The Bench Jockeys » phillies http://thebenchjockeys.com Inspired Content, Buzzworthy Discussion and Critical Analysis at the Intersection of Sports & Politics Wed, 05 Dec 2018 21:19:41 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.1.29 Apparently, it isn’t Always Sunny in Philadelphia http://thebenchjockeys.com/2011/10/03/apparently-it-isnt-always-sunny-in-philadelphia/ http://thebenchjockeys.com/2011/10/03/apparently-it-isnt-always-sunny-in-philadelphia/#comments Mon, 03 Oct 2011 18:09:23 +0000 http://thebenchjockeys.com/?p=1180 October 2, 2011… It should have been an amazing day in Philadelphia:  two major sporting events where Phans had the chance to revel in the excitement of their sports teams.  In the afternoon, the “Dream Team” Eagles dominated the Niners for the majority of their game.  Up 23-3 midway through the 3rd quarter, they imploded, losing 24-23.  Same scenario later that evening in the NLDS as the Phils held a 4-zip in the 4th only to lose 5-4 to the Cards.  The first pitch of the game was hit into right field for a triple.   Amazingly, Cliff Lee got out of the inning unscathed, but perhaps the Phaithful should have realized at that moment that they might not be smiling when the clock struck midnight.

Two things that irritated me: 1) Tony LaRussa (who I respect for his years of baseball experience and knowledge) took a shot at the umpire’s strike zone disparities. Strike Zones for both teams were questionable all game, but it’s low to go on national television and whine about it.  Charlie Manuel in his post-game interview said, “I’m not blaming the umpire, they outplayed us on the field.” EXACTLY.  If the umpire gives you a smaller strike zone, then you have to play better defense and also actually hit the ball.  2) Swinging at the first pitch:  Did the Phils not learn from the prior night’s experience (an 11-run rout) that swinging at the first pitch (and causing an inevitable out) yielded nothing?  Swinging at the first pitch rarely gets you a hit and especially in the Playoffs when adrenaline might be running a little higher than usual causing you to hit a quick pop-up or ground out to second base.  

Weather forecast for St. Louis on Tuesday for Game 3….a sunny 77 degrees with no chance of rain.  We’ll see…

]]> http://thebenchjockeys.com/2011/10/03/apparently-it-isnt-always-sunny-in-philadelphia/feed/ 0 Are the Phillies the Yanks of the NL? http://thebenchjockeys.com/2011/04/12/are-the-phillies-the-yanks-of-the-nl/ http://thebenchjockeys.com/2011/04/12/are-the-phillies-the-yanks-of-the-nl/#comments Wed, 13 Apr 2011 03:07:10 +0000 http://thebenchjockeys.com/?p=475 I have to come clean; I was one of the MANY Phillies phans that enjoyed smack talking my opponents in the off-season.  Generally, I try not to jinx my team or make predictions before the season starts, but with the starting rotation the Phillies put together for 2011 (Halladay, Lee, Oswalt, Hamels) I couldn’t help myself.  I got caught up in the wave of excitement, and yes, I may have said, on more than one occasion, that I would be surprised if the Phillies don’t win 4 out of every 5 games this season.  But here’s the thing… I never claimed we were going to win the World Series (out loud).  And I never said we were going to CRUSH everyone that got in our way.  So why is it that I have to keep defending the Phillies against this:  
 
“They are buying the World Series just like the Yankees! The Phillies are the Yankees of the NL!”
Really? Cause I’m pretty sure we haven’t won the World Series since 2008. And it’s not for lack of trying.  But if we really were the Yankees of the National League, we would have won more than one World Series in the last 25 years.  The Yankees have won (gulp) 27 World Series Championships; the Phillies have won all of TWO.    After many years of being the worst team in baseball or a fluke wild card winner, the Phillies phaithful are enjoying the expectation of success.  Sure Halladay and Lee are freakishly good, but Houston gave up on the injury-plagued Roy Oswalt, And Cole Hamels is homegrown. 
Overall… everything is cyclical: politics, baseball, health trends, peace/conflict…The Yankees win.. the Red Sox lose … the Braves win… the Pirates lose… the Rays win… the Dodgers lose… the Phillies win.. the Phillies lose… No matter how much money a team spends – which is another topic entirely – there are no guarantees in life or baseball.  So stop calling us the Yankees of the National League.  One year we try to secure a solid rotation and suddenly we are equated with the Evil Empire. I am crying Phoul. 
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