courtesy of www.mlb.com

I’m not going to gloat, and I won’t rub it in the Yankees faces.  But what I will say is, never underestimate those Fightin’ Phillies. I think that’s part of the reason the Phillies won last night, because the Yankees thought the Phillies would be an easy win. They were wrong.

Cliff Lee took the mound for the Phillies Wednesday and he pitched another perfect gem!  Lee has been everything and more for this Philadelphia team and I love it.  He said last night in a press conference that he is ready to pitch again whenever Charlie needs him.  Could he possibly pitch Game 5 in Philadelphia?

Everything seemed to come together Wednesday night for the Phillies except their fielding error in the 9^th inning which scored Derek Jeter.  The bats finally came out for the Phillies at this game.  Utley is finally getting his swing back, hitting two homeruns to right field.  Shane Victorino, Jimmy Rollins, and Raul Ibanez went 1 for 4 at the plate.  Victorino scored a run and an RBI, Rollins had a run and a stolen base, and Raul had two RBIs.  Ryan Howard also had a big night going 2-5 with two big double and an RBI.

www.google.com

Not only are the Philly bats coming around, but their fielding was a gem too!  Rollins made a great play at short which he turned for a double play.  The umpires were a little confused at first and only called for 1 out, which I didn’t understand.  Why the umpires felt a need to discuss this play and wait to call it a double play is beyond me.  Rollins caught a fly ball, tagged second and threw to Howard who tagged Matsui out. Everything was covered!  Rollins wasn’t the only star on the diamond Wednesday night, besides his pitching, Lee made two great defensive plays.  The first play, which was a simple pop up to the pitcher looked so simple and easy for him.  Okay, so this wasn’t a great defensive play but he just looked so calm and at ease.  As a fan, it makes me feel comfortable to see my pitcher so calm and relaxed on the mound.  His second defensive play, which was truly amazing, was his behind the back grab in the 8^th inning.  I won’t even describe it, just watch the clip.

www.google.com

Everything worked Wednesday for the Phils.  They were swinging the bats, pitching was fantastic and there was no need to go to their bullpen which I was pleased about.  Tonight’s match up brings A.J Burnett on the mound for the Bronx Bombers and Pedro “Yankees are my Daddy” Martinez for the Phillies.  If Martinez has a solid outing like he did against the Dodgers and if they Phillies score some runs for him, I think the Phillies might win again tonight.   A lot is riding on this start for Martinez, he needs to show New York and America that he is truly the Yankees Daddy and he needs to show teams that he still has some juice left in his arm.

If the Phillies play like they did Wednesday night, if they truly want to win it again, and if they play for Harry Kalas, then New York better watch out.  The Phillies are here to prove that they are a legit baseball team, that they can take on the best of the best in baseball.

In the United States people love watching football for the big hits, the amazing moves made to break big plays, and the intelligence of the quarterbacks and coaching staffs. It seems, through these basic ideas, there are many mini games being played inside the actual football game that individuals can “hone” in, causing a motivation to watch the games of not only their favorite team, but other teams as well. This motivation can help define why football has consistently been the most popular sport in America.

As concrete evidence of this fact, I gathered data on TV ratings from both baseball and football, as well as some other popular shows.

World Series Ratings

Highest Rating- 1980- 32.8 Rating – Philadelphia Phillies vs. Kansas City Royals[i]

Super Bowl Ratings

Highest Rating - 1982 – 49.1 – 49ers vs. Bengals[ii]

As shown by these TV ratings tables, through the decades, the NFL’s Super Bowl has well outperformed the MLB’s World Series. The World Series’ ratings have continued to decline, while the Super Bowl’s ratings have stayed fairly steady. This fact in itself proves that football has always been America’s pastime; however, if these ratings are not enough proof, ponder these next few statements.

Aside from the NFL, NCAA football is extremely popular. Yet, the only NCAA baseball nationally televised is the College World Series. As for ratings comparisons, Saturday’s game between USC and Ohio State drew a 7.3 rating[iii], while numerous other games were also being televised. Last season, the BCS Rose Bowl between Penn State and USC drew an 11.7[iv] rating on New Year’s Day and the BCS National Championship between Oklahoma and Florida drew a 15.8[v] rating. Both of these bowl games demolished the last World Series in ratings. The popularity of NCAA football also helps the NFL on its draft day every year. The NFL’s televised draft draws crowds to its venue, Radio City Music Hall in New York, as well as drawing unbelievable ratings through the course of the entire draft. Baseball’s draft isn’t even televised.

