Inside The Phillies

Is Underrated Philadelphia Phillies Legend Hall of Fame-Worthy?

Did former Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley do enough to make the Hall of Fame?

Tyler Maher

Aug 4, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies former second baseman Chase Utley during pregame ceremony against the Chicago White Sox at Citizens Bank Park.
Aug 4, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies former second baseman Chase Utley during pregame ceremony against the Chicago White Sox at Citizens Bank Park. / Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
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The MLB offseason is in full swing, and so is Hall of Fame voting.

The 2025 BBWAA Hall of Fame ballot was announced on Nov. 18, and voters have until Dec. 31 to cast their votes.

The results will be announced on Jan. 21, 2025.

Until then, baseball fans have plenty of time to debate the candidacies of the 28 players on this year's ballot, 14 of whom are listed for the first time. One of the most polarizing players on the ballot is former Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Chase Utley.

Similar to Dick Allen, Utley does not appear to have the numbers for Cooperstown at first glance.

A six-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger winner, he finished his 16-year career with 1,885 hits, 259 home runs, 154 stolen bases and a .275/.358/.465 batting line (117 OPS+).

Impressive figures, but not quite Hall of Fame-worthy.

That could be forgiven if Utley had a dominant prime, but he seems a bit lacking there as well. His resume is light on black ink and he never won an MVP award. In fact, he never even received so much as a first-place vote.

And while Utley was considered a good defensive second baseman, he never won a Gold Glove award.

But while Utley seems to fall short by traditional metrics, advanced stats have his back.

He finished his career with 64.5 WAR, which is right in the neighborhood of other second basemen in Cooperstown like Jackie Robinson (63.9), Ryne Sandberg (67.9), Roberto Alomar (67.0) and Craig Biggio (65.5).

While Utley didn't excel at any one thing, he did everything well.

He hit for average, hit for power, walked a lot, ran the bases well and was one of the best defensive players of his era.

Utley was also solid in the postseason and a key part of the Phillies' dynasty from 2007 to 2011. He helped Philadelphia win the World Series in 2008 and socked five home runs against the New York Yankees in the 2009 Fall Classic.

Add it all up, and Utley is a borderline Hall of Famer.

At his best, he was an elite player and one of the best to ever man the keystone, however, his peak was relatively short-lived due to his late start (he didn't play his first full season until age 26) and injury-plagued second half of his career.

Utley wasn't elected on the first ballot, but he's an interesting candidate who deserves to have his case heard.

He may make it to Cooperstown someday, but it could take a while.

Published
Tyler Maher
TYLER MAHER

Tyler is a writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. He grew up in Massachusetts and is a huge Boston sports fan, especially the Red Sox. He went to Tufts University and played club baseball for the Jumbos. Since graduating, he has worked for MLB.com, The Game Day, FanDuel and Forbes. When he's not writing about baseball, he enjoys running, traveling, and playing fetch with his golden retriever.

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