In-Game Twinsights

If you’re not watching the Phillies game right now, we beg of you…

TURN IT ON.

Forget that the score is 8-0 and we’re cruising. The boys right now are playing with energy, tenacity, and a little bit of straight ANGER.

We all hated to see that bush league loss yesterday but maybe it left the little sour taste in the mouths of the Phils that we needed to fire us up for tonight.

Things to watch:

Shane is back to playing the way he usually does versus the Bravados. He’s running everywhere for the ball in center, getting great at-bats, getting big hits, and even trying to get creative with his base running to go for a double steal.

Chooch is so fiery that whether or not the umpire is calling the third strike, he has been sprinting away from home plate as soon as he thinks it is. Multiple times in the game now, he has had to come back to finish catching an at-bat because he thought it was strike three so he took off for the dugout.

Utley threw in one of his trademark glove flips to first on a close play (We’re Lovin’ It.)

Howard (still struggling a bit running the bases from just being beat up) is making ballerina-like dives in foul territory for balls. (Oh and don't forget the mammoth long ball he just hit - Wow, Mr. Big Piece)

The Boys are cookin’ – just sit back and soak it all in – we’re getting the Phils’ version of September baseball.

Funny detail from the game today: During one of Wheelers' senseless rants today about who knows what, something funny popped up on the bottom of the screen.

L- Wheeler (2-2)

Now this was obviously speaking of Dan Wheeler, the relief pitcher for the Red Sox, but this automatically made us think about how Wheels loses in the hearts and minds of Phillies fans on a daily basis with his awful stories and repetitive unfunny sayings. In our record books, he is more like (2-1008).

Remember When...?

I’m hoping that ‘Remember when…?’ catches on as a new weekly post, but in all fairness it probably won’t, so just enjoy this one.

Remember when about two weeks ago everyone was whining about the Phillies’ offense and crying that they weren’t really good?

-I remember, and it was completely ridiculous. (just being honest…)

OK. First thing is first. Hunter Pence is a great addition to the offense, and yes, the offense went from 4.3 runs/game before his arrival to 5.5 runs/ game since he’s been a Phillie. We’re also 6-0 in that span. None of us are complaining about that. Let’s be fair though – it has literally been only 6 games since we’ve acquired him and this small sample size has made everyone and anyone that was complaining shut their mouths. That doesn’t make any sense.

Does everyone also remember the fact that prior to Pence’s arrival the Phillies were…

Oh yeah, THEY WERE 64-39! I’m not totally sure, but the last time I checked being 25 games over .500 wasn’t a bad thing…?

Ryan Howard was quoted on TV a few weeks ago saying the offense ‘scored enough runs to win games.’ He was completely right. The offense, no matter how bad you want to make it out to be, was still good enough to win 25 more games than it had lost. It all really boils down to the fact that we just enjoy (as a city) picking on a team to try and get perfection. I love the city for being die hard and gritty and it’s a great thought, but perfection is never going to happen.

Another case.

Jimmy Rollins goofs up and doesn’t run out a ball that he misjudged on a game against the Rockies this week. What happens for the next two days on Philadelphia radio shows and TV broadcasts? We all trash-talk him. Jimmy has been with the Phils through good times and especially through bad ones for too many years to count. In fact, let’s count. He has been wearing red pinstripes for 1601 games. He’s not perfect, but the guy has been busting his backside for us for too long. Give him a break. He said he made a mistake. Came Clean. Let’s just get over it.

Now, we’ll be the first to admit that when someone screws up – we love screaming at the TV. Everyone that has ever met us can attest to that. Nothing makes us happier. But with the Phils, we have the Blue-Chip Dream Team. This whole squad is just a good group of guys that have fun, put their heads down, get to work, and love playing the game. Instead of whining about the little inadequacies, sit back and enjoy the show. It’s not going to last forever…

Oh, and don’t forget, baseball is the only job in the world where you can succeed 30% of the time and be a complete rock star...  So, perfection is clearly not everything here.