Brandon Phillips Batting 2nd

[westofyou]

Phillips and "walks" is more Francour than most Reds fans would like to admit

CAREER
PLATE APPEARANCES BETWEEN 4500 AND 5000

WALKS                           BB       PA     
1    Prince Fielder              651     4900   
2    Ryan Howard                 565     4701   
3    Joe Mauer                   555     4552   
4    Dan Uggla                   519     4674   
5    Curtis Granderson           487     4799   
6    Justin Morneau              464     4807   
7    Adam LaRoche                446     4669   
8    Michael Cuddyer             443     4949   
9    Nick Markakis               436     4556   
10   Marco Scutaro               428     4926   
11   David DeJesus               420     4887   
12   Coco Crisp                  375     4870   
13   Ty Wigginton                366     4886   
14   Jerry Hairston Jr.          359     4741   
15   Brandon Phillips            288     4988   
16   Jeff Francoeur              239     4702   
17   Cesar Izturis               217     4537

Phillips is a swinger, I don't see him even raising his BB rate as well as Davey did at the same age, and even he vacillated

YEAR TEAM         AGE G    AB    R    H    2B  3B  HR   HR%   RBI  BB   SO   SB   CS  AVG   SLG  OBA   OPS
1974 Reds         26  160   594   70  167  25   1  14   2.36   82   44   79   41   6  .281  .397  .335  .732 
1975 Reds         27  140   507   62  139  23   1   5   0.99   49   39   51   33   6  .274  .353  .326  .679 
1976 Reds         28  152   576   74  162  28   7   9   1.56   69   49   68   21  10  .281  .401  .335  .736 
1977 Reds         29  156   572   59  155  26   3   8   1.40   64   46   77   29   7  .271  .369  .322  .691 
1978 Reds         30  153   565   75  170  33   4   6   1.06   67   51   83   23  10  .301  .405  .357  .763 
1979 Reds         31  149   590   91  166  25   3  16   2.71   84   64   73   19   7  .281  .415  .348  .764 
1980 Reds         32  156   622   72  162  31   8   5   0.80   77   37  107   12   2  .260  .360  .300  .660 
1981 Reds         33  106   421   57  129  28   0   5   1.19   67   37   61    4   5  .306  .409  .358  .767 
1982 Reds         34  147   572   48  164  25   4   5   0.87   53   45   61   13   6  .287  .371  .337  .707 
1983 Reds         35  143   528   54  123  22   0   1   0.19   47   56   81   14   9  .233  .280  .303  .583 
1984 Reds         36  154   531   46  130  26   1   4   0.75   58   52   72   22   6  .245  .320  .307  .628

Sure in theory he can do it but ya know teach a old dog new tricks baseball is a fools errand most of the time

[TRF]

good lord... COCO has more walks than BP in that time frame...

ouch.

[Kc61]

This is one of three critical issues I see for this ballclub this year.

1. Chapman's impact on the rotation/bullpen depending where he winds up.
2. CF defense.
3. The hitter between Choo and Votto.

Choo has a lifetime .381 OBP. Votto has a lifetime .415 OBP. The top of the Reds' order is potentially a gold mine.

If the guy hitting between them can keep rallies alive by hits, walks, and few DPs, the Reds lineup could be pretty tremendous.

I think Phillips perhaps can adjust and I don't see another natural guy for the spot. But the Reds had better think this through because it is very important.

[mdccclxix]

Ludwick was unbelievable in the 2 spot in front of Pujols if I recall.

[smixsell]

Originally Posted by Kc61

Phillips has made adjustments when he felt they were needed.

As I previously posted, in 2011 as a lead off hitter, Phillips had an OBP of .417 in 177 PAs. It's possible this is a random stretch, but my guess is that it reflects an adjustment he made to the lead off spot. (OTOH, he had a poor stretch hitting leadoff in 2012.)

Now, Phillips had much less effective stats in the two hole in 2011. But it's very possible he could be coached -- "Brandon, you are hitting behind Choo and in front of Votto, you need to focus on OBP this year, don't worry about long balls so much, and try and walk a bit more."

The bad part of this is that Phillips generally walks infrequently, hits a lot of grounders, and a high number of DPs.

The good part of this is that Phillips is a real pro, he has made adjustments before, and if coached properly this year could be more patient, hit fewer DP balls, and succeed in the two hole.

Thank you. Well said.

Originally Posted by Kc61

Choo has a lifetime .381 OBP. Votto has a lifetime .415 OBP. The top of the Reds' order is potentially a gold mine.

