2000s

Who is he, and why should you be excited if the Indians sign him?

Placido Polanco was acquired by the Philadelphia Phillies in the Scott Rolen deal. They’ve treated him mainly as a utility infielder since, but I think he would make an excellent everyday second baseman. He’s a much better defender than Ronnie Belliard, according to Baseball Prospectus:

Runs Above Replacement
2003
Polanco – 22
Belliard – 6

2004
Polanco – 32
Belliard – 17

What about offense? Polanco is better with the bat as well:

EQA
2003
Polanco – .284
Belliard – .253

2004
Polanco – .268
Belliard – .265

From what I’ve seen, there hasn’t been that much interest in Polanco. St. Louis seems to be the front-runner, but ironically if the Indians non-tender Belliard, the Cardinals may sign him instead. He can accept Philadelphia’s arbitration offer, but they have told him that he won’t be starting. Minnesota may non-tender Luis Rivas if he doesn’t agree to a paycut, but otherwise there aren’t a lot of teams looking for second baseman, particularly after Oakland acquired Milwaukee’s Keith Ginter. Along with Belliard, Baltimore’s Jerry Hairston may also be non-tendered if he isn’t traded before December 20th, further increasing the possibilities. I think if Matt Clement signs elsewhere, adding Polanco would represent the best value for the money. If the Indians can get him for $4-4.5M/year, it would be an excellent signing.

Signed IF Jose Hernandez to a one-year contract worth $1.8M

Signed RHP Edwin Minaya to a minor-league contract

The brief Josh Phelps era is over, and I’m a bit surprised how soon it ended. If Phelps is in fact a “super-2,” then at least this makes a bit of sense. Paul Hoynes noted in his rumors column that the Indians were shopping Phelps, but no one was biting. Sounds like the arbitration dilemma to me; clubs know that if you don’t trade him, you’ll non-tender him, so why waste a prospect? I have no idea what Phelps would have been worth in arbitration given his recent exploits…maybe $2M or so? I would have kept him just to have another option off the bench. The signing of Hernandez was probably the last straw; Jose mashes left-handers almost to the same extent as Phelps does, but unlike Josh, he can actually play in the field. Some AL team will take a chance on Phelps, particularly if they need a right-handed bat. Maybe Tampa Bay? Baltimore, to pair with Rafael Palmeiro?

Shapiro said that Hernandez was not going to be the starting second baseman, which is a good thing. Either Belliard is coming back, or a free agent will be brought in. Maybe Placido Polanco? Pokey Reese? Shapiro is probably better off just accepting arbitration with Belly if he can’t work out a deal.

I’m a bit concerned as to the $1.8M though. Yes, Hernandez is a Boras client, and he was probably the best utility guy on the market, but I don’t know if I’d throw that much money at a bench player, particularly with the current payroll. It won’t really make much of a difference in getting Clement (the Indians have made their best offer, apparently), but when you only have $9-10M to spend, every little bit helps.

The Indians receieved Tom Mastny from the Blue Jays to complete the John McDonald deal. Mastny is a bit better prospect than I thought the Indians were getting. He posted some nice numbers in low-A this season. Of course, he’s 23 years old, and unless he moves fast (to AA next season), he’s not going to be taken seriously. Still, not a bad return for Johnny Mac.

Rule 5 (AAA): The Milwaukee Brewers selected RHP Landon Stockman (Cleveland)
Rule 5 (AAA): The Toronto Blue Jays selected RHP Lee Gronkiewicz (Cleveland)
Rule 5 (AAA): The Colorado Rockies selected LHP Keith Ramsey (Cleveland)
Rule 5 (AAA): The Houston Astros selected LHP Blake Allen (Cleveland)
Rule 5 (AAA): The Minnesota Twins selected RHP Armando Gabino (Cleveland)
Rule 5 (AAA): The Tampa Bay Devil Rays selected RHP Richard De los Santos (Cleveland)

Rule 5 (AAA): The Cleveland Indians selected RHP Neomar Flores (Toronto)

What you don’t see here is any Rule 5 draftees in the major-league portion; that’s certainly a relief. Jason Cooper, Pat Osborn, JD Martin, and others will stay in the organization. The 6 you see that were drafted are mainly minor-league filler, other than Ramsey and Gronkiewicz, who are mildy interesting prospects. Gronkiewicz has a chance of making the majors as a reliever; he has excellent strikeout ratios. But time is not on his side; he’ll be 27 next season, and will see AAA for the first time. Ramsey is another older pitching prospect; he pitched a perfect game for high-A Kinston, but his age (25 next May) and his perpipherals (9.1 H/9IP and 6.2 K/9IP) doesn’t really excite you that much. If he makes the majors, it will probably be in the bullpen.

