It looks more likely than not that SSR and I are splitting the live blogs with me in the afternoon cap and SSR in the night cap. That being said, use this as your pregame open thread. Post your thoughts and predictions on the game here and we'll get the live blog kicked off when Joe and Troy come on the air.
JFein's pick: Eagles 31, Cardinals 27
P.S. Yes, this is (mainly) an Eagles blog but I will be running things in an unbiased as possible manner.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Site Announcement Regarding Tomorrow's Live Blogs
I'm not sure what's going on tomorrow in terms of AA tomorrow, seeing as S2N is not going to be there, but if AA does not show up SSR and myself have set up a back-up plan. If AA does not show up, I will be live blogging the Eagles-Cardinals game here and SSR will be doing the Ravens-Steelers game at his site.
I'm going to try to get in contact with AA so that we have some certainty for tomorrow.
Update: I just sent AA an email asking about the live blog. I had tried to email him earlier but I had a typo in the address and my computer did not kick it back to me until 6-hours later (If I could, I'd kill Comcast). I'll post a second update once I know for sure what's going on, whether SSR and I are splitting the live blogs, or if AA is doing them, or if something else is going on.
I'm going to try to get in contact with AA so that we have some certainty for tomorrow.
Update: I just sent AA an email asking about the live blog. I had tried to email him earlier but I had a typo in the address and my computer did not kick it back to me until 6-hours later (If I could, I'd kill Comcast). I'll post a second update once I know for sure what's going on, whether SSR and I are splitting the live blogs, or if AA is doing them, or if something else is going on.
AFC Championship Game Preview
What: A re-match of Walt Coleman's latest gaffe
Who: The Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers
Where: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
When: 6:30 EST
What Channel: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz and Phil Simms
Announcers' Talking Point of the Game: After losing two heart breakers to the Steelers, can the Ravens finally beat the Steelers?
Weather Forecast: 60% chance of snow showers, 25 degrees
Regular Season Meetings: Week 4: Steelers 23, Ravens 20; Week 15: Steelers 13, Ravens 9
Analysis: I don't know much about Ed Reed's religion, but one thing is for sure. God worships Ed Reed. Reed is a complete beast and he is everywhere and anywhere on the football field every and any play. There's a reason the Raven defense is once again one of the best in the league and a whle heck of a lot of it has to do with the play of Reed and Ray Lewis.
Wait a minute, great defense? Well how about the Steelers? They're the #1 defense in the NFL! This game is a battle of the top 2 defenses in the NFL (the Eagles are #3) and it should be one heck of a dandy, especially if the regular season games are signs of things to come.
Well, we know that both defense are going to do their thing, so let's look at the offensive side of the ball. The Steelers are led by veteran quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, who while not having the best year of his career, has come through in the most clutch moments for the Steelers this season, with one of the most notable being Week 15 at Baltimore. The Steelers running back, Willie Parker, is the engine that makes this offense go. If the Steelers can't establish the running game, they can find themselves in trouble. However, if they can, they will definitley be in the game and most likely leading.
Meanwhile, the Baltimore Raven offense is led by rookie quarterback Joe Flacco. Although nowhere near dazzling, Flacco has in no way hurt his team, something which the Ravens struggled with under Kyle Boller and Steve McNair. The rookie has done a real solid job and while his short and intermediate passes may need some work, the man knows how to throw a beautiful deep ball. The Ravens also have a running game that is the key to the offense, led by Le'Ron McClain and Willis McGahee. And much like the Steelers, this Ravens offense will go as the running game goes.
With two evenly matched teams, I see 2 x-factors in this game. The weather (remember, there is a chance of snow) and special teams. The team that makes the most big plays on special teams likely will come away victorious in this one.
Prediction: I subscribe to a theory that it is very difficult for a team in the NFL to go up to a team that it is evenly matched up with and beat them 3-times in a season. And that is exactly what the Steelers are up against, having beat the Ravens twice in the regular season in the final minute. However, Heinz Field in the snow is a tough place for any road team to win, regardless of time of year and stakes of the game. You know the Pittsburgh faithful are going to show up in full force and they will be determined to force Flacco and co. into false starts and making mistakes (as if the Pittsburgh defense is not enough). But in the end, I see the Ravens finally getting the win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the game that means the most. Ravens 13, Steelers 10.
Friday, January 16, 2009
NFC Championship Game Preview
What: A conference championship game that no one saw coming.
Who: The Philadelphia Eagles and the Arizona Cardinals
Where: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
When: 3:00 EST
What Channel: Fox
Announcers: Joe Buck and Troy Aikman with Pam Oliver and the ubiquitous Chirs Myers working on the sidelines
Announcers' Talking Point of the Game: How will the Eagles secondary fare against these dynamic Cardinal receivers?
