This wasn't how things were supposed to happen.
When an irresistable force meets an immovable object, something has to give. But who among us thought it would be Yorvit Torrealba and Kaz Matsui giving the Phils fits? The Phillie Killer Theory strikes again.
And mere days after it looked like his team's improbable comeback saved his job, Uncle Charlie might be on the hot seat once again. A little background: I had the GameCast on at work but had to leave just as the Rockies had two men on in the fourth with two outs and the pitcher's spot coming up. This half inning, I thought, was in the bag. The Phils were actually leading--thanks to J-Roll, who apparently is the only Phillie who realized that despite the public response, it's still just a playoff berth and not a championship yet. Kyle Kendrick had gotten into a few jams but got out of most of them with minimal damage.
Enter Charlie Manuel. Exit Kyle Kendrick. Enter Kyle Lohse--the prospective Game 4 starter, even with a fresh Clay Condrey in the 'pen.
I totally understood not using Alfonseca or Mesa in this situation, and was prepared to give Charlie credit for it. This was until I realized that the Lohse move started an inevitable chain of events that allowed Mesa to come in later and put the game completely out of reach.
A lapse in judgment? A "senior moment"? A logical decision ruined by rotten luck? It doesn't matter. This could be the playoff moment that traumatizes another generation of fans. Come New Year's Day 2027, there's going to be a spate of Mummers' Parade revelers wailing, "Lohse for Kendrick? Why?" before passing out on the pool table at their favorite Old Town bar.
As for me, my senses are dulled. I never got the feeling that the Phils were going to get to Jeff Francis in Game 1, especially as they were pressing to get rid of those playoff butterflies. But Innings 4-5, Game 2 was like a Howitzer shell exploding in the middle of a tai chi class.
And now, with the series moving to the Rockies' home turf, so many of the Phaithful have that same thousand-yard stare we saw on Mets fans less than a week ago. Here we were, passionately and vocally supporting our team as they surged to an unlikely division title, poised to be media darlings in the playoffs. But it seems the Team to Beat has collided head-on with the Team of Destiny, an even bigger underdog in a nation that loves the underdog. Funny, though, that the Rockies played their inaugural season in the same year that the Phillies last made the playoffs. And it's easier to come out of nowhere in a wide-open division than to struggle under towering expectations all year and then receive relatively little credit once your stated goal is reached.
The Phils are fun, but they were "supposed" to be here. The Rox are out of left field--and they wear purple! How telegenic, much more than those crass, boorish Philadelphians back to their old tricks: booing, cussing, and casting cynical aspersions against the world in general.
It's not over yet, but the end of the tunnel is drawing ever closer. We've been ambushed, folks. Sometimes life just isn't fair.
But hey--at least the Flyers won their home opener.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Philling In: We Don't Get No Respect
Hey! The Phillies won a division championship! Did you hear about it?Word on the street is that the Mets also blew a huge lead in the last three weeks of the season. Maybe you heard about that instead?
Homeboy Jayson Stark (who, in terms of ESPN employees, is to the Phillies what Buster Olney is to the Yankees...a blatant homer) seems to be the only journalist with a national profile giving credit where credit is due.
The story of the Phils' comeback isn't quite worthy of all the "Top 10 Greatest Chokes" columns that the Mets are getting--no, it deserves its own documentary miniseries narrated by Morgan Freeman. You want drama? Try 500-1 odds of making the postseason (and a plethora of other crazy stuff that happened this season; this guy just beat me to the bunch on the list) on September 12. Makes me wish I had a bookie.
And to add insult to injury, the scheduled start times for the first four Rockies-Phillies NLDS games are pretty horrible for almost every market. Those 3 PM weekday games are particularly unconscionable, considering the problems with shadows (as alluded to by Aaron Rowand last week) and the fact that it's freakin' NOON on the West Coast. Thank goodness for the Internet.
- NLDS Mini-Preview: The Rockies-Phillies matchup is very intriguing, not least of all because it features two playoff-hungry franchises that ended the season on a major roll. Both are teams with stellar talent that can mash the ball and run the bases. Both have suspect bullpens. Both play in offensive paradises.
That's where the similarities end, though. The Rox have similar defensive strength in the middle infield, but the Phils' outfielders and defensive substitutes are far superior (even factoring in the Burrell Effect). The Phillies bench is downright scary and could be the best of any NL playoff team. And the rotations don't match up at all. Jeff Francis is an ace, but behind him...yikes. The Rockies aren't even disclosing their matchups yet--kind of expected when anybody from Mark Redman to Elmer Dessens to Ubaldo Jimenez could be leading you into battle. Prediction: Phillies in 4
The Cubs-Diamondbacks series is tougher to call, simply because I have no idea how Arizona is doing it. They've been outscored by a bajillion runs. They have an everyday lineup of Eric Byrnes and seven kids still struggling to grow mustaches. They can hit the long ball but have extremely poor plate discipline. These are your NL West Champions? (Sidebar: how insane is it that a franchise that's only existed for 10 seasons has already made the playoffs 4 times? And people wonder why this means so much to Philly...)
The Cubs, on the other hand, are a stealthily good team. Their biggest second-half meltdowns were almost all against bad teams in a very Phillies-esque manner of playing down to the competition. Chicago's got pitching that looks as good as any other NL contender's and several underrated offensive superstars (Soriano, A. Ramirez, D. Lee). What's Arizona got? Brandon Webb and a retractable roof? Prediction: Cubs in 5
- The 25-man roster is set! This is the kind of thing you always heard about playoff teams doing but just never got to experience for yourself (man, it's been a long time).
Of course, the 24 Million Dollar Man is conspicuously absent. The Padres are still laughing at us, I think. I'm upset that J.D. Durbin is missing too. It makes sense in a 5-game series to only carry 10 pitchers, especially with a maybe-injured catcher and the Phils' stellar corps of pinch-hitters, but could the Real Deal really be any worse than Jose Mesa? We might rue this decision someday.
- My sister postulated an interesting theory recently:
"The Phillies make the playoffs in 1993.
Mike Lieberthal joins the Phils roster in 1994.
The Phillies do not make the playoffs from 1994 to 2006.
Mike Lieberthal signs with the Dodgers after the 2006 season.
The Phillies make the playoffs in 2007."
Spooky!
- Conan O'Brien is a beautiful man:
- The first playoff game in Philadelphia in 14 years is tomorrow! Tonight will be like the night before Christmas and the last meal before execution all rolled up into one. I don't know whether to cheer or cry.
Go Phils!
Monday, October 1, 2007
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Go Crazy, Philly, Go Crazy
"I think we are the team to beat in the NL East--finally." -- Jimmy Rollins, January 23, 2007
Your 2007 NL East Champions: the Philadelphia Phillies!
This Is It
Strangers from distant lands, friends of old you have been summoned here to answer the threat of Omar Minaya and Fred Wilpon. The NL East stands upon the brink of destruction, none can escape it. You will unite or you will fall. Each race is bound to this fate, this one doom.
Bring forth the lineup,
Let's go Phils!
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