Thursday, October 30, 2008

The New Gold Standard

The Phillies are the new gold standard in town



It was a total of 12 outs stretched over 3 magical innings and it didn't even get that scary by the end.

We were gasping after Rocco Baldelli of all people tied the game up 3-3 in the top of the 7th after the Phils had the lead heading into it.

But, fear not-Pedro Feliz got the game-winning hit when he singled in Eric Bruntlett in the bottom of the 7th.

But, this game was won after Chase Utley pulled off one of the most brilliant plays in World Series history, making it a Philadelphia classic moment. When the ball was hit to him he thought about making the play at first, but made a split-second decision and made the play at home and Bartlett was tagged out by Carlos Ruiz ending the Rays' chances there.

All postseason the Phils have been getting key plays out of their non-stars like Ruiz, Werth, Feliz and Matt Stairs. But, in the moment of truth Chase Utley answered the call and made us a winner once again.

Had he not made that play we're talking a whole new ballgame.

Fast forward to the 9th and Brad Lidge didn't even make it that scary like so many of us expected. Sure, he allowed a double, but other than that he was smoother than a mayonnaise sandwich.

And, the final pitch faded into an eruption of joy from Broad and Pattison all throughout Montgomery and Chester County.

25 Years of Tears is over. A new chapter shall begin.

Maybe Andy Reid and Joe Banner can take a page from Pat Gillick's book and see what it takes to win a title. Because they're as far from the Gold Standard as any team has been in town. The Phils are the new Gold Standard. And, despite a horrible ownership set-up the players, the coaching staff, and front office perservered.

And, boy wasn't it great to see Bud Selig get booed last night? That was the icing on the cake.

I've been waiting for this day for a long time. After work today I can purchase a Phillies flag and put it on my father's grave. Dad, they finally did it!

Parade starts at 12:00 on Friday. Hope to see some of you there.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

FINALLY!

The Curse is over. The Phillies end the drought.



At approximately 10:00 PM, the Phillies did the unthinkable and ended the 25 Years Of Years.

In a game that became an event when it was split into two parts, the Phillies stepped up like they've done all postseason and killed the ghosts of Philadelphia postseasons past.

T Minus 8 Hours

Less than 8 hours until the start of game V, part II



In what has become a circus of a World Series, tonight's game 5, part 2, will be a compelling event for the entire country.

We've already beaten it to death by now about the game that should have never been played and the conditions the players played in, but the game tonight will be as compelling a game as we've ever seen in Philly.

And, it's not just because the curse could be broken. Never before has a playoff game been continued like this. And, the weather conditions will be football-like. Game time temps are expected to be in the 30's and with the crowd down there I must say it will be tough for the Rays to pull this one off.

I'm sure I'm not alone here, but I feel a lot better about this game than I did yesterday. It took a day for it to settle in and was good to take a step back. Maybe it helped the team as well. No doubt they'll be mad as hell that they are forced into this position and look for the Phils to channel that anger and take it out on the Rays.

Look for the Rays to put their stud rookie David Price on the hill tonight. He hasn't been tested too much thus far. He pitched 14 innings in the regular season and had a 1.93 ERA with 12 K's. And, in the postseason he's logged just 4 2/3 innings and allowed 1 earned run, and it came against the Phils in game two.

He's the wildcard in all of this. Rookie pitchers can sometimes go unconscious and pitch lights out. Just remember Francisco Rodriguez's performance in the World Series in 2002. Or, they can be lit up like Rick Ankiel was in the playoffs. And, he never bounced back.

Charlie Manuel will most likely go with Chad Durbin tonight. And, if he struggles immediately (which he has a few times in the playoffs) then he won't hesitate to yank him. Manuel has done a masterful job of managing the pitching staff and bullpen and is further proving that he's a pretty good manager at the Major League level.

Make no mistake about it-the Phils have the upperhand here. They'll have the amazing Phillies fans roaring behind them and they have 12 more at-bats to the Rays' 9.

Game starts at 8:37.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

A Dark Cloud

Monstrous storm rolls in, spoiling Phils' chances to end the drought



Yesterday, I got sucked into the excitement. I was as confident as 95% of you (with the other 5% being your typical negative types) that we'd finally do it. This was our year and last night was our night.

Then, it starts to rain as many of us leave work yesterday and it got heavier. And, it continued to get heavier, and heavier, and heavier.

Then they get into the game and like the Tampa game in 2003 we started out on fire, going up early.

And, the rain got worse and the temperature continued to drop like bank stocks.

Then of course they made Cole Hamels pitch the top of the 6th and the Rays of course tied it up 2-2.

And, leave it to us to be involved in the ONLY suspended game in postseason history. No, not just World Series history, this is the first suspended game in playoff history.

Sure, there was the earthquake game in the 1989 World Series, causing a 10-day disruption in play, but this was a game that should never have happened.

Allow me to quote one of the Phillies players after the game, per Michael Radano's blog on The Courier Post. This is one of the pitchers, who didn't want to be named, but you can probably figure out who said this.

“That (expletive deleted) guy,” one pitcher said as he saw commissioner Bud Selig before walking out the back door of the clubhouse. “I wouldn’t let him supervise one of my (bowel movements). He has no clue. Not one (expletive deleted) clue.”

I'm about 100% certain Brett Myers came up with that gem, and it's a masterpiece of a quote if I've ever seen one.

He's right though. Selig is a complete bufoon and the least respected commissioner of any sport probably in the history of American sports.

Once 6:00 rolled around last night the rain came through this area and got heavier. You could see on the radar something was brewing and it wouldn't let up last night. But, they decided to play.

Now, the Phillies have become victims of the ultimate screw job. The game will resume in the bottom of the 6th inning once weather permits. And, it probably won't happen today or maybe not tomorrow. This forecast looks nasty.