Weather Forecast: Sunny, 77 degrees
Regular Season Meeting: Eagles 48, Cardinals 20
Analysis: Well then! No one saw this coming a month ago. But alas, it's the Philadelphia Eagles and the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Championship game and the executives at Fox are jumping off cliffs as we speak. And while it is certainly a most unappealing matchup (no offense to Cardinals fans, but very few people outside of the Phoenix/Glendale/Arizona market care about this team), this actually has the potential to be a very good game.
The Philadephia Eagles are about as red hot as anyone, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Ever since the loss to the New York Giants in Week 11, this defense has played lights out. And yes, I know the Baltimore game was a blowout, but not many of those points were the sole fault of the defense. However this game will pose a different test to the Eagles' defense. The past two games it has been about the Eagles' run defense. This game will focus more on the Eagles' secondary and can they stop when of the best receivers in the NFL, Larry Fitzgerald. The Cardinals run game has come alive in the past few weeks thanks in large part to the re-emergence of Edgerrin James, however, the Eagles faced a lot worse the past few weeks with the Purple Jesus of Minnesota and Earth, Wind, and Fire in New York. It is worth noting that none of those teams were really threatening through the air. But what about Eli Manning, JFein? Well, it was quickly established in that game last week that Eli would not be able to throw in the wind at his own stadium. And minus a big play-making receiver on the New York side, there was just no way that Eli would beat the Eagles and Jim Johnson noticed that and spent all of his defensive resources, if you will, to stop the run.
Enough with the digression, though. Point being is that Arizona is a different animal. And it will definitley be to their advantage that this game is in the desert. Could you imagine if they played in Philly today? For those that don't know, it is currently the coldest here that it has been in years with temperatures in the single digits now, and a high that won't come close to 20. Oy, another digression. Anyway, the Kurt Warner is thanking his lucky stars that the game is Sunday in the desert (here it's going to be slightly warmer than it is now, but a chance of snow exists). And so maybe the Eagles. The Eagles play in a cold-weather city, but they are not necessarily a grind it out cold-weather team. Even though Andy Reid has been relying on the run a whole lot more than he ususally does (I'm just as shocked as you are, this maybe the best I've ever seen him with McNabb at QB). So this Eagle offense should not have any problems moving the ball. The temperature is going to be fairly comfortable, roof open or closed, the Cardinal defense is nowhere near the threat of Minnesota's and New York's defense, and oh yeah, the Eagles lit them up for 48 on Thanksgiving day to end their mid-season cold streak.
Prediction: I have picked the Cardinals to be blown out in each of the last two weeks. Look at how that's turned out for me. However, I may be stupid, but I'm doing it again. Except I don't think that this is going to be a blowout. The Eagles defense is awesome, yes, but the Cardinals have momentum and they have a fan base now that has NEVER been this excited about Cardinal football. Regardless of who wins, the winner of this game will cement themselves as one of the most unlikely Super Bowl contenders of all time, and that unlikely contender will be the Philadelphia Eagles, the same team that was left for dead at 1:00 PM on Week 17 of the NFL season, will be going to the Super Bowl, beating the Arizona Cardinals by a score of 31-27.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Fantasy World Series Game 3: 1980 Phillies vs. 2008 Phillies
Well, let's hope this game actually has a little bit of drama in it. Drama makes everything funner. Once again, credit to WhatIfSports. The winner of this game will cement their role as the best Phillies team ever. The 1980 Phillies won Game 1, 4-1. The 2008 Phillies won Game 2, 5-2. Let's get into Game 3.
From Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pitching Match-up: Bob Walk (ERA 4.57) vs. Jamie Moyer (ERA 3.71)
Top of the First Inning
Garry Maddox starts the game out by grounding to short. Up next is Pete Rose and he will send one a mile high into left center that is easily handled. Mike Schmidt is up next. SCHMIDT SMOKES IT! DEEP TO CENTER.....IS IT ENOUGH?......IT'S GONE! Mike Schmidt hits one that barely clears the wall at center and it's 1-0 1980 Phillies. Ryan Howard catches Bake McBride's liner to end the inning. 1-0 '80 Phils thanks to Mike Schmidt's solo shot.
