Jimmy Rollins

Height, weight: 5-8, 174

Age: 30 Birthdate: Nov. 27, 1978

Hometown: Oakland, Calif.

Years pro: 10

How acquired: Drafted by the Phillies in the second round of the 1996 amateur draft.

This year: Rollins' struggles throughout the first half of the season were well-documented. The former National League MVP hit just .229 before the All-Star break and muddled around .200 for much of the first half. He picked it up and finished the year hitting .250. He's long been the key to the Phillies' offense but may be just as important on the defensive side of the ball where he has won consecutive Gold Gloves and has a good chance at a third when the awards come out in November.

Career: Never a hitter for average, he hit a career high .296 when he won the MVP in 2007. Rollins is a career .274 hitter with 146 home runs and 621 RBI; most of his production has come out of the leadoff spot in the Phillies' order. He has been successful on 83 percent of his stolen-base attempts going 326-for-393. Since the arrival of first-base coach Davey Lopes, Rollins is 196-for-223 for an 88 percent success rate.

Charity begins at home: Rollins has always been willing to lend his support to the community and is an active member of several charitable groups, including his annual BaseBOWL Charity Tournament, which raises money for the Arthritis Foundation.

Rickey and Rollins: Rollins readily admits that growing up in Oakland, he was a big fan of Rickey Henderson. The one big difference between the two is Henderson was a much better fit in the leadoff spot, due to his ability to work the count, while Rollins' only real flaw may be his impatience at the plate. Henderson walked an amazing 2,190 times in his career with an on-base percentage of .401. In 10 seasons, Rollins has walked 470 times with an on-base percentage of .329.

- Michael Radano