Go figure, when it looks like the stars are aligned a dark cloud comes in and stays for a long time.

This could go down as a worse debacle than the Eagles' defeat to the Bucs in 2003. Should this series go back to Tampa, I declare it will go seven games with the Phils falling in defeat.

Maybe it's my defense mechanism kicking in. Can you blame me though?

Our only hope is that the Phillies channel their anger (and they were angry) and destroy the Rays when they play this truncated game, when it finally does resume.

Otherwise, it will be a collapse of mythic proportions. And, by Philadelphia standards it would be the worst.

Not, that we didn't expect something like this could happen. It's just we didn't think it would happen this time.

Monday, October 27, 2008

One More Win!

Phillies are one win away from city's first championship since 1983



It can't be this easy can it? Well, with last night's 10-2 stomping of the Tampa Rays, it may be this easy.

This series is over. Mark it down. The Rays are not coming back from the 3-1 series deficit and if Joe Maddon's press conference after last night is any indication then he doesn't even think they can do it.

You know a team is bound to win it all when their pitcher (Joe Blanton) pitches a magical game and becomes the first pitcher in over 30 years to hit a homer in a World Series game.

And, it happened to be his first career homerun.

For a little while last night this was a game-for the first 3 1/2 innings. Then at the top of the 4th, the Rays made it 2-1.

The game was officially over after the Phils knocked in three runs in the bottom of the fourth and officially ended their drought within a drought-knocking in runners in scoring position.

Despite going 1 for 28 with runners in scoring position in the first two games the Phillies are dominating the Rays in this series. And, it's because of the pitching.

Yes, they scored 10 runs last night and pulled off a stunning win on Saturday night, but these are the key numbers in this series: TWO, FOUR, FOUR, and TWO. They've allowed just 10 earned runs in four games thus far, good for a 2.50 team ERA and that's why they will win the World Series.

Great pitching is a team's best friend and the equivalent of a shutdown goalie in hockey or a great defense in the NFL or NBA.

The Phillies may not have had great overall pitching in the regular season, but in the playoffs they've had it, just like the St. Louis Cardinals in 2006.

Now, we can finally put to rest of the demons of Edmonton in the 80's, Toronto in 1993, Detroit in 1997, LA in 2001, Tampa in 2003, Tampa in 2004, and Jacksonville in 2005.

And, it couldn't be more fitting that the Phils will end the drought in Philly-the way it's meant to be.

On May 31st 1983 the Sixers won the last title in LA.

Now, it will happen on the other side where it belongs.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Unlikely Heros

Carlos Ruiz and Eric Bruntlett win the game for the Phils



What a bizarre game last night. First off it gets delayed to probably the absolute latest time it could've started-10:00.

Then the Phillies decide to play some weird song about fish while the Tampa Bay players are getting introduced. Just, who comes up with this stuff?

Of course this game had to be on during Saturday Night Live, so I was constantly flicking back and forth. It was a challenge but I managed to pretty much watch every SNL sketch while catching the key moments of the Phils game. Don't ask me how, but I pulled it off.

With a pair of back-to-back homers by Utley and Howard, the Phils had a 4-1 lead, taking it into the 7th inning and then the ump pulls the ole screw job on the Phillies by calling the runner out safe when Howard clearly got him out. Good point by McCarver though-umps usually go by the sound of the ball hitting the glove and there's just no way you could hear the ball hitting Howard's bare hand with nearly 50,000 screaming Philly fans.

This resulted in the Rays scoring two runs to make it a 4-3 game. And, if you managed to stay awake for the 8th inning you were treated to one of the most excruciating innings in the history of Phillies baseball. Enter B.J. Upton who get on base with an infield hit. Then, he steals second base. Then, he steals third base and Carlos Ruiz overthrows Pedro Feliz and Upton scores to tie it up at 4 apiece.

I wouldn't be lying if I didn't say I thought the Phils were in trouble. Moments like that made me question why I continue to torture myself as a sports fan. Then I texted my friend Joe Vallee of disgruntledfans.com while he was at the game and told him I'm going to have faith that the Phils pull out a 5-4 win.

Now, if you managed to make it past the 1:00 hour and stay awake for all of that to get to the top of the 9th inning then you saw the most bizarre display of managing you might ever see. First, Eric Bruntlett gets on base by getting plunked by J.P Howell. Then, Balfour comes into the game and Joe Maddon makes the most insane decision I've ever seen in a World Series game. He has right fielder Ben Zobrist put on his infielder's glove and come into the infield so they have a 5-man infield.

Mind you, the Phils have just one runner on base at this point with nobody out. Maddon was clearly trying to look like a genius and it back-fired on him. Bruntlett made it all the way to third base on a wild pitch and throwing error by Navarro.

And, then Victorino and Dobbs were each intentionally walked so they could pitch to Ruiz, who mind you is having a stellar World Series and may end up as the MVP now. Now, this must be the bizarro world.

So, rather than just bring in a new pitcher and play this game like a typical 0-out, 1-runner on situation Maddon decides to try to look like John McGraw by over-managing the game. And, between that and the constant delays and trips to the mound the Rays choked.

EVA Longoria had zero chance of making a play on Carlos Ruiz's infield single up the third base line with the bases loaded and ends up doing a horrible Brett Favre impression by under handing the ball 10 feet into the air, thus allowing Bruntlett to score.

There you have it-the most bizarre 9th inning in Phillies postseason history.

They are now just two wins away from breaking the vaunted Philly sports curse. Could it be possible? With nights like last night it almost seems like there's some sort of cosmic event resulting in the fortunes swing their way at the right moments.

One thing is probably certain, tonight won't be as bizarre of a game. I just hope they don't roll out that creepy fish song when the Rays players come onto the field. And, keep those EVA chants coming. That's proof why we're the greatest fan base in the country.

