Cliff Lee rejoins Phillies!

this happened just moments ago. as a Phillies fan and Philly fan, I am beyond stoked. Of course, it never hurts to see the Yankees get fucked either. Is this now the best rotation in the modern era; all time? Who knows? Not me! But my other thought is this: how much longer until there are LeBron James comparisons, with regards to Cliff Lee's decision? There are some similarities, no? ...going to play w/ friends...loves the city...taking advantage of free agency...took less money....spurned New York... going to the team he felt had the best chance of bringing him a ring.. just sayin!

World Series, Game 6, live bloggin'...from 5th inning thru end..

5th inning begins…

9:44 – need another beer to go w/ my wine.

9:47 – sweet hit by Jeter. Fuck, he is awesome. Nice bunt, gets Jeter to third.

9:53 - wow, we really don't have one pitcher from our bullpen that can come in and just take care of business. not a one. not this series anyway.

can you tell I'm a little bored?

10:02 – this game is over. Time to watch some DVR’s comedies and WSOP!

10:11 – what point was Joe Buck just trying to make, when he said: “many people criticize the Yankees for buying championships, with C.C., Burnett and A-Rod totaling about $500 million dollars, but them you have Pettitte who only makes $5 Million…” What the hell was that? Yes, Steinbrenner buys championships. Literally. It’s why Yankees are the most-hated sports team in the world.

10:39 – Top of the 7th, 7 to 3 Yankmees. Time to switch to the other World Series. The World Series of Poker. Fuck the Yankees.

10:51 – still here. Utley did NOT go all the way around on that check-swing. Ridonkulous call by the 3rd base ump. Friggin idiot.

11:07 – falling asleep….

11:53 – Yankmees win. And they STILL suck. Fuck ‘em. Now, more than ever….

World Series, Game 6, live bloggin'...pre-game thru 4th inning

All times PM, except when it becomes AM.

7:53 - For the record – and as seen here on this blog several posts ago - my prediction was Yankmees in 6. Do I hope I’m wrong? Fuck yeah!

Is it true Yankees stadium hasn’t sold out once this entire year?

7:56 – doing dishes and singing Jesus Christ Superstar, in order. I have sung – and can sing – every lyric to this rock opera, several times in my life. Pretty awesome. Got the double vinyl in 7th grade, from Columbia Record Club, 7 records for a penny. The other records I got in that bunch?

-Shaun Cassidy’s first solo record.
-Steve Martin’s “Wild & Crazy Guy”
-“Endless Summer”, killer Beach Boys comp
-“Back in Black” by ACDC

…yes, the double-vinyls counted two records…

8:00 – the Flyin’ Hawaiin’s on base! Shane Victorino is from Hawaii and cliff dives from as high as 60ft.

I am concerned about Pettitte. He’s been the model of consistency this post-season, and pitching well.

8:05 – and here comes Pedro!

Good inning. 1 down. He’s gotta watch it though, 2 well hit balls (for outs) dropped just short of the home run fence.

8:14 - Ryan Howard is BE-yond due! He’s trying too hard.

8:22 – wow, so regular season seats, 10 rows behind the dugout, are $600 a game, I heard. Gonna have to check w/ Lee Mazzola on that one, see if it’s tru or not. Friggin insane.

8:27 – is it wrong to walk Gay-Rod? I don’t think so.

Does anyone have a direct ph. number to FOX sports producers? Someone needs to tell them to leave their damn stats/graphics up on the screen for longer than TWO SECONDS! Am I the only one that has noticed this? The most they’re up there is three. No bullshit. Usually, it’s two seconds. It’s ridiculous. Even just a pitch count/balls/strikes graphic is difficult to read in that short amount of time, much less the other long-winded stats baseball is known for.

8:34 – Christ, Pedro serving it up….on a silver platter, for Splat-sui.

8:45 – what a sweet hit and even better base running on a triple by “Chooch!” WOOT-WOOT!

8:53 – that’s great, the NY post front page, and the poster inside – even bigger – of Pedro in diapers. Actually, it’s stupid as hell, but it’s great that Pedro was showing it off in the locker room and thought it was funny as hell. I guess it’s so stupid it’s funny.

9:00 – BULLSHIT UMP. That pitch that walked Damon (great at bat by Damon by the way) was a STRIKE!

What is Pedro doing?!?! Holy crap, he’s hanging it out over the plate for Gay-Rod, w/ bases loaded! (after hitting Duh-Chera w/ the first pitch)….

NICE! Pedro struck-out Gay-Rod looking on a 3/2 pitch, that was definitely a ball. Guess there are make-up calls in baseball. You owed us one UMP!