The others are mainly filler. Blake Allen repeated Lake County this season as a 23-year-old, Stockman came to the Indians via the Independent Leagues, and the other two haven’t seen a full-season league yet.

Neomar Flores seems to have stalled in high-A, and looked worse this season. He doesn’t look too exciting.

More on Hernandez

According to his agent, Scott Boras, Jose Hernandez has in fact signed a one-year contract with the Indians worth $1.8M. That’s quite a chunk of change for a utility player, but he was one of the best in the business for the Dodgers in 2004. Hernandez, as recently as 2002, was a slugging shortstop for several teams, most notably the Milwaukee Brewers. He’s most famous for a record he almost broke; in 2002, he was closing in on Bobby Bonds’ all-time strikeout record for a season, when his manager sat him the last couple games so he didn’t break it. Nevermind that Hernandez was one of the better shortstops in the National League that season; only Edgar Renteria had a higher VORP. Nevermind that he hit .288/.356/.478 for the Brewers that season. Since then Adam Dunn broke Bonds’ record of strikeouts, and somehow managed to hit 46 home runs in the process. In my opinion strikeouts are just another out, the same as a harmless grounder to shortstop. And as long as Hernandez can hit for power and average off the bench, spelling Broussard against left-handers and filling in at various other positions, I really don’t care how much he strikes out. Production is all that matters.

The signing does call into question Belliard’s future, but unless the Indians somehow sign Clement, he’s probably coming back. I guess we’ll find out in about a week or so, when clubs must tender arbitration-eligible players contract. If both Belliard and Hernandez are on the team next season, that relegates Brandon Phillips to Bufalo unless a couple other roster moves are made. Right now, here’s how the offensive side of the roster looks:

Catchers (2): Martinez, Bard
Infielders (6): Boone, Peralta, Belliard, Broussard, Hernandez, Phelps
Outfielders (4): Crisp, Sizemore, Blake, Ludwick
DH (1): Hafner

But the offseason is still young, and if the Indians don’t sign a pitcher, they may go after another bat, further complicating things.

One interesting rumor in the past day or so is that the Indians may be close to signing Jose Hernandez to a contract. Hernandez is a pretty useful player; at this stage in his career, he’s become a super-sub. He can (and has) played every position in the infield besides catcher, and all three outfield positions. He’s a lefty-masher as well: last season he posted an OPS of 1.010 against left-handed pitching.

Hernandez also seems to be a sort of Rorshrach Test for baseball analysts. Some immediately point to his strikeout totals and dismiss him as a free-swinger. Others point to his power numbers and like his bat off the bench. I see him as an upgrade over Lou Merloni; he’s a better defender than Lou, especially at shortstop, he has more power, and he’s a guy you can bring off the bench late in a game against a tough left-hander. I think he’d be a fine pickup.

Matt Clement is probably out of play for the Indians; the Angels have probably offered $8-9M a year, and the Yankees seem to have entered into the picture. That doesn’t bode well.

Just by perusing the several Rule 5 previews, I get the impression that the Indians won’t lose as many players as they have in the past couple years. Jason Cooper is probably going to get picked, but after him I couldn’t say that anyone else is a lock to get selected. Maybe one of Martin and Denham, and probably one of Torres and Inglett. If I had to guess the number they’ll lose, I’d say three. Again, I still wonder why Corey Smith was protected over Cooper, who at least has had success in the minors.

Traded OF Matt Lawton and Cash (2005) to the Pittsburgh Pirates for LHRP Arthur Rhodes and Cash (2006)

Please bear with me, as this might turn into a very large post

It’s been pretty obvious ever since the Indians started to rebuild in June 2002 that the Indians have been trying to deal Matt Lawton. But a combination of injuries, ineffectiveness, and an albatross of a contract prevented them from doing so. Until now, when Cleveland found a trading partner that (a) was looking to dump a similar contract, (b) needed a left-handed hitter, and (c) needed an outfielder. Pretty much the perfect scenario, and the fact that Rhodes is a left-handed reliever made the deal too sweet to pass up.

