Posts Tagged ‘Mets’
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How Sweep It Is!June 9th, 2008
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Turner Field has proven to be inhospitable ground in 2008. It seems no one told the Phillies. Prior to this weekend’s series, Atlanta had posted a dominating 25-8 record on their home turf. What began as a showdown between two contenders in the NL East on Friday night, ended Sunday afternoon in the sweltering Atlanta heat leaving little doubt as to who was the true heavyweight in the division. The Phillies three-game sweep of the Braves sent notice that the Phillies have arrived.
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Me and Julio, Down At The BallparkMay 7th, 2008
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So, Julio Franco finally retired, eh? Well, there’s only one way you can really describe him now: Quitter.
Okay, maybe not. This week, Julio retired at the age of 47, 50, or 54, depending on which baseball card and/or birth certificate you checked. I remember my grandfather telling stories of seeing Franco hit when he was just a kid. And of course, there are a lot of teams out there that can put claim on Julio: Tampa, the Mets, Atlanta, Milwaukee, the White Sox, Cleveland, and the Phillies, not to mention teams in Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and the Ottoman Empire.
But in my heart, he’ll always be a Ranger. Franco came to Texas at the league meetings in December of 1989. In the span of just a few days, the completely unremarkable losers that we had all known as the Texas Rangers were totally rebuilt, becoming a much, much more interesting bunch of losers. 42-year-old legend in the making Nolan Ryan was signed from Houston. Raffy Palmeiro was aquired from the Cubs. And Texas traded local hero Pete O’Brien along with Oddibe McDowell and Jerry Browne to the Indians for their new 2nd baseman. Franco went on to win the All-Star Game MVP in 1990, lead the league in batting average in 1991, and provoke hundreds of thousands of back injuries in the Dallas-Fort Worth area as impressionable children tried to imitate his batting stance.
The stance is what remains clearestin my mind’s eye. Knees together, hands held over his head, bat slung horizontally off in the direction of the nearest nacho stand, menacingly waving back and forth. I would compare it to a young jedi who didn’t want to stop training no matter how bad he had to go to the bathroom, but the man played in the majors for 26 years, so maybe we’ll cut him a little slack. And then, after all of that, Franco would take the first pitch, every time. (Well, almost every time. Occassionally, he’d take a rip and scare some pitcher who knew that Franco wasn’t going to swing at the first pitch.)
Wikipedia, the Earth’s own Hitchhikers Guide, tells us that in 2006, Julio Franco became the oldest pinch runner in baseball history. It sadly does not report what Carlos Delgado thought when he was lifted so that a possibly 47-year-old man could run for him.
It always made me happy when I’d see Francobouncing off the bench for the Mets or the Braves in the last few years. He left Texas 14 years ago, and he was old when he left. I’ve always thought that I can’t possibly be old yet: Julio Franco is still playing ball.
Thanks, Julio. Thanks for sticking around…
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Happy May Day!May 2nd, 2008
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Happy May Day! In all honesty, I have no idea what May Day is really about. It has something to do with a pole, maybe? Regardless, I am celebrating all the same. You see, there’s something happening in Philadelphia today that baseball fans haven’t seen in quite some time. The Philies –wait for it- have actually managed to finish an April with a wining record. In the immortal words of Dizzy Dean, “Who’d have thunk it?”
You might ask why I’m excited over a team posting a 16-13 record in one month of a marathon season. I’ll give you that, on paper, 16-13 is not the most impressive baseball a team can play. However, in light of seasons past and a plethora of injuries, question marks, and slow starts, the Phillies have accomplished something here, if only psychologically, that could reverberate through the entire season.
As it stands of this writing, the Phillies are a half-game ahead of the second place Florida Marlins. Considering the Marlins are in fact the Marlins and will certainly fall off the pace at some point, lets celebrate the Philies sole possession of first-place in the NL East. They are a full game up on the Mets and three ahead of Atlanta. While both teams still pose serious threats, a lead is a lead is a lead. Perhaps most impressive of all though, the Phillies have managed all this despite both predictive and situational odds.
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Another One Bites The DustApril 20th, 2008
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It’s a sight Phillies’ fans have come to all but expect: a player steps into the box in a critical situation, hacks at the first few offerings, finds himself behind in the count, and finally walks away empty-handed, the proud owner of a strikeout. If this lineup has a weakness, it’s its propensity, almost affection, for the whiff; last night’s 4-2 loss to the Mets was no exception.
It’s the bottom of the eight and the Phillies trail by 3 runs. After Carlos Ruiz’s single scores Pat Burrell, the Phillies have the bases loaded with only one out– a prime opportunity to at least tie the game heading into the ninth, but these are the Phillies we’re talking about. Geoff Jenkins swings for the fences on two consecutive fastballs but misses both. Two down. Jayson Werth, after battling Aaron Heilman and fouling off a number of pitches finally offers at a tailing fastball that is just out of reach. Inning over, three men left on base including the tying and go-ahead runs.
It may sound cliché but simply putting the ball in play is vital for this team. We could discuss working counts, but it’s baby steps with this organization. The beauty of baseball is the infinite number of things that can happen by forcing the defense to make a play on the ball. Instead, the Phillies too often do that work for them by practicing that long walk from the dugout to home plate and then back again.
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NL PredictionsApril 7th, 2008
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Without further ado, here are my NL predictions:
Arizona Diamondbacks: They have a solid rotation, solid bullpen, and solid core of young stars in their lineup. In a word, they are: solid. Unfortunately, solid won’t win them the division in the really-good West, and they’ll end up in second place. Fortunately, they’ll grab the Wild Card.
Atlanta Braves: The Braves are a trendy pick to win the East, but I don’t buy it. They have a good lineup, but their pitching staff is old and their bullpen is iffy. If the old guys in their staff can hold up (they can’t) for a good season, they could win the division like all the pundits think. Of course, they won’t, because the Mets will be too good. Prediction: second in the East.
Chicago Cubs: Here’s the thing: it’s been 100 years since they won the World Series, and lots of people are picking them to win it this year. But here’s the problem: it’s been one-hundred years. Maybe you see a pattern developing or something? We have a pretty big sample size by now (like the entire history of baseball). I say: they’re overrated and finish second in the Central, missing the Wild Card by two games.