Holiday this year, with 23 games left, and a stint on the 15 day DL
2008 – .332/157hits/24hr/78rbi/97runs/25sb in 473 plate appearances.

Now explain to me how he is not the same player he has been in previous years. Besides a considerable drop in rbis, which could be contributed to a lack of a lead-off hitter that gets on base, and a consistent two-hole hitter in front of him, where are his stats any different?

Look, anybody who thinks Howard is a better hitter than Holiday is misguided and delusional. Is Howard is a better homerun/rbi guy – yes, but a better hitter, no.

To address something else – yes, a strikeout is just an out, as far as scoring a game goes. A strikeout is just an out when there is nobody on base. A strikeout means more than just an out when you have a runner on second with less that 2 outs, or a runner on third with less that 2 outs, etc. Howard doesn’t just strikeout in most situations, he cripples this team when he strikes out with runners on in key situations. He is the ultimate rally killer. He kills us in the field. All people want to see is the 450 foot shots he puts into left center field, and the hollow homerun/rbi stats, and they don’t want to look at these huge strikeout and errors in the field. Howard is Chris Webber on MLB – he puts up big numbers, but when it comes down to it, I don’t want Howard at the plate when the game is on the line(even though Howard has a lot of game winning homeruns), because I know that it will either be a homerun or strikeout, and he strikes out 5 times more often than he hits homeruns.

Holiday would be just what this lineup could use over a guy like Howard, because he knows how to hit with runners on and makes the best of his rbi situations without having to hit a homerun.

DId you also forget that his splits away from home are significantly lower in every aspect and that is why no other team gave him serious pursuit in the trade market.

Holiday would not replace Howard’s number and he is frankly not worth the money. Instead we should try to pick up Sheets or CC, resign Pat for like $14 and hope Howard learns how to hit with the shift on

Comparing Ryan Howard to Mike Schmidt is laughable. First off, Schmidt was a multiple Gold Glove winner. Not the same with stone hands Howard. Second, strikeouts. Much was made of Schmidt’s strikeouts, but for his career he averaged 104 per season. Howard’s astronomical rate is at 199 per season and rising. Additionally, Schmidt was Mr Clutch unlike Howard who went we really need him, i.e. the last ten games is batting .179 with 12 strikeouts in 39 ABs. The only areas Howard is like Schmidt is in HRs and RBIs and I wonder how many Howard would have hit in the canyons Schmidt had to hit in. Places like the Vet, Three Rivers, Candlestick, Riverfront and Olympic Stadium were nothing like the shoeboxes players hit in today. Unlike Schmidt, homeruns and RBIs are the only things Howard brings to the table.

The “trading Howard, getting Matt Holliday, re-signing Burrell to play first base” is interesting, but I doubt it would happen. I see the Phillies keeping Howard for at least one more season so they can try to sell high on him. Also if we would only get one year of Holliday. Who would play LF after 09 in that senario? We re-sign Holliday? We move Pat back to LF and get a first baseman?

I am glad to hear that the Phillies are talking about bringing Burrell back, since earlier I heard reports theat they were seriously going to lowball him and there would be little chance of him coming back if they did.