I wish I was a (blank) fan

So in light of RAJ's latest run of signings, I realized that sometimes I really don't  want to root for the Phillies. But I'm not a traitor, and I'm not about to give up on my team just because the GM is an idiot. However, it does make me jealous that other teams have front offices that, you know, actually think. So I've decided to write a post on the team I wish I rooted for...
If I was starting a MLB team I would first look for two things, players who are young, but still somewhat proven, and veterans who still have something left in their tanks. I would back that up with solid drafts picks, great young pitching, and one or two superstar players. That would be my recipe for success not only because I've seen it somewhat work with the 2012 Nationals, but I've seen a mini-dynasty of a franchise emerge from the Midwest. Yes, I'm talking about the St. Louis Cardinal's. Don't get me wrong, often times I find myself rooting against  GM John Mozeliak's team, and the Redbirds have caused me much heartbreak, but they always find a way to position themselves really well coming into the postseason. They have only won one division title in the past 3 years, yet have 3NLCS appearances, 2 Nationals League Titles, and 1 World Series Championship. Not to mention they have done this with a core of players that they themselves drafted. This is the team that I look at jealously when RAJ makes another moronic move. I thought that the Freese-Bourjos trade was great way to fill a need, and it accounted for the possibility of Carlos Beltran leaving the team by adding yet another competent outfielder to the team. I also like the Jhonny Peralta, because, as much as I dislike anyone with a PED background, the Cardinals were in desperate need of a SS and I believe that a clean Peralta can still put up decent numbers for that position. I fully expect to see the Cardinals in playoff position come next September, and I can't wait to see what they pull together next season. As for the Phillies...I can't say as much...but I'll still be loyally rooting for them come opening day.

Honorable mention goes to the Rays, who always seem to be in the Postseason mix despite one of the lowest payrolls in the game. But the Cardinal's postseason reputation give them the slight edge for me.

As for blogs this off season, they will be few and far between, but I'm sure I will have something up around Christmas Break.

Ciao!
~TBC

To Doc

Dear Roy Halladay,

If this truly is the end of your career in the Phillies pinstripes, know that you will be sorely missed by all Phillies fans. Even though it didn't end well, we will always hold on to the memories of your 4 seasons in Philadelphia. The perfect game, the postseason no-hitter, the Cy Young Award, and the 20-win season all have a special place in our hearts. For myself personally, the first time I saw you pitch was the 2010 NLCS and you stole my heart with you tenacity and ability to keep your team in the game even when the chances were slim. I can't imagine a whole season with out your leadership and grit. I noticed that whenever you went on the DL, the team went on to an extended slump. People say that intangibles don't play a factor in winning games, but I know that we have an exception with you.  I literally don't even want to think about the possibility of you wearing another uniform next year. You are such an inspiration to me and the rest of the Phillies fandom. Um...I know that I had more to say but I can't put it into words. If you decide to call it a career, just know that I consider you a sure-fire Hall of Fame pitcher. I mean I can't even put it into words how much I appreciate you!!!!!! You were my first favorite player, and they say the first one is the sweetest. Cheers to your career!

 Sending you Brotherly (sisterly?) Love from...well not really the City of Brotherly Love but close enough.

                                                                                                      ~ Teenaged Baseball Chick <3

My Postseason Bracket

Figured I might as well give it a go :P

Nationals Park Journal

So for those of you without access to my G+ page, I must explain. Last night I went to the Nationals-Phillies game. I decided to do a live journal. Below is my experience.

5:41pm- We just got off 270 onto 495. Looks to be about 20 minutes until we get there. I'm super excited and can't wait to get there We've got seats that are pretty much in the stratosphere on the right field side. I'm pretty bummed that we aren't on the Phillies side, but I'm glad that we get to see this great pitching match-up. GPS says we are getting there at 6:11.

7:05pm- Middle of the 1st- We got to our seats just as the game was beginning. Our seats are pretty good. We are pretty much right behind the foul pole. 3 up 3 down for Gio, and Denard Span extends his hit streak to 25 in his first at bat. Hamels walks Zim, not off to a good start.

