That's All Pholks!

Is there a news organization in the country who didn't use "Phinally!" as their headline this morning? Give me a break. I'm glad we don't have to endure any more clever Philly-inspired phonetically modified attention grabbers for a while.

So, I was wrong again. Turned out that the Philadelphia pitching staff looked like the superior group, and the Rays offense suffered because of it. When their 3-4 hitters are 0-for-the-World-Series until Game 5, you knew they were in trouble.

Now, for those of you who do actually check this blog, here's my plan for the off-season: Since interest in baseball won't really pick up until April, I'll only be posting once a week. I have a few ideas of some stuff I'd like to look into, like those odd statistics that were never on the back of any baseball card I ever owned, and maybe a few thoughts on off-season trades and stuff. I don't know. Any suggestions?

Rain, Rain, Go Away

If it weren't for a stolen base and a two-out base hit in last night's Game 5 of the World Series, this season could already be over.

In the top of the sixth inning, the rain continued to get worse. By that time puddles were forming all over the field. Watching the game, I was just so grateful that I was at home watching on TV. It looked every bit as cold as it was wet. The Rays were trailing 2-1. B.J. Upton came to bat with two outs. He hit a ground ball to shortstop and Jimmy Rollins had a long run to get to it. He did, but couldn't come up with it cleanly, and Upton was awarded an infield single.

It then seemed like Cole Hamels attempted five or six pick-off attempts, before Upton stole second base easily on the first pitch to Carlos Pena. That stolen base was even bigger than Jason Bartlet's in Game 1, which triggered the nationwide Taco Bell promotion (free tacos today from 2-6pm). Pena battled with Hamels before lining a single to left field. Upton rounded third and slid safely into home, tying the game and saving the Series and Major League Baseball.

Because it was in the sixth inning, had the Rays not tied the score and the game been called due to weather, the game would have been over, and so would the World Series. I can't imagine the outcry had that been the case.

But, since the score was tied, the League simply suspended the game. It will pick up where it left off, in the middle of the sixth inning. From the forecast, it looks like it won't be until Wednesday night. At least they will get to play the full nine innings to decide Game 5.

'08 World Series: Game 1

The Phillies held off the Rays in last night's opening game of the 2008 World Series. Some of the reaction that I've seen this morning was slanting towards the idea that the Phillies now have the upper-hand in the best of seven series. I still don't think that's the case.

Last night was a bigger game for the Phills that the Rays. The Rays dropped game one to Boston too, remember. But the reason last night was such a big deal for the Phillies was because of Cole Hamels. They can't afford to waste his efforts in a losing cause. He may be the best pitcher on either team (still waiting to see if Tampa Bay's Matt Garza can continue what he started in the ALCS). Game one was all about pitching dominance. And that's where the trouble lies for Philly. The Rays will continue to march out top-tier talent to the mound, while the Phillies won't. After Hamels, there's a considerable drop off. But I'll say this about Philly: their bullpen is outstanding. They really do have the ability to turn these games into seven inning contests.

So here's my prediction: Rays in 6. I doubt that Philly pitchers not named Cole Hamels will be able to keep the powerful Rays offense at bay. Then again, I'm usually wrong about these things, so if I were a betting man (and I'm not, thank goodness), I'd bet against my predictions every time.

Here They Come

The Los Angeles Dodgers got their lesson in how quickly momentum can shift in a League Championship Series. They had just clobbered the Phillies in Game 3, and it was looking like a Game 4 win was in the bag as well, were it not for dramatic late-inning homeruns by Shane Victorino and Matt Stairs, bursting the Dodger bubble. The momentum the Phillies gained by that comeback carried over to Game 5, where they punched LA in the mouth and walked away with the National League pennant.

Could it be that a similar momentum shift took place in Boston last night? Game 4 was a laugher for the Rays. I turned on the radio last night and heard that the Rays were leading 5-0, and I laughed again. "So much for the comeback," I thought. Next time I checked it was 7-0. I chuckled. But, before I went to bed, I looked to see the final score and saw that the Red Sox had tied the game at 7-7. So, I wasn't too surprised to see that they had completed the Game 5 comeback in the ninth inning.