Bottom of the First Inning
Jimmy Rollins starts things out for the '08 Phillies by grounding out to first. Jayson Werth is up next and he hits a single to left center! Utley and Howard both draw walks and it's bases loaded for Pat Burrell who also walks! That bases-loaded walk ties it at 1! Victorino is up next and he hits one that bounces off the mound into center field! Utley and Howard both score and the '08 Phils lead 3-1 on Victorino's single! Pedro Feliz is up next and he pops out to short. Ruiz hits a fly ball to right center and that will end the inning. 3-1 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Second Inning
Luzinski pops out to Feliz. Manny Trillo gets out on a grounder to short. Boone is up next and he pops one up that lands in the hole! Single for Boone. Bowa does not do him any favors by lining out to J-Roll and ending the inning. 3-1 '08 Philllies.
Bottom of the Second Inning
On comes Jamie Moyer and he hits a line drive!....that's caught easily by Manny Trillo. J-Roll draws a walk. On comes Jayson Werth but look out! Rollins steals 2nd! WERTH!...DEEP!.....GONE! That 2-run shot puts the 2008 Phillies up 5-1! Utley is up next and he LAUNCHES ONE DEEP! AT THE WALL THE CATCH IS MADE BY McBRIDE! Howard steps up to the plate and he singles to center. Burrell lines out to McBride. Victorino is up next and he ends the inning by striking out. 5-1 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Third Inning
Walk is first up and he flies out to deep left. Garry Maddox and he too lets one soar that is caught by Burrell. On comes Pete Rose and he pops one up but it falls through for the single. Schmidt lines out to J-Roll to end the inning.
Bottom of the Third Inning
Pedro Feliz starts the inning by uncorking a popper to McBride. Ruiz comes in and he draws a walk. Moyer again makes contact but he hits into a 5-4 fielder's choice. J-Roll is next and he takes a walk. Up next is Jayson Werth who last time at the plate hit a homerun. This time he waves at a ball outside of the zone. 5-1 '08 Phillies
Top of the Fourth Inning
Bake McBride starts the inning with a walk. Luzinski comes up to bat and meanwhile McBride is trying to steal second! OUT! Luzinski waves at strike 3 out of the strike zone. Trillo ends the inning by grounding out to Howard. Still 5-1.
Bottom of the Fourth
Utley starts the inning by sending a flyball into the hole! Ryan Howard pops one up to McBride. Pat Burrell comes up and he sends one deep to right that's caught by Maddox. Victorino flies out to Luzinski and that'll end the inning. 5-1 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Fifth Inning
Boone starts the inning off with a line drive to center! And the '80 Phillies start with a double. Bowa comes up next and he singles to center! 1st and 3rd with nobody out as Lonnie Smith will pinch-hit for the pitcher, Walk. Smith hits into a 6-4 fielder's choice, which allows Boone to score! 5-2. On comes Garry Maddox. Smith is running! He's got second! Here comes the next pitch, and Smith is going again! He's got third! Maddox flies one down the left-field line! Smith scores easily on Maddox's double and it's 5-3! Rose hits an infield single to short which leaves runners on 1st and 3rd for Schmidt. Schmidt hits into a 3-6 fielder's choice! Maddox SCORES FROM 3RD! And it's 5-4! And it's pitching change time. Durbin is replacing Moyer. McBride with a line drive single! 1st and 2nd for Luzinski who strikes out to end the inning. And this one is interesting, 5-4 '08 Phillies
Bottom of the Fifth Inning
On will come Dickie Noles to pitch for the '80 Phillies. Feliz will lead off the inning by grounding out to short. Ruiz grounds out to Trillol Durbin with a swing and a miss ends the inning. 5-4 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Sixth Inning
Trillo leads off by grounding out to Howard. Boone pops out to Werth. Larry Bowa grounds out to Howard and it's an easy 1-2-3 inning for Durbin. 5-4 '08 Phillies.
Bottom of the Sixth Inning
Jimmy Rollins leads off the inning by popping out to first base man, Pete Rose. Werth comes up next and he connects with a line drive single to left! Utley strikes out. On comes Ryan Howard and he walks. Men on 1st and 2nd for Burrell. Burrell bloops one to left-center! The outfield is late getting to the ball! Werth scores from second easily! AND HOWARD'S TRYING FOR HOME AS WELL! THE THROW TO THE PLATE IS NOT IN TIME! Howard scores and it's 7-4 '08 Phillies on the bloop double by Burrell. Ron Reed is coming on to pitch to Victorino. Flyball to center falls in the hole! Burrell will round 3rd and score! 8-4 '08 Phillies, and it's once again a 4-run game! 2-0ut with Victorino on 2nd and a wild pitch to Feliz sends Victorino to 3rd! Feliz, however strikes out and that'll end the inning. 8-4 '08 Phillies and this one is getting ugly again.
