Cole has an aunt in Delaware who is a huge Phillies fan.

In 1998, when the Padres clinched the NL West on September 13, a 14-year-old kid was among the 60,823 excited fans at Qualcomm Stadium.

And Cole Hamels, who cheered that day from his perch in the owner's box, wondered if someday he too might pitch there.

With Qualcomm Stadium now home only to the Chargers, Hamels had to make his San Diego debut at PETCO Park.

Cole grew up about 25 minutes north of PETCO Park and graduated from Rancho Bernardo High School, also the alma mater of Texas third baseman Hank Blalock. He remembers former Padres Gary Sheffield, Bip Roberts and Fred McGriff. And he emulated Kevin Brown, Andy Ashby and Sterling Hitchcock. His favorite player was Tony Gwynn, however.

Watching closer Trevor Hoffman baffle hitters with his changeup taught Hamels something else.

"He was definitely the guy I watched a lot," Hamels said. "He had a big impact on that pitch. He would throw that pitch so much where they knew it was coming and still couldn't hit. That had a big impact on me."

It's not a coincidence that Hamels' best pitch is his changeup. (Ken Mandel-MLB.com-7/16/2006)

Hamels grew up watching Trevor Hoffman close out games for the Padres, entering to "Hell's Bells," while coming out of the bullpen to the mound. Hearing this, Hoffman took an interest in Hamels.

"Absolutely," Hoffman said. "Once there's a connection, it's fun to watch. It becomes part of the territory. You stick around long enough, some of these kids will grow up and make it to the big leagues before you're out of there. It's cool that I've been able to stick around long enough and have an impact on somebody who wasn't just dreaming about being in the big leagues."

Hamels did that, too, but made it a reality in May 2006. A little more than a year later, the two became All-Star contemporaries.

Cole's mother, Amanda is a teacher. And his father, Gary, works as an assistant school-district superintendent.

Hamels received a score of 1510 (out of 1600) on the SAT test his senior year of high school.

Cole and one of his best friends, Scott Lonergan, played a lot of beach volleyball.

"Cole and I were probably the most killer two-on-two beach volleyball combo ever to hit Del Mar," Lonergan said. "We'd fuel up with burritos from Roberto's Taco Shop and then we'd go out and just dominate."

Lonergan pitched in the Red Sox organization in 2008.

Not long after he signed his first pro contract, Cole's teammates gave him the nickname of Hollywood Hamels.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DUDE

Hamels was like most Southern California kids. He liked to sleep until noon, then go hang out at the beach. Cole enjoys playing beach volleyball at Del Mar Beach with his friends, then cook out and ride a body board. For music, he goes for L.A.-based rock band Lifehouse. He also likes punk, rap, rock and even country music.

He likes to go to movies, then grab a burger at In-N-Out or feast at local Mexican restaurant Sombrero's. "My hobby is watching movies," Hamels said. "I'm trying to be the Siskel & Ebert of the team." His favorite actor is Matt Damon, and favorite actress is Angelina Jolie.

Cole likes to surf, play computer games, beach volleyball. He has developed a fondness for country music, especially Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban. But his favorite music is actually alternative rock.

During the offseason before 2003 spring training, Hamels worked out three times a week with fellow-Californian and Cubs pitcher Mark Prior. Cole said he picked up a lot about pitching from him.

In 2003, Cole was named the winner of the Paul Owens Award, given the best pitcher and position player, respectively, in the organization's minor league system.

In 2003, Hamels was USA Today Sports Weekly's Minor League Pitcher of the Year. And Baseball America ranked Cole as the #1 prospect in the Phillies organization, entering the 2004 season. And before 2005 spring training, the magazine had Cole as the third best prospect in the Philadelphia farm system.

Before the 2006 season, Baseball America had Hamels back at the top—as the Phillies top prospect in their farm system.

In January 2005, Cole was involved in an incident at a Clearwater bar called Razzel's Lounge. It almost sidelined his career before it started.

At Razzel's, there's cold Jägermeister on tap and SMOKING PERMITTED signs on the front doors. In short, Razzel's is not the kind of establishment the Phillies like their players to frequent. In fact, the organization has for years assessed a $500 fine to any minor leaguer whose car is spotted in the parking lot.

It was in that lot, however, that Hamels broke his pitching hand during a brawl between a handful of minor leaguers and a few Clearwater residents. One of the latter, a young man named T.J. Ferrol, hit on the girlfriend of Edward Buzachero, a member of the Blue Jays organization (who train in nearby Dunedin).

The groups exchanged insults and eventually punches. In the end, a friend of Ferrol's was thrown into a nearby lake and Ferrol himself was stomped on and kicked in the face. He was hospitalized and received eight stitches beneath his left eye. 

The Phillies' general manager at the time, Ed Wade, was apoplectic. ("I've never been yelled at like that in my life," says Hamels.) And Wade rescinded the young pitcher's invitation to big league camp, where he wouldn't have been of much use anyway with a fractured hand.

The other Phillies minor leaguers involved in the fight, lesser pitching prospects Lee Gwaltney and Beau Richardson, were released—the former almost immediately and the latter during the season. "We try to treat all of our players fairly," says Phillies G.M. Ruben Amaro, who was then an assistant to Wade, "but some players we treat more fairly than others." (Hamels still counts Gwaltney and Richardson as friends.)

Ferrol declined to press charges. "Both sides were partying," he says. "It happens. I hope Hamels knows that I have no hard feelings."

