Philadlephia | The Cap Crusader

I am about to make a confession on the internet: I am a Phillies fan who still loves Scott Rolen. According to my friend Ben, I am in fact, the last Phillies fan who still loves Scott Rolen.

@TheCapCrusader @Phillies I was at a Phillies/Reds game in 2012 when Rolen was still starting. Yes, you’re the only one who loves him.

— Benjamin Christensen (@Shakabrodie) November 2, 2013

I wish I had a reason for exactly why he was my favorite player, but I was 7 at the time so I am not sure I needed one. I am old enough to remember Rolen as number 17 on my beloved Phillies (I’m relatively certain I still have his jersey somewhere), but at the time I was too young to understand exactly why he left (he demanded a trade), and why the fans so quickly turned on him. He was the National League Rookie of the Year in 1997. Even as a member of different teams, I always cheered him on during the 2003 All-Star Game in Chicago that I attended. I vividly remember my dad telling me at the time how wrong it was to cheer for him since we are Phillies fans, but I didn’t care; Rolen was my favorite player, regardless of what team he was on, and nothing was going to make me change my opinion.

After winning NL Rookie of the Year with the Phillies in 1997, Rolen was played with the team for five more seasons, winning three gold gloves before being traded along with Doug Nickle to the St. Louis Cardinals for Plácido Polanco, Mike Timlin, and Bud Smith. Polanco was decent after being traded (which would end up being the first of two tenures with the Phillies), but nothing extraordinary. Timlin played all of half a season, compiling a 3.79 ERA in 30 appearances. Bud Smith never threw a pitch for Philadelphia and was out of baseball entirely by 2004. In comparison, Rolen was outstanding for the Cardinals. During his first season with the team, he won the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger awards for third base, and was selected to his first of five consecutive All-Star Games. Eventually, the Cardinals won the 2006 World Series with Jim Edmonds, Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen as their core.

Rolen was eventually traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, where in his first of two seasons with the team he posted some of the worst stats of his career. Luckily for him, he was able to wear this awesome cap. Like every years Stars & Stripes cap, this version is only worn for one season, and since it would be a little bit inappropriate to throw the good old red, white and blue on Canada’s only team, the red and white maple leaf was used instead. I actually had no idea this cap existed until there was a traveling sports outlet vendor who came to Seton Hall selling a bunch of closeout merchandise including this gem; I sorted through mostly non New Era caps for close to an hour before I found this, and despite being a little big (I generally wear a 7 1/2), it was one I knew I immediately needed for my collection.

During his second year with the Jays, batting .320 through 88 games, Rolen was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Roenicke and Zach Stewart, where his career had a resurgence, being selected to two All-Star games and winning a Gold Glove in four years as a (nearly) everyday starter and is credited as a major reason the Reds won their first NL Central Division title in 15 years. While he unofficially retired after the 2012 season, Scott Rolen will always be my all time favorite player. No matter which of his many caps he wore throughout his career, that was always true.

Recently, my roommate Sean’s younger sister Megan was honored for her academic achievement at a Lakewood Blueclaws game, and with his parents being the wonderful people they are, got me a ticket to tag along, well aware of my love of baseball and the Phillies (with whom the Blueclaws are the A affiliate). Imagine my excitement when I realized it was a doubleheader against none other the Mets minor league affiliate the Savannah Sand Gnats. Even if it’s their minor league players, I always appreciate an opportunity to see my beloved Phillies get a win against the Mets, the team Sean and his family support. Sadly that wasn’t the outcome, with the Blueclaws losing both games by a combined score of 14-3.

But it isn’t an entirely unexpected result; the Blueclaws are dead last in the South Atlantic League Northern standings with a measly 6 wins, while the Sand Gnats are leading the Southern Atlantic League Southern with 14 wins. One bright spot for the Blueclaws is catcher Willians Astudillo, who is currently has the highest batting average in all of the South Atlantic League a stellar .400. While it’s more than likely just be an early season anomaly, it can’t hurt to lift the spirits of the struggling team. Considering he isn’t even on the Phillies top 20 prospect list, it’s pretty safe to assume something that won’t continue, but I’m glad I got to enjoy the hot streak in the moment.

JP Crawford Doing His Thing

One of the many reasons I was excited to go to a minor league game was the fact that’s number of top Phillies (and Mets) prospects would be playing, including the Phillies 2013 first round draft pick JP Crawford. Hailed as the second coming of Jimmy Rollins, one of the all time great Phillies, having Crawford reach anywhere near that production would be a huge to the franchise. Expected to reach the majors in 2017, he is currently ranked as the #3 prospect in the Phillies organization. He had a decent night, going 3 for 5 between the two games with 1 run scored. I was recently reading an article that says Crawford is well on his way to becoming the Phillies shortstop of the future, and at only 19 years old, he has plenty of time to make an impact.

Connor and I

As far as stadiums go, FirstEnergy Park (not to be confused with FirstEngery Stadium, home of the AA Fightin Phils), the Blueclaws home-field, was more than impressive. One thing the Blueclaws try to play into is the fact they are the team of the Jersey Shore, so they placed iconic lifeguard stands in the outfield of the stadium (pictured above). I even got a picture with their mascot (pictured below). Sadly, the regularly scheduled Friday night fireworks had to be canceled due to the weather that was moving in around 10, but they more than made up for it giving us a pair of free tickets to any game later this season; classy move on their part.

Couldn’t Pass Up an Opportunity with a New Era Sign

This particular cap is their at standard home-field cap and was used for the first game of the doubleheader. I got this awhile back on account that the Blueclaws are one of only two minor league teams in New Jersey, with the other being AA Trenton Thunder, who are affiliated with the New York Yankees. I also picked up another cap from their appropriate named team store, the “Claws Cove” which features a similar logo except the crab is batting rather than throwing, which will certainly be written about in due time.

Once again, a big thanks to Sean and his family for letting me tag along on an awesome day, and specifically to his little sister Megan for her academic achievement award, since we wouldn’t have gone to the game without her. I will be back at the FirstEnergy Park on August 4th for Darin Ruf’s Bobblehead night, and I simply cannot wait.