Top of the Seventh Inning
Ron Reed leads off the inning by grounding to short. Maddox is up next and he uncorks one to left for a single. Rose flies out to left cinter. Schmidt bloops one to right-center that sends Maddox all the way to 3rd! 1st and 3rd with 2 out for McBride. McBride lines one to left! Maddox scores and it's 8-5! J.C. Romero comes in to pitch to Greg Luzinski. Luzinski bloops one to left-center! Schmidt scores easily from 2nd! McBride is going to try to score from 1st! THE THROW TO THE PLATE IS NOT IN TIME! '80 PHILLIES ARE WITHIN 1 RUN AGAIN! Trillo flies out to left-center to end the inning. A 2-out rally from the 1980 Philles have them once again within 1. 8-7 in favor of the 2008 Phillies but the old-timers are not going easily into the Philly night.
Bottom of the Seventh Inning
Ruiz starts things off by fling out to left-center. Up next is J.C. Romero. ROMERO LAUNCHES ONE OFF THE WALL! MADDOX OVERPLAYED IT! ROMERO HAS A TRIPLE! INCREDIBLE! J-Roll draws the walk. Jayson Werth is next to bat and Werth flies one deep down the left field line. It's caught by McBride but Romero scores easily and it's 9-7 for the 2008 Phillies! Oh my, here we go again. Here comes Chase Utley. And here we go again, indeed! J-Roll steals second! Okay, maybe not again as Utley grounds out. The 2008 Phillies have tacked on another, leading 9-7.
Top of the Eighth Inning
Bob Boone leads off the top of the eighth inning with a flyout to Pat Burrell. Bowa grounds out to first. George Vukovich comes into pinch hit for the pitcher, Reed and he flies out to right center field. 9-7 2008 Phillies.
Bottom of the Eighth Inning
Kevin Saucier comes into pitch for the 1980 Phillies. Howard grounds out to first. Pat Burrell takes ball 4 and walks. Up next is the Flyin' Hawaiian. OUCH! Victorino is hit by a pitch and it's 1st and 2nd with two out for Pedro Feliz. Feliz grounds it to 2nd.....DOUBLE PLAY! 4-6-3 and that ends the inning. Heading into the ninth inning, the 2008 Phillies have a 2-run lead and are 3-outs away from being considered the best team in Phillies history.
Top of the Ninth Inning
Here we go. Can the 1980 Phillies come back, or will the 2008 Phillies win the series? You can cut the tension with a knife, folks. The 1980 Phillies have the top of their line-up at the plate and here is Garry Maddox with Brad Lidge now on the mound for the '08 Phillies. Maddox is hit in the leg! The tying run is now at the plate with nobody out! Pete Rose takes the plate and he gets hit by a pitch! 1st and 2nd with nobody out for the 1980 Phillies! Mike Schmidt comes up and he strikes out! Here comes Bake McBride to the plate! GROUNDBALL TO 3RD! McBride is out but the runners advance to 2nd and 3rd, respectively. Two out. On comes Luzinski. GROUNDBALL DOWN THE LEFT FIELD LINE! MADDOX SCORES! The 1980 Phillies are now within 1! 9-8. Runners at 1st and 3rd. 2 0ut. Tying run 90 feet way. Trillo at the plate. TRILLO SMOKES A LINER TO RIGHT! MADDOX SCORES FROM 3RD AND THIS GAME IS TIED! UNBELIEVEABLE! 9-9 in the top of the ninth! After not blowing a save all year, Lidge has blown one here. On will come Clay Condrey to pitch with Bob Boone at the plate. Boone walks! Bases loaded, top of the ninth, 2 out, 9-9 game, and on comes Larry Bowa. LARRY BOWA SINGLES TO RIGHT! LUZINSKI SCORES! TRILLO SCORES! THE 1980 PHILLIES HAVE TAKEN THE LEAD! Absolutely incredible. 1st and 2nd with 2 out for Keith Moreland pinch hitting for Kevin Saucier. Moreland sends to through the hole at left-center! BOONE IS GOING TO TRY TO SCORE FROM 2ND! HE'S SAFE! 3-RUN LEAD FOR THE 1980 PHILLIES! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! What a turnaround! From trailing by 2 to now leading by 3, the 1980 Phillies have completely taken control here in the 9th, 12-9. Tom Gordon now comes on to pitch for the 2008 Phillies. Maddox is back up to the plate, he got things started by taking a pitch in the leg. This time he grounds out to first and that finally ends the inning. Another remarkable 2-out rally have put the 1980 Phillies ahead, 12-9. Unbelieveable.