Those close to Hamels consider the fight an aberration ("He's a cruise ship, not a battleship," says Lonergan), an expression of fraternal loyalty more than anything else, but Hamels recognizes the damage the incident did to his reputation. (Ben Reiter-Sports Illustrated-2/23/2009)

CELEBRITY WIFE

When Cole was called up to the Phillies on May 10, 2006, the first call he made after his callup went to girlfriend, Heidi Strobel, the "Survivor: Amazon" contestant and August 2003 Playboy cover girl. (They met during a 2004 exhibition game in Clearwater, Florida.)

Next call? His parents.  "I know my Mom won't like that," Hamels said.

In 2004, when Hamels met Heidi Strobel, his name was familiar only to the most devoted Phillies fans and baseball draftniks. But she already had a firm understanding of life in the public's unforgiving gaze—and how to prosper in it. A year earlier, she had appeared as a contestant in Survivor: The Amazon, the sixth season of the reality TV series. (She finished fifth, but she and the competition's eventual winner, Jenna Morasca, became famous for taking off all their clothes in return for some Oreos and peanut butter.)

By the end, she says, she weighed 70 pounds and was paralyzed from the waist down for almost a month due to a bite from a poisonous spider. After the show aired, she parlayed her fame into a cover appearance with Jenna in the August 2003 issue of Playboy. One of those took Heidi to Bright House Field, the home of the Class A Clearwater Threshers in Florida. Hamels, who had received a $2 million signing bonus as the 17th overall pick in the 2002 draft, was spending most of the 2004 season at Clearwater on the disabled list.

Cole approached Heidi at the urging of two of the ballpark's security guards. ("I told him, 'She's a pretty girl, she don't drink, she don't smoke—you should meet her,'" recalls one of the guards, Woody Woodard.) Within a few weeks, after Cole had flown to her hometown of Buffalo, Missouri, they were dating.

They were married in 2006. "Part of what attracted me was how mature he was," Heidi says. "I didn't know he was young"—she is five years his senior—"I thought we were the same age." (Ben Reiter-Sports Illustrated-2/23/2009)

On December 31, 2006 (New Year's Eve), Cole married Heidi in her hometown of St. Louis.

Asked about when he met Heidi, Cole said, "She had an appearance when I was in A-ball in Clearwater (in 2004); it was Survivor day at the ballpark. I went to get her autograph, and I asked her out. She said yes, if I'd come to Missouri—Springfield, where she's from. I flew out two weeks later. We went to a concert and a movie: Cellular. I still have the movie-ticket stub."

Cole and Heidi celebrated the birth of their first child, a son, Caleb Michael, on October 9, 2009.

The couple still intends to travel to Ethiopia to adopt a child. "We're going to adopt a girl, and it will be great for her to grow up with a brother. They'll be like twins," Cole said.

Hamels and Strobel have shown a consistent interest in Africa. The Cole Hamels Foundation aims to improve education in American inner cities as well as in Malawi, where the couple initially planned to adopt a child. But Malawian rules require parents to live in the country for a year before adoption, so the family turned to Ethiopia.

Their second son, Braxton was born on November 2, 2011.

During the offseason before 2008 spring training, Cole worked out with legendary pitching instructor Tom House. Actually, Hamels has been working with House since he was 14 years old. As far as learning the game from a teammate, Hamels says he learned the most from Jamie Moyer.

In 2008 spring training, Cole was asked what he was shooting for the upcoming season.

"I'd like to get the Cy Young this year," he said. "But I know there's some steep competition out there. There are some great pitchers in the National League, especially with [Johan] Santana and [Dan] Haren coming over."

Hamels, who had not pitched a no-hitter at any level of play, has carried no-hit bids into the seventh inning each of the last two seasons.

"I'm striving for it," he said. "It's exciting. I want the fans who watch me pitch coming to the ballpark thinking I might throw a no-hitter that night. I definitely want one. And I want it to be on a nationally televised game with a sellout crowd." (Editor's note: Cole eventually got his no-no. See below.)

Hamels might one day be worthy of the Hall of Fame.

"Being in the Hall of Fame shows you did really well for a long time," he said. "That's something I want. I don't want to be out of the game in the snap of a finger. I want to do well for a long time."

Asked where his inner drive comes from, Hamels said, "Growing up and being a boy, you always want to be good at something, whether it's in the classroom or on the playground," the San Diego native said. "Sports just came easily for me, easier than the classroom. Instead of homework, I'd be in the backyard throwing a baseball.

"I realized when I was young that I had some baseball talent, and I always wanted to be the best. My parents always told me, 'Life passes quickly. Go out and give everything all you can.' I guess that's what drives me." (Jim Salisbury-Philadelphia Inquirer-3/02/2008)

One of Hamels' favorite parks is Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. "This is one of my favorite parks," he said. "A lot has happened here. When you feel really comfortable at a field, it's always exciting to go there."

Myers attributes Hamels' favor to Great American Ball Park's high pitcher's mound.

"I think it's the tallest mound in the league," he said. "The angles that I pitch from, to their eye, I don't think they can register the ball as well."

Cole says if he wasn't a baseball player, "I would probably have to be into something that has to do with exercise. So, I might have been a physical education teacher, a personal trainer, or something in that sort of department."

After his baseball career, Hamels said, "I hope it's relaxing. I also hope I'm able to make a difference with kids. Not just teaching them about baseball skills, but life skills."

Heidi started a company with her sister, Dawn, called sistasshirts.com. They produce and sell inspirational T-shirts for female runners.

Heidi is a dedicated runner with a master's degree in exercise physiology.

Cole is humble and quick to laugh at himself. He casts himself as the rube in many of the personal stories he tells.

There was the time that shortstop Jimmy Rollins and a few other teammates invited him to play cards on the team plane. ("I was like, 'Sure, I know how to play poker,' but it wasn't poker, and the next thing I know, all my meal money's gone.")

