Giants Win The World Series

Sunday, October 3, 2010, 1:35 PM ET: It's the last day of the MLB season. Game 162. And the games matter. The day starts with the Atlanta Braves hosting the Philadelphia Phillies. If the Phillies win, the Giants are guaranteed at the very least a playoff spot. It starts off great for the Giants. The Phillies jump off to a 2-0 lead and it looks for all the world that Bobby Cox's last stand will end in Turner Field in humiliating fashion on the last game of the season. A Phillies team with nothing to play for all series long could single handedly send a choking Giants team to the playoffs.....

But Danys Baez enters this game to pitch. And the meltdown begins. 2-0 Phillies becomes 8-2 Braves faster than you can say "Danys Baez, Mike Zagurski, and J.C. Romero are useless pieces of garbage and Joe Blanton in relief is a great idea if you ever want to lose a baseball game." The Phillies rally. 8-2 becomes 8-5. Then 8-7. The Giants may not have to worry after all.......

....The rally was never complete. Braves win 8-7.

Sunday, October 3, 2010: 4:05 PM ET: The Giants send Jonathan Sanchez to the mound in San Francisco against Padre ace Mat Latos in San Francisco with everything to play for, and an arduous road ahead if they lose. If the Padres win and sweep the series, the Giants would have to go on the road and face the Padres in an NL West tie-breaker on Monday with Tim Lincecum on the mound. Win that, and they would need to go to Turner Field to face the Braves in a wildcard tie-breaker on Tuesday. Win that, and on Wednesday, they would start an NLDS series at Philadelphia against a rested Roy Halladay with who knows what pitcher on the mound. The odds would be stacked immensely against the Giants. 4 games in 4 cities in 4 days would be brutal on any team, especially considering the stakes of all those games would be higher than high. 0-0, bottom of the 3rd inning, Jonathan Sanchez hits a triple.......

Monday, November 1, 2010: 10:30 PM ET: The San Francisco Giants are World Champions of baseball.

It happened that fast. An excellent starting pitching staff combined with a very solid bullpen, 3 real good hitters, and a bunch of medicore "huh, they are still playing baseball?" veterans combined to win the World Series. One of those mediocre veterans, Edgar Renteria, won 2010 MVP. Think about it for a minute. Edgar Renteria. 2010 World Series MVP. Edgar. Renteria.

Everything about this run by the Giants has been improbable: the absurd bounces, the ridiculous hot streak from Cody Ross in the NLCS, ridiculous BABIP, the timely hits from Juan Uribe, opposing team's line drives magically finding their ways to Giants gloves time after time again, the hot streak of Edgar Renteria in the World Series, the meek Giant groundballs that squirted through and led to runs, a kid 1 month and 15 days older than me who was struggling with his fastball in the minors earlier in the season pitching the game of a lifetime in Game 4 of the World Series, the unprecedented 6 1-run wins in the post-season, the incredible luck. It all combined together to equal a Giants World Series championship.

Go back to October 3, 2010 at 1:04 PM. Simulate the scenario from then to the playoffs 1,000 times. How many times would the Giants end up as World Series champions? Less than 50? I'd say so. The crazy thing about sports, baseball in particular, is the best team does not always win. If that was the case, we'd be talking about the Rays, Twins, Phillies, or Yankees right about now as World Champions. The best baseball teams of 2010? The truth lies somewhere within the middle of the aforementioned 4. But it's the hottest team at the right time wins. The luckiest team at the right time wins. That team? The San Francisco Giants.

Is that to say it is undeserved championship? Absolutely not. Any team that wins a division in baseball and makes the playoffs is going to be good enough to at least make a run at things, even if they are not the best. 2009 Yankees? They can say there were one of the best in the league. 2008 Phillies? Not among the best of teams. 2007 Red Sox? Among one of the best. 2006 Cardinals? Not even close to being the best; they won a putrid division with a record barely above .500! 2005 White Sox? Up there with the best. 2004 Red Sox? Nope. 2003 Marlins? Nowhere near the best. 2002 Angels? No. 2001 Diamondbacks? They were not the team that set a major league record with 116 wins in a single season.

Over half of the above teams were not among the best or one of the best overall teams in baseball when they won the World Series, yet how many people are saying that the 2008 Phillies did not deserve it, or the 2001 Diamondbacks winning is a scandal? A lot of these teams have got very lucky with some bounces along the way, as did the Giants, but that does not mean they are undeserved champions.

Congrats to the San Francisco Giants. The well-deserved 2010 World Champions of baseball.

2 Years Ago Today....

One strike away; nothing-and-two, the count to Hinske. Fans on the their feet; rally towels are being waved. Brad Lidge stretches. The 0-2 pitch — swing and a miss, struck him out! The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 World Champions of baseball! Brad Lidge does it again, and stays perfect for the 2008 season! 48-for-48 in save opportunities, and let the city celebrate! Don't let the 48-hour wait diminish the euphoria of this moment, and the celebration. And it has been 28 years since the Phillies have enjoyed a World Championship; 25 years in this city that a team that has enjoyed a World Championship, and the fans are ready to celebrate. What a night!

