A Day Without Baseball

Doesn't today just absolutely stink. No baseball. At all. It makes me wonder how I survive the off season.

The Phillies introduced Pedro Martinez today.

Fenway will host the 2010 Winter Classic, which has nothing to do with baseball. Citi Field will host the 2013 All Star Game and Citizens Bank Park probably won't host one until 2026.

Other than that, nothing happened in the baseball world.

I'm already having separation anxiety from the Phillies. Yeah, this post was completely necessary.

Sports Memoir

For my English classed, we were asked to write a one page memoir about different topics. One of the topics was sports, so here is my "sports memoir." Not to brag or anything, but I got an A on it. *Insert smiley face here*

I claimed the left side of the sofa and was wearing the same pinstriped jersey I had worn for a week. With all the events that had happened in the past, every superstition was necessary. My entire body was numb and my heart was beating a mile a minute. I waited my entire life for this moment, but because I was so nervous, I could barely watch. Before Brad Lidge delivered the pitch, memories of my favorite team flashed in front of my eyes like a baseball history flick.

Worried about a second coming of Joe Carter, there were more bad memories than good. I remembered each and every of the ten thousand losses, even if the the first one came over a century before I was born. I felt the stomachaches I used to get watching Joe Roa pitch. I heard the boos that filled the stadium after Pat Burrell was caught looking. Year after year was heartache and I became accustomed to losing. I questioned why I put myself through this misery. As Tug McGraw would say “Ya gotta believe!”and I quickly found my answer: my faith, love, and passion toward the game and team that I loved since the day I was born.

A true die hard fan, I do not quit on my team, even if they are losing by ten runs. Growing up around the game of baseball, I watched my dad play and listened to stories from my grandparents. My favorite movies were of the baseball genre, and I loved sporting my red jersey. As the years went on, baseball and my team became an obsession, watching every game and checking statistics on the internet or in newspapers. No matter how awful they were, I was not embarrassed to say they were my team.

The pitch was on its way to home plate, and before I knew it, Eric Hinske swung through Lidge's slider, and I heard the deep voice of Harry Kalas. “The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 World Champions of baseball!” Goosebumps covered my body and tears of joy rolled through my eyes as I watched the team form a dog pile on the pitchers mound. The twenty-eight year championship drought and years of bad memories did not diminish the euphoria of the moment. The bad memories are forever gone, and the 2008 Phillies fulfilled my lifelong dream.

Eagles Make Playoffs; Lions Make History

It must still be baseball's offseason. I'm no NFL analyst, but I do like football. Not as much as baseball of course, but I still like it. Since today was a big day in the NFL, I'll step into the shoes of a football blogger.

NFL's regular season ended with playoffs not much longer away.

There will be more playoff action in Philadelphia. Another parade? Well, we'll see. All you have to do is get to the playoffs, and anything can happen. Look at the 2006 baseball Cardinals. Look at the 2007 New York football Giants. What do these two teams have in common, besides the fact that they are both names of teams in both sports? They won a championship after a so-so regular season. Other teams were better than them all season, but they were the ones who finished on top.

The Philadelphia Eagles made the playoffs by the skin of their teeth. The Eagles needed to beat the Cowboys, and needed help from the Oakland Raiders and the Houston Texans.

Before the Eagles began, the Raiders beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Texans beat Chicago Bears. A win for the Eagles meant Wild Card berth.

The Eagles ended up crushing their division rivals, the Dallas Cowboys, 44-6. The Eagles amazingly made the postseason.

Looking back to previous games during the season, I would say that this team did not deserve to make the playoffs. However, today, unlike several games during the season, there weren't any controversial play calls by Andy Reid. The Eagles ran and passed the ball at appropriate times. If Donovan McNabb got benched, it would have been because the Eagles were winning by a very large margin, saving him for the playoffs. No 2 minute offense. The defense dominated. They played very well, looking like the team they were projected to be. Maybe Jimmy Rollins, who was in attendance, was their good luck charm.

Could the Eagles become the Giants or Cardinals of this year? Possibly. All they have to do is put the past behind them, like they did on Sunday. They have momentum on their side and a winning attitude, which they lacked earlier. It's not how they start, but how they finished.

If you start and finish the same way, then you are the Detroit Lions. The Lions finished the year 0-16, the first time in NFL history a team was defeated. The Miami Dolphins avoided this last season, winning one game. The Lions ended up in the history book.

But hey, maybe the Lions will be the next Detroit Tigers. Three years removed from losing 119 games, the Tigers made it to the World Series. The Lions could also be like the Tampa Bay Rays. No Super Bowl Championships, but the next year go all the way. Maybe not, but keep up the hopes Lions fans. I feel your pain.

I guess this wasn't too bad filling a football blogger's shoes. Football and baseball go hand and hand. How else do you remember how many yards Dan Marino passed for?