9:15 – Wow. Guess Spalt-sui is Pedro’s daddy.

9:33 – End of the 4th. Yanks 4, Phills 3.

Yankees history lesson/Phillies inspiration from Chip D., heading into game #6 tonight!

"I'm sure you don't need reminding, but in 1926, Grover Cleveland ("Pete") Alexander entered Game Seven of the World Series for the Cardinals against the Yankees. The Cards were up 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning, but the Yankees had two on and the dangerous Tony ("Poosh 'Em Up") Lazzeri at the plate....

...Alexander was at the tail end of a Hall of Fame career, unpredictable, but still able to flash a little of the old magic? Alexander struck out Lazzeri, killing the rally and quieting the Yankee Stadium fans. He then retired the side in order in the eighth, got the first two Yankees in the ninth, and then walked Babe Ruth on a full count. Ruth ... Read Morepromptly got himself thrown out trying to steal second, and the Cardinals won the World Series.

Pete Alexander had begun his career as a Phillie. In fact, until 1980, he was the only Phillies pitcher to win a post-season game, winning Game One of the 1915 World Series against the Red Sox. Let's wish a little of that mojo on Pedro "Petey" Martinez tonight." - Chip D.

"...KILL.....THEMMmmmm..ah!!!"

"...game #6...AWAITS!"

wrap-up, etc from yesterday's cra-zee...

-so the reason there weren't more posts from both games yeterday, is because there were 60,000 people in the same location trying to use their network services: everythign was jammed, most of the day.

-NY Smackdown, Act II: Yankmees took it to us again last night, and quite simply, they're beating the Phillies in every facet of the game. Sucks, but it's the truth. I have more disdain for Yankmee fans than I ever have, after having to put up with their arrogant, elitist, fairweathdom, in person, at last night's game. If I could punch people in the face and get away with it, I'd have done it at least 4 times last night. Yanks are the easiest team in the history of sports to like and follow, because for better or worse, they win all the time. I can understand why so many people like them. I also understand that their fans - by and large, not all of them! - are weak people, and not able to like a team that actually struggles from time to time, because they are simply to fragile to deal. Yes, I'm stating most Yanks fans are front-runners.

-Eagles smackdown of Giants was quite impressive (40-17), but let's not lose sight of why they won: Andy Reid decided yesterday he wanted to run the football. Our offensive play calling was split, exactly 50%/50%, between running and passing. That's precisely why we won, period. Reid will do this once or twice a year, and it's so successful, that he goes back to passing 65% of the time, by the very next game, and gets right back on the "struggle-train," resulting in the losses and failures we're more used to seeing. Like I've been saying for years now: "Fuck Andy Reid. Now, more than ever." The guy sees what leads us to success. And then proceeds to not do it; cosistently. It's more than annoying to witness, but more than that, it's just terribly bad coaching. And it's ruining our beloved Eagles. Year in, year out, Reid undoes the moderate success he's brought to the team, with his insolence. And unfortunately, we have an Owner in Jeff Lurie, who simply doesn't care enough about winning to fire Reid's sorry ass. Fun stuff!

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live posting/pic alert: Philly vs NY x2 this Sunday, Nov. 1!

For anyone who cares, is interested, or just plain bored to fucking tears...I will be posting some pics & thoughts on what I'm seeing, feeling, and thinking, this Sunday, Nov. 1st, directly from the South Philly sports complex, where I am lucky enough to be attending both the Eagles/Giants game in the AM, and also game #4 of the Phillies/Yankmees world series, in the PM. Tailgate for the football game begins prompty at 9:45AM. First post approximately 10:00AM. I'm planning on about one very small post per hour. Who knows what will actually happen. Happy Halloween All!

Tips & Pointers on Yankee-Hating!

"I know I'm unloveable; you don't have to tell me.
Oh, message received; loud and clear.
...I wear black on the outside,
because black is how I feel on the inside." - Unloveable, by the Smiths.

My friend Chip D., a hardcore BoSox fan, offers up tips and pointers on Yankee-hating, based on three decades of oft-bitter experience! Stay tuned for more, hopefully! - sj

Tip/Point #1
They spent half a billion dollars to buy this year's pennant. Sabathia, Teixeira, and Burnett collected $500M in contracts last off-season. Remind Yankee fans that their team is a collection of mercenaries owned by a ruthless convicted felon. Envision your joy if - when! - the Phillies defeat them - like Washington bravely crossing the Delaware to take out that frat-party of complacent Hessians.

Cole's Woes

Cole’s Woes

“…count all the fingers and the toes; now I suppose you hope the little black boy grows…” I can’t help but think of that line & hook from Pete Rock & Cl Smooth’s “They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y)", as I convey these thoughts…

Folks, here's what's going on w/ Cole Hamels, and I'm fairly sure he's going to be battling this throughout the World Series.

