Quote:
Originally Posted by Mario-Rijo
I'll disagree with that.
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Me too. I have a ton of respect for O'Dog (I've decided to Irish up his nickname) in the field, but Phillips had a dynamite year on par with O'Dog's best.
Phillips also had a knack for making highlight plays (do not underestimate the power of the Web Gem) and his 30/30 season on offensive reinforces the notion that he's a superior athlete in all phases of the game.
I'd say the GG would come down to Phillips and Utley (who grades at the top in multiple defensive rating systems). Against Utley are that he missed some time, that he can't match Phillips in the speed department (which influences mass perception) and that he's pedestrian on the DP turn. Utley often pockets the ball when a baserunner is right on top of him. Nothing wrong with that, better not to throw it away. It also helps that Jimmy Rollins is handy with a quick feed the majority of the time, but I imagine a lot of players and coaches (and those are the GG voters) watch Utley and think he sometimes doesn't get the outs he could on the DP.