7:54pm-End of the 3rd-Well the Nationals went up right after I put my pad away. It's  been a pretty good game, with enough hits for it not to be boring, but few ruins. Only regular not in either lineup is LaRoche. Ruiz with a long double into the left hand corner. Gio has been sharp, Hamels fair. Nats 1, Phils 0

8:37pm-End of the 5th-Phils had a huge top of the 5th, scoring four off Gio and taking the lead. Started with Mayberry's eleventh homer and you could tell who the Phillies fans were because there were random people on their feet cheering. Galvis with a single just now. It ended with Ruiz's bases clearing double and just like that it was 4-1 Phils. Nats answer was Span getting on leading off and stealing second and third. Nats 1, Phils 4

9:42pm-That was a nail biter. Nationals score three on four Phillies pitchers. Harper with the big double. I was literally shaking! Rosenberg finally gets Ramos for the third out of the inning and the Phils barely escape with their lives. Nats 4, Phils 5

10:26pm-Papelbon gets Ramos to groundout to Rollins to end the game. Phillis win 5-4

So...That's my journal! I had a great time! One other note they played "Take on Me" during the seventh inning stretch :) See even the ballpark misses Michael Morse!

I have lots of pictures that I will post as soon as I get them uploaded!

~TBC

OUTRAGE!!!!!

Okay, it's rant time!

By now, most of you have probably heard the news that Charlie Manuel was fired as manager of the Phillies, less than month from completing what would have undoubtedly been his last season with the team anyway. This is a move that completely confused and quite frankly, really bothered me. This is the guy who lead this team to one of only two world series titles they can call theirs, not to say anything about the five consecutive division titles  from 2007-2011. You'd think the front office could think of a more respectful way to part ways with the man who lead one of the greatest Phillies teams of all time than dumping him mid-season. I don't care if they want Ryne Sandberg to get experience with the players (which he is getting being the third base coach, DUH!), this is a total disgrace to Charlie. Don't get me wrong, I've had my moments of frustration with Charlie, but I respect him enough to quietly let him so his own way at the end of the season.
This is the last straw for Rueben Amaro, at least in my book. I have been fed up with him for a while now, and I have had enough. Signing players like Ryan Howard to contract extensions multiple years before their previous contracts ended and making bone-headed moves like adding Delmon Young is bad enough, but totally disgracing the man who lead your team to the WORLD SERIES! loses all of my respect. Guys, it's not Charlie's fault that he has to play the Youngs and other player like them, it's the fault of the guy who put them on the team!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amaro needs to go, ASAP!

That's enough of a rant for now :)

Charlie, know your are respected and your presence will be missed! Thanks for a great run!

~TBC

Depressed...

You know it perfectly sums up the Phillies second half to say that a team who has been struggling as much as they have, the Nationals, pretty easily swept them. Let's just say that the 2013 season has been a going down hill like a snowball for the Phillies. At this point, I can say that pretty much all I'm looking forward to is the prospect of getting a high draft pick this next year. It hurts to say it, but this team really needs to rebuild.

As for the Nationals, their prospects aren't looking much brighter. I hate to say it's over, but it's practically impossible to erase a 14.5 game lead at this point in the season. A Wild Card is still a possibility though, if the Nationals use the sweep of the Phillies as a springboard to an extended winning streak.

So, I'm stuck...It's getting to be almost playoff time and I  have no idea which team I want to root for. I will probably end up rooting for the Rays or the Red Sox, but I would really like to have a NL to root for as well. Maybe the Pirates (BTW, they have to win 12 more games to break the losing season streak)...

This whole thing is incredibly depressing...

~TBC

That post about Biogenesis

MLB is supposed to drop their decisions on the Biogenesis scandal later today.  Sources tell us that the punishment for most players will be a suspension for the rest of the year. A-Rod is the outlier, with his suspension reportedly being for all of this season and next season. As far as we know, their are about 10 players total that will be suspended. I'm ready to get this whole mess over with, but if players appeal suspensions, this may drag into next season. Personally. I can't stand the appeals process. If MLB has enough evidence to suspend you, they should be able to keep you off the field for as long as they see fit. All players are, after all, employees of MLB.
One thing that I'm glad that MLB is going to do is not re-suspend Melky Cabrera, Big Fat Bartolo Colon, and Yasmani Grandall. Since they connected their earlier suspensions to Biogenesis, there is no reason to punish them twice for the same offence.
And that's pretty much all!
~TBC

Guys...