Lastly, the ratings numbers have remained fairly constant throughout the years and have remained a mainstay in our society. I would like to introduce one last comparison of ratings between popular shows in our society to prove the dominance of the NFL and football in itself. The first Sunday Night Football game between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers drew a 9.4 rating.[vi] In comparison, the last season finale of American Idol drew a rating of 10.0[vii], just higher than a regular season football game. The MTV Video Music Awards drew a 7.5 rating[viii], significantly lower than the Sunday night game.

Although there are many people who may disagree with me, numbers do not lie. I’d love to agree with whoever labeled baseball as America’s pastime, but it’s just not possible. Football has always outperformed baseball and will continue to do so. So when you think about America’s pastime, think football, not baseball.

[ii] Gorman, Bill. “Historical Super Bowl Nielsen TV Ratings, 1967-2009 -.” TV Ratings, Nielsen Ratings, Television Show Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.com. 18 Jan. 2009. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/01/18/historical-super-bowl-tv-ratings/11044>.

[iii] Gorman, Bill. “USC at Ohio State: ESPN’S Most-Viewed College Football Game Ever -.” TV Ratings, Nielsen Ratings, Television Show Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.com. 15 Sept. 2009. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/09/15/usc-at-ohio-state-espn%E2%80%99s-most-viewed-college-football-game-ever/27246>.

[iv] “CFB – - FOX Sports on MSN.” CFB – BCS Football – FOX Sports on MSN. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://www.bcsfootball.org/bcsfb/tvratings>.

[v] “CFB – - FOX Sports on MSN.” CFB – BCS Football – FOX Sports on MSN. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://www.bcsfootball.org/bcsfb/tvratings>.

[vi] Gorman, Bill. “TV Ratings Sunday, September 13, 2009, Sunday Night Football: Packers vs. Bears, Shark Tank, Big Brother, Defying Gravity, There Goes The Neighborhood, Cold Case, King of the Hill Finale -.” TV Ratings, Nielsen Ratings, Television Show Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.com. 14 Sept. 2009. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/09/14/tv-ratings-sunday-nbc-football-win-king-of-the-hill-finale-defying-gravity-disappears/27018>.

[vii] Seidman, Robert. “Nielsen Ratings – Overnight TV Ratings for Wednesday, May 20, 2009 featuring American Idol, The New Adventures of Old Christine, Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU -.” TV Ratings, Nielsen Ratings, Television Show Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.com. 21 May 2009. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/05/21/wednesday-ratings-american-idol-finale-surprise-draws-288-million/19222>.

[viii] Seidman, Robert. “Cable Ratings For the Week ending September 13, 2009: Monday Night Football, NASCAR Sprint Cup, WWE RAW, Saturday Night College Football BYU vs. Oklahoma, Leverage, Design Star, NCIS, SpongeBob -.” TV Ratings, Nielsen Ratings, Television Show Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.com. 15 Sept. 2009. Web. 15 Sept. 2009. <http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/09/15/cable-ratings-usc-vmas-icarly-and-true-bloodfinale/27176>.

Story by Andrea Keiter; Video by Rebecca Hall; Slideshow by Carly Moore

The Bloomsburg Huskies baseball team has had a pretty rough season. The start of the season looked pretty good. With a four game season opener running from February 19 through February 21 in Hampton, Virginia, the team won two of its first games.

However, the season just got progressively worse from there. It is rather sad because the players have tons of heart and really try honing their skills.

With 42 games played thus far, the Huskies have only won 14. This leaves it with a 14-28 record for the season. They are a member of the PSAC East division.

One reason that the season could have been so bad is the fact that the majority of their games, 34 to be exact, were double-headers. The players were more than likely very tired after the first game, leaving them with less stamina in their second game.

Another thing that could have led to their defeats is that they only had 10 home games this season. Home field advantage is a huge deal in baseball, so this could contribute to why they did not succeed. The team’s home games were also cut short due to a ridiculous amount of rain cancellations. It seemed as though every time the Huskies were to have a home game it rained.