And the misunderstanding over the 2010 Chevy Camaro he won as the World Series MVP and promised in a postgame interview to give to Heidi. ("I kept waiting for them to deliver it, so I finally called and they said you have to order it online, and it'll take eight months. I was like, I thought I just got the one that was on the field!")

And the awe with which he still remembers his Letterman appearance, because of the chopper ("I'd never been in one before!"). And because actor Paul Rudd, a guest on that night's show, congratulated him backstage. ("I was like, You, Paul Rudd, watch baseball? And you know who I am?") (Ben Reiter-Sports Illustrated-2/23/2009)

On May, 8 2012 Hamels was suspended for hitting Bryce Harper of the Nationals. Hamels admitted that he deliberately threw at Harper. "I was trying to hit him," the two-time all-star said. "I'm not going to deny it. I'm not trying to injure the guy. I think they understood the message, and they threw it right back. That's the way, and I respect it."

"That's something I grew up watching, that's kind of what happened. So I'm just trying to continue the old baseball because I think some people are kind of getting away from it," Hamels said.

In 2013, he was selected to be one of the two players to have their pictures on the wrapper of "Big League Chew" brand of bubble gum. The other player was Matt Kemp.

In a promotion video for the first person shooter video game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Hamels appeared denouncing a phenomenon in the game known as grenade spam. The video is currently on YouTube and led a competing game to Modern Warfare 2, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, to release a YouTube video of their own, this time featuring New York Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia. The video with Sabathia pokes fun at Hamels' video while promoting Battlefield.

In February 2015, Hamels arrived to Phillies camp already the subject of incessant trade speculation because the Phillies are trying to dismantle and rebuild their team in an attempt to compete again in a few years. But the talk really picked up when he told USA Today he wants to win and, "I know it's not going to happen here."

Hamels never recanted, but he backed away from those words, understanding he is going to be in a Phillies uniform until somebody tells him otherwise. In other words, he needs to make the best of the situation. He also appreciates the Phillies and the fans, and everything that has happened to him in his career.

The sixth annual Diamonds and Denim charity event was again put on by Hamels, his wife, Heidi, and their Hamels Foundation for the benefit of Philadelphia area schools. Hamels made it abundantly clear that regardless of where he plays baseball, Philadelphia will be his home.  

"I've tried to make a big stance of this is where we live," Cole said. "This is where we make our home and this is where we're kind of growing up. We're learning a lot. It's a different vibe than what we grew up with. But we cherish it and we cherish the knowledge, and we're trying to give back everything that we can to the city, because without them, it's really hard to do what I do."  

Hamels went on to say that everything he does as a baseball player is made possible because of the support he gets from the Philadelphia fan base, and he also said the same goes for his foundation. Over the past six years, he said he's been able to see tangible results with his foundation through the continued work with principals, students and parents.  

Many of Hamels' current and former Phillies teammates were on hand for the function, including manager Ryne Sandberg and Ryan Howard. Howard agreed with Hamels' sentiment that the best part of this function was seeing how the foundation has grown over the years.  

"It's always great to be able to come out and give back," Howard said. "We've been doing this for the last four or five years. Every year it gets better and better." (Suss - mlb.com - 6/25/2015)  

Cole and Heidi Strobel were married on December 31, 2006, and spent their honeymoon traveling through the southern part of Africa. They found it a beautiful land, but the harsh, widespread poverty was also hard to miss. 

"It was breathtakingly beautiful, but we still saw some of the villages of the refugees," Cole said. "You have to stop and wonder, what kind of life do they get to live, what kind of opportunities are they going to get out of that situation. When you do travel to a couple of Third World countries, we went to Zimbabwe, it kind of shows you we have it a lot better than you think and they don't have the means to get out of the situation."  

Hamels grew up in San Diego with the benefit of an excellent public school education. Heidi is from a small town in the Missouri Ozarks, a region where 25 percent of the population lives under the poverty level. She was a public school teacher and has a master's degree in education with a specialty degree in international education.  

What they learned and absorbed from their backgrounds, travels and experiences led them in 2008 to establish The Hamels Foundation. The foundation's mission is dedicated to enriching the lives of children through the power of education by giving them the tools to achieve their goals.  To date, the foundation has donated a total of just over $3.6 million, roughly split between their projects in the small, impoverished African country of Malawi and here in the United States. The foundation is the largest provider of grants to the Philadelphia school system, and the Hamels want to get involved in the Dallas-Fort Worth area as well.

"We're really excited to be able to open doors there, get to know the community," said Hamels, who was traded from Philadelphia to Texas. "This whole year we are really going to just explore and let people know we are here and we want to make a difference. We want to be a part of it. We are open to suggestions. We are really fortunate to be where we are, and when you have a platform where you can make a difference, and be a good citizen, that's what has ultimately driven us to give back. Not to do it for publicity, but truly deep down we feel obligated and a desire to give back and see improvements in a lot of different areas that get overlooked."

The Hamels Foundation is run by associates out of Springfield, Missouri, but all operating costs are paid for the Hamels. That means 100 percent of every donation goes directly to one of the foundation's projects. Hamels said it's all about trying to break the vicious cycle of poverty and disease. They also want to make sure their projects have a long-term impact.

"We are not going to be able to solve every problem," Hamels said. "But hopefully there are going to be a few people every year that are going to have an epiphany that this opportunity will help push them. That makes a difference with their kids. You want to break the cycle. If you can break the cycle one kid at a time, you are going to make a difference. So instead of a cycle, you have a pyramid where you can reach 5, 10, 20 people. That's what we're hoping for.

