"Before his huge two-run, game-tying double in the eighth inning Tuesday night against the Chicago Cubs, Chase Utley was hitless in his previous 15 at-bats.
And following the Philadelphia Phillies' victory over the Cubs on Wednesday, Utley has only four home runs and 22 RBIs in 178 at-bats this season. That is only six more RBIs than Michael Martinez, who has 72 at-bats less than Utley on the year.
Despite his less-than-stellar numbers this year, Utley never seems to face much criticism from the tough Philadelphia fans and media members.
There's always Ryan Howard strikes out way too much. Jimmy Rollins always swings at the first pitch. Raul Ibanez and Brad Lidge are washed up. Domonic Brown uppercuts too much on his swing. Charlie Manuel can't be understood during his press conferences.
But for Utley, there's nothing. Nobody really gripes or complains about anything he does, even if he throws a ball away at second base or cuts off another infielder to catch a pop-up. Heck, he didn't even get that much slack for cursing on live television twice in his career. "