Bottom of the Ninth Inning
Who says we can't have another rally? The 2008 Phillies look as dejected as they have ever looked, but you never know. Tug McGraw comes into pitch. Ruiz is first to bat. Ruiz grounds one to left and reaches on the single! Greg Dobbs is coming into the game to pinch-hit for Tom Gordon. The Phillies need something from Dobbs. And Dobbs delivers! THAT ONE IS HIT TO LEFT CENTER FIELD AND THAT BALL IS OUTTA HERE! A 2-RUN HOMER AND THE 2008 PHILLIES ARE SUDDENLY WITHIN 1! And on top of all that, there's no one out with the top of the line up at the plate. Jimmy Rollins comes in and he grounds out to first. 1 away. Werth is up and he sends one through the hole to left field for the single! The trying run is at first. The winning run is at the plate. Chase Utley walks! Howard gets intentionally walked and the bases are loaded in the bottom of the ninth! On comes Pat Burrell. High popper to right-center! Maddox catches the popper! WERTH TAKES OFF! MADDOX HAS A CHANCE WITH THE THROW! THE THROW TO BOONE IS TOO HIGH! WERTH SCORES! WE'RE TIED! AGAIN! 12-12! How's this for an exciting finish? Good lord. Anyway, here comes Victorino to the plate. A chance to win the game for the Phillies with runners at 2nd and 3rd 2-out. Lerrin Lagrow comes into pitch, replacing Tug McGraw. And here's the Flyin' Hawaiian. VICTORINO SINGLES TO RIGHT CENTER! NO CHANCE AT THE PLATE! UTLEY SCORES! 2008 PHILLIES WIN! 13-12! WHAT A COMEBACK! WHAT A GAME!
Final line
1980 Philadelphia Phillies: 12 runs, 16 hits, 0 errors
2008 Philadelphia Phillies: 13 runs, 14 hits, 0 errors
Well then, can you imagine if that were a real game? It'd be the game of the year in baseball. And I swear that's how WhatIfSports simulated it. Yeah, that was incredible.
That was fun. I hope you were entertained by reading my narrations of the play-by-play of these simulated games. I'll probably have some more simulations in the football offseason, when things are kind of slow.
From Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pitching Match-up: Bob Walk (ERA 4.57) vs. Jamie Moyer (ERA 3.71)
Top of the First Inning
Garry Maddox starts the game out by grounding to short. Up next is Pete Rose and he will send one a mile high into left center that is easily handled. Mike Schmidt is up next. SCHMIDT SMOKES IT! DEEP TO CENTER.....IS IT ENOUGH?......IT'S GONE! Mike Schmidt hits one that barely clears the wall at center and it's 1-0 1980 Phillies. Ryan Howard catches Bake McBride's liner to end the inning. 1-0 '80 Phils thanks to Mike Schmidt's solo shot.
Bottom of the First Inning
Jimmy Rollins starts things out for the '08 Phillies by grounding out to first. Jayson Werth is up next and he hits a single to left center! Utley and Howard both draw walks and it's bases loaded for Pat Burrell who also walks! That bases-loaded walk ties it at 1! Victorino is up next and he hits one that bounces off the mound into center field! Utley and Howard both score and the '08 Phils lead 3-1 on Victorino's single! Pedro Feliz is up next and he pops out to short. Ruiz hits a fly ball to right center and that will end the inning. 3-1 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Second Inning
Luzinski pops out to Feliz. Manny Trillo gets out on a grounder to short. Boone is up next and he pops one up that lands in the hole! Single for Boone. Bowa does not do him any favors by lining out to J-Roll and ending the inning. 3-1 '08 Philllies.
Bottom of the Second Inning
On comes Jamie Moyer and he hits a line drive!....that's caught easily by Manny Trillo. J-Roll draws a walk. On comes Jayson Werth but look out! Rollins steals 2nd! WERTH!...DEEP!.....GONE! That 2-run shot puts the 2008 Phillies up 5-1! Utley is up next and he LAUNCHES ONE DEEP! AT THE WALL THE CATCH IS MADE BY McBRIDE! Howard steps up to the plate and he singles to center. Burrell lines out to McBride. Victorino is up next and he ends the inning by striking out. 5-1 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Third Inning
Walk is first up and he flies out to deep left. Garry Maddox and he too lets one soar that is caught by Burrell. On comes Pete Rose and he pops one up but it falls through for the single. Schmidt lines out to J-Roll to end the inning.
Bottom of the Third Inning
Pedro Feliz starts the inning by uncorking a popper to McBride. Ruiz comes in and he draws a walk. Moyer again makes contact but he hits into a 5-4 fielder's choice. J-Roll is next and he takes a walk. Up next is Jayson Werth who last time at the plate hit a homerun. This time he waves at a ball outside of the zone. 5-1 '08 Phillies
Top of the Fourth Inning
Bake McBride starts the inning with a walk. Luzinski comes up to bat and meanwhile McBride is trying to steal second! OUT! Luzinski waves at strike 3 out of the strike zone. Trillo ends the inning by grounding out to Howard. Still 5-1.