If the guy hitting between them can keep rallies alive by hits, walks, and few DPs, the Reds lineup could be pretty tremendous.

I think Phillips perhaps can adjust and I don't see another natural guy for the spot. But the Reds had better think this through because it is very important.

Could not agree more.

[Kc61]

Originally Posted by mdccclxix

Ludwick was unbelievable in the 2 spot in front of Pujols if I recall.

Good memory. Thanks.

Ludwick, lifetime, has excellent stats in the two hole.

In 422 PAs, he has a .390 OBP and a .954 OPS in the two hole.

Just saying.

OK -- I'm declaring: Choo, Ludwick, Votto, Frazier, Bruce, Phillips, Cozart, Hanigan/Mes, Pitcher.

I know, Frazier is young. But I'm declaring for Phillips sixth because his DPs can hurt higher in the order. If Frazier, flunks, we drop him down.

[_Sir_Charles_]

Originally Posted by *BaseClogger*

There's still a second baseman, isn't there? I mean, I understand good hitters can somewhat control where they hit the ball, but it's easier said than done, and intentionally putting the ball on the ground with a runner on first and less than two outs seems like a bad idea...

Sure. You're right. I'm just saying that the odds are much greater of succeeding with a ground ball to the right side when someone's on first simply because the hole is larger. No more, no less. I just think that when you're at the plate and you see a huge gaping hole in the infield defense...trying to take advantage of that seems like a good idea.

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by _Sir_Charles_

Sure. You're right. I'm just saying that the odds are much greater of succeeding with a ground ball to the right side when someone's on first simply because the hole is larger. No more, no less. I just think that when you're at the plate and you see a huge gaping hole in the infield defense...trying to take advantage of that seems like a good idea.

1. Wee Willie Keeler is dead
2. It's always easy to tell someone to change their approach

[_Sir_Charles_]

I'm not getting the Keeler reference WoY? My only point was Phillips has shown the ability to hit the ball to the right when he needs to or to the left when he needs to. If you're at the plate and there's a gaping hole between 3rd and 2nd....why wouldn't you attempt to hit it to the left? Same goes for a huge hole to the right. It just seems counter-intuitive to not try to take advantage of what the defense gives you.

[Red in Chicago]

Originally Posted by _Sir_Charles_

I'm not getting the Keeler reference WoY? My only point was Phillips has shown the ability to hit the ball to the right when he needs to or to the left when he needs to. If you're at the plate and there's a gaping hole between 3rd and 2nd....why wouldn't you attempt to hit it to the left? Same goes for a huge hole to the right. It just seems counter-intuitive to not try to take advantage of what the defense gives you.

hit em where they ain't

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by Red in Chicago

hit em where they ain't

Exactly

Now go tell the guy who fancies himself a # 3 hitter to that 4000 PAs into his career that

[smixsell]

Originally Posted by westofyou

Exactly

Now go tell the guy who fancies himself a # 3 hitter to that 4000 PAs into his career that

Yep. That's the real obstacle.

[_Sir_Charles_]

Originally Posted by Red in Chicago

hit em where they ain't

Good lord. I feel like I doofus. I did know that was him...just didn't click for some reason.

[AtomicDumpling]

Originally Posted by smixsell

True. I like stats and the advanced stats. But my posts are not at all catered to those who know little or nothing but what stats tell them. Those who've played the game at a reasonably high level (ie good high school program or above) or are very good observers of the game are my primary target audience.

Originally Posted by smixsell

No. I simply have actually PLAYED the game at a high enough level to know something about it and don't LIVE for looking up stats without getting paid to do it.

Playing high school baseball means you are a baseball expert?

I have heard guys claim to be experts because they played in the major leagues, but high school? I bet at least half the people on Redszone played high school baseball. I don't think that gives us any more baseball credibility at all to be honest. High school baseball players don't know jack, they are just doing what their coach says to do and heck even most high school coaches aren't that knowledgeable. They are just the ones willing to spend their time teaching a bunch of kids the basics.

Secondly, just because some folks are interested in sabermetrics doesn't mean they don't know how to play the game or how to observe it. Most of us were involved in the game as players, coaches, umpires and/or students of the game long before anybody ever heard of sabermetrics. Statistics are just a way to take your love of the game to the next level of understanding.

[Raisor]

I played competetive ball on an international travel team. We had at least three guys drafted, including a guy drafted by the White Sox and who played a few years in the NFL for the Raiders.

We played against some of the best 15-18 year old teams in the world.

I know more about baseball today, because of those stats I don't get paid for looking up, then I ever did as a 15 year old punk.