Better Player: Trot Nixon or JD Drew?

[connerhenry43]

Some of my friends recently have had this debate. who is  a better player, JD Drew or Trot Nixon? To me, it is a very interesting topic. JD by the numbers is the better player, but most red sox fans would pick Nixon because of his passion and hustle. it kinda boils down to the old school way of looking at things vs the new way with all the sabermetrics.

to me, it is JD drew, even though i love trot. JD drew has put up excellent numbers in boston, played a near flawless right field, and hit one of the most clutch HR's of my life (game 6 vs Cleveland, grand slam). Despite all this, boston has never warmed up to him because of his stoic demeanor. Trot was great, had many huge hits including the two run double in the WS clincher in 2004.

would love to hear other thoughts on this issue.

[Toine43]

I'm a big JD buy so I obviously will go with JD. What sets Drew apart for me (because I think of both as pretty clutch players) is his ability to get on base, coupled with his great fielding. He's got one of the best right field arms in the league, strong and accurate, gets good jumps on everything, plays awkward liners well, and plays smart. Despite the myth that he's a wimp and doesn't care, he IS willing to dive for balls, and runs all grounders out. JD is what he is as a batter. I can see why his approach frustrates people, but the fact is he does what he has to do, "not commit outs" (as Theo would say).

It's also interesting, when you think about it, how people associate JD being soft with him missing games, when Mr. Dirt Dog Trot missed a ton of games with injuries.

[celticsclay]

I am not a big JD Drew fan, and I also really don't like his contract. So if we are talking bang for buck it would definitely be Trot. However, if we are just talking overall as a player, I think you probably have to give the nod to JD just cause he has had a longer more successful career. I was really disappointed with how quickly Trots Career flamed out. He was out of Boston by about 32 and out of the league by 34. By comparison I am pretty sure JD is 34 now or turns that this season. Trot also really only put together three complete seasons. Between us and other teams Drew has put together more and looks to be putting together one this season.

[Prof. Clutch]

Trotty has been one of my all time favorite Red Sox ever, and interestingly enough he was the first Red Sox jersey that I purchased.  Out of pure nostalgia I gotta go with the original number 7.

[Bahku]

Dustin Pedroia.