There’s two ways to look at this trade: the talent perspective and the economic perspective.

(1) The Talent Perspective
In general, when you deal an outfielder for a reliever, you aren’t going to get as much production. Middle relievers usually pitch about 50-70 innings in a given season, and left-handed specialists may only pitch in 30-40 innings a year. To look more closely at the two individual players, I’ll use VORP (Value Over Replacement Player) to compare the two over the past three seasons. Here’s Rhodes…

…and here’s Lawton.

There’s probably a good bet that Lawton will be a more valuable player than Rhodes next season. If he’s healthy, (and that’s still an issue with him) he’ll be a productive outfielder. His defensive ability certainly isn’t what it was earlier in his career, but he’ll be all right in left field if that’s where the Pirates play him. Rhodes, while there’s still a chance he can rebound in a more familiar role (setup), probably will never be the dominating pitcher he was with Seattle in the first couple years of this century. Volatility works both ways with relievers; it’s certainly possible Rhodes can be at least an adequate setup man over the remainder of his current contract. But Lawton’s the better player right now.

You also have to look at the talent around Lawton, and more importantly, the outfield talent. Thanks to the signing of Aaron Boone, the Indians have to find a new place to play Casey Blake, who was probably the team’s third best hitter in 2004. When the Indians signed Boone, it was thought that Blake would take over for Ben Broussard, who up to the point had been putting up well-below-average numbers for a first basemen. After the signing, Broussard got hot and stayed that way through the rest of the season, finishing 2004 with a .289 EQA, which is pretty good. So now there was two positions Blake could go, neither of which he’d played before: second base, and the outfield. Blake was a poor fielder in 2004 at an infield position he’d played most of his career; the thought of him moving to second base, which is a much more demanding position, scared me. Blake in the outfield, though, scares me less. Casey is a pretty athletic player; he has a good arm, and has average speed. At the very least he won’t be an embarassment in right or left field like he would at second.

The Indians also have a lot of talented, yet unproven, outfielders they could use. Ryan Ludwick is coming off a knee injury, but has power potential, as shown in his brief stints with the Indians. Coco Crisp was one of the few Indians to get better as the season went on, showing somewhat surprising power. Grady Sizemore, the organization’s best prospect, has nothing much to prove in AAA. And Jody Gerut, who is going to miss the first couple months of 2005 with a knee injury, is at least a nice part-time option in right, left, or center. So the Indians could replace Lawton with an internal option.

(2) The Economic Perspective
If Matt Lawton was making $4M this season, no one would really be talking about him. Often the money a player makes will increase or decrease expectations as to their production. Lawton at $7M, especially on a team that spent around $35M total last season, is expected to be the team’s best player, leading the league in several categories. And that’s unfair; a player’s value is measured by the numbers on the stat sheet, not on his paycheck. The latter numbers are the representation how valuable the team thinks he is. When the numbers don’t mesh, it’s a problem. The Indians weren’t getting $7M worth of production from Lawton, and this is what lead to today’s trade.

The Indians have a pretty strict budget for this upcoming season; it will be around $45-48M, depending which source you use. Before today’s trade, Mark Shapiro had $7M of that budget to spend on free agent acquisitions. Prior to the beginning of the free agent period, he thought $7M was going to be good enough to land a pretty good starter. But thanks to some market-setting deals early in the process, $7M doesn’t look like it’s going to be enough. This is another reason why Lawton was traded; adding $2M to the pile may land a Matt Clement, or allow the team to bring back Ronnie Belliard for another year. Now, after the trade, the Indians have about $9-10M to get a starter, keep Belliard, or both.

By itself, the trade doesn’t do much to improve the team. But it allows Shapiro more flexibility to add a couple players that may allow the Indians to challenge for the division next season. Right now, it looks a trade may be a better avenue than to brave the excalating starter bazaar, but Matt Clement is still (as of this moment) unsigned, and maybe that extra $2M will be the difference in convincing him to sign with the Indians.

The same paper that started the first rumors now say that a deal is close between the Indians and Pirates. Apparently the Pirates requested medical documents on Lawton, which I gather means both clubs are serious about a deal. As it looks now, it’s Lawton (and maybe some cash) to the Pirates for Arthur Rhodes. From a talent perspecive, the Indians lose this trade; Lawton, although overpaid, is still a useful player, and was one of the better leadoff hitters in the AL last year. If the Indians use the cash savings to keep Belliard AND land a pitcher like David Wells or Matt Clement, then I say the trade was worthwhile. But if the Indians dump Lawton, keep Belliard, and call it an offseason, it’s a bad deal. Given that the trade may happen soon, the Indians may be able to up their offer to Clement or Wells before either pitcher signs with another team.

