Thoughts on the World Series So Far

While I may hate both teams involved, the World Series this year has provided some very good baseball thus far. The reality is, these teams both legitimately deserve to be there this year.

Some thoughts on the matchup so far:

• A split had to be something the Phillies were hoping for coming out of New York. Obviously, 2-0 would be better for them, but with the series tied and heading to Philly, there’s a slight edge there.

• What the hell is wrong with Derek Jeter? The play where he bunted for a strikeout with two on and no outs, and the Yankees up two…why? Something is all wrong here, and depending on where the call came from, either manager Joe Girardi or Jeter need an explanation for that one.

• Despite my hatred of both teams, I’ve found a way to spin this optimistically. Whereas either team’s success will make me sad, the failure of the other team will make me happy. If the Phillies win, it’ll be hilarious that the Yankees spent all that money, finally made it to the World Series, and lost. It’s not quite 18-1, but it’s close. If the Yankees win…well, a team from Philly lost, and I don’t usually have a problem with that.

• Ryan Howard has been pretty quiet so far. Only two singles and three strikeouts. Big guy needs to pick up his game. Though he did steal a base, which is hilarious. Yes, I know he stole eight in the regular season. All of them were hilarious.

• A-Rod’s postseason success is not a recent phenomenon. Possibly more on that in a later post, but I’ve posted about it here ad nauseam before, so maybe not.

• Where’s all the steroid talk? As Fire Jerry Manuel said on Twitter: “baseball people usually complain about how NFL steroid usage gets glossed over. well, look at pettitte/arod right now. loud silence.”

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MLB Got the World Series it Wanted, But I Didn’t

Tonight, if the rain lets up, the World Series will begin between the Phillies and the Yankees. While on paper this seems like a great matchup, featuring the teams that have been the best in their respective leagues all season, I’m completely uninterested.

At the risk of sounding like a whiny blogger, this is not a World Series that captivates my interest.

Perhaps it’s the story, or lack there of. While A-Rod’s rise from a playoff failure to juggernaut has been interesting, I honestly can’t get into it.

This is a series between the Yankees and Phillies, two teams with storied traditions and fan bases known for being jackasses, albeit in two completely separate ways. There’s no one to root for here besides God, who I hope sends multiple plagues down upon the stadium until both teams are eliminated.

Usually, in a situation like this, I cheer for the team that I think has a more deserving fan base. But alas, we’re stuck with the eventual champion’s fans being composed of jackasses with a championship to brag about.

Another part of my disinterest in this series is the timing. Game 5 of last year’s World Series was on Oct. 27 and, due to rain, finished on the Oct. 29. It wrapped up just as the NBA was starting. Literally, I flipped the channel from the World Series to the Pacers’ season opener. The timing was great.

At the same point this year, we’re just entering the World Series. The NBA season has begun. With the Pacers and the NHL to distract me, why would I want to watch a series between two teams I hate?

That’s been the main problem with the playoffs this season. The series are split up with too many off days that kill a lot of the drama and momentum.

Baseball is played all summer on back-to-back days. Yet, when fall rolls around, it apparently becomes a sport that must have one to two days off in between each game and half-a-week off before beginning the next series. I’d much rather be on the edge of my seat for two weeks than lulled to sleep by a disjointed playoff system that kills the drama of it all.

For the fans of the Phillies and Yankees, enjoy the moment. Try not to wreck your city when you win/lose.

As for me, I’m really pulling for plagues in this one.

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Shane Victorino: Public Enemy No. 1

Yes, it’s time for my long-awaited return from my school-induced hiatus.

And I bring tidings of war. I want the head of Shane Victorino on a pike.

It seems like every year, the Phillies are bellyaching about the Mets celebrating too much, and showing disrespect to the game, and things of that nature. I, for one, tend to disagree, mostly because I find athletes who celebrate accomplishments to be…well, human, and those who don’t to be robotic and boring. I want heart and spirit from my players.

But I wouldn’t be as upset about the Phillies’ whining if it wasn’t for their complete and total hypocrisy. You see, in the midst of the virtuous and not-at-all insufferable Rollins et al. is the National League’s A.J. Pierzynski. He is Shane Victorino, the worst person in baseball.

Watch this clip from tonight’s Phillies-Mets game. Here, Jose Reyes is called for obstruction. Later, Victorino would score on a home run, which would force the Mets to waste Frankie Rodriguez in a game in which he shouldn’t have had to appear.

I see no obstruction. I see a forearm shiver. If Victorino was a referee and Reyes a quarterback, there would have been an uproar. But since he’s a Phillie, one of baseball’s paladins fighting the dark, celebrating scourge that is the New York Mets, it likely won’t be an issue.

In fact, Jerry Manuel’s going to get the worst of it, since evidently his hat hit Bill Welke’s when he was (rightfully) blowing his top after the blown call.

In a perfect world, two things would happen. First, Welke would be suspended for three days without pay for not having functioning eyes. Honestly, when there’s a rundown play, he should be looking for bullshit like that.

The aforementioned Pierzynski has done it before, and it should be a point of attention for MLB umpires. It’s not a heads-up gritty play, and it’s not good baseball—it’s cheating, it’s dirty, and it should be stopped.

Second, on June 9, in the top of the first inning, Shane Victorino should be hit in the elbow with a pitch. That is how scores are settled in baseball, and the Mets’ pitching staff needs to stand up for Reyes. This Philadelphian assault on Reyes has gone on long enough, and Victorino’s reign of terror has as well.

The Mets have made too many compromises already, too many retreats. The Phillies complain about Reyes’ exuberance, and they fall back. The Phillies charge to the division title in September, and they fall back. Not again. The line must be drawn HERE. This far, and no further. The Mets must make Victorino pay for what he has done.