Blanton will take the hill tonight against Andy Sonnanstine. Game will start at 8:35, barring any cosmic events, disasters, or any other unforeseen event.

Friday, October 24, 2008

Missed Opportunity

Werth's error in first inning aids Tampa's 4-2 victory



Many will attribute last night's stinkfest to homeplate umpire Kerwin Danley and the fact that the Phillies' offense was hideous with runners in scoring position, but the fact of the matter is it was over in the first inning.

After Iwamura reached base last night, B.J. Upton hit a shot to right field that should have been picked up by Jayson Werth. Instead, Werth misplayed it and Iwamura reached third base and Upton was on second.

This ultimately resulted in two runs being scored and put the Phils in a quick 2-0 hole.

Had Werth picked up that ball, runners would have been on first and second and you're talking about a completely different ballgame. A double play could have been turned and maybe Iwamura never would have scored.

That's why defense is so important in sports, especially in baseball in the postseason.

Sure, Brett Myers wasn't "lights out" but there's no excuse for a team to go 1 for 28 with runners in scoring position in two games.

But, the series is heading back to Philly and all is well right? Well, yes and no. Sure, Jamie Moyer will be fired up to pitch in his first World Series in what may be his last season. And, it's even sweeter for him since he's a Philly native. However, they are going to need to out-pitch and out-play the Rays on defense to cover up their deficiencies on offense.

That's the only way the Phils can expect to win this series, because these games will all be of the 3-2, 2-1, and 4-2 variety except for maybe a shoot-out thrown in.

The Phils have shown us that they can grind out tough games and win them in different ways. Look at how they won game one. They hit a 2-run homer in the first inning, but Carlos Ruiz ultimately won that game with his RBI in the 4th inning.

If-and that's a big IF this game is played tomorrow night due to the heavy rains on the way, Jamie Moyer will need to give up no more than 2 runs. Added to that, the right side of the Phillies' defense-Howard and Werth cannot afford to make anymore defensive miscues.

Moyer will take on Garza in game three. It's a 50/50 shot that the game will be played-if the rains end by 8:00 tomorrow night.

And, if you go to weather.com you'll see there's a pretty widespread stretch of rain headed this way, so don't be surprised to wait until Sunday for game three.

But, at least we have the Eagles to hold us over right...yeah that other team in town.

Thursday, October 23, 2008

King Of The Hill

Hamels and Utley lead Phils to 3-2 victory in game one



Cole Hamels and Chase Utley continued to solidify their legacies as big game players by single-handedly carrying the Phillies in last night's 3-2 nailbiter.

Hamels, improved to 4-0 in the postseason, pitching 7 remarkable innings, while allowing just 2 earned and striking out five. The key number is seven and that's how many baserunners he allowed in seven innings (5 hits and 2 walks).

Suffice it to say, he's lived up to his billing as a dominant ace and slowlly closing the gap after every start between himself and "Lefty" as the best big game pitcher in franchise history.

Chase Utley, who we can now call a big game player came through with a 2-run shot in the first inning that kept the Phils in the game. Carlos Ruiz, of all people had a go-ahead RBI in the 4th that gave them a 3-0 lead.

And, that's all they needed, but it wasn't easy most certainly. Crawfod and Iwamura answered back with a dinger and RBI double in the 4th and 5th to make it a ballgame, but Hamels shut them down the rest of the way before handing the ball off to Ryan Madson, who has allowed just one earned run in the entire postseason. In fact, Madson and Lidge are the Phillies' answer to the Reds nasty boys from 1990. They are virtually unstoppable when they are on---Madson, with the change-up and lights-out fastball and Lidge with his three different sliders.

I can't believe I'm saying it, but Madson has finally emerged into an unbelievable relief pitcher. He scared the daylights out of myself and many other Phillies fans throughout the season, but he has been a boon to the team in this postseason.

Now, as far as the broadcast from last night goes, it was sickening to hear them play Tom Petty's "Running Down A Dream" over and over again-almost as annoying as Direct TV beating that Poltergeist spoof commercial to death the last two weeks. I was delighted to see Direct TV finally put a different ad out there. Now, they can run that one into the ground.

And, the fans in Tampa are beyond annoying-they are brutal. If I see another knucklehead with a faux mohawk I might just jump off the balcony from my apartment head first into the ground. Enough already! It seems like every time a small market or phony (in the case of LA fans) fanbase jumps on the bandwagon when their team finally does well they latch on to some ridiculous or annoying fad-ala the 2002 Angels with that Rally Monkey and the Dodgers fans with their Manny Ramirez wigs.

Aside from that it's just peachy to see the Phils win game one. 10 of the past 11 teams who have won game one in the World Series have won it all.

It will be a tough one tonight as they go up against one of the top pitchers in the AL in James Shields. He's a high strikeout pitcher that doesn't allow too many baserunners. But, he's a right-hander, which should be good news to Ryan Howard.

Game starts at 8:35. Myers will take the hill against Shields.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

8 Hours and Counting

First pitch of game one to take place at 8:35



Now, we can move on from the build-up, the ESPN simulated games, and the sub-plots and finally get this series underway.

The Phils, coming off a week-long hiatus will take on a Rays team that has had just a three-day break. This will certainly factor in tonight's match-up, so expect that offense to take some time "warming up."

Looks like the Phils may catch a break tonight though, with Rays' ace Scott Kazmir reportedly banged up. His fastball is only hitting around 91-92 (as opposed to the high 90's) and unlike Josh Beckett, he's not somebody that can out-duel you when his fastball isn't on.

Look for the Phils to take game one and nullify the ridiculous homefield advantage that was granted by the All-Star game.

Can Bud Selig finally wake the F up and get rid of this ridiculous rule which awards homefield advantage to the winning team of the All-star game? If the NBA salary cap is the worst thing in sports, then this rule has to be a very close 1a.