The Boston Herald says the Indians offered David Wells a one-year deal worth $6M. The Red Sox are also involved, but they have larger fish to fry, most notably Pedro Martinez. I really wouldn’t mind landing Wells, given the current market. Russ Ortiz received about $8M a year from the Diamondbacks yesterday, which defies explanation. I think Clement is a better pitcher, and with more teams getting involved, most notably the Angels, who knows what he’ll be getting? The middle-tier pitching market has simply gone insane, in my opinion.

Sheldon Ocker also thinks that Shapiro has started to explore the trade route for pitching. Obviously Tim Hudson should be priority #1, but there could be other possibilities. He mentions the Phillies and Coco Crisp, but I would think that Philadelphia isn’t really looking for a center fielder after trading for Kenny Lofton last week. But San Diego, San Francisco, and Houston all are in need of one, so there’s one possibility. Belliard should also be in demand, and I would think teams like Oakland, Houston and St. Louis have discussed deals for Belliard. Obviously I like the Oakland angle best of all, but it doesn’t look like the Indians are among the front-runners for Hudson.

The rules seem to have changed in midstream. Now Shapiro has to get creative in order to get his goals accomplished.

Before the offseason started, if you had told me that mediocrities like Eric Milton and Kris Benson would be getting deals over the $20M mark, I wouldn’t have believed you. But that’s what has been happening. Ever since the Mets overpaid Benson, the remaining starters have been demanding at least that much, to this point have been getting it. I think we’re seeing a return to the spendthrift days of 2000 and 2001, when the middle class of free agents got very lucrative deals. Unfortunately this leaves the Indians, who didn’t have that much to spend in the first place, out in the cold. Here’s a couple points that I hope separates the overreactions from the rationality:

-Shapiro screwed up on Jon Lieber. I don’t know why Lieber decided to go to Philadelphia (maybe the schools were better), but the Indians dropped the ball by not being aggressive enough with him. If they had made their best offer and he decided to go elsewhere, that’s fine. But when Shapiro complained about Lieber’s agent not calling him back, that struck me as very odd. Chris Antonetti, who apparently was handling the Lieber negotiations, said in yesterday’s PD that “We anticipated getting a chance to make a final offer,” Antonetti said. “We made a significant three-year offer and expressed there was flexibility in it.” Given that the Phillies eventually landed Lieber for $7M/year, the final offer should have at least made Lieber’s decision more difficult. But now we’ll never know.

-It makes no sense to overspend on lesser pitching just because you missed out on your main target. That’s hard to swallow, but you can’t throw money at Kevin Millwood or Odalis Perez just to say you signed a pitcher to big deal. I think whoever signs either of these pitchers will regret the contract in two or three years. I’d rather go after David Wells on a one-year deal than give Millwood a three-year contract. Wells, for all his baggage (literally and figuratively) is still a good pitcher, and would be a nice fit as the #3 pitcher.

-Be willing to make a trade. There are some possibilities on the trade market, with Tim Hudson the biggest jewel. I’d be willing to deal Ronnie Belliard, Jake Westbrook, and a prospect for Tim Hudson. Westbrook has probably had his best season as a pitcher, and one of Oakland’s needs this season is a second baseman. The monetary aspects would still work out, and the Indians could then go after a lesser free agent pitcher to fill out the rotation. The Astros now are also in need of a second baseman, after Jeff Kent signed with the Dodgers. Wade Miller has been given a clean bill of health, but he’s a free agent after this season, so he may be pried loose for the right deal. Shapiro has said that he’d rather not explore the trade route just yet, but I think a trade may be a much easier way to get a good pitcher right now. The Indians have a ton of trading chips at their disposal, and if the free agent market doesn’t work out (and it’s looking that way), they may have to go this route. I’m of the opinion that you keep your best, and trade the rest. The Indians shouldn’t be trading guys like Miller or Aubrey, but if trading Jake Dittler can help you get Tim Hudson, you have to least think about it.