Bottom of the Fourth
Utley starts the inning by sending a flyball into the hole! Ryan Howard pops one up to McBride. Pat Burrell comes up and he sends one deep to right that's caught by Maddox. Victorino flies out to Luzinski and that'll end the inning. 5-1 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Fifth Inning
Boone starts the inning off with a line drive to center! And the '80 Phillies start with a double. Bowa comes up next and he singles to center! 1st and 3rd with nobody out as Lonnie Smith will pinch-hit for the pitcher, Walk. Smith hits into a 6-4 fielder's choice, which allows Boone to score! 5-2. On comes Garry Maddox. Smith is running! He's got second! Here comes the next pitch, and Smith is going again! He's got third! Maddox flies one down the left-field line! Smith scores easily on Maddox's double and it's 5-3! Rose hits an infield single to short which leaves runners on 1st and 3rd for Schmidt. Schmidt hits into a 3-6 fielder's choice! Maddox SCORES FROM 3RD! And it's 5-4! And it's pitching change time. Durbin is replacing Moyer. McBride with a line drive single! 1st and 2nd for Luzinski who strikes out to end the inning. And this one is interesting, 5-4 '08 Phillies
Bottom of the Fifth Inning
On will come Dickie Noles to pitch for the '80 Phillies. Feliz will lead off the inning by grounding out to short. Ruiz grounds out to Trillol Durbin with a swing and a miss ends the inning. 5-4 '08 Phillies.
Top of the Sixth Inning
Trillo leads off by grounding out to Howard. Boone pops out to Werth. Larry Bowa grounds out to Howard and it's an easy 1-2-3 inning for Durbin. 5-4 '08 Phillies.
Bottom of the Sixth Inning
Jimmy Rollins leads off the inning by popping out to first base man, Pete Rose. Werth comes up next and he connects with a line drive single to left! Utley strikes out. On comes Ryan Howard and he walks. Men on 1st and 2nd for Burrell. Burrell bloops one to left-center! The outfield is late getting to the ball! Werth scores from second easily! AND HOWARD'S TRYING FOR HOME AS WELL! THE THROW TO THE PLATE IS NOT IN TIME! Howard scores and it's 7-4 '08 Phillies on the bloop double by Burrell. Ron Reed is coming on to pitch to Victorino. Flyball to center falls in the hole! Burrell will round 3rd and score! 8-4 '08 Phillies, and it's once again a 4-run game! 2-0ut with Victorino on 2nd and a wild pitch to Feliz sends Victorino to 3rd! Feliz, however strikes out and that'll end the inning. 8-4 '08 Phillies and this one is getting ugly again.
Top of the Seventh Inning
Ron Reed leads off the inning by grounding to short. Maddox is up next and he uncorks one to left for a single. Rose flies out to left cinter. Schmidt bloops one to right-center that sends Maddox all the way to 3rd! 1st and 3rd with 2 out for McBride. McBride lines one to left! Maddox scores and it's 8-5! J.C. Romero comes in to pitch to Greg Luzinski. Luzinski bloops one to left-center! Schmidt scores easily from 2nd! McBride is going to try to score from 1st! THE THROW TO THE PLATE IS NOT IN TIME! '80 PHILLIES ARE WITHIN 1 RUN AGAIN! Trillo flies out to left-center to end the inning. A 2-out rally from the 1980 Philles have them once again within 1. 8-7 in favor of the 2008 Phillies but the old-timers are not going easily into the Philly night.
Bottom of the Seventh Inning
Ruiz starts things off by fling out to left-center. Up next is J.C. Romero. ROMERO LAUNCHES ONE OFF THE WALL! MADDOX OVERPLAYED IT! ROMERO HAS A TRIPLE! INCREDIBLE! J-Roll draws the walk. Jayson Werth is next to bat and Werth flies one deep down the left field line. It's caught by McBride but Romero scores easily and it's 9-7 for the 2008 Phillies! Oh my, here we go again. Here comes Chase Utley. And here we go again, indeed! J-Roll steals second! Okay, maybe not again as Utley grounds out. The 2008 Phillies have tacked on another, leading 9-7.
Top of the Eighth Inning
Bob Boone leads off the top of the eighth inning with a flyout to Pat Burrell. Bowa grounds out to first. George Vukovich comes into pinch hit for the pitcher, Reed and he flies out to right center field. 9-7 2008 Phillies.