Deadspin's Will Leitch Thinks Harry Kalas's Death Was Awesome

You really can't beat nit-picking on the internet.

Earlier today, Will Leitch of Deadspin wrote a column detailing how a metaphorical turning point of the Phillies was their reaching eclipsing the 10,000 loss marker on July 15, 2007. Of course, that Phillies point is exactly that, metaphorical. Shortly after they did get on a bit of a winning streak that helped them, but if you are looking at an on-field standpoint, you probably have to go to the Phillies landing Jim Thome as the franchise turning point. Sure they never won anything with Thome, but that move signified that the Phillies were a team ready to contend again and no longer just a laughing stock as they had been at the start of the decade. Anyway, I digress, now where was I? Ah, yes, the metaphorical turning point of the Phillies being the 10,000 loss marker. Here is what Will Leitch had to say about that.

The Phillies were the logical team to break the 10,000 barrier. They'd been to the playoffs once in the last 25 years and seemed perpetually perched at that "just above .500 but not a real contender" ledge. They didn't even have the good manners to break their fans' hearts. They just plodded along, always just short. After the 10,000th loss, the team went on to lose three of its next four, dropping a game under .500 and six games out of first. Take another shot. They endure, they persevere, they do not discourage.

Every single thing that has happened since then has been awesome.

The Mets collapse and Phillies subsequent rally in September.
The Phillies finishing the job off to claim their first NL East title since 1993.
The Phillies first playoff game since 1993.
The Phillies winning the NL East for a 2nd straight year in 2008.
The Phillies winning their first playoff series since 1993.
The Phillies reaching and winning the NLCS, both for the first time since 1993.
The Phillies in the 2008 World Series.
The Phillies winning the 2008 World Series.
"WORLD CHAMPIONS......WORLD FUCKING CHAMPIONS!"
The death of Harry Kalas.
The Phillies winning a 3rd straight NL East title.
The Phillies winning their 2nd straight NLCS.
The Phillies making their 2nd straight World Series appearance.

Yep. All those things were simply awesome. Will Leitch slight oversights FTW!

World Fucking Champion Coach And Daughter To Run The Amazing Race

I mentioned a couple weeks ago how the Phillies are concidentally intertwined with the CBS reality series Survivor with Cole Hamels being husband to Heidi Strobel and Kyle Kendrick's future marriage with Stephenie LaGrossa, whose 3rd stint on the show will be premiering Thursday, February 11. 3 days after that on Sunday, February 14, The Amazing Race will premiere and the Phillies will once again establish a connection with CBS reality television. What's this connection, you ask? The 3rd base coach of the 2008 Philadelphia Phillies, Steve Smith, will be running the race along with Allie, his smoking hot daughter.



Oh sure, he may have been fired after the 2008 season and the highlight of his Phillies career was Geoff Jenkins running through his stop sign in Game 5 Version 2.0, but who cares, he got a ring with the Phillies and he's on a reality show with a hot daughter! Not only is he a former Phillie, but he also seems like a good guy from this 3 minute bio and how can you not like Allie. Sweet good looking 23-year old girl who seems to have a good head on her shoulders. Without a doubt, they are the team that I am going to be rooting for. I mean, who else is their to possibly root for, Jordan and Jeff of Big Brother? Miss Teen South Carolina who answered a question at Miss Teen USA 2007 and gave YouTube one of it's all time greatest moments? In the least sarcastic way possible, how many people actually knew that her name is Catie Upton? I certainly didn't. Everywhere she goes, she's just Miss Teen South Carolina...

But I digress...I'll be sure to document the travels of Steve and Allie here and if they were to win the race, you can bet your bottom dollar you will be seeing the video on here.

Luchabama: The Alabama Crimson Tide Are Your 2010 National Champions

Texas made this a dog fight, no dobut about that, and the game was a lot closer than the 37-21 final score will indicate, but in the end, the Alabama Crimson Tide are your BCS National Champions.

Nick Saban coached a simply deplorable game calling random fake punts in the beginning of the game, playing way too conservative in the 2nd half of the game, and yet, they still won. Why's that? Because Texas was stupider all season. They had a chance throughout the year in their blowout wins to put Garrett Gilbert in the game and give him a chance to work with the 1st team offense in case a crises would occur at the worst time for the Longhorns and they needed him. Well when Colt McCoy went down with a shoulder injury early in the 1st quarter of the National Championship game, they needed Garrett Gilbert. And make no mistake about it, the kid grew up before our eyes. But the Texas coaches, Mack Brown and Greg Davis were way too conservative when he first came in the game and it took all the momentum away that Texas had from building up an early 6-0 led.

