Power Hitting(Red Sox) Or Power Pitching(Phillies):Which Will Win It All?

Red Sox vs Phillies in World Series 11? 

The Red Sox and Phillies have become the favorites to win world series because of their off season moves and already being good before. I believe this would be a good world series because both clubs have good pitching and good hitting. Now lets compare the two teams

RF. Red Sox: J.D. Drew vs Phillies: Ben Francisco/Domonic Brown? Drew last year batted.255 with 22 home runs and 68RBI in 139 games and seems to be slowing down as he is getting older. Phillies lost  their starting RF Jason Werth to a luxurious contract with Washington. The Phillies took a hit at this position  because Werth was a good fielder and had a good bat. Last year Francisco batted .268 with 6home runs, 28RBI, in only 88 games but did have a couple of good season with Cleveland not to long along with 15 home runs both years.  Brown is one of Philly's top prospect who had limited action last year. Winner of this match up is Boston Red Sox

  CF. Red Sox: Jacoby Ellsbury vs Phillies: Shane Victorino. Last year was a tough year for Ellsbury as he only played 18 games because of injuries. But he is still a good hitter that batted .301, 8 home runs, 60RBI, and 70SB last year. Shane avg slipped from .292 to .259 but his home run total (18), stolen bases (34), and RBI(69) all improved from the past year.  Shane is also a good defender as he has 3 gold gloves to prove it. Both center fielders are good but I give Jacoby a slight lead over Victorino. 

LF. Redsox: Carl Crawford vs Phillies: Raul Ibanez. This is not a close battle because Crawford is one the top outfielders in MLB and Raul is old.  I'm not taking anything away from Raul but after that good 2009 season his home run total dropped from 34 to 16 in just one season. While Crawford is at the top of his career with his best season.

  1B. Red Sox: Adrian Gonzalez vs Phillies: Ryan Howard. Both of these players are All Stars which makes it harder to say who is better.  Agonz batted .298, with 31 home runs, 101RBI. That are Great numbers when you consider that 81 of the games he played where in pitcher friendly park of Petco Park and his number are most likely going to be better at Fenway with the short left field fence(pesky pole) and Green Monster.  Plus Agonz is also a 2 time gold glove winner. Ryan Howard numbers are similar to Agonz as he hit .276 with 31 home runs, and 108 RBI.  Those numbers are not bad but Howard did take a big hit. He went from 45 home runs to 31, and 141RBI to 108.  He did miss 19 games. Good news was that his strike total had dropped from previous years. He still had a lot but last 3 years: 199,187,157.  I believe Howard will bounce back from a little power slump and will hit in the 40’s and with 120 plus RBI. Agonz is an above average defender winning the gold glove in 2008 but I give the slight edge to Ryan Howard as I feel he is a bigger threat on offense and more important to his team.

2B. Red Sox: Dustin Pedoria vs Phillies: Chase Utley.  Both of these players are key to their teams’ success and it was showed last year why they are. Both players missed several games due to injury. Red Sox missed the playoffs and Phillies started off slow but when they got Utley back, they became the team everyone expected they would be. In my own opinion I believe these two 2B are in the top 5 at that position.  DP, only played in 75 games last year and had a terrific start to the season but a broken foot shorten his season and he slowed down till he was officially was told he was out for rest of season.  So far in his career you can expect Pedroia to hit around .290-.330, with 10-15 home runs, and have few strikeouts, as he is a solid contact hitter.  Utley on the other hand is one of the top feared hitters in baseball even though he is a 2B.  He can hit for power, a high average, and 100 plus RBI.  He is also a good defender(should of won Gold Glove in 2008).  Winner Chase Utley of Phillies.

 SS. Red Sox: Marco Scutaro vs Phillies: Jimmy Rollins. I feel after two close competitions in a row, this one is a easy decision. Marco Scutaro is not as good as Jimmy.  Marco is a okay hitter that hits in .270s and around home runs, but he does not have the base stealing skill. Rollins is one of the best short stops in the game as he is a excellent fielder that can hit for some what power and could get 80 plus RBI and good base stealing skills. This was a easy decision and the winner is Jimmy Rollins.

  3B. Redsox: Kevin Youkilis vs Phillies: Placido Polanco.  Kevin Youkilis, has been solid player for the past five years.  He can hit for a solid average in the .300s, with good power that can hit 30 home runs when he can stay healthy for almost the whole season, he gets the clutch RBI, and is solid at defense either it is at 1B or 3B. Polanco has had a good career as being a hitter with batting average of .303 for his career.  He is not a home run hitter or he does not steal a lot of bases but he does not strike out a lot because he is a solid contact hitter.  He has also won 2 gold gloves in 2007 and 2009.  Winner is Kevin Youkilis

 C. Red Sox: Salty/Varitek vs Phillies: Ruiz/Schneider.  The Red Sox took a big hit when they lost one of the top offensive catchers, Victor Martinez to the Tigers. He was a solid hitter that could hit .300plus and 20 home runs but he was not close to being a gold glover.  The Red Sox lost out on Russell Martin to their hated rivals Yankees. Catcher is the weakest spot for the Red Sox because Salty has not lived up to the hype when he was a rookie with the Braves and Varitek has lost a step past few years and is declining. Phillies on the other hand have a solid catcher and a decent backup in  Schneider. Last year Ruiz hit .30 with 8 home runs and 53 RBI for his best year. Last year, Ruiz caught both of Halladay’s no hitters. Winner Ruiz

  SP: Redsox vs Phillies.  Red Sox have one of the top starting rotation in baseball with Beckett, Lester, Lackey,Buchholz, and Dice K.  Beckett is a solid number one starter even though he struggled last year like he always does on even years.  I bet he will bounce back this year and be solid as he always is on odd years.  Lester has been getting better each year.Buchholz had a excellent year and will improve. Lackey struggled a bit but I bet he bounces back. Dice K has not been good past two years but who knows he could bounce back. Phillies have the best pitching in baseball and anyone who says they don’t, they don’t know baseball. Not everyday you have three CY winning starters in your rotation with another possible number one pitcher as well. Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt, Cole Hamels, and Joe Blanton make possible top 10 greatest ever rotation in the history of baseball. Winner Phillies

Bullpen. Red Sox vs Phillies. I say Red Sox have the better bullpen as they added Bobby Jenks and Dan Wheeler to already decent bullpen of Papelbon,Bard, and Okajima.

Bench: Red Sox vs Phillies. I give the win to the Red Sox because they have David Ortiz who is there DH, Mike Cameron, and a young Jed Lowrie who could replace Marco.

 Winner of World Series: Philadelphia Phillies

I say they win because of the great rotation they have and still have a solid everyday lineup. The Red Sox will put up a good fight but the pitching of the Phillies will win it for them. I believe good pitching beats good hitting.  For example 2010 World Series Champion San Francisco Giants.