The Phillies are ahead of the Nationals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have major writers block, so I'm not going actually say anything meaningful. But I am leaving for vacation tomorrow and not coming back until early August, so no blog posts for the next two weeks. I will try to keep G+ updated as we move closer to the trade deadline.

The Next Face of Baseball

So the other day, I was going to look at the KLaw chat transcript and noticed that ESPN had a poll as to who was the next face of baseball. So decided to complete it because I thought it would make for a good blog post. Just FYI, these were the ten names they gave you, so all I did was put them in order. Don't blame me if your fav didn't make the cut!

My Ranking:

1. Mike Trout

Like DUH! I mean honestly, who else is young, is a five tool player, and Rookie of the Year? Well, Bryce Harper, but Trout plays in the American League, which is usually the league which generates the most media buzz, and plays in a huge market in LA (Anahiem). Need anther reason? His rookie season was among the best of all time in Wins Above Replacement. So HA!

2. Bryce Harper

I guess that there's no clear number one between him and Trout. He is definitely the face of the National League, and he and Trout will be co-faces of the game for a while...The way he plays, its hard not to stare...

3. Yu Darvish

I know that most people wouldn't put a pitcher in their top three, but if you think, there has always been at least one pitcher has been at least co-face of the game. Of the pitchers listed, I think that Darvish is the only one who has the X-factor needed to standout. Don't get me wrong their are some other great names, but none of them scream "look at me" like Darvish. That and a super awesome and memorable name helps his case.

4. Buster Posey

As much as I love Posey, and believe you me I do, I really don't think he attracts enough attention to be the face of baseball, especially for non-baseball fans. He is the only candidate with an MVP under his belt though, so credit him for that.

5. Yasiel Puig

Don't get me wrong, Puig's start is incredible, but it is only a little more than a month. He won't keep this level of production up, but even at 80% of this, he's still a superstar. Playing in LA could also help him gain more name recognition.

6. Manny Machado

Machado's problem is that he plays the same position as the current face of the game, Miguel Cabrera. Machado is likely to be over-shadowed by Cabrera for a couple more years, and by that time, it is almost inevitable that someone else will have a stranglehold on the title of "the face of baseball"

7. Matt Harvey

As good as Harvey has been, I don't think he has the extra little something in that will make him the face of baseball. That doesn't mean he isn't special though. I guess he's like the J-Zimm to Darvish's Strasburg or Gio, he does what he does quietly.

8. Giancarlo Stanton

A year ago, Stanton would have been top 4 on this list, but with the emergence of so many new faces and Stanton recent injury tendency, he has been knocked down to 8. Playing with one of the worst teams in the majors hurts his visibility as well.

9. Chris Sale

To be honest, I was impressed by Sale last year, but I haven't heard much about him this year, so I wasn't expecting to see him on this list. That is reason enough for me to rank him this low.

10. Aroldis Chapman

The only reliever on this list check into last place because relievers hardly get any visibility outside of their respective teams. If one could define the game of baseball, Chapman is the one, but it's just not happening, sorry.

Okay so here is the total rankings of all counted votes when I voted, just for comparison

1.Trout
2.Harper
3.Posey
4.Puig
5. Machado
6. Harvey
7. Darvish
8. Stanton
9. Chapman
10. Sale


Comment and let me know who you think will be the next face of baseball!

~TBC

My All-Star Ballot

Pretty self explanatory :)

American League

1B - Davis, Chris

Looking at the top vote getters for first basemen, no one else was even close , vote-wise or stat-wise. I mean look at those home run numbers! Those are  Jose Bautista two years ago like numbers!

2B - Pedroia, Dustin

This one was close between Pedroia and Cano. Neither really had a statistical edge so I went with my boy Dustin.