Gilbert grew up in this game. He learned as he went along and had Texas within 3 with under 3 minutes left in the National Championship game after being down by 18. He played his heart out, but the Alabama defense, after being held to 0 sacks all game long by an O-Line that was holier than most churches in the Big XII championship game, exploded. They brought the blitz, it got to Giblert who was facing the other way, a fumble was forced, Bama recovered, and they were then well on their way to their first national championship since 1992.

Alabama played very conservative in the 2nd half. They allowed Texas to get back in the game. And Texas eventually took advantage of those opportunities, but when push came to shove at the end, it was Nick Saban, Alabama, and the Crimson Tide, that emerged victorious in a very odd National Championship game.

If ever there was a year of the favorite, this was it. Often times, it looked like a major underdog was on the verge of the upset only to have the favorite pull out in the end. This game, was a microcosm of the season. You had the ultimate underdog in Garrett Gilbert going for one of the most improbable comeback in college football history, and was one drive away from getting the job done.

Both sides made horrible mistakes during the game. Both coaches at times were conservative when they should have been aggressive and aggressive when they should have been conservative. Officials missed penalties on both sides of the ball and called nonexistent penalties on both sides of the ball. This was not the prettiest or most beautiful game of football that you will ever see, but it was oddly entertaining in the beginning and in the end with a slight lull in the middle and it was a national championship game. So like it or hate it, and believe me, I don't blame you at all if you hate it, but Nick Saban is once again a National Champion in college football and the Alabama Crimson Tide, for the first time since 1992, have taken college football's title.

The Games Of The Decade: Philly Edition

Practically everyone else is doing something for the decade, so I figured that I would join the party. That and I am bored out of my mind, it's a slow news day (and no, I am not doing a post on Mike Leach and my random out of nowhere not factually based hunch that Craig and Adam James are full of shit) so I need something to stimulate myself (besides watching porn).

So here is what I am doing. Here is an obviously debatable list of what I feel are the top 5 Philly games of the decade and in a later post, I will have the top 5 national games of the decade. Feel free to debate these, disagree with these, dispute these, whatever you want, however, I have thought these out and I am sticking with my guns.

First your Top 5 Philly games of the decade in order from #5 to the game I consider #1 (and really, if you have not figured out what #1 is going to be, then I really do pity you).

5). The Answer Stuns The Lakers - Sticking with the theme of championships, how about the 2000-2001 Philadelphia 76erts? Another game that I remember watching was Game 1 of that series and Iverson's heroics. Do I remember it as vividly as the Flyers games above? No, but gosh darn it, that was one heck of a performance by Iverson and I was truly believing that the Sixers had a chance to win the whole series after that game. Of course, the Lakers ended up winning the next 4 games and the series, but the thrill experienced by stunning the Lakers in LA is something worth remembering. Since then though, it was all downhill for the franchise and right now they are in the dumps and while I am excited that Iverson is back with the team and they have shown a bit of potential, they are by no means an NBA Finals team. After that NBA Finals, I really was never able to fully get back into the Sixers and the NBA in general. If there was one of the major four professional team sports that I could do without, it would without a doubt be the Sixers and NBA basketball in general. College basketball on the other hand, that is something completely different. I think that the college game is 1,000 times better than the professional game, much more exciting and dramatic than the professional game, and more importantly in my view, there is more of a stress on the team aspect where as the NBA nowadays to me is really nothing more than a bunch of guys with talent strutting their stuff and showing off. The focus is all on individual accomplishments and failures and how great Kobe and LeBron are, and after awhile, believe it or not, that gets boring.

4). Penguins and Flyers go 5 overtimes: Mr. Overtime Steve Levy struck again in Pittsburgh. He was there. And 5 overtimes later, Keith Primeau finally scored the game-winning goal sending the Flyers the crucial Game 4 victory that would at the time tie the series after trailing 2-0. My memory of that game: Waking up for school the next morning and having my mom tell me that the Flyers won in 5 OTs. Lucky for me, I taped the game and watched the whole sha-bang from start to finish immediately after I got home. Since then, I have purchased the 10 Greatest Flyers Games DVD which they released 10 of their best games in their entirety on DVD to commemorate their 40th anniversary a few years ago. I have seen the game again and it is just incredible to watch. The Flyers would not look back from that epic win and would win the next 2 defeating the Pens in 6. However, the season would not end well for the Flyers as after leading the Devils 3 games to 1 in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Flyers choked, losing 3 games in a row, the last of which being a game that I experienced first hand. I've told the story numerous times, but I was at that Game 7, perhaps the most infamous Flyers game of the decade. Eric Lindros skated off the ice early in the first period after taking a shoulder from Scott Stevens. That may have been over 9 years ago now but the image I have of seeing Eric Lindros laying there on the ice and the heartbreak that I felt as I watched in person Patrik Elias score the game-winning goal with under 3-minutes to go. After that, I never wanted to touch that game again. I never saw it again until just last week when ESPN Classic showed it as part of their Best of the Decade marathon. And while the ending was not as I would have pleased and while I still felt the heartbreak when that Elias goal went in at the end, I must say that too, was a heck of a hockey game.

