[VanillaGorilla]

I say all of this respectfully...Maybe because he is a hometown favorite and you see his RL self through hometown media your perception on how good he actually is is skewed towards the positive.

I moved to Philly and watched scores, if not hundreds of their games during the WS runs in the presence of lifelong Philadelphians.

IMO, Cole Hammels is not the elite pitcher I believe you think he is, and he is certainly not the elite guy that the hometown broadcasters make him out to be or the print media wishes him to be. He had an excellent 2008 season and a tremendous post season, but he never captured my fancy like Clayton Kershaw did.

When the Phillies acquired Cliff Lee he was the markedly better pitcher of the two.

My take on Hammels' in 2008 was that he did have potential, but it is yet to be seen how he grows. Philly fan, in general, is a myopic breed. People I spoke to were already saying Hammels was going to have a career like Steve Carlton...he was better than Carlton! Why? Because he was their guy and that's how hometown folks relate to their hometown guys when the local media heaps praises upon praises.

Hammels has not developed into a better pitcher than 2008. If you could take 5 SPs from 2012 to make the rotation of your choosing, if you chose Hammels as one of them you have not made the best rotation...he isn't in the argument.

I don't know what you expect from him here. He isn't Verlander. He isn't Kershaw. Only in a Philadelphia bar could you get away with suggesting that he is.

His HRA in your league is a career norm (since you are playing at CB, the park factor doesn't affect comparison to RL). His K/W is career norm (even after you tweeked). He goes 6+ innings a start. Normal. Again, I don't know what can reasonably be expected.

BABIP needs to be seen in comparison to the rest of your staff, otherwise it means nothing to an audience that only knows you have Cole Hammels and nothing more about your team.

Hammels is a nice pitcher. A number one on half the teams in baseball. He is a Top 20 guy, perhaps. To me, the definition of elite pitcher is one that you can argue as a Top 5 guy and be part of the best rotation you could possibly make. Sorry, Hammels isn't that guy.