SS - Peralta, Jhonny

Really couldn't care less here. Peralta had the most votes and decent stats so went with him.

3B - Cabrera, Miguel

I actually was debating Cabrera vs Machado until I saw Cabrera's numbers. Just saying, he is a monster! Just  because he didn't really deserve the MVP last year doesn't mean he doesn't put up colossal numbers year after year. Most people say that Albert Pujols is the player of the generation. I don't disagree, but Cabrera is closer to that title than most people realize. And he still has at least a couple more years of this in him!

C - Mauer, Joe

Again, couldn't care less...Mauer has had a great career though!

DH - Ortiz, David

I swear he wins this every year. At least it seems like it. More power to him!

OF - Bautista, Jose

Still a huge power threat. Don't underestimate Bautista. Could easily hit 35 homers this year.

OF - Jones, Adam

Great all around player. One of the biggest reasons for the Orioles recent success. My final spot came down to him vs teammate Nick Markakis, but Jones' numbers were much more impressive.

OF - Trout, Mike

He's not MIKE TROUT, at least not this year, but he's still one of the best in the game. Has historic potential!

National League

1B - Goldschmidt, Paul

Because a new face deserves the start! And he's pretty good :) And I'm sick of Votto :P

 2B - Utley, Chase

It's called hometown loyalty :P And he actually pretty awesome! Total opinion change since 2010 when he was a failure in the NLCS.

 SS - Tulowitzki, Troy

Well, this is embarrassing...meant to vote for Desi...but he wasn't going to make it anyway. Oh well, Tulo is injured...on another note: VOTE FOR DESMOND FOR THE FINAL VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
 3B - Wright, David

He should definitely play in his hometown. Best third baseman by far.

 C - Posey, Buster

Another one of my personal favorites. Will always vote for him!

 OF - Brown, Domonic

One of the best stories in Philly this year, and definitely deserving of an All-Star Spot. So glad he made it :)
 OF - Gonzalez, Carlos

Never really realized how great of an all around player we was. WOW.

OF - Harper, Bryce
Had to :) Who cares that he missed 30 days. He's still the future of the Nationals!
Well that's that :P
~TBC

Will be away...

On a camping trip tomorrow through Sunday so no blogs or G+ posts until then! Have a good 4th everyone!

Washington Nationals...This year's Detroit Tigers?

Mediocrity. That's what we have been getting from the Washington Nationals this season. Unbridled, plain-as-day mediocrity. The kind that can kill your Natitude. So there's no chance for a rebound right? Are the Nationals destined for mediocrity and second place? Is there any hope?

Well, if memory serves me well, at this point last season the Detroit Tigers were pretty mediocre as well. We all know that they went on to the American League Pennant. Can the Nationals make a similar comeback?

As of now, exactly halfway through the regular season, the Nationals stand at 41-40, or one game over .500. After a win June 30 last year, the Tigers stood at 38-40. When they had completed 81 games, they stood at 39-42. So at this point, the Nationals have the better record. That's good.

However, when the Tigers were 39-40, the Chicago White Sox were only 3 games ahead of them for first place in the AL Central. This one advantage the Tigers had that the Nationals will not have: An easy division to play in. Right now, the Atlanta Braves are 6.5 games ahead of the Nationals, and are showing no signs of slowing up.

So, can the Nationals repeat the Tigers come-from-behind success story? The pieces are there. While the Nationals may not have Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder, they have Bryce Harper, and although it may not seem it, all of the rest of the line-up are viable threats to put up productive numbers.

While the Tigers have the best pitcher in the game in Justin Verlander, and back him up with Anibal Sanchez and Max Scherzer, the Nationals have three legitimate aces, who are capable of matching the performances of the Tigers top 3. The Nationals also have Ross Detwiler, who, when healthy, is a legitimate #2 being used in as a fourth starter.

So the final verdict is, while it will not be easy, there is still a chance that the Nationals take the division title most predicted them to run away with. A Wild-Card is a better possibility, with the Nationals being 4.5 games out of the second WC. For all the Nationals fans out there's sake, I hope it goes well.

