Will ex-Phillies Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Bobby Abreu or Cole Hamels be elected to baseball’s Hall of Fame Tuesday?

That’s when MLB will announce the new class of inductees to its Hall. One or more of them are looking to join Dick Allen and Bill Wagner, who were inducted last year, as well as the other 41 players who saw time in a Phillies uniform.

In this version of my Behind the Plate column, I’ll review Utley’s, Rollins’ Abreu’s, and Hamels’ chances, as well as the current state of the Phillies infield and some future possibilities.

Also, I’ll reflect upon a former Slatington (Northern Lehigh) standout who had a brief stay in the Phillies minor league system.

Chasin’ It ... Utley will be considered for the third time after he gained 28.8 % and 39.8%, but he is still a distance from 75%, and considered to be a longshot. Yet, Utley’s latest percentage is third behind returning players and ahead of Alex Rodriguez.

A six-time All-Star, Utley finished with 259 homers, 1,025 RBIs, a .823 OPS, and a .275 average in his 16 years between the Phillies and the Dodgers.

However, from 2005-10 Utley was as dominant as anyone with five of his six All-Star selections, 162 homers, 512 RBIs, 90 stolen bases, and a .298 average. He also had a .911 OPS, and a 133 OPS+ in 869 games.

Looking at the ballot, Utley and Rollins should have a legitimate shot.

Jimmy It ... Like Utley, Rollins’ Hall of Fame stock has been on the rise. This will be his fifth shot, and his percentage has risen steadily from 9.4, 12.9, 14.8 to 18.9 last year.

For the record, Rollins hit .264 with 231 homers, 936 RBIs, 1,421 runs, 470 steals, and three gold gloves and All-Star appearances in his 17-year career with the Phillies, Dodgers and White Sox.

Rollins’ heyday also was from 2005-10 when he hit .274, had 1,006 hits, scored 605 runs, and stole 213 bases.

In 2007, Rollins won the MVP for his banner season of 30 homers, 94 RBIs, 30 doubles, and a .296 average. He led the league in games (162), plate appearances (778), at-bats (716), runs (139), and triples (20).

Utley and Rollins do have similar numbers, and both should be knocking on the door.

In comparison, Scott Rolen got the nod with 316 homers, 1,287 RBIs, a .281 average along with six Gold Gloves, five All-Star appearances, and a Rookie-of-the-Year over 17 years. On paper, Rolen has better numbers, but did you see Rolen as a Hall of Famer?

Long and Winding Road ... Abreu and Hamels are both longshots to be selected.

Abreu is in his seventh year of eligibility, and has some impressive numbers from his 18-year career, including a .291 average, 288 homers, 1,363 RBIs, 2,470 hits, and 1,453 runs scored.

But do you think of Abreu as a Hall of Famer? With an average class, Abreu may have a shot, but he only received 19.5% last year.

Hamels is in his first year of eligibility, and the odds are against him. In his 10 years as a Phillie, Hamels was 114-90 with a 3.30 ERA, and in his 15 total years, he was 163-122 with a 3.43 ERA.

The lefty’s claim to fame is his NLCS MVP in 2007, and his World Series MVP the following season.

In the post-1950 era, Dizzy Dean (150) is the only starter in the Hall with fewer wins than Hamels. Sandy Koufax had 163 wins in a shortened career.

The Vote Is In ... On the Times News Lehighton Sports Facebook page, a vote was held on what Phillie deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.

Utley received 66 percent of the votes, followed by Rollins with 20, and Hamels with 14. Abreu didn’t receive any votes.

Bo May Still Go ... Bo Bichette, who inked a three-year, $124 million deal with the Mets, still may end up in Philly.

Bichette has an opt-out after his first year, and the Mets shockingly would owe him $5 million in addition to the already $42 million owed him.

The Phils reportedly offered him a seven-year, $200 million pact, averaging nearly $30 million per year. But the Mets’ contract gave him a higher AAV per year.

If Bichette is unhappy in New York after next season, the 27-year-old can easily be swooped up by the Phillies.

