The Force Behind the Fantastic Five

By Amy McCormick

By now, we’ve all been inundated with media coverage of the Phillies’ starting rotation for 2011.  Everything has been covered from “What should their nickname be?” to “Did cheesesteaks have a role in bringing Cliff Lee back to Philly?” We’re all well aware that the Halladay – Lee – Oswalt – Hamels – Blanton pitching squad promises to make history.  What else can we possibly say about these five guys?  Well, there’s one man who is the glue that holds the pitching staff together.  He was born as Carlos Ruiz, but we all know him by just one name. 

Chooch.

A real fan favorite, Chooch was signed by the Phils as an amateur free agent in 1998.  He didn’t make his debut in Philadelphia until 2006. Since then, he has gained popularity; surely, we’ve all yelled “Choooooooch!” at Citizens Bank Park.  For this upcoming season, there are a few things we should remember about Ruiz as we’re following our favorite baseball team. 

His offense.  Last season, Ruiz was the only Phillie to bat .300.  We all saw him hit a walk-off homerun in the tenth inning while playing the Cardinals last May.  Granted, it was one of just eight homers for Chooch last year, but he did knock in 53 runs.  He’s not what one would call a power hitter, but he is a right-handed batter in a lineup heavy with lefties.  To be quite honest, I don’t expect the man to hit .300 again this season; his averages in previous years don’t even come close to what he hit in 2010.  Last season, he had career-high OBP, slugging percentage, and OPS. That being said, though, I think he can be counted on to contribute to our offense.

The experience.  Ruiz has caught each of our five starters and has developed a rhythm with each.  Some of the working relationships took a little longer than others to work out some kinks, but Chooch seems to have a good feel for the styles, tempos, strengths, and weaknesses.  Roy Halladay, for example, clicked with Ruiz immediately.  Their chemistry is unmistakable. 

His defense.  Some fans seem to forget all that a catcher’s job entails.  Obviously, it’s the pitcher who gets the win or loss.  It’s the pitcher whose numbers (ERA, WHIP, etc) fans examine.  I’m not in any way discounting the work that a pitcher does; however, it’s the catcher who calls each pitch.  After Halladay’s perfect game last May, he was quick to praise Ruiz.  "We felt like we got in a groove early and about the fifth or the sixth I was just following Chooch," he said. "I can't say enough about the job he did today. Mixed pitches. For me it was really a no-brainer." In addition to calling pitches, Ruiz protects the plate well, blocks balls in the dirt, and does a decent job of catching runners attempting to steal.

He gets overlooked. Now, I have to admit, this is my biased opinion.  I am willing to admit that there are better catchers in the National League (McCann and Posey, for example), but Carlos Ruiz is a favorite of mine.  His ability, work ethic, and heart all contribute to his likeability.  He’s underpaid; in a world where players take home $15 million a year, his 2010 salary of $1.9 million seems low.  You won’t find him on any “Top Players in MLB” lists.  The fans love him, but he doesn’t seem to get the recognition that I think he deserves.

Many of us have watched the clip of Ruiz saying, “My name is Carlos Ruiz and my nickname is Chooch.” I’ll be honest.  It just doesn’t get old for me. He’s so endearing and likeable. I was at Citizens Bank Park on Fan Appreciation Day this past September, and I’ll never forget the short speech he gave to us fans.  I could be way off (the man’s Panamanian accent is pretty thick), but what I heard was, “We love our fans.  Thank you.”

We love you, too, Chooch.