~TBC

Exciting News!

Hello Hello Hello....
I have some very exciting news for you! Drumroll please...

We are on Google+!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Check us out at Diary of a Teenaged Baseball Chick, and remember to follow and +1 if you like it!

~TBC

It's all about me (Part 2)

Here we go...

First Baseball Moment: The year was 2010. The month: October. The event: the 2010 NLCS. This was when I really started to follow baseball and when I fell in love with the Phillies. Before that, all I remember of MLB is a brief pause from flipping channels in a hotel room to watch a little bit of a Cardinals-Astros game and seeing a game a Camden Yards. And then our fall vacation coincided with the NLCS, and the rest is history...so many great moments from that series. Most memorable: Jayson Werth's long throw from right field to third base to nab the super-villain named Cody Ross.

Best Live Baseball Moment: First visit to Nationals Park, Memorial Day 2011. Seats at field level on the third based side, right smack in the middle of Citizens Bank South. Doc on the mound, Rollins, Howard, Utley and Polanco in the lineup. Great game, lots of lead changes. Booed Werth, “Rauuuuuul-ed” for Ibanez (remember him?) . Sooooooo much fun!

Best Walk off Moment: Wilson Ramos’s three run homer in the bottom of the ninth to cap a five-run comeback by the Nats. One of the many Nats games I listened to in my bed that first year…

Best Baseball Moment: Can’t pick! Everything!!!!!!!!!!

ESPN or MLB.com?: MLB.com all the way. The At Bat App is amazing, even if I just have the free version. Yes, I know, I’m a cheapskate. But I’m also 15…

Favorite Ballpark Food: Soft Pretzels. That is all.

Radio or TV? We don’t have TV, so radio!

Favorite Baseball Blog: SweetSpot by David Schoenfield. So many good things…oh, and You Can’t Predict Baseball is hilarious.

Favorite Podcast: Well, it was Baseball Today…I listened to it religiously…until ESPN terminated it L. So now it’s a toss-up between Keith Law’s Behind the Dish, and the Fantasy Focus Baseball Podcast. Enjoy both J

Writers I look up to: Well, both of these two’s pieces are ESPN insider, and since I don’t have insider I can’t read them, Eric Karabell and Keith Law.  Yes, this is 2/3 of the old Baseball Today Crew.  These two have molded me as a baseball blogger so much, and I do really look uo to both of them! Maybe if any of you readers have Twitter, you can tweet this post to them! I would really appreciate it!

Well… that’s all for today! We’ll see if I drop something else this week. My Rays fan family is coming up from FL this week so I won’t have much time.

Sayonara!

~TBC

It's all about me :) (Part 1)

Hello there,
So today I'm going to let you guys know a little bit more about me. I'm going to go with an interview type format, like "best this" or "favorite that". Here goes nothing...

Favorite team: Got to get the easy ones out of the way! The Phillies, obviously :P

Second favorite team: The Nationals...moving on...

3-4-5 teams: Giants, Rays, and for now the Red Sox (in no particular order).

Favorite players: Roy Halladay <3 Michael Morse :) Ian Desmond :D J-Zimm B-) Dustin Pedroia, Buster Posey, and many many many more....

Favorite defensive player: Roger Bernadina (The Shark) A-MAZ-ING in 2011!
                                                   
Most despised player: A-Rod....ew... doesn't he belong in Hollywood by now...

Most annoying player: Anyone with the last name of Upton. Giancarlo Stanton a close second

Favorite Rookie: Well if Dom Brown was a rookie I would go with him, but I guess Matt Harvey...I really don't know...all my favorite rookie played last season.

That's all for part one :) I will be away until Friday but I will try to write part two while I 'm on vacation and post it as soon as I get back :)

~TBC

Well...

It's been more than a year since this blog has come into existence! Wow, I can't believe it! Sharing my thoughts with you guys has been so much of a blast, and I hope you all have enjoyed it as much as I did! Over the past year and a couple days, this page has had more that 850 views. That's more than two views a day!!!!!!! So a couple things that will hopefully make year number two as enjoyable as year number one!

