One of the most maligned Phillies during this season has been Raul Ibanez, and justifiably so. In the first half of the season, Ibanez looked feeble at the plate. His mechanics were poor, his swing had little speed, and he just wasn’t driving the ball like he had in the past.
Ibanez was barely hitting above .240 during the first half of the season, and had driven in just 39 RBIs with 7 homeruns.
However, since the All-Star Break, Ibanez has begun to figure things out and looks to be coming around. He has hit .393 since the break, with 3 homeruns and 14 RBIs. His average for the season has crept up to a more respectable average of .269.
He has been consistently giving the team patient at bats. He isn’t chasing bad pitches outside of the strike zone nearly as often as he had been doing for most of the year. Ibanez has a hitting streak of 10 games, 4 of those games have been multi-hit games. Ibanez has also walked at least once in 8 of the last 10 games.
What Ibanez is doing right now is what the Phillies will need him to do to help this team contend. They don’t need him to be the wonder he was in the first half of 2009 that hit over .350 with 22 homeruns in the first half of the season. They need him to be someone who isn’t an easy out, who works counts well, gets on base frequently, and is a respectable threat to drive in runs.
Ibanez’s rejuvenation has been an important factor in the Phillies winning 11 of their last 13 games, and will be an important factor in helping the Phillies to continue to enjoy success until Ryan Howard and Chase Utley return from the disabled list.
He’s been out of it for about 3 weeks now as has Werth’s bat..
Polanco,Howard and Ruiz have been consistent all season… Its Rollins,Victorino and Utley who all need to start hitting consistently when they return, then they will really be hot…
Ruiz is clutch. I wonder what his average is with runners in scoring position.
Ruiz is the Heart & Soul of this 2010 Phillies Team