Hey Philly, Wake the @#%! Up: Vote for Pablo Sandoval

Philadelphia is the City of Tough Brotherly Love, right?

And they’re intelligent sports fans—baseball being, perhaps, first and foremost amongst that knowledge base.  So you guys can handle the truth without candy coating.

In all sincerity, I mean no disrespect.  I love and admire the loyalty you shower upon your guys.  Even better, I appreciate how you reserve your unconditionality for players who are truly deserving.  Bedrock human-beings like Chase Utley and Donovan McNabb (most of the time on the latter).  That said…

Quit being dumb:

Sandoval—38 R, 23 2B, 3 3B, 13 HR, 48 RBI, 3 SB, .328 average, .381 OBP, .945 OPS

Victorino—60 R, 22 2B, 6 3B, 6 HR, 39 RBI, 13 SB, .306 average, .369 OBP, .832 OPS

 

There is just no comparison.  Anywhere.  Take a closer look.

You can even throw Little Panda’s bugaboo up there and it doesn’t hurt his offensive case—he’s whiffed 44 times, but the Flyin’ Hawaiian’s gotten nothing but air on 39 occasions.  Given Sandoval’s outright dominance over Victorino in almost every category, five extra punch-outs doesn’t mean much.

Then there’s the matter of defense.

It’s only a slight stretch to call Pablo Sandoval a superlative defensive third baseman in this his first full year at the hot corner.  At any level of baseball.

And Little Money got his other nickname because he is a catcher by trade and showed a remarkable likeness—both in flair for dramatics and physical proportions—to Big Money Bengie Molina.

Philadelphia fans, think of what that means for the All-Star squad.

Because Yadier Molina rode the hometown vote into the starting slot, he will get most of the playing time behind the dish. Brian McCann, the only backstop truly worthy of All-Star acknowledgement, cannot make an early appearance because, as is, the team has only the two capable of donning the Tools of Ignorance.

Consequently, a potent offensive option will be atrophying on the bench, relegated to some late game work.

With Little Money on the roster, McCann is freed up and the whole shebang has more flexibility.  Did I mention Sandoval’s a plus defender?

Meanwhile, Shane Victorino is an awesome defender and a fearless competitor.  He’s also an outfielder.  Yaaaawn.

He’s a joy to watch, but he doesn’t add much to a cast already glistening with defensive Illuminati.

And that’s the larger picture, Philly fans—I’m trying to appeal to your reason and self-preservation.

YOUR team is the defending National League Champions.  YOUR team has got to be the favorite, at this point, to make a return trip to the World Series.  The PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES arrive in St. Louis for the Summer Classic with a real sense of utilitarian commitment.

I’m sure Utley, Ryan Howard, Charlie Manuel, and Raul Ibanez (if he were playing) are very motivated by that home-field advantage carrot that’s dangling out there.

So why aren’t their fans voting that way?

Pablo Sandoval offers distinct advantages over Shane Victorino regardless of the angle from which you approach the matter.  He offers better ability to get on base and generate runs—the runs scored disparity is more a function of the anemic Orange and Black supporting cast than a flaw in Little Panda’s game—and he packs flexibility in his equipment bag.

For those who care, Sandoval’s also far more deserving.  But why should that matter?

Shoot, the only guy who should be even close to Pablo Sandoval is Matt Kemp, and that’s simply because I’d never expect Los Angeles Dodger fans to vote for a San Francisco Giant—even a clearly more deserving one.

Just as I hope they’d never expect me to return that particular favor.

But I hope they’re listening with a shred of their ear in La La Land because, if the Phightin’s are not the prohibitive favorite heading into the back 81, then it’s their Bums wearing the tag.

Which means even the City of Angels should want Pablo Sandoval in the All-Star Game and just as badly.

Painful though it may be for both fanbases and cities, it’s in your best interest for the real hardware.  So keep that in mind and bite the bullet.

Vote for Pablo.

 

**www.pva.org**