Hopefully, A World Series for the Ages...

By Chris Pollay

The Philadelphia Phillies may be the defending world champions, but they still feel like the underdog to me. Let's face it, the New York Yankees are the most impressive franchise in all of sports. They are the measuring stick that all other dynasties and champions compare themselves against, and they are the perfect opponent for a team that wants to cement its place in history as one of the all-time greats.

Though the Phillies were established 18 years before the Yankees, they have won 24 fewer World Series titles. The Yankees have won 26 World Series while the Phillies have won only two, including last season's victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Philadelphia is extremely proud of all seven of its National League Pennants during its over 125-year history. Meanwhile, New York has notched 40 American League Pennants in only 108 years (and, incidentally, have reached the playoffs 14 of the last 15 years). Philadelphia is a very good team, but the Yankees are the team to beat, always. As a Philadelphia fan, this is the World Series I wanted. You want to beat the best in order to be unquestionably the best. You want to go for the guys with the biggest payroll and the most expensive ballpark.

Of course, I probably should be careful what I wish for.

When I look at the Philadelphia roster, I am impressed on every level. They have the ultimate slugger (Ryan Howard), the all-star veteran that sparks the team (Jimmy Rollins), the intimidating pitching ace (Cliff Lee), the (recently) devastating closer (Brad Lidge), and a packed roster that is truly stacked at every position. How can these guys NOT be favored?

Then, I look at the Yankees and see more of the same: Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, C.C. Sabathia, Mariano Rivera, etc. Some of these guys will go down as the best ever to play the game. How can these guys NOT be favored?

For that matter, how can either of these teams lose?

I wouldn't want to bet against the Phillies because they look like the same poised, confident team that came together at the right time and stormed through the 2008 playoffs like predestined champions. They have only lost one game in each of their past five playoff series. They simply know how to win it all and they won't be satisfied until they do so again.

Then again, the Yankees are no different. Many of these guys have already won it all, several times over, and the rest are hungry to experience a championship for themselves. I definitely wouldn't want to bet against the Damn Yankees ever.

Do we even need the so-called baseball experts to offer up predictions? What's the point? These teams could play 100 series and both teams would likely win 50.

This one will go the distance. The teams are too evenly matched for it to end any sooner than Game Seven. This should be one of the greatest Fall Classics in MLB's long history.

As a baseball fan, I can't wait.

As a Phillies' fan, I know that I will be ready to bite my nails off and cover my eyes come Wednesday night. I can honestly say, I have no clue what is going to happen. I just know it's going to be amazing and exciting. Play Ball! Read more!

Don't Give Up On J-Roll

A couple of days ago, one of my buddies sent me a text message. As a Phillies fan, I tried to disregard his snotty little remark. “Jeter: 3 for 3!” the message said. He is a Yankees fan, so I have absolutely zero respect for him in that aspect. Of course Jeter had a great game, but my bud knows that I am all about Philly so the text was just unnecessary. The next time I saw him, we got into a heated debate about Derek Jeter and Jimmy Rollins. I am the type of fan who will back up my team and players until the day I die, so I defended Rollins.

I will admit that it definitely would have been difficult to find reasons to defend J-Roll if it were still the first half of the season. Anyone who followed baseball during the first half should obviously know that Jimmy was in as bad as a slump as any major leaguer can get in. Rollins, who can be known as a streaky hitter, arguably had the worst three months of his career. Many fans were concerned that Rollins simply forgot how to hit. Booing was a regular for Rollins in Citizens Bank Park and Phillies skipper Charlie Manuel would get questions about Rollins’ status during each post-game interview. It was bad, and it wasn’t going to go away until Rollins turned around. During the All-Star break, a tiny adjustment in his swing was all it took for Rollins to return back to his 2007 NL MVP season form. Rollins was hitting .297, with a .348 on-base percentage and a .540 slugging %. Up to August 31st. Not bad numbers for someone who couldn’t hit the side of a barn in the first half!

Rollins will make one cheer or even boo, but in the end, he can be as good as any other major league shortstop. His confidence and leadership on and off the field can match anyone, even future hall of famer Derek Jeter. And when J-Roll is on, he is on FIRE. Hopefully Rollins will be able to keep it up and carry the Phillies through the post-season and lead them to another championship. Until then, please just promise me one thing; don’t ever give up on J-Roll.
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The Qualities of Leadership

Much has been made this week about how David Wright handled the near miss beaning by Cardinals reliever Brad Thompson and now this past weekend’s direct hit by the Giants’ starter Matt Cain. It has been said that in keeping his cool – especially in the seemingly intentional Thompson brush back, Wright exuded all the qualities of leadership that this Mets team needs going forward. But does a team floundering in 4th place after suffering 2 consecutive September collapses really need a leader that is robotically passive when being challenged? Or do they need a leader that will stand up and show some fight and spirit? Based on the on-field lethargy we have all witnessed the past three years, perhaps David should start hanging around Keith Hernandez so some grit rubs off of him.

Now don’t get me wrong, there is no question in my mind that David Wright is the face of the Mets. He is the Derek Jeter-like untouchable messiah that will likely lead this team into the promised land at some point during his career. The kid pretty much has done everything right since they day he was promoted to the major leagues. With David, you never fear the foot-in-mouth syndrome PR nightmare that seems to be so prevalent among Mets players and management. Now granted, this season the home runs are down, the strikeouts are up and he does seem more mortal with runners in scoring position but on a team decimated by injuries, Wright feels more pressure than anyone to carry the club and it has affected his game. As the “face of the franchise”, and a pretty young one at that, a little tailing off this year can be forgiven due not only to the fact that he is surrounded by replacement players in the lineup, but also that he is playing in a cavernous new ballpark. I give Wright the utmost credit for facing the media during the worst times of this lost season and the previous two collapses and taking responsibility for the mediocrity on the field.

However, there does come a point where doing and saying everything the “Wright” way may not be what’s best for the team. For example, if Piazza had charged the mound when Clemens went rootin’ tootin’ roid rage ballistic on him during the 2000 World Series maybe the Mets would have put up a better fight instead of losing in 5 games. Certainly, the 1986 Mets would not have stood for such shenanigans and their swagger and grit lead them to a championship.

It is all well and good for David to feel bad about the Mets’ failures the past few years and for the disappointing 2009 season but there comes a time when you are faced by adversity that you have to stand up and fight back or you will get stepped on. I challenge any team out there to be able to overcome the injuries that have plagued the 2009 Mets and go on to have a championship caliber season. Their entire starting lineup and pitching rotation has been completely decimated for months. Expecting the team currently taking the field to have a winning season is like picking the Nationals or the Pirates to win the World Series – there just isn’t enough talent. But at some point, when an opposing pitcher throws at your head intentionally, perhaps it is time to show some spine and fight back a bit. Get the adrenaline charged and do something, anything, to stand up for yourself so other teams take you seriously.

In 2007 and 2008 the Mets just rolled over and died. They practically handed the Phillies and Marlins shovels and bags of dirt to bury them. If David is going to be the leader of this team he has to prove on the field and to his teammates that this submissive attitude just doesn’t fly. He is the only person on the roster that has the passion for the team and for winning that can handle this, but he needs to work on that “take no crap” attitude. That’s not to say he should be charging the mound punching out any pitcher that brushes him back, but in some way, whether by a gesture or an aggressive play, show the opponent that you and your team are not pushovers. You play in New York where win or lose, there is a certain grittiness that comes with the territory of being a New York franchise. Otherwise, not only will other teams eat you alive but the fans will too.
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