Brandon Phillips just broke every defensive metric with this insane play

Your browser does not support iframes.Cincinnati Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips has always been regarded as an excellent defensive player. He not only passes the eye test, but he’s also rated as one of the best defensive second basemen in the game according to the advanced metrics.

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Those metrics might not matter any longer, though, because Phillips may have completely broken all of them Monday against the Chicago Cubs. With men on first and second, and the Reds up by one, Jorge Soler hit a grounder directly behind second base. Phillips … well … just watch the play again, because it’s impossible to describe it properly with words.

Phillips ranged to his right, making a diving stop behind second base. With his back to second base, Phillips casually flipped the ball behind his back to shortstop Eugenio Saurez, who stepped on second for the force out. It was an incredible play, and took an immense amount of focus from Phillips to know where everyone was during the action.

The play proved to be crucial. It got the Reds out of a tight spot, and the team won by just one run. Had Phillips not made that play, the bases could have been loaded for the next batter. If the ball had gotten through, we’re looking at a tie game.

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This is, not surprisingly, not the first time Phillips has done something like this. In fact, he had a similar behind-the-back toss earlier this season.

Now what do we do? The metrics have been broken. The nerds have been defeated. Brandon Phillips reigns over the right side of the infield and there’s nothing you can do about it. “Guess I’ll have to watch a game,” says the demoralized blogger living in his mother’s basement.

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