"Here's how you remember 61,361: It's Roger Maris (61), then the number of times
Sammy Sosa hit 60 homers in a season (3), then Roger Maris again: 61,361."

Quote: Steve Hirdt

Baseball Is...

A game, a sport, a way of life. The history, the passion, the game itself.

Anybody can throw on jerseys, stack up on gear, memorabilia and other merchandise calling themselves a fan. Yes, I own plenty of memorabilia, write about the Phillies any chance given, but I'm a true Philadelphia Phillies fan and proud. I get congratulations and condolences on the Phillies wins and losses.

It's safe to say I have a healthy obsession with the Philadelphia Phillies. After all, how many 17 year old girls like baseball? It isn't a coincidence I bleed red.

I was born with a Phillies cap on. I've loved baseball for as long as I can remember. When my mom didn't dress me in funny looking dresses, I wore Phillies outfits. My favorite movie as a toddler was The Sandlot, which remains a favorite. I'd always have a whiffle ball and bat in my hand. Baseball is a way of expressing yourself.

Behind my old house there was a little baseball field. Not much of a field, just a fence for a backstop, a few dirt spots for the base paths and a spot for pitchers mound. The intent of the lot may not of been for a baseball field, but it was used for one. I continue to play softball today as every little kid plays Little League at some point. Baseball has roots.

My dad played slow pitch softball, so I would always go to his games. My grandparents and parents told me Phillies stories at a young age. I was born a couple years before the 1993 World Series, so I imagine that the game was on TV more than usual. That is probably how I first started to watch the Phillies, although I may not remember very well. The Phillies and I connected, and I fell in love with them. Baseball is a family tradition.

The older I got, the more I liked the Phillies. The time I was a little kid was a very difficult time to love the Phillies. They were awful, but I still stuck with them and rooted them on. I lived through the wonderful Terry Adams, Turk Wendell and Joe Roa days, but I still remained a fan. After Scott Rolen left, Brandon Duckworth was my favorite player.. there was really nobody better on the team to like! I was accustomed to losing. 10,000 losses and proud.

I learned so much about baseball from books, the Internet, watching games, playing, observing or listening to the great broadcaster, Harry Kalas. The game has so much history. It is America's pastime. I can name famous calls off the top of my head replaying the scene in my head. I might not know all the history, all the players, all the milestones, but I am willing to learn about it. Every time I hear something about baseball, I stop what I'm doing and listen. New records are made, records are broken. Stats tell stories. Baseball is a history class.

Whether it is sitting in the stands, or in front of the TV, I love watching baseball, no matter the team. The passion for the game across the country is unbelievable. Many families make it their priority to take at least one trip each year to the ballpark to root on their favorite team or player. Whether its cheering, booing, clapping, or starting the wave, fans show their support or hatred toward their team, or the opposition. Even if you don't know a thing about baseball, or don't even like it, it is impossible to say you had a bad time at the ballpark. Nothing is like being in Citizens Bank Park with other fans. Philly fans have a natural bond. I may not know who I'm sitting next to, but I am still high fiving that guy anyway. Baseball is fan interaction, the trash talk, arguments, and agreements.

My passion for the game is indescribable. The excitement comes with the pain. The nerves. The relief. Words can't put it. Every time I turn on the game it just gives me this special feeling. My head will clear of the all the bad things, and put a big smile on my face. Baseball is happiness, and sadness.

The passion leads to the game. Have a bad game? There's always tomorrow. Even if the Phillies are losing 25-0, I'm still watching the game. I don't give up on them. Like Tug McGraw said “Ya Gotta Believe!” I always have faith in the Phillies. Anything can happen in baseball. The passion allows you not to give up on your favorite team. I don't miss a game, I watch all 162. If I miss a game for whatever reason, I will find away to get scores. It's a daily routine to turn on Comcast Sportsnet for baseball coverage.

The game of baseball itself it amazing. There is no time limit. There is no clock, but 9 innings that can last a lifetime. Human nature makes the game unpredictable. An umpire may miss a call changing the outcome of a game. You never know what to expect. Anything can happen. Hitting a 95 mph faster is harder than it looks. Failure makes the game so great. The best players fail 70% of the time. There is so much strategy that goes into the game. Baseball is just as mental as it is physical. Baseball's winner is up for grabs.

When the Phillies clinched the division in 2007, it was awesome. I thought it was the best thing ever. Little did I know what a World Series Championship felt like. I always thought about how I'd react if the Phillies won the World Series. Even though Brad Lidge struck out Eric Hinske, to this day I don't know how I reacted. I couldn't think straight. Words can't describe it. Euphoria. Either way, being accustomed to losing was temporarily flushed down the toilet.

Baseball is... the greatest sport ever created. I live for this.