3). San Francisco Giants vs. Philadelphia Phillies April 27, 2003 - Wait, what, you ask? My oh my, how soon we forget the only no-hitter thrown by a Phillie this decade. Kevin Millwood has never really amounted to a whole lot in the majors, but that does not take away from the importance and the great individual accomplishment of any no-no, especially when your team has only one in the decade. Sure they were fairly bad, finishing 15 games out of the division, but you never forget the no-hitters, am I right?

2). 2005 NFC Championship Game - It was the day after a foot of snow was just dumped on the city and the 4th year in a row that the Eagles were in an NFC Championship game. They failed the first 3 times. This time they did not. 67,717 braved 17 degree temperatures and a sub-zero windchill to witness a truly great game for the city of Philadelphia. Was it the most dramatic game ever? No. But did it mean a lot for a franchise that just lost 3 straight conference championships? Fuck yeah it did, and it felt damn good in the process. There is nothing like watching a game being played in sub-zero weather than by watching it with your family with the fireplace turned on and cheering as the Eagles stamped a ticket to Jacksonville.

1.5) Stairs rips one into the night - The moment that The Curse of William Penn was broken. The moment that everyone in the city knew that the Phillies were going to win the World Series. The moment that got people to dream and really started believing in this team more than they believed in any Philly team that made a championship this decade. The moment that set up my choice for the #1 Philly Game of the decade.....

1). The Philadelphia Phillies are World Champions of baseball - Duh. Did you really think this was going to be something else. Game 5 of the 2008 World Series. A game that ended over 48 hours after it started. And unlike the Eagles and the Falcons, this game was dramatic, from watching the conditions and the field deteriorate before our very eyes in Part 1 that ended with a back-breaking Tampa RBI to tie the game right before it was called, to the showdown of dramatic plays in part 2 from Utley's great defensive play to Pat Burrell getting what wound up as the game-winning run on base in what would ultimately end up being his last at-bat as a Phillie (Eric Bruntlett ended up pinch-running for Burrell who is no faster than a snail and it was Bruntlett who ultimately scored the winning run). I remember before the game everyone saying that the Rays had all the momentum going into that because of the ending of Game 5 Version 1.0, but heading into Game 5 Version 2.0, I knew one thing that would make a difference and one thing that made me believe that everyone on Around the Horn was more full of shit than normal. The Phillies had 12 outs to play with on offense as opposed to 9 for the Rays. Of course, the Phillies did not need those extra outs in order to win it all, but that was the ultimate advantage in that game, not the fact that Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria got their first hits of the series in that rain soaked Part 1 of the game. And while some people do not like the suspension of the game midway through the game, personally, I do like that it happened that way for one reason and one reason only: you remember it. It was a memorable finish and that second part of the game was some of the most dramatic and exciting baseball that you will ever see, and while my hopes and rooting interests are deeply entwined with a certain winning team of the game, I have to feel that casual baseball fans and sports fans in general enjoyed watching that Game 5. Many people will remember the day the day the Phillies won the 2008 World Series for quite some time.

Presenting A True Division I College Football National Champion, The Villanova Wildcats!

Andy Talley's bunch did it! They went down to rainy Chattanooga and put up over 350 yards on the ground to win a hard-fought, hard-nosed championship game, the 3rd championship game won by a Philadelphia team in the past year and a half.

The final score of the game was 23-21 Nova and while there were no real dramatics at the end (Montana got in the last 2 minutes to make the score a bit more respectible but failed to recover the onside kick eventually ending it with 1 more Nova 1st down), here are the final seconds of the game as called by Eric Collins and Brock Huard.



If you thought that call was bad, you should have heard Eric Collins' "V is for Victory and V is for Villanova" call that he did before that when he thought the game was over but there was a random stoppage holding up the final 30 seconds.

The Villanova Wildcats now join the Philadelphia Soul and the Philadelphia Phillies as Philly teams winning a championship this past year and a half. And now, it's up to the Eagles and then Jay Wright's Villanova basketball team (no longer unbeaten after losing to Big Five rival Temple) to bring home some more hardware to the City of Brotherly Love.

GO NOVA!!!

Perhaps The Greatest Finish To A Championship Game In The History Of Professional Championship Games

I know that not everyone was watching the CFL Grey Cup championship game, but if you were, you were privileged to one of the greatest finishes that you will ever see in your life.

