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The American League Gold Glove winners were announced today. Buehrle, Teixeira (for whom I have a rather intense and inexplicable hatred), Polanco, Longoria, Jeter, Jones, Ichiro, Hunter, and one of my favorite BILFs, the Twins' Joe Mauer. Congrats to all, and a special congrats to the really hot ones (Mauer and Longoria, I'm lookin' at you...but not you, Jeter, because you've got an oddly-shaped head and I still have no idea why you're considered attractive).
The picture above is from one of my very favorite Mauer plays this season...where he blocked the Yankees' Brett Gardner at the plate after faking a throw to first. Smart guy, that Mauer. Gotta love his defensive skills (and his hot sideburns...and his butt...OK, I'll shut up now).
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Last night's game was another nail-biter. It shouldn't have been, considering our 6-run lead at one point, but it was. The Yankees' offense is annoyingly potent, and even Lee wasn't totally lights-out against them last night--he pitched well, of course, but he gave up 5 runs. (I think he pitched much better than that ERA would lead you to believe, though.)
AJ Burnett, the only Yankee I think is really attractive, pitched about as well as he did when I had him on my fantasy team this year--which is to say not well at all. He didn't last 3 innings. They kept panning the camera to him sitting in the dugout after he was done on the mound, looking miserable (where I noticed the hot Pisces tattoo on his hand and also noticed that his eyes are a truly gorgeous shade of blue), and if he wasn't part of The Enemy I would be sooooooo tempted to console him after having such a tough night, haha.
As was the case in Game 1, this kinda turned into the Ut-Lee show. Chase Utley homered twice (one was a 3-run dinger), tying a record, and Cliff Lee pitched well, managing to not let the Yankees' offense get too out of control. Jimmy Rollins had a good night, and Raul Ibanez had a nice solo shot. Madson scared the hell out of me for a few moments on the mound, but overall did a good job in relief (so did Park), although I would have been happy with whoever the Phillies trotted out there for relief so long as it wasn't Brad Line Drive.
So now we look forward to a Game 6 in the Bronx. I think if the Phillies can win Game 6, they'll win the Series in Game 7 simply because they'll have shaken up the Yankees, who clearly expect to win this thing--also, by that point, the Yankees' starting pitching is gonna be really, really tired (and in the case of Pettitte, who pitches Game 6, the pitching is gonna be tired and old).
But maybe they won't win Game 6. Who can tell at this point? At least if that happens, the Yankees can win at home, christening their new stadium with a World Series win, and the Phillies won't have embarrassed themselves too much in the Series (winning 2 games is obviously better than winning just 1!).
But those are worst-case scenarios. After seeing how the Phils played in Game 5...I beLEEve. :)
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People magazine is conducting a little poll about hot ballplayers in the Series. I'm a little miffed that they didn't include Cliff Lee as one of the choices in the poll, because he's smokin' hot (and talented, too!). Here's who they did pick:
a. Derek Jeter. I have never understood why women dig Jeter. He has a really oddly-shaped head, and while his eyes are pretty, I think the rest of his face is goofy-looking.
b. A-Rod. I used to think A-Rod was beautiful...until this weekend, when, in one of the Series games I watched, I saw a large booger fly out of his nose. Ewww. And, um, Grape Nuts...need I say more?
c. Cole Hamels. Beautiful. He could truly be a model. Lately, I wish he was a model instead of a pitcher. (I'm still ticked at him for screwing up on Saturday night, and then for making his pansy "I wish the season were over" comments.)
d. Chase Utley. He actually looks really good here in the picture People picked out. When his hair is slicked back, I don't find him cute at all, but when his hair looks good, he's adorable.
Wanna vote in the poll? Click here! (For the record, I voted for Hamels. Duh.)
Last night was Halloween. I get it--you wanted to show up at the game
in costume. I'm just wondering why, exactly, you chose to dress up as
Adam Eaton. If you wanted to dress up as someone else who had been in
the Phillies organization, you could have picked, say, Steve Carlton.
That would have been a very good choice. Or, if you were going for the
good + attractive factor, you
could have picked Cliff Lee. He was right there in the dugout the
whole time; I'm sure he would have happily let you borrow his jersey.
Then you'd have been dressed in costume as a pitcher who doesn't suck,
and Lee would have been shirtless. It's a win-win scenario. (Not that
you know much about wins lately...)
Utley's two homers off Sabathia last night were pretty hot, but Cliff Lee stole the show. A complete game (with 10 Ks and no walks), no earned runs for Lee, and a couple seriously amazing defensive plays...yeah, October magic is in the air, and Lee is at the center of it.
Now, I know it's just one game, so I'm not gonna get too excited yet. But the last 6 teams who have won the Fall Classic have also won that uber-important first game in the series. It was also important to beat the Yankees in game 1 in their ballpark, against their ace pitcher. It showed the Yankees and their fans/the media that have been looking down on the Phillies that this team is serious about winning. Again.