The team did have some amazing players, though. Grant Kernaghan pitched an awesome game March 2 against Newberry College. It resulted in a complete shutout. Tony Donofry also helped the team out greatly. He really helped the team when it came to batting.

This coming weekend, the Huskies have two games against Indiana University of Pennsylvania. As Bloomsburg students, we can only hope that the Crimson Hawks are down on their game.

After this weekend, however, the official season is over. The PSAC championships will be taking place May 6 through 9.

BU Baseball 2009 from Rebecca Hall on Vimeo.

How do these General Managers who gave away these contracts sleep at night? They are just throwing away money. It is like bringing your friend out to the bar the night he received his refund check from Waller. A lot of cash is going to be spent and the end result will be everyone feeling sick.

I went to sleep completely stunned by how wasteful some people could be with their money and amazed that such terrible long-term investments could be made.

I woke up feeling like the world’s biggest hypocrite. I’ve flushed well over $40,000 down the crapper attending Bloomsburg University. Like a terrible relationship though, I can’t seem to say goodbye as I enter my fifth year of this commitment. Bloomsburg University has become my Dontrelle Willis, complete with DUI and Public Urination. I know I’ve made a mistake, but I’ve invested too much to turn away.

My realization had nothing to do with academics or anything of that sort. No, the magnitude of my mistake hit me as I walked past the quad today. See, your calendar doesn’t say so, but today was a local holiday. March 31st was “Halter Top” day here in Bloomsburg.

Bill Simmons coined the term “Halter Top” day to celebrate that moment on cold northern college campuses when the weather finally turns for the warmer and girls bust out the skirts and cleavage boasting shirts. Unfortunately, this day normally doesn’t arrive anywhere north of Pennsylvania until well after midterms.

It is a bitter sweet phenomenon. On one hand, you finally get a chance to see just how cute that girl in math class is without her hiding behind a deceiving wardrobe of jeans and a sweatshirt. On the other hand, this day is a constant reminder about how dumb you were for attending a school up North anyway.

(A balmy Bloomsburg day in late April)

I had the choice to attend a University anywhere. I could have traveled down to Florida or west to Arizona, where every day is “Halter Top” day. Just picture hours of Whiffleball while hundreds of beautiful girls lie around sun bathing and marveling at your wicked slide piece (copyright Gary “Sarge” Matthews).

But no, instead I am stuck in Bloomsburg waiting for the inevitable April snow storm and cursing my high school guidance counselor to hell. Happy Halter Top day everybody.

Mail Box

Our first email is a very timely one discussing… Halloween of course. No problem, next to Halter Top day Halloween is my favorite holiday (for many of the same reasons!). Anyway, Ellie emailed me regarding our “top ten costumes of 2008” feature and wanted to send along ten suggestions of her own. I am especially a fan of numbers five and six.

My next email came from Josh Wooten, who came across my “Early Retirement” plan and wanted to let me know that my dream could indeed become a reality.  Josh and his wife are semi-retired college graduates who travel the country with their two pets.  In their spare time they sell items on ebay to fund their adventures.  You can follow their journey at their blog.  Good for them!  They are like the Neil Armstrong of lazy college students; boldly paving a path for future generations to follow.    I think i might create a similar blog when I graduate, only mine will tell of my adventures playing Lion King on Sega Genesis for long hours and watching LOST.

I wouldn’t feel right about pimping two websites without also mentioning my buddy Nick Fox’s newest Blog.   Nick has publicly announced his goal of making one million dollars within the next three years.  If you knew Nick like I do, you wouldn’t exactly be in a rush to bet against him.  Anyway, you can follow his mission here as he updates us regarding his progress and entertains us along the way.  Good luck Nick.  Remember us small time bloggers when you make it big.

Finally, don’t forget to tune into The Fearsome Foursome tonight on WBUQ 91.1 FM.    The show begins at 10 pm and can also be found online here.

Here is a video of one of our more popular episodes from our first season back in 2005.  The real payoff comes around the 3 minute mark.

The other day I was hanging out in the java city computer lounge when a group of guys came walking by. I didn’t overhear much because I was fixated on my fantasy baseball roster, but unfortunately I caught this snippet from their conversation:

Guy 1- “Did you ever life weights while drunk? Sometimes me and my buddies will just drink for awhile and head out to the garage. It’s great right?
Guy 2- …..