"We don't want it to be there for one or two years, we want it to be there for 10, 20, 30 years. That's how you make a difference."  (Sullivan - MLB.com - 3/2/2016)

Chris Gimenez spends his mound visits with Cole Hamels chatting about the pitcher's magnificent hair.

"Last year I asked Cole what he does to make his hair so nice since I don't have any! I'm not kidding either! I do that so for a split second [and] it gets the pitcher to stop thinking about what he is doing wrong and get re-focused," Gimenez said.

And what does Cole do to keep his hair so nice?

"Coconut oil!" (Gemma Kaneko | March 9, 2016)

Cole came home to Southern California, pitched a scoreless inning in front of his loved ones, and his 2016 All-Star experience lived up to the expectations.  There were a couple of exceptions.

Hamels, who grew up in San Diego and starred at Rancho Bernardo High School, tripped in his hotel room at 3:45 a.m. the morning of the game and was in the hospital getting stitches on his chin at 5 a.m. Several hours later, he was locked out of Petco Park for 30 minutes when he chose the wrong entrance to the stadium following the All-Star Game Red Carpet Show presented by Chevrolet.

Cole was still all smiles after the American League's 4-2 victory against the National League in the 2016 All-Star Game.  He pitched a scoreless third inning.  (Sanchez - MLB.com - 7/13/2016)

Hamels hit his first Major League home run the same night he gave up a home run to the opposing pitcher, Matt Cain.

OUTREACH IN AFRICA

In 2009, Cole and his wife, Heidi, were in the process of trying to adopt a child from Ethiopia.

"I think it's going to be a real fun experience for us," Hamels said. "It's a grueling process we have to go through to see if we're fit parents. If I can bring a kid into this life and provide for somebody who doesn't have everything that is involved with growing up—it's about trying to help someone out."

Hamels and his wife Heidi established The Hamels Foundation to support education efforts in the United States and in the impoverished African nation of Malawi. The Foundation is partnered with the Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance.

Hamels has also become involved in the Texas Rangers' MLB Urban Youth Academy in West Dallas. He was the Phillies' 2009 Roberto Clemente nominee and the 2012 Humanitarians of the Year by the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association.

"We are really fortunate to be where we are, and when you have a platform where you can make a difference, and be a good citizen, that's what has ultimately driven us to give back," Hamels said in Spring Training. "Not to do it for publicity, but truly deep down we feel obligated and a desire to give back and see improvements in a lot of different areas that get overlooked."  (Sullivan - MLB.com - 9/7/2016)

Hamels is most proud of the school he and his wife have built—and are continuing to build—in the African nation of Malawi. The process started in 2001 and continues today. They are educating 2,500 orphans right now and continue to expand. (Kruth - MLB.com - 10/3/2016)

Cole used to play catch with veteran pitchers like Roy Oswalt, Jamie Moyer, Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee when they were together with the Phillies. Hamels learned a few things about how to do it when a pitcher gets older.

"I was watching and remembering what type of catch, what kind of work they were doing and the reason why," Hamels said. "Now it's starting to click in. But I still text those guys when I have questions, because they have tremendous insight."

Hamels realized it's not maximum effort on every throwing session and workout between starts. It's about being smart to stay strong and fresh. Moyer must have known something about it, because he was pitching at age 47.

"If I could do that, it would be outstanding, but I don't know if I could do that," Hamels said. "We all see the trends in baseball. I don't think anybody is going to pitch past 45."

Hamels saw the trends this past offseason and took notice. Some older pitchers were having trouble getting jobs.

 "So while I'll be following in that direction, I don't want to be following in those footsteps," Hamels said. "You have to be very aware that the game is shifting. You can look at the age of teams and how they are changing and fast guys are coming in and out of the league, I'd like to continue to maintain my presence in this league. I have to be healthy, I have to be smart and I have to make the adjustments. Because if you don't, you're going to be pushed out really quickly."

Hamels said he's not ready to be pushed out. He was a 15-game winner in 2016, and he pitched 200-plus innings for the seventh straight season. "That's what teams are looking for," Hamels said. "That's a rarity from starters. You can look at the stats and see how many guys have done it each year. I pride myself on being accountable that I can do that. An organization or my teammates know that I can be accountable to go out for six, seven, eight innings every start and keep it within a reasonable score."

So Hamels is looking for less stressful innings and more efficiency with his pitches in 2017. He was third in the league with 77 walks in 2016, and he said that is unacceptable. "It's about being aggressive and being able to pitch deep into a ballgame with a certain limited number of pitches and maintaining health," Hamels said. "I want to attack early and establish the strike zone throughout the count and not shy away from contact."  

Hamels has a goal in mind.  "My main goal has always been to pitch 20-plus years in the big leagues," Hamels said. "That's what I am going to strive for every day. I don't try to skip days. My mentality is always to maintain and prove people wrong." (Sullivan - mlb.com - 4/10/2017)

December 2017:  Hamels and his wife, Heidi, decided to make their home in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. In doing so, the Hamels are donating a 32,000-square-foot home in southwest Missouri to charity. The home, on Table Rock Lake, is being given to Camp Barnabas.

"There are tons of amazing charities in southwest Missouri. Out of all of these, Barnabas really pulled on our heartstrings," Hamels said in a release. "Seeing the faces, hearing the laughter, reading the stories of the kids they serve; there is truly nothing like it. Barnabas makes dreams come true, and we felt called to help them in a big way." 

January 13, 2018: The Rangers ace and his family were vacationing in Wailea, Hawaii near Maui when the state accidentally sent an emergency alert of a "ballistic missile threat inbound to Hawaii." Take immediate shelter, the alert said, because "this is not a drill."