Miller Time ... Aside from Bichette, the Phils’ infield was set with Bryson Stott and Alec Bohm back at second and third. Bohm can be a free agent after this season, and Stott is under control through 2027.

Free-agent third baseman Eugenio Suarez, who hit 49 homers and .228 in Seattle last season, is still available after Cardinals’ third sacker Nolan Arenado got traded to Arizona.

But the Phillies are high on 21-year-old prospect Aidan Miller, who earned a promotion from Reading to Lehigh Valley last season, where he hit .333 in eight games after hitting 259 at Reading. He finished the year with 14 homers, 42 RBIs, 27 doubles, and a .264 average.

Miller is a shortstop, but the plan is apparently to move him to third if Bohm leaves for free agency after this season. Depending on Miller’s adjustment and performance, he could be with the parent club after the All-Star break.

Trivia Time ... What former legendary Yankees and Mets Hall of Fame manager once played for the Phillies? Answer below.

Readers Write

Some Black Among the Dodger Blue

Dear Jeff,

You have a lifelong Dodgers fan here.

I’m not too thrilled with the Kyle Tucker signing. I think Bo (Bichette) or Cody (Belinger) would have been better fits.

Plus, they certainly overpaid for him (Tucker). His stats don’t warrant that kind of money. Living in the East will keep me from Dodgers games, so it’s no money out of my pocket.

Hopefully, Tucker will prove me wrong.

Paul J. Dallara

Hawley, PA

Give Rollins the Nod

Dear Jeff,

Although Chase Utley is my favorite, he had too many injuries and saw limited playing time in his later years. He would have been a great choice had he stayed healthy. Out of the others, Jimmy Rollins was an MVP and one of the best shortstops in his time. He may be the most deserving of the four listed.

Melissa Hager

Lehighton

Coming Home? ... If Bohm hits the free agent market as expected, the Phils can look to Miller, or look into signing former Phil J.P. Crawford, who will be a free agent in 2027.

Crawford, who will turn 32 in January 2027, began the upcoming season with an overall .250 average and .197 in the postseason in seven seasons with Seattle. He committed 13 errors in 157 games last season and has 80 in his career. The Phils’ 2013 top overall draft pick was traded to Seattle in December 2018 for Jean Segura and two minor leaguers.

Paying the Bills ... With the Dodgers signing of Tucker to a $60 million per year contract, their payroll hit $2.1 billion ($2,114,037,500)

Behind them are the Padres ($1,266,675), Blue Jays ($1.250,387,500), Mets ($1,140,550,000), Phillies ($865,173,963), and Yankees ($789,162,500).

The Dodgers will have an estimated luxury tax of $161 million, which is higher than the payroll of 12 teams.

The Phillies will have an estimated tax bill of $65 million.

Scrapbook ... In each column, I will peel back the pages to review a career of a former standout from our area.

Richard “Dick” Nissen was a 1954 Slatington (Northern Lehigh) graduate, and he excelled in baseball, football and basketball.

Nissen earned three varsity letters in baseball, had an overall record of 29-5, and averaged 15 strikeouts per game in his junior and senior years. As a senior, he hit .402. Also in his senior year, Nissen played an integral part in helping his team win league and district titles.

Right after high school, Nissen signed a contract with the Phillies.

He played with Pulaski of the D Appalachian League, as well as with Bradbury of the D Pennsylvania-Ontario-New York League from 1954-55.

Nissen passed away at the age of 86 in 2022.

Trivia Answer ... Casey Stengel played for the Phillies from 1920-21.

Time Passages ... In each column, I will look back at a former player, manager, or coach from our favorite pastime.

Do you remember Phillies’ lefthander Michael Mimbs?

The Phils picked him up off the 1994 Rule 5 draft from Montreal. Mimbs was a 1990 Dodgers’ draft pick, and was released in 1993. Montreal signed him as a free agent in January 1994.

Mimbs made his debut in 1995, and had his best season with a 9-7 mark with a 4.15 ERA in 35 games and 19 starts with two complete games and a shutout.

He twirled a two-hit shutout against the Padres May 26.

Mimbs pitched two more seasons for the Phillies, and posted an overall 12-19 record with a 5.03 ERA in 73 games.

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