What would I give to hear Guy 2’s response? Off the top of my head I’d sacrifice my remaining flex, my favorite hat, my virginity, and my David Akers “underage drinking will kick your life away” poster.

I can’t stop thinking about it. One simple question by a meathead strolling by has shattered my world. Did his friend agree? Is drunk weightlifting fun? Am I the weird one for never trying this? Is this what some people do on weekends?

If so, what exactly makes weightlifting more fun while working out? I admit alcohol can make some activities more enjoyable. Whiffleball, Mario kart, and talking to Kyle Smith comes to mind. But lifting weights? Really?

Aren’t the two activities together almost an oxy-moron? Weightlifting is a form of working out in which you try to build your body into its peak condition. Beer drinking is a form of recreation in which you try to slowly destroy your body in the most entertaining way possible. Not exactly peanut butter and jelly.

I guess people just are attracted to different types of hobbies. I write a blog and sit around all day waiting for people to comment. Others get intoxicated and lift heavy objects over their heads. To each their own.

I really shouldn’t have mocked some one’s hobby in the same post that I am about to share this information, but here it goes. The MLB season is slowly creeping towards us and with that will be the return of fantasy baseball. I couldn’t wait much longer to draft my team though, so I decided to get a little creative during class last week. So here is my ultimate baseball team made up entirely of superheroes. (Note- certain super powers would be banned. For example, Superman can’t fly around or blow up the ball. Let’s not get silly here)
1) Spider-man CF: Peter Parker is really the perfect fit for this team. Defensively, you will not find a better center-fielder. The amazing spider-man is quick and agile, while having the superb “spider senses” to quickly read the flight of even the hardest hit balls. You might want to go ahead and reserve three or four spots a night on Sports Centers top plays right now, because nobody scales a wall quite like him.
2) Mr. Fantastic 1B: Forget any offensive concerns you might have. Mr. Fantastic nabs a roster spot for one reason only: to win gold gloves. No matter how wild a through over to first is, Mr. Fantastic will find a way to reach it. You also won’t find a better player in the league at stretching that extra inch to a nail an opponent at first on a close play.
3) Wolverin 3B: The hard-nosed, athletic type that any coach would want anchoring the hot corner, Wolverine could be the cornerstone of any successful ball club. Beyond his physical strength and heightened senses, Wolverine also boasts the ability to heal himself quickly from injuries and sickness. Simply put, you can count on him being in your line-up day in a day out. Cal Ripken, watch your back.
4) Superman RF: The complete package. Strong enough to lead the league in home runs while backed with the speed to torture opposing batteries. Superman can be marked down for an easy 60 home run and 40 stolen base performance every year. We haven’t even mentioned his rocket arm that will bring dread to even the most seasoned of third-base coaches.. This is the type of high-priced talent that not even Billy Beane could pass on
5) The Hulk C: Want to pitch around the man of steel? Be our guest. You just insulted our most powerful bat in the lineup and I think he is going to be angry. And trust us, you won’t like him when he is angry. The Hulk is the one man dangerous enough to protect Superman in the lineup, and the only player strong enough to physically catch some of the fastballs our rotation will be whizzing in.
6) The Thing LF: Defense? Who cares about stinking defense? In vintage Adam Dunn/Pat Burrell fashion, we will gladly sacrifice some coverage in the outfield for simply incredible offensive production. While The Thing may be the perfect DH, we’ll take the risk that his power numbers will greatly surpass the damage down by his slow speed and hands of stone in left-field. Don’t let these concerns lead you to believe that The Thing isn’t an athlete.  As a young kid he played football for empire state as a scholarship athlete.
7) Captain America SS: Anytime you have Captain America batting 7th, you know you are in good shape. This is a man who would be the centerpiece for any other team, but contains the humble team spirit to take a lesser role for the sake of the group. Hailing from New York City, Captain America is a war hero with no criminal record (AKA a public relations director’s dream) You also can not underestimate the leadership he will provide to this team. Don’t let this over-shadow his on-field performance however, as he has agility, strength, speed, endurance, and reaction time superior to any Olympic athlete who ever competed.
8) Robin 2B: Robin is certainly a controversial choice. He has no powers, limited strength and is consider a historic under-achiever. This is why we couldn’t help but take a flier on the guy. First off, he can be signed for relatively cheap. With huge contracts given to Superman, Wolverine, and Spider-man, we needed to find an economically affordable player who will go out and compete each day. Robin has a bit of a chip on his shoulder after years of living in Batman’s shadow. Maybe on his own, he can finally reach his full potential. If not, we have Night Crawler on the bench just waiting for a chance.