-Above all, make the right move, not the most visible move. As I’ve said before, all I care is that Shapiro make the best move he can with the resources he has. It’s not really his fault that the payroll is so low. As much as we wish Dolan to be out-spending Arte Moreno and George Steinbrenner, it isn’t happening. By my understanding, the Indians have about $7M to spend on free agents this winter; Shapiro’s job is to maximize the value of the $7M, and that means getting the best player(s) he can with it.

After thinking about the Lawton-for-Rhodes deal for a couple days, I’m beginning to sour on it. Yeah, the Indians save about $3M this year, but (a) Lawton is the better player right now and (b) who knows if the savings will be spent. If the Pirates want to throw in Josh Fogg along with Rhodes, that might make it more interesting, but for now I’d take a hardline stance on Lawton. With a weak free agent outfield class, perhaps the teams who lose out on JD Drew or Carlos Beltran may be willing to eat Lawton’s entire salary. If the Twins decide to keep Jacque Jones, it may make Lawton even more attractive.

Declined to Offer RP Rick White Arbitration

There’s a shocker. White was a two-week stopgap when the bullpen was melting down early in the season, and somehow managed to work himself into a mopup role towards the end of the year. With White out of the picture, the Indians have officially closed the book on their free agents. Lou Merloni and Tim Laker were outrighted before the free agency period began, so although they are free to sign with whomever, they weren’t eligible for the arbitration process. Note that the December 7th arbitration deadline is for free agents (players with 6 or more service years) and not for arbitration-eligibles (players with 2-5 service years). That deadline is coming up in a couple of weeks.

It isn’t looking that good on the starter front. Ever since Kris Benson’s 3-year, $22.5M contract set the market, salary demands of the 1st and 2nd tier pitchers have been steadily rising. Brad Radke just signed a two-year, $18M contract with the Twins, and Jaret Wright just signed a 3-year deal with the Yankees worth $21M. Lieber and Clement are still unsigned (as of this moment), but their contract demands seem to be $8M/year or more. That’s not too encouraging.

While perusing Google News, I came across this article, mentioning possible trade talks involving the Indians and Pirates. And the Indians are rumored to be trading an outfielder for a left-handed reliever (shudder). But in this case, the Pirates seem to be interested in Matt Lawton, and would be sending the Tribe Arthur “Diamond” Rhodes. Rhodes is due $7M over the next two seasons, and Lawton is getting a little over $7M in 2005. At first glance, it wouldn’t be that bad of a move; the Indians could probably bring back Ronnie Belliard with the savings, and it would pave the way for Casey Blake to move to the outfield. Rhodes would supplant Scott Sauerbeck as the primary lefty out of the pen, and would provide a bit more depth to what was a glaring weakness a year ago.

As a salary dump connoisseur, it’s a pretty appetizing deal. But, as with any legitimate salary swap, the cash usually makes the deal. Are the Pirates willing to eat Lawton’s entire 2005 salary, or will the Indians have to chip in a million or two? I guess we should find out over the weekend.

Link

I bring this up for two reasons. One, it cements my belief that bringing back Wickman was the right move. And two, it means the Indians lose out on the Giants’ draft pick bonanza.

Point one. While I like Benitez, and he was the best closer by far on the market, spending $21M on him isn’t what I’d call a good investment. He’s probably a better bet than Troy Percival to be worth what he’s getting, but after seeing what happened with past reliever contracts, I just don’t think spending that much on a closer is a good outlay of money. Especially in a situation where you have a fixed amount of money to spend. I’d rather spend $21M on a starter than a closer if I had the choice.

Point two. The Indians won’t have the Giants’ first round pick; that will be going to Florida because of Benitez’s higher Elias ranking. If the Giants sign another Type A free agent (Steve Finley is a possibility), the pick the Indians receive could be even lower. It’s obvious the Giants really don’t care about high draft picks, and judging by the amount of cash they’re shelling out, are trying to win right now. One of my interests as far as baseball is concerned is a team’s “big picture” strategy, and what Brian Sabean is doing is pretty fascinating. He knows he has at best 2-3 years left of Barry Bonds’ career, and he is literally going for broke in order to win a championship before Bonds retires. And that means funneling virtually all the teams’ money, including draft pick bonuses, into the free agent pool. While I think this strategy is going to land the Giants in a huge mess in 2007 or so, I don’t think Sabean really cares about that. Not while Bonds is still playing. Maybe during the winter I’ll look into the method to his madness a bit further, but for now, the Indians simply lose their first round draft pick.