The Montreal Alouettes were down by 16 in the 4th quarter of tonight's Grey Cup. However they came back with a touchdown and a 2-point conversion to cut the lead to 8. They got the defensive stop, got the ball back, and scored again. However, this time they missed the 2-point conversion and it was down to the last few minutes of the game. They got the ball back with around 1-minute remaining. They were able to drive down the field and get into field range trailing by 2. A miss would mean that the Saskatchewan Roughriders would win the 97th Grey Cup. A make would mean that the Montreal Alouettes would win their 2nd Grey Cup of the decade in 5 attempts.

What happened next will never be forgotten in Saskatchewan, Montreal, Quebec, and all of Canada.



Unbelievable. The Roughriders thought they had it won but that 13th man on the field will forever haunt their dreams. I can only imagine being in the shoes of that guy that was on the field that was not supposed to be. I would seriously think about keeping an extra eye or 2 on him in the next coming days. The backlash he faces from his teammates and more importantly the fans may not be that pretty.

Also, can you imagine being a Roughrider fan watching that? If that were my Eagles losing a Super Bowl that way, I would probably be literally physically ill for a week. I'm not sure if you can blame Roughrider fans if they have the same sensation.

Congrats to the Montreal Alouettes. They never led in that game until that point and they never gave up despite how grim it looked at times for them in that 4th quarter. Simply incredible.

JP Losman Is Now A Championship Quarterback

How is that possible you ask? JP Losman, believe it or not, is the star quarterback of the Las Vegas Locomotives (abbreviated Locos). The Locos just won the first ever UFL championship.

So here it is. The game-winning Vegas field goal in overtime that gave Losman a Super Bowl ring as filmed live from a fan sitting in Sam Boyd Stadium.



IT'S GOOD!!! THE LAS VEGAS LOCOS ARE YOUR FIRST EVER UFL CHAMPIONS!!!!

And quite possibly the last. While the league considered this an experimental year, I think the horrid attendance to the games has spoken and the experiment has failed.

Besides, this league just gave JP Losman a championship ring. Forget everything else, isn't that mere fact alone enough to consider the league a failure?

The Yankees Win The World Series!

It was not the 5-star classic that I think fans from both teams were expecting, nonetheless, with his World Series record tying 6 RBIs in a game, Hideki Matsui led the New York Yankees to a dominating Game 6 win and was MVP of their 27th World Series championship.

The Phillies gave it everything they had, but in the end, it was not enough. You can put the blame on a number of things, such as Pedro Feliz's ABs ending 4 of the 9 innings, all of which the Phillies had runner(s) on base, the Brad Lidge meltdown in Game 4, the not scoring off of A.J. Burnett in Game 2, the not taking advantage of Andy Pettitte not pitching his best games, but in the end, it all comes down to the simple fact that the Yankees outplayed and were a better team than the Phillies. The only 2 games the Phillies did win were the games that Cliff Lee started. Despite pitching well in game 2 and being more rested than Pettitte, it was Pedro who struggled in this game, giving up crucial runs when the game was still close. And like I stated before, the Phillies are not fans of giving Pedro any run support.

My props and congratulations to the New York Yankees. Anybody can buy a team, but that's only half of the battle. You have to get that team to function as an actual team and the Yankees did that this year and they have been rewarded handsomely for doing so.

Not to slight the Yankees anything, they do deserve it, but I want to spend the rest of this post talking about the Phillies.

What an incredible season.

Sure it startedo out heartbreakingly tragic with the passing of the late great Harry Kalas, but look at how this team came together over it. Hours after learning of his passing, (maybe not even that long) they played a game and they won that game. That's the kind of team they have been all year.

They constantly fought and battled back and even in this game, they tried to mount the rallies, but Yankee pitching along with tyhe fact that eventually the #7 spot in the order must come up, spelt doom for the Phillies in this game. That is nothing to be ashamed of.

After that Game 4 loss, I urged the Phillies to show heart and to care and to never give up and to never surrender, do-da, do-da. Guess what. They did that today. Sure it was a blowout, sure they did not win, but they kept trying to battle on offense. They stuck with it. Even with Rivera on the mound, they were not just randomly waving their bats to get the ordeal over with.

I'm sure you are wondering why I have yet to show the video of the Yankees winning. Frankly, there is no greater piece of evidence of this than the last out of the game. After fouling off pitch after pitch of Rivera, watch Shane Victorino after a groundball.



Never gave up. Never surrendered. Ran it out until there was nothing left. Dedicated to the end. Run it out. Don't have your head down. Be proud of what you've accomplished this year and don't wallow in any self-pity. There should be no self-pity for this team. They've accomplished so much.