Pinch Runner- The Flash
Pinch Hitter- Colossus

Rotation
1) The Flash
2) Gambit
3) The Human Torch

And just for the hell of it.
Coach- The Beast
Owner- Tony Stark

I visited New York this week for a media convention and I learned something very important. There is no more stressful position to be in then being the “pace-setter” on an escalator. When you are the first person in line, the entire decision of whether to ride to the top or walk rests in your hands. I feel like if I just let the escalator do the work for me, then everyone will think I’m lazy. But if I use the escalator like a speed burst in Mario kart and just walk along with it, I look like a jerk who can’t slow down and enjoy the simple things in life. It really ruins the entire experience for me.

People has been asking about the photo’s that run along with these posts on the main page.  No the person pictured is not me and yes it is actually a man.   The person shown in all those pictures is my roommate and BUNow editor Andrew Wakelee.   Basically, I couldn’t think of a logo for “Cup O’ Joe” and decided to steal some pictures from his Facebook.   If you enjoy them that is great, because there are literally hundreds more. The kid is the Michael Jordan of terrible pictures.

I have a long dark history of always being the bridesmaid but never the bride (did I use that saying correctly?  I’m trying some new ones out).  Basically, I always have great ideas but never seem to have the ability to cary them out.  Then years later, someone else makes it big with my idea.  When I was young, we started the “Joe Gets Hurt Show”.  Months later, Jackass was born.   I started writing a movie about Jesus’ jealous brother.  Fred Clause becomes a hit. I was working on a auto-biography about when an evil wizard who tried to kill me as a baby but couldn’t, but that Harry Potter nonsense stole my thunder (and lightening scar).

The problem is, no one ever believes me because I never come through on any of my thoughts.  I just let them waste away until someone else reaps the rewards.  Not this time though.  Finally Karma has come around and gave me a long over-due bear hug. 

My senior year of high school, I created and distributed a March Madness bracket that would crown the greatest breakfast cereal.  The entire school caught the fever.  We even sent copies to soldiers in Iraq to play along with.  In 2007 as a student at Bloomsburg, I once again helped host the event on WBUQ 91.1 as a member of the Fearsome Foursome.  We would taste all the cereals and give them grades on such factors as taste, level of difficulty while eating, and mascot.  Each week we would run the results in The Voice.  On April 12th 2007, we crowned Fruity Pebbles as the world champion. People followed the event online from across the country, from Boston to Florida to San Diego.  We even had a few listeners in Australia sharing their opinions.  I remain very proud regarding the success of that event to this day.

On Monday, my friend Kevin Ward made the call.  I thought it was a sick joke at first.  Upon investigation, it wasn’t.

This time, I will not take this fight laying down. ESPN, I am coming for you. Not with lawyers and lawsuits though, that just wouldn’t be my style (plus I have committed a healthy dose of copyright laws in my day as well). I am coming at you with every ounce of my writing and managing ability. I am going to hit you where it hurts: readership and ad revenue. So here is my promise, by next December BUNow will have more daily hits than ESPN.com and the Fearsome Foursome will have more listeners than The Herd on ESPN Radio. If not, I will graduate and never return to Bloomsburg.

Game on.

So here is my solution.  I am going to post something everyday about all kinds of topics until something interests you enough to comment back. It’s going to get ugly.  I’m just throwing links, thoughts, ideas, and rants at you in absolutely no order at all.  This will be like my brain throwing up on your computer screen.

Today I came across a link at fox sports that listed the 10 athletes you don’t want to be.  There were some obvious athletes included in this list, such as Pac Man Jones, Michael Vick, and Sean Avery (We need to be more clear on the rules here though.  I might not want to be Sean Avery now, but who wouldn’t have changed placed with him back when he was dating Elisha Cuthbert?)
I thought there were a few huge misses on this list though.  Fox Sports claims we shouldn’t want to be Danica Patrick because her awesome talent is overshadowed by her even more awesome body. So let me get this straight. I don’t want to be Patrick because she is incredibly successful and everyone thinks she is gorgeous? Good call.   We also apparently wouldn’t want to be John Daly.  Maybe I’m way off, but John Daly sounds like that crazy, out-of-control friend we all had in high school who dropped out of college, fell into an incredible job because he knew a few guys, and married a girl that was way out of his league.   The man plays golf for a living, never works out or exercises, and spends all of his free time hanging out drinking at Hooters restaurants.   It might not be the life for me, but that sounds like a pretty damn good plan B.

