RELATED: The details of the trade
The story begins and ends with his club not wanting him around anymore. Hopefully the next chapter turns out, at least in some relative way, as well for him.
The Reds got little in return for their 35-year-old second baseman – and yet it still surpassed what they gave up to acquire him from Cleveland in 2006. At least this time they got two pitchers who will probably never be heard from again instead of the solitary hurler who ended up going to the Indians 11 years ago.
HAL MCCOY: Move a matter of opportunity
With his embrace of social media, constant hunting of highlight plays and willingness to grind through almost any physical ailment, Phillips became an interesting mix of what Reds fans tend to love and hate -- wearing a 1,000-watt smile in public all the way.
Yes, that tendency to play hurt and to hit anywhere in the lineup even at the detriment of his numbers earned him the right to go for extra mustard from time to time.
So did openly talking about wanting to be this generation’s Barry Larkin, the Hall of Fame shortstop who spent his whole career with the Reds, and backing it up with loyalty to the club through the rise and fall of its World Series hopes.
🏀 #cincinnati #salute
If his flair rubbed a few fans the wrong way, what about being caught on mic during an All-Star Game bragging about one of his teammates going from first to third on a single? There’s nothing much more Cincinnati baseball is that.
The National League’s first 30/30 second baseman, he won four Gold Gloves, one Silver Slugger and made three All-Star appearances while going out of his way to court fans to the team and promote himself and the club off the field.
And Brandon Phillips picked a heck of a time to be a Cincinnati Red.
When he joined the team, the Reds’ center fielder was Ken Griffey Jr., Adam Dunn was in left field and the third baseman was a young prospect named Edwin Encarnacion.
In Phillips’ last game as a Red, Adam Duvall and Scott Schebler were in the outfield with Eugenio Suarez at third. The starting pitcher was Robert Stephenson, one of the club’s hopeful future stars.
In between, Johnny Cueto, Aroldis Chapman, Jay Bruce, Todd Frazier, Mike Leake all came and went.
PHOTOS: Brandon Phillips’ career in pictures
They won two division titles and a wild card but never broke through on the big stage.
He beat Joey Votto and Homer Bailey to Cincinnati by a little more than a year. They’re still around, but a new era is unquestionably underway.
It’s a shame the Reds never got over the hump with Phillips in the lineup, but his work on and off the field cultivating the team’s presence in the consciousness of a new generation of fans can’t be overlooked.
He juiced up a franchise in desperate need of hype during a 14-year postseason drought, and just maybe he leaves it in better long-term shape than when he arrived.
Fare thee well, DatDudeBP.
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