Philadelphia Phillies

I was in NYC yesterday.  I know…how could I possibly visit the city of the Phil’s arch-rival so fresh off our losing series with them. 

Jayson Werth, who rode my fantasy bench all week to make room for my awesome outfield—who did nothing but suck on Tuesday, I might add—stole bags yesterday like Dane Cook steals jokes.

In October of last year, the Phillies defeated the Dodgers to win their first National League title in 15 years. You know the rest of the story.

Tonight, the Dodgers will begin a three-game visit to Citizens Bank Park, their first trip to Philadelphia since last year's NLCS.

Obviously, it's not the playoffs, but for the Phillies, it might as well be. Los Angeles comes to Philadelphia sporting a 22-11 record, good enough for the best in baseball. Meanwhile, the Phillies are mired at a game over .500 with a 15-14 record.

Futility against the Phils appears to be in the rear-view mirror.

In only about five weeks, the Atlanta Braves have matched their 2008 win total against the Phillies with their 4-2 win on Sunday.

Despite two debacles, one from Jo-Joke Reyes and another from the (at the time) "suckpen", the Braves have performed admirably against the World Champions.

Perhaps the key to these performances has been the presence of the true four and five hitters on the Braves, McCann and Anderson.

Did you hear that last night?  That was the sound of Philadelphia starting to breathe again. 

After Cole Hamels took the mound, one thing was certain—there was no dust on the bottle. He had seven K’s in 95 pitches, sailing 2008-style through the game atop his 80 mile an hour changeup. Then in the sixth, he sent two batters to base on balls when his arm ran out of quarters. 

My dad said it best, “I went to a drug bust and a baseball game broke out.”

Actually, I think that’s a twist on an old Rodney Dangerfield line, but you get my point. 

It was just yesterday I was surfing on the internet and found an all-time Philadelphia Phillies team. Gene Mauch was selected as the manager on this list.

Not a bad choice, but I posted a comment that suggested Danny Ozark should be the manager. 

Today, God has selected Mr. Ozark.

Philadelphia Phillies' team officials have reported that Danny Ozark has died in his home in Vero Beach, Florida today. He was 85.

The Phillies lost another legend today.  Danny Ozark, the hound-faced manager of the ‘73- ‘79 Fightins died this morning, at his home in Vero Beach, Fla. He was 85.

When Ozark arrived in Philadelphia, the team was in last place and in dire need of a turnaround.  Ozark met the Philadelphia media for a press conference upon his arrival.  When asked how excited he was to get his first big-league managerial position, Ozark replied, “I wasn’t overly excited.  I didn’t jump up and shout ‘Whoopee!’”

Doesn't April seem to last an eternity?

For those of us working in the financial services industry, the word April conjures up images of angry and impatient taxpayers. 

Across most of the country, torrential downpours and volatile temperature swings are the norm. For a select few, April is the start of a long and grueling baseball season.

April has never been kind to the Phillies. The inaugural first pitch barely left the hands of ex-GM Pat Gillick and the natives were already sharpening their spears.