I’ve been hard on the Husky Lounge before (check out the February 5th edition of The Voice).  I have to make it clear though that this is a love-hate relationship, and right now I am head over heels in love.  Kudos all around for the new appetizer combo that’s being offered: two potato skins, two chicken strips, three mozzarella sticks, and four onion rings. I had my first experience with this combo the other day and I’ve been walking around with a glazed over smile on my face for two days now.   I was so impressed that I won’t even mention the outrageous price they are charging (a good three dollars more than you would pay at any decent bar).  Let’s just enjoy the moment.  I’d also like to give special recognition to the Peanut Butter and Jelly with Bananas wrap. A close second on the list of things making my life worth living these days.

Me and my friends have a unique sense of humor. The word that would best describe it would be…  probably unoriginal.  We haven’t had an independent thought or joke in about 6 years.  We just quote movies, TV shows, songs, commercials, backs of cereal boxes… the list goes on.   Anyway, we quote most of the big blockbusters. Anchorman gets a lot of action.  Seinfeld always works.  Billy Madison we know by heart. For the most part everyone recognizes these quotes so it’s no secret that we are completely unoriginal.  That is why I like keeping people in the dark when I find a real classic hidden gem.  For the last month, I have seemed much funnier because of two clips that most people have never seen.  I’ve been plagiarizing them mercilessly and being hailed as a genius because of it.   My conscience has finally got the best of me though, so to save my soul I will now share two of my favorite clips that you probably haven’t seen.

A never before aired clip of Will Ferrell as Neil Diamond singing a duet with Christina Aguilera

Conan O’Brien playing baseball in 1864

Here is the easiest way to comment. I need help ending a heated debate.  I have recently become a huge fan of Lost.  My buddy Paul is also a big fan.  That’s where the similarities end.   I believe the Kate (Evangeline Lilly) is the most attractive women on the show.  He thinks Juliet (Elizabeth Mitchell) is somehow better.     Just comment and tell us what you think.  You don’t even need to say why.  Just write a name.  This isn’t an essay test, we can make it simple multiple choice.  Just pick a name.

I might be a bit behind the times on this one, but ESPN’s Streak for the Cash contest has overtaken Facebook as my new online addiction (That I can print).   I don’t know if I should be sharing this information with you, because now I’m just going to have a couple hundred more people competing with me for the million dollars.  So here is the deal, if you sign up after reading this post and win, you split the money with me 85-15. I’m not going to sit here and explain all the rules to you, but basically if you like sports and you like gambling for free, then you can’t waste anymore time.

Today, this game made me actually care about soccer. No one has been able to do that since the director of the Big Green.   To begin my quest for riches, I had to pick the winner of the Real Madrid and Liverpool match (Liverpool sounds like something gross used in Fear Factor).  This lead to me calling my go-to soccer expert Andrew Brown and the following converstation.

Me- Who will win the Real Madrid vs. Liverpool game
Brown- Well can it be a draw? Because then I would say a draw or a Liverpool win
Me- Well, it can be a Real Madrid draw/win or a Liverpool win.  And is soccer the sport played on grass or on ice?
Brown-  Actually they play on moon rock now, and pick Real Madrid.

Two hours later, Liverpool won 4-0.

I know I’m here to encourage comments, but based on recent events lets keep the soccer talk to a minium.

Editor’s Note-  Shannon Hoffman says, “Come back for your refill… It is FREE!”

I’ll be the first to admit that I am not perfect.  I’ll also be the first to admit that I can be hypocritical at times; not all the time, but some of the time.  In the past I have blasted channels like Comcast Sportsnet for their flip-flopping on issues when it comes to Philadelphia teams.  They seem to really reflect the sentiment instilled in the entire fan base.  When the team does well, they will praise them to no end, but when they lose a few games, they will turn against them to show their disdain.  I’ve seen commentators on Comcast Sportsnet hail the Philadelphia Phillies for winning four straight games, and then almost totally disown them when they lose the fifth.  Now, I’m not saying I hate that channel.  It’s actually probably in my top five favorite channels simply because it gives me in-depth analysis on my favorite teams.  It’s not like ESPN, who has to give several sports, teams, and athletes, equal air time.  Comcast Sportsnet is directed towards the Philadelphia sports fan, which is one of the reasons I enjoy it.

