Cincinnati Reds star Brandon Phillips is an entertainer. Whether its playing a Gold Glove-caliber second base, smacking 18 home runs or flying around the basepaths, BP knows how to have fun.
I caught up with him at an MLB 14 The Show event on Tuesday in Scottsdale, Ariz. We discussed the game, the sport and a host of other things.
Cincinnati Reds Talk captured this cool image from Phillips’ Instagram just before our interview:
We all got an opportunity to play the game a bit. Both the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 versions look awesome. In fact, the build of the PS4 version we played was still updating. It looked even better on Wednesday than it did on Tuesday.
Baseball gamers are anxiously awaiting its full release. The PS3 version drops on April 1, and the PS4 version will be available on May 6.
BP wants everyone to know he’s a force in the game. I promised him I’d draft him onto my Chicago Cubs team during my fantasy season on the game.
It shouldn’t be a bad move, considering he hit .261 with 18 home runs and 103 RBI in 2013. It was the fourth consecutive season he hit 18 homers.
Phillips needs just 37 home runs to join some elite company at his position. If he hits that mark, he’ll become just the 11th player to hit 200 homers as a second baseman.
As of now, there’s only nine, but the Seattle Mariners‘ Robinson Cano needs just four to join the 200 club for second basemen. It seems a safe bet he’ll reach that number within the first two months of the season—at least.
Believe it or not, Phillips has been in the league for 12 years. He’s played his entire career in the state of Ohio, having spent the first four seasons in the Cleveland Indians organization.
As a veteran, I picked Phillips’ brain about some of the up-and-coming second basemen in the league, as well as gathered his thoughts on the Los Angeles Angels‘ Mike Trout, arguably the best player in the majors today.
Take a look at the interview and keep an eye out for more information on the release of MLB 14 The Show.
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