the ‘Bank.’  In a year when the highlights have been few and far between, Doc and Chase certainly gave the crowd their money’s worth last night.  In fact, they better save two spots on that Wall of Fame.  Let’s just hope they don’t have to fill them too soon.

There’s Jim Bunning, who threw a perfect game in 1964. There’s Chuck Klein, who earned at least a share of the National League home run title four times between 1929-33. All four of the Phillies enshrined in baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. — Robin Roberts, Richie Ashburn, Steve Carlton and Mike Schmidt — are also represented in the Phillies Wall of Fame.

On Friday, they’ll welcome No. 30 to the ranks when Juan Samuel is inducted.

Samuel signed with the Phillies as an amateur free agent on April 29, 1980, and made his Major League debut on Aug. 24, 1983. He hit leadoff in that game, and tripled in his second at-bat. In 1984, he set the Phils’ single-season and rookie records with 72 stolen bases on his way to 105 runs scored and 191 hits. Samuel also set modern Phillies records for triples, with 19, and at-bats (701) in a season. Shortstop Jimmy Rollins broke both marks in his 2007 MVP campaign.

Samuel became the first player in Major League history to reach double digits in doubles, triples, home runs and stolen bases in each of his first four seasons.

“It’s a tremendous honor for me to be a part of the Phillies Wall of Fame with so many greats — ex-teammates and guys who I saw play when I was in the Minor Leagues who were part of that 1980 [World Series] championship club,” Samuel said. “Growing up in the Dominican Republic, and finding myself here now is tremendous.”

Samuel’s 6 1/2 years with Philadelphia were just the beginning of a 16-season Major League career that also included time with the Mets, Dodgers, Royals, Reds, Tigers and Blue Jays. Samuel is also a member of the Dominican Republic’s baseball Hall of Fame and a member of the Reading (Pa.) Hall of Fame, for the 47 games he spent there in 1983.

Samuel, 47, will attend the pregame ceremonies for Friday’s contest against the Pirates, and all fans will receive a commemorative poster of Samuel, courtesy of Toyota.

Samuel, now the third-base coach for the Orioles, said that he felt like he never left Philadelphia. On a recent road trip through Toronto, Samuel learned that Phillies fans also feel like he hasn’t left.

“One of the custom agents saw my passport and said, ‘Oh yeah, you played for the Phillies,’” Samuel said. “I said, ‘I played for the Blue Jays, too.’ People who know me know how much I loved the Phillies and the fans in Philly.” (H/T Phillies.com)

Another former Phil will be added to the Walk of Fame. And fan favorite Juan Samuel will be the one receiving the bronze plague this coming Friday. As I’d said earlier, it’s a real shame that the team couldn’t get into the playoff after Juan joined the team full time in ’84, but sadly, this was when the team have left the hands of the Carpenter family and have went into the hands of Bill Giles and his silent idiot partners. Of course, we all know how well the team have thrived under their control. *Sigh* Anyway, enough of that. Anyone who plans to go to the ballpark on Friday to watch the ceremony and the game, please enjoy yourselves.