'Boo' Phillips enjoyed return to St. Louis

ST. LOUIS -- Cardinals fans haven't forgotten about their dislike of Brandon Phillips from his many years with the Reds. And in case they'd forgotten, the third baseman, now with the Braves, gave them more reasons to boo him this weekend.
"Oh yeah, it's nice for 'Boo Phillips' to come back to St. Louis, man," Phillips said on Sunday after the Braves' 6-3 win at Busch Stadium. "I mean, that's the name they really gave me. I love playing here. The fans here are great. They really look out for their team. It's a great baseball town, and I love coming here to play."
Phillips homered on Saturday, and his two-run shot on Sunday off Cardinals starter Michael Wacha gave the Braves a 4-0 lead and hastened Wacha's exit.
"I just went up there just trying to put a good swing on the ball and just try and do something for the team," he said. "We've been losing a lot of games lately, and I just try to go up there and just do my job and just play the game the best way I know how."
In the 25 games since the All-Star break, the 36-year-old Phillips is hitting .309 with seven doubles, one triple, three home runs and 14 RBIs.
His two homers against the Cardinals were his ninth and 10th of the season, putting him in double digits for the 11th time in 12 years.
"He had a really good series," manager Brian Snitker said. "He's just been playing really, really good. I'm just amazed at how good he plays third base. He's a really good infielder, but just to go over there and having never played it, how good he's done has been phenomenal."
Before his recent switch from second base -- to make room for Ozzie Albies -- Phillips last played third back in 2001, in one game for Double-A Harrisburg. He's now played 10 games at the hot corner and has yet to commit an error.

His defense was on display in St. Louis, but it was his bat that got the Cardinals' fans attention during his memorable three-day return to the Gateway City.
"He evidently has done really well here," Snitker said. "He's left a good impact in the division and played a lot of games here. I'm sure he's had some good series here. Chipper [Jones] used to get that in New York."
Phillips enjoyed the reception from the fans.
"I love playing here, and I love when they boo me," Phillips said. "It just makes me step up my game a little more. Before they started booing me, I didn't play that good in St. Louis, but ever since that first day they started booing me, that's when I started playing good here. That's something the fans need to know, but I love it."