Victorino has his detractors outside of Philly and while I'm sure you got a kick of him being the last out of the World Series, that was a real at bat and something he and Phillies fans can be proud of. With that last out, he represented everything this team was about and gosh darn it, watching him run it out like that, even though everyone knew what was about to happen, brought a smile on my face. He knows the game is over and even if there is an error on the throw, the chance of a rally against Rivera is still slim, but despite it all, you never know what can happen, the chance of the rally is slim, not none, and even if it's a sure fire thing, keep on running. No slow pace jog bullshit to let the other team celebrate. Keep fighting and represent your team well. That's what Victorino did.

The Phillies accomplished so much this year. They are NL champions of 2009 and they are still that. That's a title that can't be and won't be taken away from them. A flag will be raised at Citizens Bank Park on opening day commemorating that achievement. It's a proud achievement, one they should still be proud of. It's an achievement and a season that all Phillies fans should be proud of. No shame at all in what they accomplished this year and through it all, they gave us one hell of an entertaining World Series despite the end result.

RIP Harry Kalas. This tremendous season was for you.

Untitled

Sorry for shutting down the blog so early after the game last night, but there was just no way I was going to be around baseball. I typed up the blurb below, got in the shower, and went to bed. I was too depressed and too under the weather to do anything different.

That being said, I've now pretty much resigned myself to the fact that the Phillies, despite taking the 1 game to 0 lead over the Yankees, will not be able to repeat this year, now down 3 games to 1. That being said, I am hopeful that they can at least show what the Dodgers failed to show in both NLCS Game 5s after heart-breaking losses, and that is some heart. At least go down with a fight. At least give me something to be proud of by the end of the night. I know it's going to be difficult, maybe even impossible to beat the Yankees 3 times in a row in the World Series and I've resigned myself to the fact that it will not happen, but for the love of pete, please show up tonight and please don't let the Yankees romp you in their clinching game. Make them work for it, damn it. You've come too far this year to roll over and quit. You are better than the Dodgers. You've proved it in the past now prove it tonight.

You guys had a heck of season, you have a lot to be proud of. Don't let one game shape the way you play an entirely different game tonight. It's not even about giving the Yankees the satisfaction of sweeping you at home in the World Series, I could careless about where they clinch right now. It's about showing your fanbase that this team, regardless of what happened in the past will not quit. That you will not give up. That you will not go quietly into the night. Just look at this season, after all of the adversity this team has faced, including the passing of the late great Harry Kalas, that you have not given up in the past. Just look at the day Harry died, you guys WON that game.

Look, I'm not equating losing a World Series game to the passing of a beloved friend and broadcaster, there is obviously no comparison, but that's not the point I'm trying to make. I'm trying to make the point that you should not give up. Despite the 3-1 series deficit, you have proven time and again that you are up to the task and equal to the Yankees. You got a few bad breaks, yes, so have the Yankees as a matter of fact, the umpiring has been poor but it's even itself out in my view, but through it all, can you really say that this Yankee team has dominated you?

If you lose tonight, regardless of how it happens, that's how history will be written, that you were too much and were easily handled by the New York Yankees. And I do tip my hat to the Yankees, they are a very good team. Keyword: team. These Yankees have geled together as a team and it has worked. Is that how you want it? But prolong the series, and maybe, just maybe, you'll be judged differently.

Never give up, never surrender, you have to fight and you have to fight until there is nothing left. And even then, you gotta fight some more. You may go down tonight, you may not live to see another baseball day, but gosh darn it, you gotta believe and you gotta make sure that you show your fans that you can overcome adversity one last time and that you won't quit like the Dodgers did 2 years in a row or like the New York Giants did yesterday against the Eagles. In order to make your fanbase proud tonight, give the Yankees everything they have and never, ever even think about tucking your tail between your legs and calling it a season. For one night of heart and emotion and willpower, can translate into a whole lot more in the very near future.

Never give up. Never surrender. Fight til there is nothing left.

To Quote J.R., "BUSINESS IS ABOUT TO PICK UP!!!"

That's because it's official, the Phillies will play the Yankees in the 2009 World Series!

BRING IT ON, YOU MOTHER FUCKING YANKEES!!!

They got it done in 6. They did not need to waste Sabathia. No excuses. It will be the Phillies best versus the Yankees best in what has the possibilty of being a legendary World Series, certainly the biggest, most star-studded World Series that I can ever recall. Just listen to these names: Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Pedro Martinez, the 2008 World Series MVP Cole Hamels, Cliff Lee, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, A-Rod, Texiera, Sabathia, Pettitte.

I'm ready. I'm pumped. PHILLIES!!! YANKEES!!!

If the Phillies can somehow pull this one off and win it, regardless of how it goes down, it will be a part of Philadelphia sports lore forever. If you thought last year's World Series was big, believe me, this one is bigger. The last one broke the curse. This one will leave an unfathomable imprint on Philadelphia forever.

We are 68 hours away from the first pitch. Are you ready?

