It only took 28 years. Finally, thank God, we won it all. Think of it this way, no matter what happens for the next five years, WE WON A WORLD SERIES. A Mets fan tries to bash the Phillies...Yeah, that's great, WE WON A WORLD SERIES. The bottom line is that everything after this is gravy for at least five years, hell maybe ten years considering its Philly. The Phillies won the World Series and they did it as a team. Role players like Carlos Ruiz and Jayson Werth carried them to the championship. Guys like Eric Bruntlett, Matt Stairs, Geoff Jenkins, and Pedro Feliz had huge hits and even the big names came through when it mattered. Perhaps the most fitting moment of the 5 game series occurred when the maligned LF Pat Burrell, the longest tenured player on the roster came up to the plate in a key at bat with a huge insurmontable 0-13 line hanging over his head to that point. Pat the Bat, Manchine, PtB, whatever you want to call him came through and came through huge. He absolutely hammered a ball 400 feet to straight center. Off the bat it was a homerun on any other night. Unfortunately for Pat the wind was blowing straight in from Center. That didn't matter so much as Pat got every bit of that ball and got just enough to bank it off the wall for a standup double. Like clockwork, Burrell was lifted for a pinch runner and his Phillies career had its final moment. The pinchrunner ended up scoring the winning run for the clinching game of the World Series as Pat stood with tears in his eyes in the dugout. Pat did his job and helped his team, his only professional team, go ahead for the last time. After season after long season of losing, this victory had to be sweetest of all for Pat. And sweetest of all: WE WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!
Showing posts with label Carlos Ruiz. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Carlos Ruiz. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Finally!
It only took 28 years. Finally, thank God, we won it all. Think of it this way, no matter what happens for the next five years, WE WON A WORLD SERIES. A Mets fan tries to bash the Phillies...Yeah, that's great, WE WON A WORLD SERIES. The bottom line is that everything after this is gravy for at least five years, hell maybe ten years considering its Philly. The Phillies won the World Series and they did it as a team. Role players like Carlos Ruiz and Jayson Werth carried them to the championship. Guys like Eric Bruntlett, Matt Stairs, Geoff Jenkins, and Pedro Feliz had huge hits and even the big names came through when it mattered. Perhaps the most fitting moment of the 5 game series occurred when the maligned LF Pat Burrell, the longest tenured player on the roster came up to the plate in a key at bat with a huge insurmontable 0-13 line hanging over his head to that point. Pat the Bat, Manchine, PtB, whatever you want to call him came through and came through huge. He absolutely hammered a ball 400 feet to straight center. Off the bat it was a homerun on any other night. Unfortunately for Pat the wind was blowing straight in from Center. That didn't matter so much as Pat got every bit of that ball and got just enough to bank it off the wall for a standup double. Like clockwork, Burrell was lifted for a pinch runner and his Phillies career had its final moment. The pinchrunner ended up scoring the winning run for the clinching game of the World Series as Pat stood with tears in his eyes in the dugout. Pat did his job and helped his team, his only professional team, go ahead for the last time. After season after long season of losing, this victory had to be sweetest of all for Pat. And sweetest of all: WE WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Phillies Prove Existence of Merciful God
With the entire world against them, the Phillies dominated a young Tampa Bay Rays team for most of the night yet went into the bottom of the 9th with a 4-4 tie game. The Phillies had been up 4-1 in the 7th when an absolutely brutal call on a play at first base changed the entire complexion of the game. SP Jamie Moyer made perhaps the most impressive hustle play in the history of the franchise only to see a botched call by 1B umpire Alex Halion steal his spot in history. Watching this game was an exhausting experience to say the least. Our big names continued to struggle for much of the game but heroes come from unexpected places. A 45 year old starter dominated a young opponent. A defensive replacement in the much-maligned UT Eric Bruntlett came through in a crucial situation in the bottom of the 9th on the bases. C Carlos "Chooch" Ruiz continued his bid for an MVP Trophy after batting a utilitarian .219 during the regular season. The Phillies are beginning to have the feeling of a team of destiny this October as they continue to find ways to win despite somewhat lackluster performances by their big stars. Tomorrow has SP Joe Blanton facing off against the young SP Andy Sonnanstine for the Rays. The road to winning the World Series is now looking clearer for the Phillies. Blanton will be on the mound and Ace Cole Hamels will pitch a possible clinching Game 5 on Monday.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Weekly Awards
Well, I don't have much time today so here's an abbreviated Weekly Wrap. We had a really good week and the offense showed up...now its time for the weekly awards:Player of the Week - CF Shane Victorino: For a "bench" player, Vic had a great week "subbing" for injured starter Jayson Werth. Vic went 11 for 25 (.440) on the week with 9 R, 3 RBI, 3 BB, 1 SO, 5 SBs, 0 CS, and a .533/1.013 OBP/OPS. Great effort Vic!!!
