Who Is the Real Raul Ibanez?

While pitching would seem to be the most pressing issue for the Phillies, the offense is by no means without issues of its own. Ruben Amaro deserves credit for hitting the ground running in search of a new third baseman with a more potent bat than Pedro Feliz. One problem with the hitting has been its inconsistency and strengthening the bottom of the lineup would surely alleviate this.

But there is another potential soft spot in the starting lineup which, at least to date, has not been much discussed - Raul Ibanez. Ibanez' 2009 season was a tale of extremes. In the first half of the season, he looked like the re-incarnation of Ted Williams. He was among the league leaders in batting average, home runs, and rbi's - a triple crown threat. He was talked about - no, he was probably the prohibitive favorite in the MVP race. And he was playing solid, if not spectacular, defense in left field. Never was a popular player like Pat Burrell forgotten so quickly.

But after the All-Star break, Ibanez' numbers went into a nose dive. He hit .232 with 67 strikeouts, 12 homers and 33 rbi's vs. .309, 51 k's, 22 hr and 60 rbi's before the break. Initially, the fall-off was attributed to missing several weeks with a leg injury and never regaining stride. This is certainly plausible although he actually hit quite well immediately upon his return.

Then late in the season, it was reported that Ibanez was hampered by a stomach injury which was subsequently treated with post-season surgery. So it may well be that the left fielder's production was seriously impacted by these physical ailments and that next year a fit Ibanez will return to his early 2009 form.

But will he? His pre-Phillie career gave no hint of what he delivered last April, May and June. He had been a career .290 hitter with moderate power numbers. To what extent was he just playing over his head, or perhaps National League pitchers just hadn't figured him out. Moreover, he will be 38 next year. Will he play like his age, or will his age make him more susceptible to injury?

Ibanez deserves the opportunity to show what he can do in 2010, but he should not be an untouchable either, despite his 10 million dollar-a-year salary. At the very least, after, say, the first two months, if he is not producing consistently in the 5 or 6 spot, Charlie Manuel should consider platooning him in left field, even if it means using another lefty swinger such as Greg Dobbs on occasion. In any case, Manuel needs to find a way to get Dobbs more at-bats.