1. I'm not sure if I will do recaps for everyday like I did last year, or more pieces on other things like specific players. Feel free to leave a comment on which you prefer.

2. I've got a couple updates in the works. Can't let you know what they are just yet...but I'm super excited to share them with y'all!

3. I'm going to tease it up  for my next big post...which will hopefully drop sometime this week.  Let's just say: It's about me :) So y'all can get to know me better!

Once again, thank you so much for reading and supporting my blog! You guys are my motivation to keep posting!

~TBC

Doc, Nats and Lee

Heyyyyyy there! It’s been a while! Sorry, I didn’t mean to go completely invisible, especially right smack in the middle of the season, but I had a couple busy weekends, and then two big test to study for, and then all of a sudden a quarter of the season had gone by! So I guess right now, just some quick points:

1. Oh Roy...

So two terrible outings followed by three decent ones followed by two more awful ones followed by the DL and shoulder surgery. Quite an unpredictable start to the season for Roy Halladay. Last I heard, he would start throwing in 6-8 weeks and I know he just went down to Florida to start his rehab. Most everybody is hopeful for a last August return for Halladay.

2.  Um…What’s going on?

Last time I checked the Nationals were supposed to easily win the NL East. They aren’t in first now, and they are only 1 game ahead of the Phillies. Pretty much all the lineup sans Harper is to blame. I knew that they made a mistake in trading Morse! He’s only hitting .244. but he has 10 homers, which would be second only to Harper. Besides for Haren, the rotation has been decent, with only Gio posting an above three ERA. In fact, Zimmermann has become quite the ace, and is currently in the top 5 pitcher in the league. So, if the Nationals start hitting, will everything right itself? They have dug themselves quite a hole, but remember that in 2010, the Phillies were 7 games out of first in July, and eventually not only won their 4^th straight division crown. And this Braves team has endured to September collapses in a row. So all hope is definitely not lost.

3. Guysssss, remember Cliff Lee?

Yeah, Cliff Lee, the one who was third in the 2011 Cy Young voting. The one who was completely forgotten last season despite posting a 3.16 ERA, thanks to dismal run support and  a 6-9 record. Yeah, there’s a reason the Phillies spent $120 mil on this guy. It’s because they knew that he would be a huge asset to their rotation for years. Whether because of his no nonsense personality or the fact that he has been overshadowed by fellow starters success, Lee has generated very little buzz in his first two seasons in Philly.  He’s been super consistent this year with a 5-2 record and an ERA under 3.  Oh, and he 3-hit the Marlins last night J

That’s all I’ve got for today folks!

~TBC

eep. this is exciting.

Just had to update you on this:
Roy Halladay was just pinch hit for in the ninth inning of today's game. His final line: 8 innings, 5 hits, 1 run, 2 SO, 1 BB, 87 pitches, 54 strikes. Although it was against the lowly Marlins, I will take anything I get :) And Laynce Nix, who pinch hit for him, hit a home run, so he is inline for his first win of 2013!

"I'll be gone in a day or two"

If you're wondering what the title quote is from, it is a lyric from a-Ha's song "Take on me", also known as the song Michael Morse walked up to when he was with the Nationals. I was listening to it last night, and noticed the lyric that I used for the title of this post.  Replace "day" with "season" and the lyric rings true in the ears of many Nationals fans. Morse was traded to the Nationals in mid-2010, but 2011 was his breakout year, almost accomplishing the rare .300, 30, 100 feat. Although he was sidelined for much of the first half of 2012, he was still a fan favorite, and one of the things I remember the most about home games while he was with the team, is all the fans singing his walk-up song, even after the music stopped. As well as being a fan favorite, Morse was also one of my favorite Nationals. Needless to say, I was heart-broken when he was traded to the Mariners in the off-season. Also, needless to say, I am now rooting for the Mariners to win a play-off spot :) In typical "Beast Mode" form, Morse has hit 6 home runs and is hitting .293, in the first week and change of the season. Sadly, he broke his pinky Thursday night, and will miss 3-7 days :( Speedy Recovery to the "Morse-ter" (my name for him), and good luck on your return :) Rest assured you are missed, and since (I think) you are a free agent after the season's end, please consider signing with the Phillies (who need another outfielder). You will always be remebered for moments like this:

(natsinsider.com)

 

And this:

(thenatsblog.com)

 

And this:

(districtsportspage.com)

~TBC

And we're back!