I'm predicting the Phillies win this thing in seven games. I'm going out on a limb here and for once being positive.

I hope they don't let me down! No matter what though, you have to be on drugs to think the Phils will sweep the Rays. They will not get swept with a starting rotation like that-even with Scott Kazmir at 80%.

Hamels will take the hill against Kazmir tonight at 8:35.

Monday, October 20, 2008

Tampa Once Again

Phils to face off against Tampa on Wednesday night



I don't even have to utter the words "Tampa Bay" without most of you remembering the most horrific defeat in modern Philadelphia sports memory. Yes, I'm talking about The Debacle I-otherwise known as the 2003 NFC Championship game.

The date was January 17, 2003 and the week prior to it we as Eagles Nation felt that we had this game in the bag. We were already packing our bags and reserving hotel rooms for the Super Bowl.

The stars were aligned that year. Last game at the Vet. The Bucs were a woeful 1-30 in games under 40 degrees and we owned them in previous playoff meetings.

The game started off in wonderful fashion with Brian Mitchell returning a punt down near the red zone and Duce capped things off with a TD. And, then things went downhill from there once Joe Jurevicious took a reception for 70 yards down the field swinging the mometum the other way. And, the game got worse and worse and worse-it was like watching a relative die from cancer.

But, we were still alive even when it was 20-10 and McNabb led us down the field with a few minutes left. Finally we were put out of misery when Ronde Barber returned McNabb's pass attempt all the way down the field to end the game 27-10.

That game stole my innocence as a sports fan. I was never the same again. I still remember 1993 and it hurt, but this one really hurt because that year the Eagles should have won a Super Bowl. They were a better team that Tampa and would've beat Oakland.

And, a year later the Flyers tormented us by taking the Tampa Bay Lightning to the brink, but they couldn't win in Tampa. The home team won each game in that Conference Finals series with Tampa winning in seven and going on to win it all.

Now, with Boston losing last night we have to look forward to another matchup with a Tampa team. And, I don't like it at all.

I know I'm not supposed to be a negadelphian and be positive, expect the best because the Phillies have so far done the unthinkable.

That's fine and good, but my heart has been broken so many times I take every playoff series with a grain of salt and enjoy the ride.

But, I don't expect anything and especially when it comes to one our teams playing a Tampa team.

What makes matters worse is the Tampa fans are the phoniest, biggest front-running fans known to man. They were drawing about 7,000 people per game when they stunk and their attendance sucked for much of the year.

Case in point, let's take a sample of their attendance AFTER they became a good team this year.

Friday May 6th against the White Sox, they drew slightly under 15,000 people. And, this was on a Friday night game!

August 6th against the Indians they drew 27,500 against the Indians during a Wednesday game. That's about 75% capacity.

September 2nd during the heat of a pennant race against the Yankees, they drew slightly less than 22,000 people! How pathetic is that?

Only did their attendance get good down the stretch in September when they played the Red Sox.

They were 100% full against the Sox on September 17th.

No matter what happens though I expect this one to go seven games. As I wrote last week, Shields, Kazmir, and Garza are as strong of a one, two, three punch you'll see in the bigs.

And, the offense is no joke either. Upton is hitting lights out along with Evan Longoria. Carl Crawford is a 5-tool player and a terror on the basepaths.

Both teams have until 10:00 Wednesday morning to set their World Series rosters.

Friday, October 17, 2008

One Team, One City, One Dream

The Eagles' slogan from 2004 now belongs to the Phillies



Now, all we can do is wait as the hours count down to Wednesday evening when the first pitch is thrown.

Who would we rather face? Tampa or Boston? That's the biggest question facing us right now. It's a good position to be in.

My question is, will this 6-day layoff hurt the Phillies' momentum? Now that the Red Sox defeated the Rays last night they have a lot of momentum heading into tonight's game 6 match-up and it wouldn't shock me at all to see them take them in seven games.

Just yesterday I was ready to write off that series and had Cole Hamels slated to go up against Scott Kazmir in game one.

Even at that I was still nervous about the prospects of a Philly-Tampa World Series. And, the main reason is the stigma of the Tampa teams. That loss to the Bucs in January 2003 still hurts. And, the Flyers' defeat in game 7 to the Lightning in 2004 stings.

No matter who we face we know it's not going to be easy. It never is for us when it comes down to the nitty gritty. But, finally we have a team that we can embrace once again as they make it to the biggest stage. Look at this timeline here since our last championship in 1983 of the teams that have had a chance to play for it all.

1983 Phillies-lost to the Orioles in the World Series
1985 Flyers-lost to Oilers in Stanley Cup Finals
1987 Flyers-lost to Oilers in Stanley Cup Finals
1993 Phillies-lost to Blue Jays in World Series
1997 Flyers-lost to Red Wings in Stanley Cup Finals
2001 Sixers-lost to Lakers in NBA Finals
2005 Eagles-lost to Patriots in Super Bowl

Notice the pattern? Since the 6-year layoff of championship appearances for all of our teams, otherwise known as The Dark Ages, each team made a trip every 4 years to the final round or game.

The Phillies technically are still holding to that pattern since the 2004 Eagles went to the Super Bowl in 2005.

Could the 8th time be a charm? Some point to this being the reverse of '80 and that's why it's our year.

And, the last team in this town to nearly win it all lost to a Boston team. And, the Tampa teams broke our hearts twice this decade. Now, the Phillies will play either a Boston or Tampa team.

No matter what though, we're holding our breath in hopes that Mayor Nutter doesn't put that damn jersey on Billy Penn.

We've become a superstitious lot as sports fans. It happened to the Red Sox fans and the Cubs fans. It's what happens when you go through horrific periods and in this case the worst drought in sports history for any 4-sport town.

A friend of mine told me there's no chance the Phillies win this on the basis of how the NL teams fared against AL teams during the regular season.