He's a brand new, first-time dad. He's tired. He's tired physically; he's tired mentally. You can see it on his face, you can see it in his pitching. You can see it in his interactions with Carlos Ruiz. And It couldn't have been more obvious than when, during last night’s game, with the Phillies just outs away from their second consecutive World Series appearance, the camera cut to him in the dugout, a headshot, and he wasn't really there. His face was a 1,000-yard stare, looking well past the action on the field. He was somewhere else.

You know where he was? Home. Trying to stay afloat in the ocean of chaos and love that a newborn baby brings (son Caleb was born Oct. 9th, not even two weeks ago). He was back at home, wrestling with exhaustion, communicating with his wife, Heidi, perhaps trying to listen to her fun anecdotes about what he's been missing, her frustrations and difficulties with “normal,” new-baby stuff, and perhaps even trying to get along with his mom-in-law, for all I know (if she's there, lending a hand)!

I don't know much about their new baby. I don't know if there is anything abnormal, or complex going on (which can make things even tougher). But even the “usual,” "normal," and "baby-and-mom-are-fine" situation, is extremely difficult, the first few weeks, for everyone involved. There is a lot to stay on top of, lose sleep over, and just plain manage. Including emotions. Heavy ones.

I've been around the world, was a Special Forces Marine (and Desert Storm Vet), and experienced a lot of hardcore, crazy things and difficult times in my life. And you know, when it came to the days and weeks immediately following the birth of my first child, it was all I could do to survive – seriously! And our baby was perfect, by the way! It is an extremely difficult time. Exasperating, and every once and a while, things truly seem futile.

Parents know what I'm talking about. Kid-less folks, er…not so much. I won’t begin to get into everything that goes on the first few weeks a first-born is brought into the world, for those who don't have children, but suffice it to say: you are toast. Burnt toast. Mentally, physically. There are times, when you're just like, "holy &^%#, how the hell am I going to make it?!" “Is THIS what this is?!” When you really do feel, “somehow, I have to survive.”

Cole is wearing these precise emotions on his face. It was crystal clear last night when the camera showed him in the dugout. He was more alert in his post-game interviews, and he had to be: he knew the cameras were on him, and he “snapped to it” with relative ease. But I could still see it gurgling underneath.

If this were his second child, it would be easier on him. You learn tons. You learn how to deal. You’ve learned that you can actually survive it all. Your spouse learns these things as well, and if this were their second child, both of them would be more well equipped to handle everything; the interaction and communications between new parents aren't as daunting; caring for baby is less difficult (though still hard). The global task is a bit easier. But, alas, that's not the case here.

In case you’re wondering, here are Cole’s stats from his last three starts (all post-season):

Game #2, Colorado Series (Phillies lost), when his wife went into labor either just before he took the mound, or once the game had started (he was told as much, after being pulled and headed straight for the hospital):

5 innings pitched, gave up 7 hits (1 homer), 4 runs, 5 strikeouts, with a 7.2 era.

Game #1, Dodgers Series (Phillies won, Cole got the win):

5.1 innings pitched, gave up 8 hits (2 homers), 4 runs, 4 strikeouts, with an era of 7.

Game # 5, Dodgers Series (Phillies clinch World Series Birth):

4.1 innings pitched, gave up 5 hits (3 homers), 3 runs, 3 strikeouts, with an era of 6.75.

Here are his post-season stats combined:

3 starts, 14.2 innings pitched, 6.75 ERA, 12 strikeouts, 20 hits (6 homers), and 41 total bases given up.

Good “enough?” Nope. Not with an impending World Series featuring the Yankees looming.

Sure, these three recent outings and set of stats point to Hamel’s struggles right now, but they aren’t necessary to deduce why his on-field performance is suffering: He’s a first-time dad, and husband of a first time mom. It’s a lot to deal with. Seriously. Simultaneously he’s dealing with the big-time, front-and-center pressures, of trying to steer his baseball team through two post-season series, and on-deck, the minefield of one of the best Yankees teams in recent memory, and a second consecutive World Series title.

You can just see it in him. He’s detached. He hasn’t been in the moment. He hasn’t had his head in the game. And it’s quite understandable, why. The implications, moving forward, are fairly big. And the question is this: can he somehow find a way to leave his awesome new family behind, when he heads to the ballpark?

He’s got a few days off to figure it out. Because in less than a week, one day before Caleb’s three-week birthday, he’ll be taking the mound (presumably) to start game #2 at Yankees Stadium in the World Series.