So, here's the million-dollar question: Did the momentum just shift in this series. It now stands 3-2 in the Rays favor, but it has to have been demoralizing to think that they were nine outs away from their first World Series and up seven runs to zip. David Ortiz finally made an appearance. If he gets back on track, the Rays could be in trouble. Also, take this in account: The next two games are slated for Josh Beckett and Jon Lester, two of the Red Sox's best pitchers when they're on. This series isn't over yet (but there were a few times last night when I thought it was).

Just a Few ALCS Thoughts

Last night I had the rare opportunity to watch a full baseball game on TBS. We were watching our friend's son and they have DirectTV, so I pulled up the game on TBS-HD. I would think that FOX's World Series viewership would be higher if the entire country could watch and become invested in both the American and National League teams. Then again, I'm not a television producer, but I am a thinker.

At any rate, I saw last night's Game 4 of the ALCS. I'll say this much, Tampa Bay can play some ball. Going into last night's game I thought that Tim Wakefield might have some trouble. He didn't last very long. Is anyone else enjoying the sight of the mighty Red Sox being humiliated by the Rays, last year's cellar dweller?

Longoria can hit and I wish he was on my team. Upton can swing it to, and I couldn't believe some of the fly balls he tracked down in centerfield last night. I wish he was on my team too. The Rays have some seriously solid starting pitching too.

But, following the game, I was just as worried as I was happy. After all, the Red Sox are still the Red Sox, and now, down 3-1 in the series, they have a day off and three aces in the hole, namely Dice-K, Josh Beckett, and Jon Lester. But the way the Rays are hitting lately (9 runs in Game 2, 9 in Game 3, and 13 last night), the Boston pitchers will need some offensive assistance. They can't win the series if David Ortiz and the Sox's other big hitters continue to stink.

The Rays are one win away from a World Series. They've looked good so far. But I'm sure that the Red Sox aren't going to just go away.

Lunch Break Breakdown:Phillies vs. Dodgers, Game 1

I've said this before, but I hate the postseason television schedule. Because I only have network television, I'll only be able to see the National League Championship Series on FOX. So, here's my brief analysis of what I saw last night in Game 1.

Both pitchers had their good stuff to start the game. Derek Lowe's sinker had some nice, late, nasty action. Cole Hamels' change-up was as good as advertised (and renewed my commitment of helping my future son master it before he starts playing with breaking balls).

I still can't believe that Manny's first double stayed in the park. He definitely got all of that one. That scored the first run. A sacrifice fly scored the second for the Dodgers.

The way Lowe was dealing, it wasn't looking good for the Phillies. When the announcers started to point out how many ground outs he was collecting, you knew he was on a roll (no pun intended). That changed in the 5th inning, however. Sure, the Phillies didn't score until the 6th, but I saw signs that they were finally getting to Lowe in the inning before that.

With two outs in the 5th, Lowe was pitching to the Philly catcher, Carlos Ruiz. Ruiz smacked a ball through the right side of the infield for a solid single. Lowe was visibly upset. Tim McCarver believed it was because he had allowed them to cycle through the pitcher, meaning that Cole Hamels would bat in the 5th instead of leading off the sixth. I don't pretend to know exactly why he was upset. It could have simply been because he missed his location on the pitch that Ruiz hit. But he wasn't a happy camper. No big deal though, right? The pitcher was up to bat and that's an easy out... ish. Hamels actually hits well for a pitcher, especially againsts right-handers like Lowe. Hamels laced a single into right-center and the crowd exploded. So did I.*

I'm not sure if it was because of my pitcher's mentality of, "if one of us gets a hit, we all get a hit," or what. But my jubilant reaction to Hamels single made me realize that I had unconsciously picked a side in this fight.

Next man to the plate was Jimmy Rollins, the reigning NL MVP. Lots of noise in the stadium now. Lowe was definitely flustered at this point. He coaxes Rollins to hit a lazy fly ball to left field, and ends the inning. But, instead of wiping the sweat off is brow because he'd just dodged a bullet, he was talking trash. Funny... When he left in the middle of the next inning, I didn't see the trash talk. Guess that's harder to do with a straight face after surrendering a game-tying homerun to Chase Utley, followed later by a lazer shot over the left field fence by Pat Burrell.