As we all know the postseason is a completely different season making the regular season all but irrelevant. For instance, the Angels and Cubs were the best teams in baseball throughout the regular season and look where they're at.

As a Phillies fan I'm fearing the worst and at the same time expecting this team to bring their all.

The crushing last-minute defeats burn inside our minds like traumatic memories. And, the winning moments (i.e. Wednesday night) which are few and far between are what make this journey worth it.

That's what binds us together as Philadelphia fans.

4 years ago the Eagles were our Dream Team. Now, it's the Phillies' turn.

Thursday, October 16, 2008

BACK TO THE WORLD SERIES!

Phillies make it back to the World Series for first time since '93



Not once last night did any of us think the Phils would lose it.

It wasn't your typical down to the wire, nail-biting clincher that's caused us much torment over the years.

The Phils won this one in lopsided fashion 5-1, in what turned out to be a lopsided series (defeating LA 4-1).

Now, the Phillies own the town. The area was teetering on the brink between choosing the Eagles or the Phillies and with the Eagles window of opportunity all but closed, it's now the Phillies' stage.

And, they're making the most of it by playing their best ball since 1993 when they blew threw the Atlanta Braves 4-2 in the NLCS to take on the Toronto Blue Jays-then run by Pat Gillick. The Phils are on fire, having won 20 of their last 25 games dating back to the regular season. And, they're 7-2 in the playoffs.

Things have come full circle as the Phillies, now run by Pat Gillick are on the big stage for the first time since autumn '93 when many of us were just in high school. Many of us weren't even born yet that are following this team now!

While we shouldn't have a parade just yet, because the Phils are most likely going to play yet another Tampa Bay team in the playoffs, we should be encouraged by the fact that they've made it this far without Rollins and Howard-the past two MVPs.

Cole Hamels earned NLCS MVP honors and rightfully so. While, Victorino was money when it counted and unbelievable on defense, he did hit just .222 in this series. Hamels was 2-0 with a 1.90 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 14 innings-in other words unstoppable.

If anybody doubted whether Hamels was a big-game pitcher, they can put those doubts to rest now. He's 3-0 in this postseason with a 1.22 ERA in 22 innings, with 22 strikeouts. Those are Josh Beckett numbers.

The World Series will start on Wednesday, October 22nd in Tampa. We can expect to see Hamels matched up against Scott Kazmir-who if you remember the Mets literally gave away in one of the worst trades in the past 20 years (the Rays gave them Victor Zambrano who's out of baseball).

The Rays have a lights out staff led by Kazmir, James Shields, and Matt Garza. All three of them are strikeout pitchers, who don't walk a lot of guys. And, their 4th starter Andy Sonnanstine isn't too shabby.

Here are their regular season stats:

Scott Kazmir 12-8 3.49 ERA 166 strikeouts 152 innings 1.27 WHIP

James Shields 14-8 3.56 ERA 160 strikeouts 215 innings 1.15 WHIP

Matt Garza 11-9 3.70 ERA 128 strikeouts 184 innings 1.24 WHIP

Andy Sonnanstine 13-9 4.38 ERA 124 strikeouts 193 innings 1.29 WHIP

This series will come down to starting pitching and defense. And, right now the Phillies' starting pitching is not quite there with the Rays, but they make up for that with great defense and key hits.

It will be a scary series, but right now it's time to enjoy the ride because lord knows our teams only get to a championship series or game every 4 years or so.

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Failure to Deliver

Eagles fail to get Tony Gonzalez at the trade deadline



Normally the NFL deadline is about as boring as preseason hockey, but in the past two years some action has started.

Last year Chris Chambers got moved at the deadline to the Chargers from the Dolphins.

Yesterday, the Cowboys gave up WAY too much for Roy Williams, by giving up a first, third, and sixth rounder for him and the Lions' 7th rounder.

However, one player who was available in Tony Gonzalez, a player who could have solidified a dire need, was asking to be traded, but...the Eagles didn't get him.

Howard Eskin insisted on his show yesterday that the Chiefs never "got serious" about the discussions for him, while sources reported KC wanted a 2nd and 5th rounder for him.

Let's be real here. If the Eagles would've got on the horn over the weekend and offered a 3rd rounder for him, it would've been a done deal. Instead, the team that likes to tell us they're taking the pedal to the metal did nothing when an opportunity was there.

They'll still tell us that L.J. Smith is their guy and if he stays healthy and plays up to his capabilities then he'll break through.

We've been waiting for that to happen since 2003 and it hasn't happened, so by golly it's not about to happen now.

Shame on the Eagles for once again sitting pat when it comes time to improving their team. God forbid they give up a precious draft pick for a player. Hell, they don't seem to value them much when it comes down it because they felt they were too good to use a first round pick in the past two drafts, opting to trade them both.

But, Lurie insists this is a team putting the pedal to the metal. It's more like they're sticking crazy glue to their money and keeping it in their pockets.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Shocker!

Phillies turn the momentum their way and take game 4



Many of us fell asleep (myself included) when the score was 5-3 last night. I awoke at the top of the 9th only to discover that the Phillies somehow had a 7-5 lead.

Turns out the Phillies' MVP of the playoffs thus far tied it up at 5 apiece with a 2-run shot in the 8th. And, Matt Stairs of all people did his best Terry Crowley impersonation and hit the game-winner in a pinch-hit at-bat.

Victorino, who hit .357 in the Milwaukee series, was hitting just 2 for 13 coming into the game last night. While, he did have a great game two (4 RBI and a 3B) he was held hitless in games one and three. Last night he hit another clutch homer to save the Phillies, and stop the Dodgers momentum.

What's even more special about it is that Victorino was a rule 5 pick-up from the Dodgers and at one point the Phillies offered him back to them for $10,000 and they refused to take him. Enter Victorino who has taken the opportunity to get revenge against the team that gave up on him.