"I'm like psht we've got 20 minutes, we're screwed," Hamels said, as his foundation partnered with the Rangers to unveil four classrooms at the team's Mercy Street Sports Complex youth academy. "You see that [warning], I'm going all right we're screwed. We were just like, 'OK.'"

Hamels said he and wife Heidi didn't tell their kids about the supposed missile headed their way. He first thought the emergency alert that woke him was an amber alert—a missing car. Then Hamels read the missile-threat message. He didn't leave his room.

"We would've been dead in 3 seconds so I'm like after 20 minutes . . . that's the whole thing. I can't do anything about it."

Hamels said it wasn't the first time a supposed danger he carried on unfazed while others around him were disturbed. He said he was once driving to Phillies practice when an earthquake hit Washington, D.C., reverberating to Philadelphia. The California native didn't flinch.

"Everybody's freaking out and I'm just driving going, 'What's wrong with everybody?'" Hamels said. "The earth rumbles. That's what it does."

So, too, with the Hawaii missile scare, which persisted for 38 minutes before the emergency alert system that sent the initial message confirmed its mistake. The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency and U.S. Pacific Command confirmed earlier. They were simply running tests of the system in light of escalating tensions between the U.S. and North Korea, a country whose missiles could reach Hawaii within 20 minutes of a launch, per CNN. But for out-of-state visitors like the Hamels family not subscribed to Hawaii's system, the false-alarm message came late.

"That was just the most obscure thing I've ever seen," he said. (Sports Day)

July 27, 2018: Hamels was already talking about pitching in October with the Cubs before he even put on his new uniform.

"I'm excited to be able to continue my baseball career with the Cubs," Hamels said. "It's been a dream come true to grow up watching the Cubs play as a kid. Always enjoyed playing at Wrigley, so I think to be able to be a part of that organization with the group of guys that they have, I'm really excited to get that started and head into the postseason with those guys.

"I've been fortunate in my career to get numerous postseason appearances," Hamels said. "It's always that chase for that World Series, and once you get one, you start to realize how difficult it is to achieve that matter. Knowing that I'm going to a team that has the best of intentions and such a strong desire to win another one, definitely want to be a part of that and try to help them do so. Especially in that city, they love baseball so much, it will be a tremendous journey for the next couple months."

Hamels met with the media in Arlington, Texas, after being traded to the Cubs for three players, including pitcher Eddie Butler. Hamels went from a last-place team to one with the best record in the National League, and he is looking ahead.

The lefty, who was part of the Phillies' World Series championship team in 2008, said it was a letdown to leave the Rangers without winning it all. "Now it's going back to focus on postseason baseball and winning baseball, and that's what I enjoy most and that's what I'm comfortable doing," Hamels said.

When Hamels gets to Chicago, he'll be pitching in a ballpark he likes. On July 25, 2015, Hamels threw a no-hitter at Wrigley Field in his final start with the Phillies before he was traded to the Rangers. Hamels is 3-1 with a 1.76 ERA in six career starts at Wrigley. (C Muskat - MLB.com - July 27, 2018)

Cole not only excels on the mound, but he also spends his non-pitching days hanging around in the dugout during games, cheering on his teammates, and talking about things like grips and situational approaches with the other pitchers.

Feb 4, 2019: Once the Cubs picked up Cole Hamels' option for the upcoming campaign—a move made only days into the 2018 offseason—the veteran lefty was able to push any thoughts of free agency out of his mind. Hamels' offseason focus could be centered solely on continuing to harness and hone the adjustments he made down the stretch with the North Siders last year.

Beyond that, the pitcher felt his time in Chicago last season, combined with the knowledge that he would still be suiting up for the club in 2019, would allow him to more confidently step forward as a clubhouse leader this year.

"I've been in this game a long time, so I think that's where I need to be," Hamels said. "That's kind of the role that's directed toward you if you play this game long enough. That's kind of where you fit, so I understand that. I've had a couple years to really kind of do what I need to do in order to try to be that sort of leader.

"And now it's just, I guess, being a little bit more vocal instead of just letting that kind of play out on the field." The Cubs' decision-makers made it clear from the jump this offseason that improving the leadership behind the scenes was a priority. Hamels clearly heard that message and wants to do his part to solidify that element of the roster.

"You're just trying to get results," he said. "That was just kind of something that it didn't work out as well, but I knew something was wrong. I was just trying to pitch through it and get through the game, just because that's how I am and what I try to do. I'm glad I was able to at least figure something out, because that wasn't fun." (J Bastian - MLB.com - February 4, 2019)

2019 Spring Training: Cole hit a hole-in-one while golfing with Anthony Rizzo and Jon Lester.

Aug 27-30, 2019: Cole was on the paternity list.

TRANSACTIONS

June 2002: The Phillies chose him in the first round, out of Rancho Bernardo High School in San Diego. Cole signed on August 23, receiving a $2 million bonus. He was signed by scout Darrell Conner.

January 17, 2009: Cole and the Phillies avoided salary arbitration and agreed to a three-year, $20.5 million contract.

January 17, 2012: Hamels and the Phillies agreed on a $15 million, one-year contract, avoiding arbitration.

July 25, 2012: Hamels and the Phillies agreed on a six-year, $144 million contract, $24 million per season. The deal includes a club vesting option for 2019 and a limited no-trade provision.

July 30, 2015: The Rangers sent P Matt Harrison and five prospects (catcher Jorge Alfaro, outfielder Nick Williams, and pitchers Jake Thompson, Alec Asher and Jerad Eickhoff) to the Phillies; acquiring Hamels and reliever Jake Diekman. And the Phillies kicked in over $9 million of Hamels remaining obligation, through 2018.