Hamels settled down after allowing two early runs and was tremendous the rest of the way. He made Jeff Kent look downright foolish. And, as many NL opponents learned in the regular season, once the Phillies' starters turn the ball over to the bullpen, the game is over.

Phillies 1, Dodgers 0.

Cubbies, White Sox, Angels & Brewers Done

The field of teams in the postseason has been cut in half. With both the Rays and the Red Sox finishing off their best-of-five series yesterday, the matchups are set for the League Championship Series.

While the Angels and the White Sox put up a bit of a fight, the Cubs and Brewers didn't amount to much this postseason. With a combined record of 0-6, makes me wonder about what that says about the strength of the National League Central Division.

Any team can lose a playoff series, but how do the Cubs, who had a near-dominant regular season, not even show up against the Los Angeles Dodgers? In the three losses, the Cubs were outscored 20-6. I expected them to show better than they did, especially with home-field advantage. Of course, there's always next year for the North-siders.

'08 Season in Review

Just before the regular season started, my anticipation for the 2008 season got the best of me and I decided to try to predict the outcomes of each division. It got really old, really quickly. Putting together something like this is all well and good for someone who makes a living writing a blog or a sports column, but let's be honest–I'm no professional.

Of the twelve teams included in my predictions, I nailed four of them. And hey, since this is baseball, a .333 average is outstanding, right? We're talking Hall of Fame worthy here.

In the National League West Division, I picked the Diamondbacks to lead the pack, and the Giants to bring up the rear. Turns out that although the pitching seemed to be there for the D-Backs, but their young hitting core took a step back. And, while the Giants were indeed bad, they weren't quite as bad as the Padres. Kind of sad, really. The Padres were a single-game playoff away from making the post-season last year. This year, they bombed. So with the Dodgers taking the prize in the West (thanks largely to the mid-season trade for Manny Ramirez), I was 0-2.

The National League Central division was claimed by the Cubs. I referred to them quite a bit in my NL Central preview, but ultimately chose the Brewers as my pre-season pick. As it turns out, the Cubs finished first and the Brew-Crew picked up the final wildcard playoff spot in the NL on the final day of the season. My last place pick was the Pirates. Even I got that pick right. Division, 1-2; Overall, 1-4.

In the East, I succumbed to the hype and picked the Mets as the clear leaders in the division after the acquisition of one Johan Santana (Actually, my picks in the East were based on repeated scientific research involving the EA Sports classic, Triple Play 2002, the simulation feature, and my now broken xBox). But, as happened last year, the Mets and their fans were left out in the cold on the last day of the season. The Phillies and their amazing bullpen won the division. Just to give you an idea, I heard during the Phillies playoff game yesterday some crazy stat that was something like this: if the games had only been eight innings long, the Mets would have won the division by eight or nine games. But the Phillies were 79-0 when leading after eight innings, and well, the Mets blew some late leads. Triple Play 2002 picked the Expos I picked the Nationals to finish last, so again, I was .500 in this division. Division, 1-2; Overall, 2-6.

By the time I got around to predicting the American League, I was sick of the whole pre-season prediction thing, so they all came in one post. My picks for division winners were the Angels, the Tigers, and the Red Sox (though I did give some props to the Rays, however sarcastic that may have been at the time). Once the pennant races had cleared, the actual winners were the Angels, the White Sox, and the Rays. In last place in their divisions were the Mariners, the Tigers*, and the Orioles. I had picked the Orioles, the Twins, and the A's. American League, 2-6; Overall, 4-12.

*You'd think that since I live in Kansas City and I see AL Central teams more than any other division that I'd be better at picking the eventual outcome. I picked the Tigers to stomp everyone in the AL, and they were so bad, and nice enough to replace the Royals as cellar dwellers. But I also picked the Twins to finish in last, and they ended the regular season tied for the division lead, and lost the single-game playoff by just one run. Oh well. Just another reason why I love baseball. You're never sure what will actually happen between the foul lines.