Not only do the Phillies start Game 1 of the World Series with their best pitcher, they also start it with their hottest pitcher. *swoon* Tonight's matchup (provided the rain doesn't prevent this game from actually happening): Lee vs Sabathia. Hmmm, I remember seeing Sabathia during last year's playoffs...Sabathia was a Brewer pitching against the Phils in the NLDS. He lasted a little over 2 innings pitching (granted, he was exhausted, but still), gave up a grand slam to the Flyin' Hawaiian, and allowed pitcher Brett Myers to terrorize him at bat. (Hey, is Myers on the roster for this series? Could he DH tonight--y'know, to bring back some fond memoris of last season?)
Really, New York Post? Was this topic even article-worthy? That New Yorkers have been looking down on Philly for years? Well, duh. We already knew that. (By the way, it takes a special skill to make everyone you quote in an article sound like a jerk. Nice work.)
I'm hoping this article riles up the Phillies and their fans. I'm hoping the Phillies are ticked enough and good enough to beat the hell out of the Yankees. And if that happens, I already can't wait to see the Post's article about that. ;)
Or this one, in which there are ten reasons why the Yankees should fear the Phillies. (Let me add my own reason #11: Because the Phillies are hotter and have more BILFs on their team. OK, not sure how this makes them more fearsome, but just go with it, OK?)
Game #1 of the World Series is Wednesday evening. Let's hope that Cliff Lee (#3 on that fearsome list) pitches in an appropriately ferocious and BILFalicious manner...
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OK, so after being up 3-1 in the NLCS, I was fairly confident about the Phillies' chances of making it back to the Series. Still, though, I'm in a bit of a state of shock about how my boys are headed to the Fall Classic for the second consecutive year. Look, I've been a Phillies fan for 28 years now; this stuff's unheard of. I remember how often this team disappointed me when I was younger. They're more than making up for it in recent years, and I'm still adjusting to it.
These Phillies have stepped up their game in the postseason. They've wanted to win. The offense has shown up (holy 10-4 win tonight!). The bullpen's gotten less shaky. Several of our starters have absolutely dominated. They're playing as a team. Manuel's taking risks with the pitching staff, and it's paying off. They had a scary little slump toward the end of the season, but right now this team's en fuego, and I couldn't be more thrilled--or be more proud of them.
I'm glad to see some of the most important folks from the 2008 World Champions going back to the Series this year--Howard, Werth, Victorino, Lidge, Hamels, etc. But I'm really happy for some of the Phillies who weren't on that team. Like Raul Ibanez, who has been with this team for the entire 2009 season, playing his *** off, not having a World Series ring like the rest of the guys on the team have. Now he has his chance to earn one. Like Cliff Lee, who wouldn't have been anywhere near the postseason while he played with the Indians, but he's become the Phillies' ace pitcher. Like Pedro Martinez, who was the Mets' trash and our treasure--he wanted a major league club to play with this year, and now he just happens to have one that's on its way to the World Series. I'm happy for those new Philly team members who have been kickin' *** and takin' names ever since Philly acquired them. They've earned this chance.
During last night's game, the commentators kept mentioning how the Phillies have an American League offense. I certainly hope so, because the Yankees and the Angels are both very talented teams, and whichever team the Phillies will have to face will certainly be a challenge. We'll need every ounce of strength from our so-called American League offense...and every bit of strength from our pitchers, too.
Things you might dig:
Crazy Philadelphians being...well, kinda crazy, and very excited!
Pictures of Phillies celebrating their 2009 National League Championship
I'm not the only one worried about Cole Hamels' pitching skills lately...
Can the Phillies win it again? This columnist thinks so--and I agree!
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So Friday night, I was incredibly angry, as I'm sure most other Philly fans were. I called my mother right after the game--I didn't even bother saying hello, and just started in with ***** our bullpen! ***** Chase Utley!" (And no, I did not mean in the good/fun way, either.) But what I was really thinking--and forgot to say--was ***** our entire offense, too." (Also not in the good way.)
Yeah, the bullpen was screwy in the eighth inning of Friday's NLCS game against the Dodgers. And yeah, Utley should have not made that screwy throw (anyone else wondering if this is a sign that Chuttles is hurt?). But neither one of those things would have mattered so much if we'd had more than a 1-run lead against LA. Hello, offense? Were you guys napping? (Not you, Ryan Howard. You're awesome.)
