Name	Chase Utley
Height
Naionality	American
Date of Birth	17-December-1978
Place of Birth	Pasadena, California, U.S.
Famous for	Baseball Player

Chase Utley is a second baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball. A native of the Greater Los Angeles area, he was raised in the city of Long Beach. He was a star baseball player at Long Beach Polytechnic High School, before moving on to UCLA.

Utley bats left-handed and throws right-handed. Since becoming a permanent fixture as the Phillies' second baseman, Utley has demonstrated versatility, spending some time at first base as well. As his fielding has improved over his career, Utley is seen in combination with Jimmy Rollins as one of the best middle-infield combinations in the NL. Utley is considered by fans to be a team leader, alongside Rollins and Ryan Howard. In his first major league start, Utley recorded his first major league hit (a grand slam) before returning to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He was recalled by the Phillies again in August 2003, to replace Placido Polanco at second base (Polanco was moved to third to compensate for the loss of third baseman David Bell to the disabled list). Utley recorded the final at-bat at Veterans Stadium by grounding into a game-ending double play on September 28, 2003. By the end of 2004, it became evident to management that Utley was the team’s future second baseman. However, a roster spot was not permanently available; his path to the majors was effectively blocked by Placido Polanco. During interleague play, he covered first base to give Jim Thome and Ryan Howard a chance to fill the role of DH, but this was not enough to keep his bat on the bench.

Utley platooned with Polanco at second base during the start of the 2005 season. In June 2005, the Phillies traded Polanco to the Tigers for pitcher Ugueth Urbina and infielder Ramon Martinez. As a full-time starter Utley established himself as one of the best-hitting second basemen in the National League. He also proved his speed by stealing 16 bases in the 2005 season. After his dynamic performance in the end of 2007, Utley picked up where he left off in the beginning of the 2008 season. He was an offensive catalyst in April, sparking win after win for the Phillies as they had their first winning April since 2003, and only their fourth since their last World Series appearance. Through the month of April, Utley hit a league-leading 11 home runs – including seven in the seven games from April 17–23. He completed a streak of five consecutive games with a home run, and hit .360 (good for fifth in the National League) in 111 at-bats on his way to becoming the National League's Player of the Month. His five-game home run streak tied the Phillies franchise record, shared by Bobby Abreu (May 8–12, 2005), Mike Schmidt (June 6–10, 1979) and Dick Allen (May 27 – June 1, 1969).