Epic Fail Rioting: 2009 NLCS Championship Edition

I never understood the fun of a shitload of drunks going out in the street after a championship and rioting and doing supremely stupid stuff that could get them arrested and/or them or somebody else killed, but that happens all the time in every city after a championship and when it fails, it's a riot in it of itself. For example, these 2 videos from last night. There's something to be said about the idiocy of a guy who humps a tree, a guy who pole dances on a traffic light, and the uber-moron who thinks that it is a good idea to jump on a taxi cab as it is stopped at a red light. Check out these two videos from The Fightins.





Too funny! If ever the tag "stupid things stupid people do when they are stupidly drunk" applied directly to a situation, it's here and now.

If I come across any more, I'll be sure to add them in this post.

PHILLIES ARE 2009 NLCS CHAMPIONS AND ARE GOING BACK TO THE WORLD SEREIS!!!!

The Phillies made no doubt about this one as they defeated the Dodgers 10-4 in Game 5 of the NLCS to advance to the World Series (thus confirming the NL participant predicted by Jim Karol the Psychic Mad Man over a month ago; yes, he said Phillies).

Okay, enough jibber-jabber, WE'RE GOING BACK TO THE WORLD SERIES!!!!!!!!! I'll have video and all sorts of goodies in a bit underneath here as sites begin posting.

First Update: Here's the video with the call by Chip Caray. For as much flack as we've given Chip Caray (and rightfully so), he actually had a decent end of NLCS call.



Second update: Here's the Scott Franzke call!



I like Tom McCarthy and all, but if there is such a possibility in this day and age, Scott Franzke has to be considered the next great Philly broadcaster. Another great call.

Third Update: I'm pretty sure that Brett Myers had a little too much to drink during the celebration.....



Why do I see that video being posted on Keith's Sports Journal in the morning? In a group of legitimately classy athletes (when their random f-bombs are not being picked up by overly sensitive TV microphones), Brett Myers is certainly the one sore thumb in that department. His free agency will be a good riddance.

Fourth Update: This was mentioned in the live blog. Don't get me wrong, I think Ernie Johnson is one of the best studio hosts in the business, but when you work for a cable channel that had a horrible set of playoff broadcasts and you proudly announce that you are with said channel, TBS, well, this is going to happen (thanks to Awful Announcing for pulling this video).



Great reaction too by EJ. He's a professional with a sense of humor. Too bad you can't say that with the rest of the TBS folks.

Rule #1 Of World Series Ring Heists: Do The Opposite Of Everything This Guy Did

Oy ve. I can't.......I don't even know where to begin with this.

There are a bunch of dumb criminals in this world. And then there is this guy who tried to steal 3 World Series rings and well, I'll just say How To Steal A World Series Ring 101 would have been quite a useful course for this guy. Via Big League Stew

A Phillies fan has been charged with stealing three 2008 World Series rings from a Citizens Bank Park office during Thursday's Game 2 loss to the Rockies.

According to Philadelphia police, 22-year-old Matthew Mervine attended the game dressed as a masked "Rockies Killer" — the Philadelphia Inquirer actually took a picture of him — and was ejected by security officials during the game for acting too rowdy.

But instead of heading home, Mervine allegedly stole three World Series rings — valued at about $1,100 apiece — from a ballpark office. Police say they know this because a security camera caught him in the act shortly after he filled out a job application to work at the park.

Also filed as evidence? The job application Mervine left behind, complete with all of his contact information. Whoops!

Police say they later recovered the rings — which were made for team employees and cost substantially less than the $11K versions given to players — at Mervine's home. There's no word on whether he was still wearing the "Rockies Killer" mask when arrested (though I have a strong suspicion and hope that he was).

Nothing cracks me up more than a great dumb criminal story and boy oh boy, I'm pretty sure that this one has to be one of the best we've seen in baseball in quite some time. I mean good grief, could he have made it any easier for him to be found? Actually, the only thing he did not do was wear a shirt that says "I'm About To Steal World Series Rings Arrest Me Now Please!"

Oh, and I'd be willing to pay upwards of a million dollars* for that mug shot with him wearing the Rockies killer mask.

*slight exaggeration

/RJBO'd.

FOR THE 3RD STRAIGHT YEAR, THE PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES ARE NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST CHAMPIONS!!!

Actual moment of clinching in the Marlins-Braves game (complete with depressed Braves announcers!):
http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?mid=200909306936149

Seconds later, here are Tom McCarthy and Chris Wheeler on the Phillies winning:
http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?content_id=6936311&c_id=mlb

Scott Franzke and Larry Anderson on Phillies radio:



Tribute to Harry Kalas:



If you're a Phillies fan and don't at least have a lump in your throat after watching that, then I'm not sure what to tell you.

Thanks to The Fightins for compling these!

