03/10: YB Community Projection: Andy Phillips & Bernie Williams
Posted by: James
Andy Phillips - Infielder
Age: 28 (Turns 29 in April).
Three-Year History & splits:
Outlook: Andy Phillips probably should have been in the majors in 2004. Who knows, he could have been a difference-maker in the ALCS and couldn't possibly have been worse than John Olerud and Tony Clark (.167/.231/.417 (14 ABs) and .143/.143/.190 (21 ABs) respectively in the series). That being said, after the "shot" the Yankees gave him last year, it looks like Andy will get some decent playing time this year. Well, it's about time. He's no longer a prospect, has nothing more to prove at AAA and can play three infield positions and outfield in a pinch so this should have been a no-brainer a while ago. Now, all he has to do is hit and looking at minor league numbers, that shouldn't be a huge problem. Of course, all the minor league success in the world cannot guarantee major league success so this will be interesting to watch. The only real question is if he can make enough contact because when he does, he seems to always hit the ball hard (which seems to be a theme - 39% of his minor league hits and of his 6 out of his 8 MLB hits were of the extra base variety). Hopefully, Andy can come through and hit enough to not only be used as a backup for Giambi and A-Rod but also to take as many ABs from Bernie as possible.
Bernie Williams - Outfielder
Age: 36 (Turns 37 in September).
Three-Year History and splits:
Outlook: What can be said about Bernie? He's one of the all-time Yankee greats. However, time and injury have robbed him of his baseball gifts and while signing him to be a backup was a good karma move, it's a bad baseball one. He barely qualifies for the role of backup outfielder on a contender, let alone a full-time DH. Looking at his splits for 2005, there are very few good things to be found. Before the break, he was bad; after the break, he was even worse. Home, away, early in the game or late in the game, there's just not much to get excited about. He did put up decent stats as a DH (.286/.360/.427/.787 in 85 ABs) but that's probably just small sample size. Still, because you can't help but root for the guy, I pray that Bernie shows enough spark this season so that he can end his career on a high note.
Please post your predictions for the following stat line in the comments section:
Age: 28 (Turns 29 in April).
Three-Year History & splits:
| SEASON | Level | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | AAA | 17 | 67 | 7 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 17 | 0 | .209 | .264 | .358 | 622 |
| 2004 | AA | 10 | 42 | 8 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 3 | .357 | .383 | .738 | 1121 |
| 2004 | AAA | 115 | 434 | 83 | 138 | 19 | 6 | 26 | 85 | 51 | 60 | 2 | .318 | .388 | .569 | 957 |
| 2004 | MLB | 5 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .250 | .250 | .625 | 875 |
| 2005 | AAA | 75 | 300 | 60 | 90 | 14 | 1 | 22 | 54 | 36 | 61 | 2 | .300 | .379 | .573 | 952 |
| 2005 | MLB | 27 | 40 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 13 | 0 | .150 | .171 | .325 | 496 |
Outlook: Andy Phillips probably should have been in the majors in 2004. Who knows, he could have been a difference-maker in the ALCS and couldn't possibly have been worse than John Olerud and Tony Clark (.167/.231/.417 (14 ABs) and .143/.143/.190 (21 ABs) respectively in the series). That being said, after the "shot" the Yankees gave him last year, it looks like Andy will get some decent playing time this year. Well, it's about time. He's no longer a prospect, has nothing more to prove at AAA and can play three infield positions and outfield in a pinch so this should have been a no-brainer a while ago. Now, all he has to do is hit and looking at minor league numbers, that shouldn't be a huge problem. Of course, all the minor league success in the world cannot guarantee major league success so this will be interesting to watch. The only real question is if he can make enough contact because when he does, he seems to always hit the ball hard (which seems to be a theme - 39% of his minor league hits and of his 6 out of his 8 MLB hits were of the extra base variety). Hopefully, Andy can come through and hit enough to not only be used as a backup for Giambi and A-Rod but also to take as many ABs from Bernie as possible.
Bernie Williams - Outfielder
Age: 36 (Turns 37 in September).
Three-Year History and splits:
| SEASON | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 119 | 445 | 77 | 117 | 19 | 1 | 15 | 64 | 71 | 61 | 5 | .263 | .367 | .411 | .778 |
| 2004 | 148 | 561 | 105 | 147 | 29 | 1 | 22 | 70 | 85 | 96 | 1 | .262 | .360 | .435 | .795 |
| 2005 | 141 | 485 | 53 | 121 | 19 | 1 | 12 | 64 | 53 | 75 | 1 | .249 | .321 | .367 | .688 |
Outlook: What can be said about Bernie? He's one of the all-time Yankee greats. However, time and injury have robbed him of his baseball gifts and while signing him to be a backup was a good karma move, it's a bad baseball one. He barely qualifies for the role of backup outfielder on a contender, let alone a full-time DH. Looking at his splits for 2005, there are very few good things to be found. Before the break, he was bad; after the break, he was even worse. Home, away, early in the game or late in the game, there's just not much to get excited about. He did put up decent stats as a DH (.286/.360/.427/.787 in 85 ABs) but that's probably just small sample size. Still, because you can't help but root for the guy, I pray that Bernie shows enough spark this season so that he can end his career on a high note.
Please post your predictions for the following stat line in the comments section:
| AB | R | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
|---|
Kyle wrote:
301 AB 65 R 17 HR 65 RBI 4 SB .265 AVG .350 OBP .500 SLG
Bernie Williams
350 AB 60 R 14 HR 70 RBI 8 SB .275 AVG .340 OBP .475 SLG
By the end of the year Phillips should be the primary DH he will get a lot of doubles