A Couple Interesting Signings

Invited RHP Steve Watkins to Spring Training

Signed SS Erick Almonte and OF John Rodriguez to minor-league contracts; Invited them to Spring Training

You’ve probably heard of Almonte; when Derek Jeter went down in 2003, Almonte got some playing time in New York. But after Jeter returned, Almonte was shuttled back to Columbus. After the 2003 season, he signed with the Colorado Rockies and played the entire 2004 season in Colorado Springs, where he hit .318/.402/.507. Keep in mind, though, that those offensive numbers are inflated because of the altitude, but his K/BB ratio was 87/64, which is outstanding. Right now, Almonte is probably going to be that third shortstop in camp, along with Peralta and Phillips, and may be kept around as a utility infielder, depending on how Phillips performs. If not, then he’ll go down to Buffalo as an insurance policy.

John Rodriguez is another former Yankee farmhand who also had his best profession season in 2004. With Columbus he hit .294/.382/.542, with 26 doubles and 16 home runs in 378 at-bats. There was no way he was going to see Yankee Stadium, so maybe he’s doing the next best thing by playing somewhat closer to home in Buffalo. He can play center field, so that’s likely where he’ll play with the Bisons now that Jason Tyner has moved on.

Moving on with my quasi-weekly player reviews:

OF Ryan Ludwick – Age 26
2004 Salary: ~$300,000
2004 EQA: .221 (50 AB)
Contract Status: Renewable (AE in 2006)

Injuries have put Ludwick’s career on hold. After coming over from the Rangers for Ricardo Rodriguez, Ludwick injured his right knee towards the end of the 2003 season, and wasn’t much of a factor in 2004. As things stand right now, he’s the fourth outfielder, and barring a breakout season, looks to stay that way. I like his power a lot, but with Coco Crisp and Grady Sizemore ahead of him on the depth chart, he may not get much playing time, and I’m not even considering Jody Gerut. If the Indians can deal Matt Lawton, he may get more playing time, but if Lawton is dealt, Casey Blake would probably be heading to the outfield. So it looks like Ludwick is stuck in a numbers game, or at best, stuck as a platoon outfielder in 2005.

RHRP Matt Miller – Age 32
2004 Salary: ~$300,000
2004 VORP: 16.6
Contract Status: Renewable (AE in 2006)

Miller, like Betancourt before him, was plucked out of minor-league free agency and became an effective reliever in the Indians’ bullpen. The sidearmer struck out an impressive 55 batters in 55.1 IP, and allowed only 42 hits. Like most gimmick pitchers, there’s a real possibility teams will figure Matt out eventually, but until they do, Miller should serve nicely a right-handed matchup guy; right-handers hit a paltry .201 against him.

SS Jhonny Peralta – Age 22
2004 Salary: ~$300,000
Contract Status: Renewable (AE in 2006)

Most likely the next Indians shortstop. Yes, Mark Shapiro is saying publicly that Peralta and Phillips are going to compete for the job, but I think that’s mainly to cover all his bases. Peralta had a far better year than Phillips at Buffalo, posting a major-league equivalent of .256 with the Bisons. Peralta also took home the International League MVP, which is a nice accomplishment considering the he was one of the younger players in AAA. Peralta’s most exciting aspect is his power, although it may take a year or two to manifest itself completely. Peralta is certainly not Vizquel’s equal defensively, but by the same token shouldn’t embarrass himself. While he may eventually move to third, he should be a nice major-league shortsop for the next 3-4 years.

SS Brandon Phillips – Age 23
2004 Salary: ~$300,000
Contract Status: Renewable (AE in 2006)

He recovered somewhat after his [place adjective here] 2003 campaign, in which he hit .208/.242/.311. Just looking at those numbers give me goosebumps; never mind remembering him hit that season. Right now Phillips, assuming he doesn’t beat out Peralta at shortstop, is headed back to Buffalo or will stick in Cleveland as a utility infielder. I’m hoping he doesn’t turn into Enrique Wilson v. 2.0, but that’s what it’s looking like right now. With second base an unsettled issue, Phillips may get another chance in 2006, but not likely this upcoming season; If Belliard doesn’t return, Casey Blake will play there. Coco Crisp opened a lot of eyes after an initial poor showing, and Brandon is definitely young enough to make a nice career for himself. But he has a lot to prove in order to get another chance.