July 26, 2018: The Rangers traded Hamels to the Cubs; receiving pitchers Eddie Butler and Rollie Lacy and a player to be named later. The Cubs also received cash considerations to offset Hamels' remaining salary.

November 2, 2018: The Cubs' secured Cole Hamels by picking up his $20 million option.

Oct 31, 2019: Cole chose free agency.

December 4, 2019: Hamels signed a one-year, $18 million contract with the Braves. Because Hamels did not receive a qualifying offer from the Cubs, this signing will not cost the Braves a compensatory draft pick.

Oct 28, 2020:  Cole elected free agency.

Aug. 4, 2021: The Dodgers signed veteran left-hander Cole Hamels to a major league deal for the rest of the season.

Hamels is a strong lefthanded pitcher. His lively 4-seam FASTBALL is in the 91-95 mph range. for a 50 on the 20-80 scout's scale. His 2-seam SINKER is 90- 94 mph. He also has a 78-82 mph overhand CURVE that he usually has excellent command of. And he has an excellent 82-85 mph circle-CHANGEUP that especially baffles righthanded hitters as it sinks and fades away from them, keeping them off-balance. It is an 80 grade change—tops in the scouting scale. He also has an 88-92 mph CUTTER that gets a 55 or 60 grade. (Spring 2018)

His change is one of the best in all of baseball. He has excellent control of it. His motion is so deceptive that hitters rarely get a good swing even when they know it is coming. Cole developed that changeup after he broke his pitching arm when he was a junior in high school. He got the grip from his high school coach, who got the grip from carefully watching Greg Maddux use it.

His combo of the fastball and changeup are the most effective in the game, perhaps. Every action duplicates the other when he fires his heater or his change—same arm speed, same arm slot, same release point, but the separation in velocity is supreme!

2016 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 24.2% of the time; Sinker 20.2% of the time; Change 18.2%; Curve 14.5%, and Cutter 22.8% of the time.

2017 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 26.4% of the time; Sinker 22.4% of the time; Change 20.7%; Curve 12.9%, and Cutter 17.6% of the time.

2018 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball 30.1% of the time, his Sinker 15.1%; Change 18.9%; Slider 4.8%; Curve 13%; and Cutter 18.1% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 92.8 mph, Sinker 92,Changeup 84, Slider 85.6, Curve 79.2, and Cutter 88.1 mph.

2019 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball 35.3% of the time, his Sinker 12.3%; Change 21.2%; Curve 12.4%; and Cutter 18.7% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 91.8 mph, Sinker 91.4, Changeup 83.5, Curve 78.2, and Cutter 88 mph.

2020 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball 15.4% of the time, his Sinker 9.6%; Change 28.9%; Curve 15.4%; and Cutter 30.8% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 88.9 mph, Sinker 88.5, Changeup 81.4, Curve 76.4, and Cutter 86.4 mph.

Cole has fine mound presence and solid mental makeup. He is confident on the hill and business-like in his approach. His smooth, easy delivery comes from solid mechanics. He has a very good feel for the pitching craft and impressive poise. He doesn't get real high or real low, not letting his emotions show if he is having a great day or a lousy one.

What really sets Hamels apart is that he throws all three of his pitches from the same release point. It is devastating to a hitter when all three pitches look just like a fastball and two of them aren't.

He has exceptional control. He can throw his fastball or changeup in any situation with good location.

May 17, 2014: Hamels won his 100th game. He became the seventh pitcher, and fourth lefthander, in Phillies franchise history to win 100, joining Steve Carlton (241), Robin Roberts (234), Grover Cleveland Alexander (190), Chris Short (132), Curt Simmons (115), and Curt Schilling (101).

July 25, 2015: Hamels pitched a no-hitter, the 13th no-hitter in Phillies history.

June 12, 2016: Hamels recorded his 2,000th strikeout in the third inning during his start against the Mariners. Texas won, 6-4.Hamels reached the milestone by striking out outfielder Leonys Martin in a scoreless game.

He is the 77th player in Major League history to strike out 2,000 hitters and the seventh active player. He joined CC Sabathia, Bartolo Colon, Felix Hernandez, Jake Peavy, John Lackey and Justin Verlander.

In 2016, Cole had the fifth 200-strikeout season of his career and the seventh straight season he has pitched at least 200 innings, giving him the longest active streak in the Majors.

In 2016, Hamels was selected as the Rangers' Pitcher of the Year by the local chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

Cole says that he overcomplicated his approach when he was with the Rangers, when he added a 2-seamer and a cutter to his usual repertoire. He had been a 4-seam/changeup guy, occasionally breaking out a curveball to complement those primary pitches.

Throughout his career, opposing hitters had managed only a .179 average against his curveball, and just .202 mark against his changeup. When he was traded to Texas in 2015, he tried to adjust to the AL by increasing the variety of pitches he threw, but it didn't work out.

"I was trying to throw a few too many pitches in Texas," Hamels said in September 2018. "I think it's getting back to those basics and knowing what made me successful, as opposed to getting away from it and trying to reinvent myself. When you try to reinvent yourself at the big league level against lineups I was facing in the American League, I didn't do too well."

2018 Season: It is on the field, where Hamels can make the more quantifiable impact, as Cubs fans saw after he was acquired for the final two months in 2018. In a dozen starts with the Cubs after coming over from the Rangers via trade, he turned in a 2.36 ERA with 74 strikeouts and 23 walks in 76 innings. Hamels had a 0.69 ERA in his first six outings with Chicago in August, following a five-start stretch with a 10.23 ERA to end his tenure with Texas.