Bottom of the Eighth Inning
Kevin Saucier comes into pitch for the 1980 Phillies. Howard grounds out to first. Pat Burrell takes ball 4 and walks. Up next is the Flyin' Hawaiian. OUCH! Victorino is hit by a pitch and it's 1st and 2nd with two out for Pedro Feliz. Feliz grounds it to 2nd.....DOUBLE PLAY! 4-6-3 and that ends the inning. Heading into the ninth inning, the 2008 Phillies have a 2-run lead and are 3-outs away from being considered the best team in Phillies history.
Top of the Ninth Inning
Here we go. Can the 1980 Phillies come back, or will the 2008 Phillies win the series? You can cut the tension with a knife, folks. The 1980 Phillies have the top of their line-up at the plate and here is Garry Maddox with Brad Lidge now on the mound for the '08 Phillies. Maddox is hit in the leg! The tying run is now at the plate with nobody out! Pete Rose takes the plate and he gets hit by a pitch! 1st and 2nd with nobody out for the 1980 Phillies! Mike Schmidt comes up and he strikes out! Here comes Bake McBride to the plate! GROUNDBALL TO 3RD! McBride is out but the runners advance to 2nd and 3rd, respectively. Two out. On comes Luzinski. GROUNDBALL DOWN THE LEFT FIELD LINE! MADDOX SCORES! The 1980 Phillies are now within 1! 9-8. Runners at 1st and 3rd. 2 0ut. Tying run 90 feet way. Trillo at the plate. TRILLO SMOKES A LINER TO RIGHT! MADDOX SCORES FROM 3RD AND THIS GAME IS TIED! UNBELIEVEABLE! 9-9 in the top of the ninth! After not blowing a save all year, Lidge has blown one here. On will come Clay Condrey to pitch with Bob Boone at the plate. Boone walks! Bases loaded, top of the ninth, 2 out, 9-9 game, and on comes Larry Bowa. LARRY BOWA SINGLES TO RIGHT! LUZINSKI SCORES! TRILLO SCORES! THE 1980 PHILLIES HAVE TAKEN THE LEAD! Absolutely incredible. 1st and 2nd with 2 out for Keith Moreland pinch hitting for Kevin Saucier. Moreland sends to through the hole at left-center! BOONE IS GOING TO TRY TO SCORE FROM 2ND! HE'S SAFE! 3-RUN LEAD FOR THE 1980 PHILLIES! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! What a turnaround! From trailing by 2 to now leading by 3, the 1980 Phillies have completely taken control here in the 9th, 12-9. Tom Gordon now comes on to pitch for the 2008 Phillies. Maddox is back up to the plate, he got things started by taking a pitch in the leg. This time he grounds out to first and that finally ends the inning. Another remarkable 2-out rally have put the 1980 Phillies ahead, 12-9. Unbelieveable.
Bottom of the Ninth Inning
Who says we can't have another rally? The 2008 Phillies look as dejected as they have ever looked, but you never know. Tug McGraw comes into pitch. Ruiz is first to bat. Ruiz grounds one to left and reaches on the single! Greg Dobbs is coming into the game to pinch-hit for Tom Gordon. The Phillies need something from Dobbs. And Dobbs delivers! THAT ONE IS HIT TO LEFT CENTER FIELD AND THAT BALL IS OUTTA HERE! A 2-RUN HOMER AND THE 2008 PHILLIES ARE SUDDENLY WITHIN 1! And on top of all that, there's no one out with the top of the line up at the plate. Jimmy Rollins comes in and he grounds out to first. 1 away. Werth is up and he sends one through the hole to left field for the single! The trying run is at first. The winning run is at the plate. Chase Utley walks! Howard gets intentionally walked and the bases are loaded in the bottom of the ninth! On comes Pat Burrell. High popper to right-center! Maddox catches the popper! WERTH TAKES OFF! MADDOX HAS A CHANCE WITH THE THROW! THE THROW TO BOONE IS TOO HIGH! WERTH SCORES! WE'RE TIED! AGAIN! 12-12! How's this for an exciting finish? Good lord. Anyway, here comes Victorino to the plate. A chance to win the game for the Phillies with runners at 2nd and 3rd 2-out. Lerrin Lagrow comes into pitch, replacing Tug McGraw. And here's the Flyin' Hawaiian. VICTORINO SINGLES TO RIGHT CENTER! NO CHANCE AT THE PLATE! UTLEY SCORES! 2008 PHILLIES WIN! 13-12! WHAT A COMEBACK! WHAT A GAME!
Final line
1980 Philadelphia Phillies: 12 runs, 16 hits, 0 errors
2008 Philadelphia Phillies: 13 runs, 14 hits, 0 errors
Well then, can you imagine if that were a real game? It'd be the game of the year in baseball. And I swear that's how WhatIfSports simulated it. Yeah, that was incredible.