Revenge is best served in October.

While the Flying Hawaiian is hitting just .188 in this series, he's making those hits count.

And, we can finally put to rest our worries about Chase Utley being a big-game performer. He went 3 for 5 last night and raised his average in this series to .462.

And, finally Charlie Manuel is doing what most of us have asked for and that's walk Manny Ramirez as much as possible. He had just two opps to sting the Phils and went 2 for 2 with 1 RBI. He's hitting .500 in the series, but hasn't killed them with the RBI and homer numbers.

Not only do you have to love this series if you're a Phillies fan, but it's a big FU to the networks who are dying for a Manny vs Red Sox World Series.

The Phils are idle tonight and will send Cole Hamels out there on five days rest tomorrow night against Billingsley.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

2 Down

Phils take game two and are just two wins from WS


Who'd have thunk it? Two games down and two wins against an LA team that was hotter than the equator.

The Phils are just two wins away from the World Series after an offensive onslaught in game two.

So much for my 2-1 prediction in game two. Billingsley got lit up to the tune of 7 earned in 2 1/2 innings pitched and looked like Kyle Kendrick out there with just a few more strikeouts. I don't think Kyle Kendrick could strike out five batters in two starts.

Brett Myers went 3 for 3 and helped his cause despite not pitching a great game and had 3 RBI. And, get this-Ryan Howard has three hits in the playoffs while Myers has four.

Tonight Jamie Moyer will go up against Hideki Kuroda at 8:22. I don't feel a Phillies sweep in this series; it's just too tough to achieve that especially when you consider the fact they're traveling across the country.

Then again, I didn't even think the Phillies would make the playoffs a month ago.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Red October

Phils hit two homers in 6th to take game one 3-2



Derek Lowe was his usual, unstoppable self in the postseason for 5 1/3 innings last night. He wasn't striking out many batters, but he recorded 11 groundball outs.

The Phillies had no answer for Lowe, who came into the game 7-1 with a 1.50 ERA in this past 11 starts. That is until Chase Utley got ahold of his sinker, to launch it into the seats. It was a new ballgame, suddenly a 2-0 stinker turned into a 2-2 tie.

And, two batters later Pat Burrell hit a solo shot, to make it 3-2 and that's all she wrote. Lowe then exited the game. That's the difference between being a hero and a goat. Lowe was perfect except for two mistakes.

Pitching is the equivalent of a great defense in the playoffs and Cole Hamels was a tad bit better than Lowe last night. Hamels went 7 strong, striking out 8, walking just 2, allowing 6 hits, and 2 runs. He is now 2-0 with a 2.57 ERA this postseason.

Manny Ramirez did have two hits, but only really inflicted his damage in the first inning when he nearly took Cole Hamels deep. Fortunately, only one run scored.

If I were Charlie Manuel I'd impose the equivalent of the "Shaq foul rule" by walking Manny Ramirez every time he's up to bat, thereby rendering him a non-factor.

Brett Myers will take the hill against Chad Billingsley this afternoon at 4:35. Billingsley shut down the Cubs in his first postseason start, going 6 2/3 with 7 K's and allowing one earned run. He was 16-10 during the regular season with a 3.14 ERA and 201 K's. Suffice it to say Billngsley is the Dodgers' young ace in the making.

All Myers has to do is make it out of the first inning without much damage and this should be a very winnable game for the Phils.

As I said yesterday in that the game would be 3-2 or 2-1. I'm predicting a 2-1 Phils victory today.

Game starts at 4:35 on FOX.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

1980 vs. 2008

This Phillies team shares many similarities with the 1980 squad



On paper this is about as even as series gets. While their regular season records certainly don't reflect it, these are two teams that have basically redefined themselves in the latter part of the season.

The 1980 champs, finished with a 91-71 record, while the 2008 team finished up with a 92-70 record.

Back on September 10th, the Fightins were 79-67 before going 13-3 down the stretch. Aside from the two losses to Atlanta, they were virtually unstoppable.

And, with their 3-1 series victory over Milwaukee, they are now 16-4 in their last 20 games, good for an .800 winning percentage.

Now, here's where things get scary similar. The 1980 Fightins were 79-67 on September 20th, having the same identical record as the 2008 squad after 146 games after going up and down for much of the season, much like the 2008 squad, which seemed to go into a funk after catching fire, only to go in a funk again.

The 1980 Phillies went 12-4 in their last 16 games dating from September 20th and wrapped up the division with a 91-71 record. And, they went on to beat the Astros 3-2 in the NLCS and the Royals 4-2 and won their first title.

Looking at both teams they were and are completely different teams down the stretch. I can't explain it and many of us can't, because this team looked dead in the water on September 10th. But, something happened, be it a spark, or maybe a rally cry in the clubhouse, or maybe they finally "got it", but whatever it is, this team has it and looks poised to take on a Dodgers team that is equally hot.

The Dodgers like the 1980 and 2008 Phillies squads finished the regular season with an 84-78 record, hardly a great record, but what's scary about this team is the fact that they just swept a Cubs team that was the best team in the NL all season long. It wasn't even a contest; the Cubs got their asses handed to them.

The Dodgers were hardly a hot team down the stretch, going just 7-7 in their past 14 games, and they had to win those games considering Arizona was just a few games behind them for the latter part of the season.

But, October is a whole new season. For the Phils, their new season began a month ago.

Tonight Derek Lowe will take the hill for the Dodgers. He along with former teammate Manny Ramirez will give the Phils quite a difficult time and try to prevent them from facing the Red Sox in the World Series. Ramirez is hitting nearly .400 since joining the squad and has nearly 20 homers in just 50 some games. Lowe is a big game pitcher. He was a big part of that 2004 squad that came back to defeat the Yanks after falling down 0-3 in the ALCS.

