Phillips looking for consistency, 2012 option

CINCINNATI For what he conceived as an idea for the betterment of the team, All-StarGold Glove second baseman Brandon Phillips asked Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker to put him in the leadoff spot. Pretty please? Baker said, "Why certainly, Brandon. Glad you asked." And it was instant pudding and just as smooth. It was 12 games ago and the Reds are 8-4 since Baker agreed, while Phillips has hit .434 with three doubles, a triple, a home run, 10 RBIs and 10 runs scored. Asked if he would like to bat leadoff next season, a twinkle flashed through his eyes and he said with a broad smile, "If I'm here, yes, I would love that." If he's here? Phillips not only has become the Face of the Cincinnati Reds, but the Face of the City, the most popular athlete in town and maybe the most popular and recognizable person. But he is a bit perplexed. The Reds hold a 12 million option on Phillips for next season and he says nobody has said word one about his future in Cincinnati. "I've wondered about my extension for a long period of time and nothing is talked about it," he said. "So I don't really know what the future is here for me. But I'd like to spend the rest of my career here and if they want me to hit leadoff, I'll be happy to do it." That, though, is what Phillips believes may be holding him back his versatility in the batting order by batting leadoff or second or fourth. "I feel like the Reds don't really know what type of player I can really be because I've been put in the situation where I'm always moving all over the lineup," he said. "You look at guys on other teams and they stay in one spot and the team knows what kind of player they can be. "Nobody really knows what type of player I can really be," Phillips added. "I wish people could see what I could really do if I stayed at the top of the order, first or second, for the whole year. Then they'd see what I can really do." What they see is what they get and they get a lot from a guy who has batted second 55 times, fourth 55 times and first 12 times. "Right now I'm just showing people how versatile I really am and how I want to win," he said. "I do anything to make the team better." That's why on August 16, Phillips went to Baker with his proposal move him from clean-up to lead-off. "I like the top of the order better than fourth because I feel like I can be myself," he said. "I go up and not worry about driving in runs, just go up and get hits and get on base. Now I'm in position where I can be more successful." Phillips said he could sense Baker wanted something different, was looking for a move to give the team a jolt. "I could tell the look on Dusty's face, 'Man, we got to get something going.' I felt like I'd better go talk to my Pops and tell him, 'Man, let's do what we did last year, put me in the leadoff spot and we took off." Unfortunately, it happened too late this year and Phillips said, "Yeah, people have been telling me that. But I was batting cleanup while Scott Rolen was out and was waiting until he came back, but when he had the surgery and wasn't coming back soon I decided it was time. We couldn't get any worse. Let's just try it out and see what happens." Baker appreciates what his second baseman contributes, especially his Super Glue glove and circus tumbling act defense. "You like guys in the lineup where they are comfortable and that has a lot to do with the way Brandon is hitting," said Baker. "He is one of the few guys on this team who is comfortable anywhere." Says Phillips with a smile, "Not fourth. Anywhere but fourth." On Baker batting leadoff, Baker said, "He knows when to take, knows when to hit the other way and he's learning, getting much better. You can compare him now to when he first got here, he was a free-swinger and a double play candidate. When I first got here he hit into like 26 double plays and he has cut that down big-time (14 this year). "Once you are around for a while and your thought process is correct, then that leads to more success," said Baker. "His baseball aptitude and his baseball IQ is off the chart. He's a smart player and a hard-working player, which makes it even easier to be smart." And if the Reds are smart, they'll not only pick up Phillips' option for 2012, they'll tell him, real soon.