That was fun. I hope you were entertained by reading my narrations of the play-by-play of these simulated games. I'll probably have some more simulations in the football offseason, when things are kind of slow.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Adolf Hitler Has Been Taken From His Home
Yeah, I know this is a sports blog (and more specifically, an Eagles blog), but some things just strike me as so bizarre, that I just have to post them and comment. Well, this is one of them. If you remember, around a month ago when the story broke that the Campbell family had ordered a birthday cake from the local ShopRite with Happy birthday and the kid's name on it and the store refused them. Why the denial? Because something about writing "Happy Birthday Adolf Hitler Campbell" seemed quite pecuilar. The Campbell family ended up getting said cake from Wal-Mart (which is a story in itself, quite frankly). But JFein, this was over a month ago? Why are you bringing this up again?
Well because the kids have been taken away from their parents. From MSNBC.com
There is a family court hearing scheduled for tomorrow, but wow. This really is a lose-lose situation for all involved. From what little we know about the father other than is unusual taste for naming kids, he seems like a normal dad, and the same can be said with the mom. The names are unusual and those kids are gonna have a tough life in school, yes, but I don't see how putting them in state custody is going to help matters. They seem like a happy and healthy family.
Another article that I have cited below states that the state would not take the kids away because of a name so it will be interesting to see exactly why they were taken away. Everything else seemed normal when we met them a month ago, so I'm curious as to why they would take the kids away, if not for the names. And again, we could have a random child abuse case that just so happens to be from the same parents who names their kids "Adolf Hitler", "JoyceLynn Aryan Nation", and "Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie". If more becomes available tomorrow, I will definitley pass the information along to you.
Nazi named children taken from parents (MSNBC.com)
NJ kids with Nazi-inspired names removed from home (Comcast.net)
Well because the kids have been taken away from their parents. From MSNBC.com
"HOLLAND TOWNSHIP, N.J. - Three New Jersey siblings whose names have Nazi connotations have been placed in the custody of the state, police said Wednesday.
Holland Township Police Sgt. John Harris said workers from the state Division of Youth and Family Services removed 3-year-old Adolf Hitler Campbell and his younger sisters, JoyceLynn Aryan Nation Campbell and Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie Campbell, from their home Tuesday.
Harris said family services did not tell police the reason the children were removed. Agency spokeswoman Kate Bernyk said it does not comment on specific cases."
There is a family court hearing scheduled for tomorrow, but wow. This really is a lose-lose situation for all involved. From what little we know about the father other than is unusual taste for naming kids, he seems like a normal dad, and the same can be said with the mom. The names are unusual and those kids are gonna have a tough life in school, yes, but I don't see how putting them in state custody is going to help matters. They seem like a happy and healthy family.
Another article that I have cited below states that the state would not take the kids away because of a name so it will be interesting to see exactly why they were taken away. Everything else seemed normal when we met them a month ago, so I'm curious as to why they would take the kids away, if not for the names. And again, we could have a random child abuse case that just so happens to be from the same parents who names their kids "Adolf Hitler", "JoyceLynn Aryan Nation", and "Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie". If more becomes available tomorrow, I will definitley pass the information along to you.
Nazi named children taken from parents (MSNBC.com)
NJ kids with Nazi-inspired names removed from home (Comcast.net)
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Giants Fans Are A Tadbit Upset That The Eagles Beat Them.
Great find by Awful Announcing and The 700 Level. Apparently a few Giants fans are a bit miffed that their team lost angry to the point of insanity that the Eagles whooped their asses (again) in the Meadowlands. I've heard some stories of drunk fans after some games but this one takes the cake. I'll let the videos do the talking. All I'll say is that idiocy knows no limits.
Way to break your leg and make yourself look like a complete idiot in the process. And if you thought that was insane, check this out.
Good times.......gooooood times inNew York East Rutherford. You stay classy, Giants fans!
Giants Fans Took The Playoff Loss Well (Awful Announcing)
More Drunk Giants Fans, Now With More Drunk Destruction (The 700 Level)
Update: Game 2 of the Fantasy World Series is below. I started the thread before this one, which I guess explains it, even though I just published it...
Way to break your leg and make yourself look like a complete idiot in the process. And if you thought that was insane, check this out.
Good times.......gooooood times in
Giants Fans Took The Playoff Loss Well (Awful Announcing)
More Drunk Giants Fans, Now With More Drunk Destruction (The 700 Level)
Update: Game 2 of the Fantasy World Series is below. I started the thread before this one, which I guess explains it, even though I just published it...
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