Cole Hamels will take the hill for the Fightins and look to continue his dominance in the playoffs. He was unhittable against Milwaukee and should give the Dodgers' bats plenty of fits.

Expect a 3-2 or 2-1 game tonight; it will be a grind out victory.

Game starts at 8:22 on FOX.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Kings of the Town?

More in the media say Phillies own the town; ratings say otherwise



So, the topic of conversation now that the Eagles are tanking like the Stock Market and the Phillies are the latest team in Philly to become our "hope" is whether or not Philly is a football or baseball town.

Well, the ratings came in from Sunday and the Eagles had over 45% of the viewership and the Phillies clocked in at 25%. According to Howard Eskin, roughly 300,000 more people were watching the Eagles based on those figures.

I think if you take it a little further you have to account for sports bars. If you look up how Nielson TV shares are defined, they determine it by the number of televisions that are tuned in to a particular broadcast. Let's take it a step further and think about sports bars. They have many more TV's than your average home. Usually they'll have 6-12 TV's in a room and some may have many more.

Let's go even further. What has been the biggest sports product in demand for Philly fans? The Eagles of course. So, sports bars are naturally going to have the Eagles game on more TV's. Go to any sports bar when they're on even while the Phillies are on and they might put the Phillies on one or two screens, but the Eagles will be on most of the other screens.

This will certainly skew the numbers a lot. Now, how can we quanitify this? It's hard to tell, but we would be kidding ourselves by dismissing this because Nielson Ratings are determined by numbers of TVs, which doesn't necessarily mean numbers of people.

With that said, based upon the interest in the Phillies and the Eagles looking to be headed for their third playoff-less season in four years it's about even in terms of interest for both teams. And, if the Phillies win the World Series this year, thereby breaking the curse, then it will become a baseball town again.

For years the Eagles reigned supreme for obvious reasons. The Phillies ownership basically pissed on the fans from the time of the strike up until Citizen's Bank Park opened in 2003. Meanwhile, the Eagles were on the ascent and made it to the playoffs for five straight seasons, from 2000-2004, including four straight trips to the NFC Title Game and a Super Bowl appearance.

Now, the Phillies have ascended and finally broken through the barrier of mediocrity that marred that organization during the Bowa years and Charlie Manuel's era from 2001-2006. They took their first step last year in making it to the playoffs and have now won a round for the first time since '93.

The Eagles organization on the other hand is appearing to be headed down the Rabbit Hole of Oblivion, yet they keep fooling themselves into believing they're better than they are, but more and more fans are having none of it.

One team goes up, another falls down. And, once it's sustained for a period of time that's what it takes for a town to become a quote unquote baseball or football town.

Sure, the Eagles are Philly's answer to the Boston Red Sox, but the Phillies have nearly caught up to them because the Eagles pissed away a window of opportunity that the organization may not see again for another generation.

The Phillies despite being held hostage by a penurious ownership and at times an incompetent front office have done the unthinkable by mirroring the 1980 World Series team in having an up and down season only to surprise us at the right time. Remember, the team that won the World Series had a season much like the 2008 Phillies in that they struggled throughout the year and barely made it in the postseason only to catch fire at the right moments.

8 more wins and this is a baseball town. Mark it down.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Downed Birds

The Eagles are on their way to yet another mediocre season



If you take a poll and ask people what should be done about a team that's 26-27 in it's past three-plus seasons and just 2-3 this season with a team that should be 4-1, they'd probably agree unanimously that the team needs a major shake-up.

While I think it's premature to say "fire Reid" or "replace McNabb" right now, it's looking more and more evident that this ride is coming to a close. Put it this way; the Eagles won't win a championship with Reid and McNabb. You can pretty much write it off.

They aren't last year's version of the New York Giants-not even close. In order to be that team, they'd need a superior pass rush and while they have great overall sack numbers, it's skewed by the Pittsburgh game when they had nine sacks.

With a better coach, this team probably could go places, but he's totally clueless out there. For DeSean Jackson to be pretty much thrown on the bench during a game when they failed to generate any kind of offensive momentum against the Redskins after the first quarter is abominable.

This organization seems to think they are a lot better than they are. It echoes down through the front office and to McNabb, who can't fathom how the Eagles are losing to these teams that are less worthy than they are. News flash McNabb and front office; your team sucks!

Plain and simple. At the end of the day you are what you are and that's a 2-3 team and a 26-27 team since 2005. No longer can we write off 2005 as an aberration because of injuries and TO. 2006 was headed down the sewer too before the team caught lightning in a bottle with Garcia. And, 2007 was another version of 2006. And, this year is no different.

No longer can we look at the Eagles as a team that "should" win certain games. They're just not that good of a team anymore and the chronic mediocrity that has beset this team rests on the shoulders of the front office and Andy Reid.

They have to play this season out and see what happens, because it's just unrealistic for a team to fire a coach like Andy Reid mid-stream. But, if they have another 8-8 season or 7-9 season then it's beyond the time to cut their losses and start over.

Calling Bill Cowher....

Monday, October 6, 2008

Two Teams-Two Directions

Phillies make it to the NLCS, Eagles look like same mediocre Eagles



Yesterday, we witnessed the ultimate high and ultimate low of Philly sports. With the Phillies, they advanced to the NLCS, making it the first time in 15 years that they will play for a chance to get into the World Series. It also marks their second straight postseason appearance.

The Eagles on the other hand, once again showed us why they're just a mediocre team and franchise at this juncture. They seem to disagree with that assessment though.

Donovan McNabb acted as if the Eagles had no business losing to Washington, when they (the Redskins) beat Dallas and won four straight games. Ray Didinger couldn't have said it better on 610 WIP's Morning Show when he brought up the fact that the Eagles have done neither this season and haven't won four straight games since 2004.

