Ruben Amaro Jr., meet Cole Hamels.
Now sign him.
If Amaro needed any more proof just how important the left-hander is to this struggling team, it was delivered last night.
Just hours after the Phillies were dealt another dose of bad news with word that injured second baseman Freddy Galvis was being handed a 50-game suspension for use of a banned substance, the team took the field to kick off a make-or-break home stand.
They stood nine games behind the Nationals, and at the edge of the abyss. They could topple into the unknown, or make a stand.
Backed by the arm of Hamels, the bat of Carlos Ruiz, and the legs of a rejuvenated Jimmy Rollins, the Phils made a statement of their own with a huge 7-2 win.
Hamels went eight solid innings, scattering two runs on six hits.
His name is being bandied about as trade bait as the experts try to figure out of the Phils will be buyers or sellers as the trade deadline approaches.
Don’t rule this team out yet. Especially if Hamels continues to pitch the way he did last night.
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