Getting back to my original point; I realize I am guilty of doing the same thing I cannot stand about Philadelphia sports writers.  In one of my first columns this year I proceeded to show my disgust for the way the Philadelphia Phillies were performing in the middle of September.  If you don’t remember, they were losing more games than winning and falling behind in both the NL East and wildcard races.  However, they turned it on when it counted and looked like the September-Phillies I’ve become accustomed to in the past few years.  Now I do realize that in the past several columns I’ve been head-over-heels about how the Phillies are performing, totally abandoning my original distasteful position.  So with that being said…I apologize and proceed.

Hands down, the hype of this World Series is just as fascinating as the 2004 series.  I think this could be the most interesting World Series in my life.  Now, of course everyone would say that I’m just giddy about the Phillies being in the series.  Sure that helps, but if I was to take myself in a totally unbiased objective view I would hold my position.  I’ve also been a voice and a champion for the underdog whether in sports, politics, or society in general.  These two teams, the Phillies and Rays, embody everything represented with futility.  The Phillies just celebrated their 125th year in existence, and last year jokingly embraced their 10,000th loss in franchise history.  No team in any professional sports has been that terrible.  In that 125- year existence they only have one World Series ring to their name, while the Florida Marlins have been around for only 15 years and have two World Series rings to their name, not to mention an empty stadium every home game.

If the Phillies institute losing with painful longevity then the Rays are a breath of fresh air in the murky atmosphere of uselessness.  No hope, no promises, no chances are ever thrown in the direction of the Tampa Bay Rays.  They have served as a tick, easily ignored and unwanted by the American League, and apparently the Tampa Bay community as well.  However, this year the Rays have their ticket to their first World Series, coming off of their first winning season.  That is, not to mention only their second year out of last place in their decade long ride to sub-mediocrity.    

These two teams aren’t the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, and Los Angeles Dodgers.  I hope America can handle this.  Sporting goods stores are not going to sell out of BJ Upton jerseys or even Shane Victorino ones for that matter.  The rest of the country wanted to see Manny come back to Boston, hit one over the green monster in a blue uniform, and have Beantown win its third ring in five years.  Sure, it would make for a good story, pull in the most viewers, and give Bud Selig something to smile about for once.  However, the exact opposite  occurred.

If the stories of these two teams don’t attract viewers I don’t know what will.  And the great thing is, if the Phillies somehow suck for this series, I won’t feel terrible because the Rays deserve to win just as much as Philadelphia does.  They had to overcome just as much, probably even more, to get to where they are now. Sure they might be a one-year Cinderella team, but I know they’re having a blast while they’re there.

One of the biggest concerns I have with the Phillies in this series, and Game One will already be decided by the time this is published, but there are two rules when it comes to the playoffs.  First, pitching and defense wins championships, not slamming balls out of the park, and of course that is what the Phillies do best.  The second rule is that, during the playoffs, rest is not the best medicine.  One can easily look at the last couple of seasons and see that the Colorado Rockies swept through both the NLDS and NLCS and rested for a good week before the series.  Boston had a grueling battle with Cleveland, coming back from a 3-1 deficit and showed Colorado who was boss.  The year before was a similar story.  The Detroit Tigers looked like the team of destiny as they went into the World Series very early, while the Cardinals came down to a Game Seven, ninth inning, bases loaded for Carlos Beltran, strikeout extravaganza.  And who won that World Series?  Well I could tell you from memory that the Tigers defense should have won the MVP award.  

I have debated with several friends about this concept for the last few days.  They are certain that with the rest, the Phillies will be fresh and ready to go, but I say no.  That’s not how the playoffs work.  The playoffs are a different kind of animal, one that wraps itself around momentum and adrenaline.  Right now, the Rays blood is flowing at record pace, just narrowly escaping an almost unfortunate collapse.  Some believe that momentum doesn’t mean anything, just like Nomar doing his little hand dance every time he goes to the plate. I say momentum might have more force than you give it credit for.