By Madhuri Dey
Dec. 09, (THAINDIAN NEWS) National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies have reportedly decided to engage Ross Gload for the time being. They have signed a two year contract with the free agent. Ross Gload plays as an outfielder and also as a first baseman. The others in the race to sign up Ross Gload were Florida and Atlanta, from the East Division. With Ross Gload, the total count of the freelancers signed by the Philadelphia Phillies goes up to four, the other three being Placido Polanko, a third baseman, Juan Castro, the infielder and Brian Schneider, catcher.

The Marlins had also reportedly offered Ross Gload a two year contract, and a sum of 1.9 million dollars. Ross Gload had in fact been signed by the Marlins in the last season, but he did not renew the contract in this. It is not surprising that the Marlins wanted to keep Ross Gload on the roster, as he was easily the best first defensive baseman in the team. He had also shown remarkable aptitude as a pinch hitter.

The run for having Ross Gload on the team can be easily comprehended if one takes a look at his performances. He left the Marlins last season with 21 hits as first baseman. With his entry, the Philadelphia Phillies are bidding goodbye to Matt Stairs, the pinch hitter for the team so far. Though the members of the team has not mentioned it in so many words, it may be possible that the relatively poor performance of the player may have affected the decision. His performance has not been up to the mark, not only in this season, but also in the whole of last year.