It's been several weeks since a new article has been posted on this site. Since then, Jimmy Rollins has called all of the philly faithful front runners, the Phillies were swept in Los Angeles by the Dodgers, the Phillies in turn swept the Dodgers at Citizens Bank Park, and the team pulled off one of the most stunning and unlikely wins in recent memory against the hated New York Mets. The Phillies were so motivated by this dramatic come from behind victory that they proceeded to blow the next three games in typical vintage Phillies fashion. All three defeats occurred at the hands of the team's increasingly ineffective bullpen, who have now blown leads in the last three games. To say that this team is consistently inconsistent is the understatement of the year. One minute the team wins five in a row, with one of the wins a seemingly insormountable comeback against their division rivals, then they proceed to blow three of the biggest games of the year. I don't get it, and I'm done trying to figure it out.
So before anyone wants to complain about Charlie Manual's decision to pitch to Carlos Delgado on Wednesday, taking Cole Hammels out of last night's game, or complain how the potential go-ahead run would have scored today if the umpiring crew hadn't called Ryan Howard out at first base, just remember that the Phillies bullpen was considered one of the best (if not the the best) in MLB until a week ago. And as for today, Chase Utley (who clearly has a free pass in this town) was called safe at first on the potential ending inning double play prior to Howard's at bat. Also make note that the Phillies, despite being able to finally figure out new Cubs starter Rich Harden, characteristically left ten runners on base in this afternoon's contest. If Major League Baseball presented yearly awards concerning the aforementioned category, then the Philadelphia Phillies would have more championship hardware than the New York Yankees. And that is a lot of hardware.
Meanwhile, just when it seemed that the Phillies wouldn't lose any ground to the Mets in the standings, the philly fans get the traditional double whammy when Carlos Beltran launched a dramatic two out, ninth inning grand slam to pull out a stunning 5-4 victory over the Marlins tonight in Miami.
So just like that, what was once a half game lead after Tuesday night's 13 inning marathon has now turned into a 2 game deficit in the National League East. Whether it is securing the division lead, or holding an eight inning lead, the Phillies once again show their inability to put teams away when it counts the most. Tuesday's thriller should have made every Phillie on that team feel invincible, that this division truly belongs to them and they were never going to relinquish the division lead from this point on. A win Wednesday could have made it very tough for the Mets to regain first place. Two wins against the best team in baseball would have further proven this. Yes it's true that a two game defecit is much easier to take than last year's seven game defecit at an even later point in the season, but if it's not obvious by this point, take close notice that the New York Mets are now playing the roll of the 2007 Phillies, and the 2008 Phillies may be headed for the roll of last year's Mets.
It may sound crazy, but one must take note some glaring similarities: at one point last June, the Mets had a three and a half game lead on the Phillies. In June of 2008,the Phillies had a three and a half game lead on the Mets. The Mets are without the services of their closer for an extended period of time this season and their bullpen is in shambles. Last season, the Phillies were without their closer for several months, and until the arrival of J.C. Romero, their bullpen was in shambles. When the Mets' position players weren't hitting, they were saved by their resurgent left fielder. The same can be said last year for Pat Burrell, whose dynamic second half energized the Phillies. The Mets have won every important game against the Phillies in 2008. Despite several heartbreaking losses that would have sent many teams into a tragic downward spiral, the Mets seem to come back from these losses even stronger with dramatic, late-inning, come from behind victories. In 2007, the Phillies seemed to be left for dead by the Mets in early July, until they turned a corner with a vevy of improbable victories when it seemed that all hope was lost. Last summer, the Phillies got confident. This year, the Mets are getting confident. This is shown every time Carlos Delgado pumps his fist in triumph after another unlikely Mets victory. At the same time, we are all reminded of Delgado's refusal to stand during our National Anthem. Let's try to see him make $120 million in any other country, but I digress.
At the present time, the Phillies may still have a chance to win this division. In all likelihood however, any team who wins the NL East will probably have a short stay in the October playoffs. Before people send me emails citing the 2006 Cardinals as the exception to the rule, I offer this observation: for every 2006 Cardinals, 1988 Dodgers, or even the 2003 Marlins, there are decades of 1984-ish Tigers, 1998-ish Yankees, or 2007-ish Red Sox that seek and destroy their opponents. If you don't appreciate the analogy, at least admire the Metallica reference. Simply put, things like that do not happen in Philadelphia. This is spoken from a true fan like everybody reading this. Trust me on this one, there is a difference between having faith in your team, and being a homer. Don't be the latter. Nobody on this planet wants to see this team win a World Series more than yours truly, but you will only set yourself up again for more heartache at the expense of an ownership who are counting their money while you are crying in your beer.
In the end, if I were a betting man, one should put their money on the team that looks and acts like winners despite all of their shortcomings. That was last years Phillies team. Sometimes, drive and a will to win can compensate for a lot of things. And right now, that team is not the Phillies. I hope I'm wrong on this one. To paraphrase the late, great John Belushi from Animal House: "What the $%@# happened to the Phillies that I used to know? Where's the spirit? Where's the guts, huh?"
Meet the new boss. NOT the same as the old boss.
Friday, August 29, 2008
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