Quote Originally Posted by 757690 View Post
Phillips, even with his injury late in the year, improved his WAR from 3 to 4 last year. Either has been trending downward from 3.4 to 2.7 to 2.2 for last year, and that has been a result of both his offense and his defense.

Also, there were 7 above average 2B in the majors last year. There were 7 impact bats who can play outfield in the NL West last year.
Im really not a huge fan of WAR comparisons. IMO they are too skewed towards the defensive end of the game. When you have a good defensive player at a position it will inflate his WAR when comparing it to other players.

There is no doubt that Either has a better bat than Phillips. And if you move Either to LF his defense won't be as big of a hindrance as it was out in RF. I also think its much easier to find a replaceable 2b than it is to find an impact bat. Phillips is an enigma to me. Nice pop for a 2b, great D, not good against RHP, and doesn't carry a good OBP. If you were able to replace Phillips with a guy who wasn't as good on D, didn't have as much power, but had a better OBP it may just fit the lineup better. It may allow you to drop Stubbs in the lineup to take advantage of his power.

Its easy to make comparisons based upon isloating two players. But the reality is its how each player fits into the grand scheme of the team. IMO Either in LF + Valakia/Frazier/etc. at 2B is better than Gomes in LF and Phillips at 2b.