The title says it all. I'm so pysched that baseball is back! Real count-in-the-standings, starters-play-for-the-whole-game baseball! From only four games I can tell that its going to be an adventure for sure! Here are some highlights and low-lights (not a word , I know :P ) from the past four games.

Highlights:

A. The Nationals top 3 is as good as advertised. After allowing only one run in the season opening series, it is clear that these three guys are one of the Nationals' biggest strengths. As an added bonus, they are all really good hitters (well, for pichers anyway). I would not be surprised if the staff combined for ~5 home runs this year!

B. Is Chase Utley Superman? As least that what I've been calling him :) I could be way overexaggerating, but I see a healthy Chase Utley being a huge factor on this team! Besides, who else are you going to rely on? Laynce Nix?

C. Wait WHAT? Since when did Roy Halladay strike people out like Aroldis Chapman or whoever else strikes a lot of people out? Doc's less than stellar performance had me desparately scrambling for postives, and luckily this just happened to pop up. I was shocked but pleased.

Lowlights:

A. Ryan Howard's short term memory loss. Did he forget everything he learned in spring training?????  Now he's back to swinging for the fences with every swing, and striking out half the time :/

B. The Nationals offence got off to a little bit of a slow start, with only 10 runs being scord over the first four games. Not to mention the debacle that was Dan Haren's debut last night...

And that is all for this week folks! I'll be back next weekend with another week to recap!

~TBC

...So Here We Go Again!

Wow. It's hard to believe opening day is upon us already. It seems like just yesterday that Sergio Romo froze Miguel Cabrera for the last out of the World Series, but it also seems like an eternity since the Phillies lost the division crown they had worn for the past half-decade and the Nationals suffered heart-wrenching defeat at the hands of the Cardinals.

Opening day is a time to hope, a time to believe. A time for the team that many project to be the worst in baseball to leave a play-off favorite (if you can call Texas that) in the dust. A time where how many Uptons one has may not matter at all, depending how many Hamels' one has (I hope). A time where anyone can be a Cy Young or MVP contender, if just for a day.

I'm ready. I'm ready for triumph and defeat, for heartache and happiness, for the possibility of crying myself to sleep for the third straight year. I'm ready to eat, sleep and breathe baseball for the next six months. I'm ready for ordinary men to become Superman.

I may be weird because I see a realistic best case scenario where the Phillies win the world series. I may be weird because if I did detailed predictions (And I may still do them) I would have the Dodgers missing the playoffs completely. I don't care. It's baseball. Anything could happen.

It all starts today (well last night). Welcome to baseball season. Welcome to the show.

I'm so excited to be able to share my views on baseball with you for the second year! I have some ideas for improving my baseball coverage, and hope to share these with you in the next few months! Right now, school work is still really heavy for me, but I will try my hardest to post 2-3 times a week and then come June, posts will be pretty much daily!

Can't wait for to start the madness all over again!

~TBC

LOL

Here's Keith Law of Baseball Today:
"Somebody told Ruben Amaro that the Phillies needed to get 'younger', so he got Michael and Delmon!"

That there is classic Law, and I thought it was funny enough to share!

And if you don't get it, read my previous posts, that should explain it!

Sayonara!
-TBC

Really, Delmon Young...

Excuse me while I go throw up! :P
Really though, Baseball Today has done a fabulous job of tearing both Michael and Delmon Young to shreads. And then the Phillies (host Eric Karabell's and my team) go and sign/trade for not one, but both!!!!!!!!

This is proof that God does indeed have a sense of humor (thought I find this anything but funny)!

Adios!
-TBC

Well, saw that coming...

So long to the "beast" Michael Morse, rest assured that you will be missed!!!!!!!!!! Please consider coming to Philly next year! :P