Not only have the Eagles not done that, but they've missed the playoffs two out of the past three years, are a sub .500 football team since 2005 (26-27 since then), and are in dead last in the NFC East. They are 2-3 and 2 games behind the Redskins, Cowboys, and Giants-three teams who have clearly passed by them.

As much as Charlie Manuel has been maligned during his tenure as the Phillies skipper, Andy Reid makes just as many tactical errors if not more. And, Manuel's team seems to continually respond to him, while the Eagles are mired in mediocrity and looking more like the Eagles during the Kotite and Rhodes eras than that team from the early 2000's.

Five games does certainly not make a season, but have the Eagles shown you anything to make you believe they're anything more than a 8 or 9 win team and a cellar dwellar in th NFC East?

The Phillies on the other hand are showing us that they can win the whole thing. Nobody in baseball is that superior. And, the Phils are arguably the hottest team right now since the latter part of September.

Two teams, two directions. With the Phillies we're being treated to the most exciting season of baseball since '93. And, with the Eagles, it's more of the same.

Friday, October 3, 2008

KO'd

Phillies move one step closer to NLCS with thrashing of C.C. Sabathia



Say it aint so, the Phils are one win away from facing the Dodgers (most likely) in the NLCS!

The vaunted C.C. Sabathia, who hasn't allowed 5 runs in a start since April was shelled yesterday to the tune of 5 runs in 3 2/3 innings, throwing 98 pitches.

The irony is that Brett Myers (who had 4 walks all season) essentially made it game-set-match when he forced Sabathia into walking him. The psychological effects of a dominant pitcher like that walking a batter could be felt throughout the stadium as the thunderous "C.C." chant could be heard in China. And, then the wheels came off when Rollins walked, Victorino launched a fastball into the left field seats.

And, you know the rest.

Last night the Cubs were demolished 10-3 by the Dodgers, which will in all likelihood make it a Philly-L.A. showdown for the NL pennant.

Last night we were treated to a classic game. It was a game that the Phillies were supposed to lose, but we were almost ok with it because we would have been beaten by the best and still would be able to to beat the Brewers' sclubs in games three and four.

It's a death blow to the Brewers now. They're gonna trot out Dave Bush against Jamie Moyer tomorrow night. I never would have thought it possible before this series started, but it's looking like a sweep is in order.

On the other side, Boston holds a 1-0 lead over the Angels.

Could it be a dream scenario with Boston and Philly in the World Series? The Phillies certainly have heated up at the right time, so it may just happen. But, the Dodgers are no joke though, should they shock the Cubs.

The fans deserve major props for this win. They were into this game and never let up on Sabathia the entire time. Some players are able to block that stuff out, but I doubt even Michael Jordan would have been able to stand up under that pressure.

The Phils take their show on the road to Milwaukee and will face them tomorrow night. Moyer will take the hill against Dave Bush.

Thursday, October 2, 2008

King Cole

Hamels comes up huge and Lidge hangs on for scary save



Yesterday was the happiest I've ever been to be wrong in quite some time. I predicted a Phillies loss yesterday because I figured Gallardo would give the Phillies' offense fits yesterday. He pitched ok for a few innings, but the Phils got to him in the third, before he left after 4 innings.

Hamels was an absolute beast-going 8 innings, giving up just two hits, zero runs, and striking out nine. It was the stuff that legends are made of. He's their franchise pitcher and his heart has been questioned in big starts and boy did he come up big.

I got into a discussion with a few people today about Charlie Manuel's decision to yank Hamels after 8 innings. I agree with the move. If you can't trust your closer who's been perfect all season to get the job done with a 3-0 lead, then when can you trust him? Not to mention, they don't want to burn Hamels out like the Cubs did with Prior back in 2003. I always point to that when people criticize Manuel's decision to not let Hamels "go all the way."

Chase Utley came up with the biggest hit of his career in the third inning with the two-run double that scored Ruiz and Hamels.

And, that's all they needed. It was certainly not a memorable performance by the O, but they needed dominant pitching and a clutch hit to get it done, which they did.

Tonight is huge because the Brewers are sending the dominant C.C. Sabathia (11-2 with a 1.65 ERA) against Brett Myers. If Myers can pitch like he did in the previous Milwaukee series then this series is over. If not, then it's still a series.

Game two starts tonight at 6:00.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Pregame Preview

Phillies and Brewers set to face off at 3 PM



A lot of interesting subplots in today's opening game between the Phillies and Brewers in the NLDS.

Yovani Gallardo made a triumphant return from ACL surgery to just make it back in time for the end of the season and will go up against the Phillies' franchise ace, King Cole.

Pat Burrell wound up tweaking his back during batting practice yesterday and will possibly miss this game today, leaving the door open for Geoff Jenkins to play as he hopes to sting his former squad.

The Phillies and Brewers were two teams who were dead in the water a few weeks ago. And, the Phillies swept the Brewers, thereby forcing them to replace their manager (Ned Yost) with former Brewer and Phillie Dale Sveum.

On paper it's a pretty evenly matched series. The Phillies were 3rd in the NL with 799 runs, and the Brewers were 7th with 750. Both teams can mash it; the Phils had 214 homers and the Brew Crew had 198 dingers.

Pitching, the Brewers get the edge slightly. They were 2nd in pitching in the NL with a 3.85 ERA, while the Phils were 4th with a 3.88. The Phils have a superior bullpen, but the Brewers have a pair of studs in Sabathia and Gallardo who will give the Phils serious problems. Hopefully Hamels and Myers can step up like they did in that series a few weeks back-that will be the key.

Expect a 3-2 game today. I think the Phils will lose today because Gallardo has a serious fastball and serious breaking stuff that will shut their offense down. Not to be a buzz kill, but Gallardo is that good. The Phils can win this series in five though.

Game starts at 3:00 PM on TBS.