Watch: Every Phillies ‘Utley’s corner’ home run by Met-killer Chase Utley
Chase Utley made a living out of killing the Mets.
Over his 16-year MLB career, the best second baseman in Phillies history hit 14 home runs at Citi Field, the most in any ballpark for Utley that’s not named Citizens Bank Park or Dodger Stadium. He trails only Giancarlo Stanton for the most home runs by a visiting player at Citi Field.
In June of 2009, Utley hit three home runs in two games that just cleared Citi Field’s corner porch in right field. A few weeks later during a game against the Yankees, Mets announcer Gary Cohen uttered the words “Utley’s corner” when describing a wall-scraping home run to that same corner by Yankees center fielder Brett Gardner. Cohen went on to cite a study that said Citi Field, at that time, had given players only two home runs that wouldn’t have been out of the park at Shea Stadium. Utley hit both of those home runs.
“I guess Gary named it. It’s going to be Utley’s corner until someone else takes it over,” Keith Hernandez said on the broadcast.
On the other hand, Citi Field took away 36 would-be home runs that would have been out at the old stadium. As Justin Klugh pointed out a few years ago, the Mets made some alterations to the ballpark’s dimensions in 2014, but decided against making any changes to Utley’s corner.
Over the years, Utley’s corner had expanded from the first three sections to the right of the foul pole to the upper deck and all the way to the bullpens. But really, Citi Field is the house that Utley built until proven otherwise.
Anyway, here are all 11 of Utley’s home runs at Citi Field as a Phillie.
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