Cole Hamels’ major league debut for the Phillies was an afternoon game against the Reds in May 2006. The lineup he faced that day was Freel, Lopez, Griffey, Dunn, Kearns, Encarnacion, Phillips and Valentin. Hamels pitched five shutout innings. The Reds pitching staff of Elizardo Ramirez, Chris Hammond, Matt Belisle, Brian Shackelford and Rick White gave up eight runs.
Ten years later, he’s still dominating the Reds.
The Reds missed an opportunity to sweep the Texas Rangers, the team with the best record by far in the American League. With a win, they also would have had a winning road trip.