Honorable Mention: Pete Happy batted .346 on the week with 8 RBI.
Pitcher of the Week - SP Adam Eaton: Eaton probably didn't have the best week of the staff...that honor belongs to Kendrick in his best start of the season but Eaton had 2 very solid starts going 1-1 with a 2.77 ERA in 13 IP. His WHIP for the week was a very respectable 1.08. Good Job Adam.
Goat of the Week - C Carlos Ruiz: Chooch had an off week even for him: 3 of 16 for a .188 Avg in 5 games. He's also be giving up a bunch of playing time recently to fellow catcher.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Phillies Hang On To Win
Well UT Eric Bruntlett was able to save the day with a game saving play in the top of the 9th with the tying run in scoring position. He made a spectacular stop behind second base and threw a laser beam to first to get the runner. While I am pleased that Bruntlett was able to give us a flash of brilliance to save the game and help CP Brad Lidge close out the game, I still cannot wait to get SS Jimmy Rollins back at shortstop and at the top of the lineup where he is desperately needed.
Hot Streak: All-Star 2B Chase Utley hit two more HRs last night and now has HRs in 4 straight games. If he homers tonight against the Colorado Rockies he will tie the club record for consecutive games with a HR. So far, Utley and LF Pat Burrell have carried the club offensively while the rest of the lineup has struggled to produce runs. Burrell also made an excellent running catch up against the wall in the later innings that helped give the Phillies the win. Pat has been well above his career average in all aspects of the game from hitting to fielding this year.
Behind the Plate: It looks like C Chris Coste will probably earn himself some more playing time. He is batting .385 on the season and he went 1 for 4 last night. He has now started 3 of the last 4 games in place of C Carlos Ruiz who is healthy.
What the Heck?: 1B Ryan Howard has been awful so far this season both defensively and offensively. He is batting a miniscule .186 including going 1 for 13 against the Mets over the weekend. The hometown crowd has taken notice and has taken to booing him loudly...especially after he strikes out. He has struck out 27 times in just 70 ABs and he is well on his way to breaking his own single season strikeout record. The former MVP needs to step it up quickly if the Phillies are to have any chance of winning the NL East.
Bad Luck: SP Adam Eaton had a stellar performance through the first 5 innings last night and thats when the wheels finally came off the bus. He didn't record an out in the 6th and was charged with 4 earned runs to get the no decision. He had a streak of 3 straight quality starts going into last night. He did keep the Phillies in the game which is the important part. Pitching has not been the problem so far this year.
Living Dangerously: Uncle Charlie has relied quite a bit on the bullpen so far this year especially RP Chad Durbin. Durbin has pitched 14 innings in 10 appearances in the Phillies first 19 games. At his current pace, he will pitch 119 innings out of the pen. I'm betting his arm will fall off first.
Hot Streak: All-Star 2B Chase Utley hit two more HRs last night and now has HRs in 4 straight games. If he homers tonight against the Colorado Rockies he will tie the club record for consecutive games with a HR. So far, Utley and LF Pat Burrell have carried the club offensively while the rest of the lineup has struggled to produce runs. Burrell also made an excellent running catch up against the wall in the later innings that helped give the Phillies the win. Pat has been well above his career average in all aspects of the game from hitting to fielding this year.
Behind the Plate: It looks like C Chris Coste will probably earn himself some more playing time. He is batting .385 on the season and he went 1 for 4 last night. He has now started 3 of the last 4 games in place of C Carlos Ruiz who is healthy.
What the Heck?: 1B Ryan Howard has been awful so far this season both defensively and offensively. He is batting a miniscule .186 including going 1 for 13 against the Mets over the weekend. The hometown crowd has taken notice and has taken to booing him loudly...especially after he strikes out. He has struck out 27 times in just 70 ABs and he is well on his way to breaking his own single season strikeout record. The former MVP needs to step it up quickly if the Phillies are to have any chance of winning the NL East.
Bad Luck: SP Adam Eaton had a stellar performance through the first 5 innings last night and thats when the wheels finally came off the bus. He didn't record an out in the 6th and was charged with 4 earned runs to get the no decision. He had a streak of 3 straight quality starts going into last night. He did keep the Phillies in the game which is the important part. Pitching has not been the problem so far this year.
Living Dangerously: Uncle Charlie has relied quite a bit on the bullpen so far this year especially RP Chad Durbin. Durbin has pitched 14 innings in 10 appearances in the Phillies first 19 games. At his current pace, he will pitch 119 innings out of the pen. I'm betting his arm will fall off first.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