This was not simply a change-of-scenery situation. A lot of work over several months led to Hamels' improved performance. An oblique injury in May 2017 led to mechanical problems that persisted late in that season and carried over into the early portion of 2018. He was striding too far down the mound, flying open and his lower half and upper-body movements were out of sync.

"I was fighting it the whole season until I kind of looked at a little bit deeper film," Hamels explained. "And then, just really made some more drastic changes and went with it, and obviously it worked. So now this offseason, [I'm] training a little bit better, and obviously having better referencing for my mechanics."

The 35-year-old Hamels said a key component was to return to landing more closed off during his stride, making for a cross-fire throwing motion.

"We saw it in the video. In Texas, we were trying to correct it," he said. "We just didn't go as drastic as I finally did before I came over [to the Cubs]. It was just little bits and pieces of trying and finally I just said, 'No.' It was a drastic change. I was sore from it, but it worked out and now things have gotten back to normal."

That adjustment can be partially identified through Hamels' horizontal release point. Per Statcast, that was down to 2.14 feet, on average, for all pitches (from the center of the pitching rubber) in 2017, when Hamels' strikeout rate dropped to an uncharacteristically low 17 percent. Last year, the lefty's horizontal release point climbed to 2.75 feet, on average.

Hamels also saw a rise in velocity as he worked to implement his mechanical changes throughout last season. According to Statcast, the lefty's four-seam average velocity stood at 90.7 mph in the season's first month. But it was up to 93.1 mph in August.

Overall, Hamels' strikeout rate in 2018 (23.3 percent) was right on par with 2016 (23.6 percent). Hamels said he did not necessarily pitch through pain after coming back from the oblique issue in 2017, but he could definitely tell his delivery was out of sorts.(J Bastian - Mlb.com - February 4, 2019)

June 18, 2019: Cole became just the 10th LHP in Major League history to reach 2,500 strikeouts in a career. 

Hamels has a decent pickoff move.

He has worked hard at fielding his position and at holding runners on base. He did both very well—at least until 2016, when he allowed 23 stolen bases, 5th-most in all of MLB.

2001: Cole broke the humerus bone in his pitching arm while throwing a pitch and missed all of the high school season. "I delivered a pitch and heard a pop," Hamels said. "I was stunned. I didn’t know what had happened or what to do. I was in so much pain. But I still thought it was some kind of muscle injury."

It wasn't. It was the same type of injury that ended the careers of Major Leaguers Dave Dravecky, Tom Browning and Tony Saunders. (Those who were in San Diego the night Browning broke his arm will never forget the sound. It was like the limb of a tree had been snapped. And the tremendous pain Browning was in was obvious.)

No pitcher has made it back from this injury, though Saunders tried. He broke his arm May 26, 1999, while delivering a pitch for the Devil Rays against the Rangers. After extensive rehab, he tried a comeback late in the 2000 season. But after four appearances, he fractured the same bone while pitching for Class A St. Petersburg. Saunders had a spiral fracture high on the arm, near his shoulder. Doctors say that’s the worst possible. He first injured the arm in an off-the-field accident before aggravating it while he was pitching.

Hamels had a butterfly fracture closer to the elbow. Jan Fronek, the Padres’ team physician, told Hamels his type of fracture and his youth–the fact that his growth plates will help the bone heal stronger than before–are on his side. Hamels had surgery the day after the injury. Pins were inserted and he was in a cast for two months. The arm was in a sling for two more months. After that, Fronek placed the arm in a brace, fearful something as simple as a bump walking to class would set his patient back. Hamels resumed throwing in the fall of 2001, under the guidance of former Texas Rangers pitching coach Tom House.

2003: Hamels pulled a muscle behind his right shoulder, costing him a spot on the U.S. Olympic qualifying team.

April 2004: Cole was sidelined for over a month with discomfort in his elbow. He overthrew the ball in spring training in March, when he struck out Derek Jeter and A-Rod in an exhibition game. He hurt his left triceps muscle, but didn't tell anyone he was hurting.

June 10, 2004: Hamels was diagnosed with an inflamed joint in his left elbow, missing a few more starts.

July 2004: After being  limited to just four starts because of inflammation in his elbow, Cole told assistant general manager Mike Arbuckle that he felt a twinge in the elbow during an intrasquad game early in big league spring training camp. "It was his first big league camp and he didn't want to say anything," Arbuckle said. "Had he said something, we might have been able to head this off sooner." At his request, Hamels was examined by Dr. James Andrews, who concurred with Phillies doctors: Hamels had an elbow strain, showed no structural damage and needed rest.

January 29, 2005: Cole broke his left hand in what the Phillies described as an altercation in Florida. It was a fight outside a Clearwater bar about 2:00 a.m. on January 29 as Hamels and four friends, two Phillies minor leaguers and two Toronto Blue Jays minor leaguers, left a club called Razzels.

"We got attacked from behind," Hamels said. "Some of the guys who did it were really drunk. We were just trying to protect ourselves." Cole said he was the designated driver.

However, Clearwater police had a different story, saying the fight came after Hamels and his friends drove up in a sport-utility vehicle, exited, and started attacking a man with whom they had had words inside the bar. Hamels told police that he hurt his hand while defending himself after he and his fellow players were jumped inside the bar.

"With Hamels being untruthful, he was asked to sit down while I talked with the other person," wrote Clearwater police officer David Marshall in the 12-page report. There was a fight inside the bar, but it was strictly verbal, witnesses told Marshall. Edward Buzachero, one of Hamels' friends and a player in the Blue Jays organization, told the officer that a bar patron started calling Buzachero's girlfriend names. Hamels, Buzachero, and the other players left, Marshall's report states.