I was in quite a crappy mood on Friday evening. But luckily the Phillies' offense redeemed themselves in Game 3 of the NLCS with an 11-0 blowout, along with the fabulous (phabulous!) Cliff Lee. 10 strikeouts, no walks, 3 hits...and he got a hit himself? And managed to look really good while doing all of this? I'm in love. Or lust. Or something. (I noticed he looked cold; I wish MLB would offer a job where you could apply to be the official hand-blower for pretty pitchers during the playoffs. Cliff Lee had to keep blowing on his hands because it was so damn cold; why waste the pitcher's energy doing that when there are girls like me willing to help him out with that? Haha.)
Tonight it's Game 4 of the NLCS. My parents are there (soooooo jealous, Mom and Dad!). Hopefully the offense will show up again, too. No need for an 11-0 trouncing tonight (although hey, if they've got it in 'em, then why the hell not?)--just a win will suffice. :)
Also: Saw Chad Billingsley (whom I call Chad BILFingsley) pitch last night...he pitched better than most of the other Dodger pitchers (for a while, anyway), but what is up with that playoff goatee he's got goin' on there? Ugh!
And finally, if you've not already done so, the BILFalicious Joe Mauer (swoon!) is up for the Clutch Performer of the Year Award. Click here to vote for him!
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Another game, another nail-biter for the Phils. (And another win too, thankfully!) Do the Phillies realize that if they give all their fans heart attacks from making them sit through games like these, nobody's going to be alive to purchase any of their spiffy playoff merchandise?
Hamels pitched well...sometimes. (Although goddamn, he looked hot the whole time.) Note that I do not think giving up a 2-run homer to Manny qualifies as "pitching well." Madson was worse. And Lidge scared the hell out of me because the first runner he faced got on base. I was like, "Here we go again; he's gonna blow it!" But he didn't. And so the Phillies won it, 8-6.
The Phils' bats were on phire...most of 'em, anyway. Utley was an 0-fer, I think (at least, he was 0-3 last I looked at the TV last night; if he had another at-bat, I don't remember it). But Rauuuuuul, Chooch, and R-Ho got it done. The look on Kershaw's face when Ruiz hit the 3-run homer was priceless.
I mentioned in this post the other day about wearing a lucky item of clothing throughout each playoff game. I'm changing up that commandment a little bit. I wanted to do something that was some sort of constant...but I couldn't decide what that thing should be. Red stilettos? Red bracelet? Favorite necklace with the glittery red lips? Red nail polish? None of those seemed quite right. But I finally came up with a constant that does feel right. Right after every playoff game, win or lose, I'm gonna call the biggest Phillies fans I know: my parents. Whether I call 'em up hooting and hollering and ringing my red cowbell, or I call them up swearing about the game, Philly baseball is love...and I'm gonna share that love with the folks I love most. Mom and Dad, you've been warned! :)
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Holy crap. I cannot remember ever watching such an intense, nail-biting, face-hiding game. There were moments when I could barely breathe. And where my heart was pounding so hard I thought it was gonna come flying out of my chest.
That was truly a hell of a game. There were some crazy plays (Ben Francisco's amazing catch in left field and Dexter Fowler's insane jump over Chase Utley on his way to second, just to name a few). There was some great pitching--Lee was excellent again. I wished we could have gotten another complete game outta him, but Manuel did the right thing by relying on Madson, Eyre, and Lidge to help out.
But the most impressive thing, I think, was that the Phillies did something we've rarely seen out of them this season--they made a truly amazing comeback. Admittedly, I'd been really worried. They'd had bases loaded twice and had squandered the opportunities. They had a couple fielding errors. They were not entirely playing at their best. But once that awful eighth inning happened, when the score changed from 2-1 Phillies to 4-2 Rockies, these Phillies were not content to let that happen, to go to a game 5, to give up their momentum. So they went and got back that momentum. In the ninth inning, Victorino, Utley, Howard, Werth...they ganged up on Street and they took back their lead. And then Lidge and Eyre helped them keep that lead. This is the kind of teamwork, the kind of rally, that makes them the Fightin' Phils. And this is exactly the sort of thing we want to see out of them as they prepare to face their 2008 NLCS foe, the Los Angeles Dodgers, once again.
A few BILF-related tidbits: Cliff Lee had gotten his hair cut and had shaved his face since NLDS Game 1 (when I saw him, he was kinda scruffy). GodDAMN, he looked good tonight, and I couldn't help but think (many times) how it would be a lot of fun to just give him, you know, a friendly couple of nibbles on his pretty neck. Huston Street also looked great (especially, but not limited to, when he was helping to ensure a Phillies win), and I'd be more than happy to go console him after that tough, tough loss tonight.
I'm already looking forward to seing the Phillies in the NLCS. That being said, I'm grateful to have 2 days where I don't have to watch a baseball game (the NLCS begins Thursday) so that I can actually get something productive done...screaming/swearing at the TV does not count as "productive." ;)
And on a final note--it's nice to see that we've finally repaid the Rockies for kickin' our butts in the 1997 NLDS. Yay!