Even without a career that included six All-Star appearances, four Silver Sluggers and three seasons in which he finished in the top 10 in NL MVP voting, Chase Utley would still forever remain in the baseball lexicon.
Albeit because of one play.
Utley became infamous when he launched himself toward second base in Game 2 of last year’s National League Division Series, breaking New York Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada’s leg but preventing a double play. This offseason, MLB legislated that kind of violent action out of the game, adopting what is known as the "Utley Rule."
The ultra-competitive, highly controversial play was thought to mark the end of an otherwise stellar career. That is, until Utley, thought to be dead weight on a talented Los Angeles Dodgers roster, trotted out to second base this season.
Nearly two months into the MLB season, not only is Utley a crucial part of the Dodgers lineup, but he’s also proved that his latter years may still yield some great baseball.
After a horrendous 2015 campaign in which he hit .212/.286/.343, Utley signed a one-year deal with the Dodgers. With the goal of chasing one last October, it seemed as if the 37-year-old was clinging to a talented team with World Series aspirations. That’s not an uncommon storyline for a star player nearing the end of his career.
Utley is hitting .289/.379/.408 this season. Those numbers are better than his 14-year career average of .281/.365/.477. As of Thursday, Utley’s WAR of 1.4 ranked seventh among all second basemen, according to FanGraphs.
He isn’t writing the epilogue to his career but an entirely new chapter.
It’s an unexpected turn of a events, given that a Philadelphia Phillies team beginning to rebuild traded him, with cash, to the Dodgers last year.
Think of it this way: Philadelphia had to pay Los Angeles to take him.
Apparently, the Phillies were right to do so. In his 34-game stint with the Dodgers last season, Utley hit .202/.291/.363. His one-year deal this season, worth $7 million, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, was a low-risk move for the Dodgers. They took a flier.
For most teams, that kind of money is significant. But the Dodgers, with their mega-television contract, probably carry that kind of dough in petty cash.
So anything Utley does to help them win this season is a bonus. Like ice cream on top of a brownie. But as it turns out, he was a necessary piece.
Given the talent in Los Angeles, the team’s struggles are as surprising as Utley’s success. The Dodgers rank 20th in batting average (.240) and 19th in on-base percentage (.313).
Utley ranks first on the team in batting average and OBP and fourth in slugging.
But what’s most impressive is that Utley is doing all this while playing his home games at Dodger Stadium, which ranks last in MLB in park factor, according to ESPN.
It appears the resurgent actor Michael Keaton and Utley have a bit in common.
Credit a different approach at the plate for an uptick in Utley’s offensive numbers. According to FanGraphs, 26.9 percent of the balls he has hit have been line drives. If the season ended now, that would be a career high. Only 24.4 percent of balls hit by Utley are fly balls, which would be a career low, according to the site.
And while many players hit well in their twilight years, age has generally been a detriment to their performance in the field.
But that's apparently not an issue for Utley, who never won a Gold Glove but was always a serviceable infielder.
Utley has a defensive runs above average of 2.8, which ranks sixth among second baseman, according to FanGraphs. His 2.2 ultimate zone rating also has him ranked seventh among those at his position.
It seems like a week cannot pass without hearing Utley’s name, at least as it pertains to baseball’s new rule. Players and managers are closely watching how MLB and its umpires interpret the rule.
Any questionable slide is always compared to Utley’s last October.
To some extent, he is the last of a now extinct breed: a group of players who ran the bases with reckless abandon, aiming to win at all costs. At least baseball’s new rule prevents players like Utley from playing that way.
But in this new era, Utley has reinvented himself.
His style of play on the basepaths may be nearing extinction, but Utley’s career itself appears far from over. Now we're starting to hear about Utley as much for his success in 2016 as we have been for his play in last year’s playoffs.
In fact, he isn’t clinging on to a talented Dodgers roster, hoping to hang on for the ride.
Surprisingly, Utley is among those behind the wheel.
Seth Gruen is a national baseball columnist for Bleacher Report. Talk baseball with Seth by following him on Twitter and liking his Facebook page.
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