The Phillies Receive Their World Series Rings

I confess, I am too lazy and tired right now to take a bunch of screen shots and thus post photos from the ring ceremony before yesterday's game against the Braves (it does not allow you to click on the pics and save them to your computer). So if you click on the link at the bottom, you can view the slideshow of the ceremony from the beginning highlighted by the return (for one day only, of course) of Pat Burrell (who supposedly got the biggest cheers), Adam Eaton (who subsequently got booed), and an appearance by the suspended J.C. Romero.

Link To Ring Ceremony Slideshow.

Update: Yay, I found the video. Don't know why I did not think of looking at it before, but I'm so tired and I have so much on my plate for the last few weeks of the semester, that's it's a miracle that I can even actually have a clear thought. Period.

Phillies To Meet With President Obama

Ah, the advantages of being World Fucking Champions! Next week the Phillies are set to go down to Washington for a series with the Nationals. And they'll be spending an unusual day off in the middle of the series to meet someone of rather high importance that just so happens to live in that area. Yep, you guessed it. As World Fucking Champions, the Phillies have been invited to the White House to meet President Barack Obama! From the 700 Level

The Phillies will play the Nationals next Monday in our nation's capital. On their off day on Tuesday, the 2008 World Champions will get a chance to meet Barack Obama at the White House. "It should be very exciting," first baseman Ryan Howard said. "I'm looking forward to it."

And I thought it was a neat privilege to be a fan of said Phillies at the parade after they won the World Series where some odd delay had me staring straight into the eyes of Harry Kalas and (Flyers PbP man) Jim Jackson for 20 minutes. Talk about the privileges of actually being World Champions!

And what's with this rumor that Joe Biden is actually more of a Yankees fan than a Phillies fan? What happened to being proud of being from the Scranton/Delaware area? Being a Yankee fan in this area are treated just about the same as Mets fans are. And to think that I voted for you! Oh well, at least one half of the executive branch that I voted for has some respect for good baseball...

The Flag Is Raised At Citizens Bank Park

I've said this a bunch of times now, but there is no need to panic after last night's loss. The Phillies are notorious slow-starters. Let's just hope, that like in years past, the Phils find a solid groove when they need it the most and carry that groove throughout the regular season and into the post-season while avoiding injuries in the process.

FYI, I have a hall meeting tonight right at 9 so I won't be around for the very start of the broadcast tonight, but hopefully I'll make the tip time. The meeting should only last 15 minutes or so.

"UNC > Nova > Dook: Basic Math"

Well, that was certainly a depressing game for Nova fans. I can't say I'm surprised, however, although I guess disappointed would be an appropriate word. Disappointed because after being outplayed in the first half by the North Carolina Tar Heels (a.k.a. The Angry Goats on Steroids), UNC took their foot off the gas and Villanova Wildcats did not take advantage of that opportunity. Their 3-point shooting was deplorable beyond measure and UNC was just ridiculous along the boards.

I will say this though about North Carolina, forget Tyler Hansbrough, I was much more impressed by Danny Green. Let me tell you what, that kid is NBA ready and he has the potential to be a star if he ends up with the right team for him.

Well, there is always next year for the Wildcats. Jay Wright is a good coach and you have to have faith that he will get Villanova back in the NCAA tournament. And hey, Villanova eliminated Duke. That alone will forever be priceless for me.

As far as Philly sports goes, tomorrow is a new day. For tomorrow night is opening day for the Philadelphia Phillies. They'll be taking on the Atlanta Braves on Sunday Night Baseball at 8 PM on ESPN2, and yes, I will be live blogging that right here at FARN. And I will not be losing CoverItLive. Back to the old style (what a shame Nathan/Mark/Tom/Tyler/"OMDQ"/"S2N"/Ty/Andrew). As far as the game goes, Cole Hamels will not be starting, he has not yet fully recovered from his Spring Training injury, instead it will be Brett Myers taking on the Braves' newly acquired pither Derek Lowe live from Citizens Bank Park.

And just as a reminder of the good times from last year (and to cure some disappointment from the Wildcats' loss)....



Not quite sure why the person who made this video used the song, "Prostitute" by Guns n' Roses, but it works, in a weird way. My favorite part of that whole vid was how Chris Wheeler completely lost it in the booth. Harry Kalas is sitting down as calmly as possible making the call, meanwhile he is up dancing and celebrating and seemingly showing off his Tae-Kwon-Do moves. And lastly, the 3 words that are forever etched into the minds of Philadelphians, and are particularly helpful and inspiring whenever a team like Villanova disappoints like they did tonight.



I love how the crowd absolutely went nuts after the f-bomb. Too funny. And if you think that this is a phrase that I like, you're wrong. Just the other day, I saw someone with a t-shirt that said, "World Phuckin Champions". Yeah. That is pretty much the Phillies new rallying cry for Philadelphians (and my email signature).

World Champions!.....WORLD FUCKING CHAMPIONS!

Go Phillies!!!