The intoxicated patron followed them outside, and the bar's security workers separated him from the players. Then the players left in a black SUV, the report says. But as the man, identified in police reports as Thomas Ferrol, was about to get into a vehicle with a friend, Hamels drove up in the SUV, and all of its occupants got out and started fighting with Ferrol. Ferrol's brother, thinking they were outnumbered, joined the fray, police said.

Cole had surgery February 3 and started the 2005 season on the D.L. Dr. Randall Culp, a hand specialist, aligned the fracture with an intramedullary pin. The pin was removed three weeks after surgery. The break was of the fifth metacarpal, the bone that leads to the pinkie on his left hand.

August 2005: Hamels was on the D.L. with what was thought to be a stress fracture in his lower back. It is a chronically sore lower back, but was re-diagnosed in December 2005. It was a degenerative disk that puts pressure on a nerve.

"I've got an odd back compared to most people," Hamels said in 2006. "The joint in my lower back just works differently. But I'm on a good program now and it shouldn't be a problem."

"Cole will have to manage the condition of his back all through his pitching career," said Phillies GM Pat Gillick.

In his words, Hamels has a degenerative disk that can put pressure on his sciatic nerve. He also has what he calls an extra vertebra "because something that was supposed to fuse didn't fuse." Obviously, there's a lot going on down there and that calls for heavy maintenance work.

"He does exercises I've never seen," Smith said. "Sometimes he looks like a yoga teacher. He's on the mat. He uses an inflatable ball. He uses machines.

"It's amazing to see a guy that young work that hard. You do those exercises over and over for a couple of hours—there's no way it can be fun.

May 19-June 7, 2006: Hamels was on the D.L. with a strained left shoulder.

August 16, 2007: Hamels was on the D.L. with a mildly strained left elbow after feeling discomfort during his start vs. the Nationals.

April 28, 2009: A grade one sprain (the least serious of sprains) of his left ankle forced him to miss a start.

August 13-29, 2011: Cole was on the D.L. with inflammation in his left shoulder.

October 14, 2011: Hamels underwent two successful surgeries on the same day. He had a hernia repaired and loose bodies removed from his left elbow.

February 12-April 23, 2014: Cole began the season on the D.L. He felt discomfort in his pitching arm during the offseason. He initially said he felt discomfort in the shoulder, but the injury was diagnosed as biceps tendinitis. He called the ailment a "kink in the system" after he rebooted his throwing program in November.

"It was cranking back up on top of the weightlifting I was doing," Hamels said. "I think it was just getting into the exercises too fast, too soon."

April 30-June 26, 2017: Cole was on the DL with a right oblique strain.

June 29-Aug 3, 2019: Hamels sustained a left oblique strain and was placed on the 10-day injured list. 

Hamels fired a warm-up pitch to catcher Willson Contreras, finished his follow-through, and immediately made a right turn off the mound. Manager Joe Maddon looked up from his notes in the third-base dugout, saw the veteran leaving the field, and thought the worst.

"When a guy's walking at you like that, such a professional," Maddon said, "you have no idea where this is going to go." But there was relief that Hamels' left arm was not the problem.

February 11, 2020: Cole was sidelined from the get-go with shoulder problems. The Braves said they would re-evaluate Hamels in three weeks.

July 3, 2020: This adjusted race certainly wouldn’t have started with Hamels had the start of the season not been delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. The left shoulder inflammation that relegated the veteran southpaw to bystander status during this year’s Spring Training would have likely kept him out of Atlanta’s rotation through at least the end of May.

Hamels was cleared to throw off a mound. He has not experienced any setbacks with any of the three side sessions he has completed over the eight days that have followed. Now, he has three weeks to use live batting practice sessions and intrasquad games to be ready to start during the regular season’s first week.

July 11, 2020: Hamels’ bid to be ready by Opening Day was further weakened, when the Braves' left-hander did not complete a scheduled side session due to triceps tendinitis. He started the season on the IL.

July 20-Sept 16, 2020: The Braves will enter the season not knowing exactly when veteran left-hander Cole Hamels might be ready to join their rotation.

“It’s going to be a while,” said manager Brian Snitker. “But he’s going to continue to throw and get ready.”

Just how much time Hamels might miss is not known. But the 36-year-old has not faced hitters since developing left shoulder inflammation in late January.

Sept 5, 2020: - Cole Hamels has finally been cleared to throw live batting practice for the first time this 2020 year. What he might be able to offer the Braves will be determined by how he progresses over this season’s final few weeks. This is a step in the right direction for the veteran left-hander, who missed Spring Training with a shoulder ailment and then developed left triceps tendinitis a week into Summer Camp.

“He’ll throw a couple of live BPs and then we’ll see where we’re at,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “Hopefully, he’s in line to pitch some innings.”

Sept 18-Oct 28, 2020: Cole was on the IL with left shoulder fatigue.

Sept 21, 2020: Cole Hamels did a Zoom session with media members and 90 minutes later essentially ended his forgettable tenure with the Braves.

Hamels was placed on the 10-day injured list after he informed the Braves training staff he felt his left shoulder was too weak to make Tuesday night’s start against the Marlins. The team responded by requesting MLB to remove the lefty from the 40-man postseason player pool, which consists of only players eligible to participate for a team during the playoffs.

That means Hamels ended up making just one start for the Braves, who had given him a one-year, $18 million deal this past winter.

“He said he felt like he just couldn’t get anything behind the ball,” Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said.