Rolen was a second-round pick by the Phillies in the 1993 MLB Draft. At the age of 21, he made his big league debut with the Phillies on Aug.1, 1996 -- against one of his future clubs, the Cardinals -- and went 1-for-4.
"The highlight of my Hall of Fame career was the first day I got called up in the Major Leagues and I watched my parents walk into the stadium," Rolen said. "I choked up on the field and had a hard time finishing the inning."
One of Philadelphia's key producers, Rolen reached his first All-Star Game in 2002, a season in which he hit 31 homers.
But 2002 also proved to be his swan song with the Phillies; after informing the front office that he would not re-sign upon reaching free agency after the season, Rolen was traded to the Cardinals on July 29, 2002,
“They taught me how to play the game. My six years in Philadelphia, I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world," Rolen said. "It taught me who I was as a player and what I was going to do for them, how I was going to work no matter where I went.”