The Phillies should play Pat Burrell at DH for tonight’s game in Tampa Bay…… not because he is a defensive liability in left field, because I don’t believe he is, but because we need his bat in the late stages of these important games.
Let’s look back at Game 1. The Phillies have a 3-2 lead in the top of the ninth inning, trying to get some insurance runs. Jayson Werth in on 2nd base, and Chase Utley is on 1st. They pull off a double steal to put them each at 3rd and 2nd base. Unfortunately, Eric Bruntlett is at the plate in this big situation, as he came in the game in the 7th inning for Pat Burrell, for defensive purposes. The whole point of the DH is to have an offensive lineup with minimal defensive liabilities. If the Phillies feel as if Burrell is a defensive liability in the latter stages of a game, then put him at DH. This will allow him to stay in the entire game, focus on hitting, and we don’t have to worry about having Bruntlett at the plate in a big situation, like Game 1. We need all the Burrell at-bat’s we can get in this series, and we don’t want a close game, or an extra inning game where Burrell is on the bench because he was taken out. If anybody deserves to be in the game the entire game, it is Burrell, who has come up big this season, and is the longest tenured Phillie.
Greg Dobbs is an able left-fielder, and has started games in left field, so he is no more a liability than Eric Bruntlett out there. Let's be honest here, if you can run and throw, you can play left field. I'm not trying to say it is easy to play the position, but Dobbs can do the job. Dobbs should be in left field, with Burrell as the DH in Game 2 if the Phillies want to maximize their offensive lineup the entire game.
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