World Series: Game 4 thoughts
My hotel refuses to pick up Newsday's Web site, so no links to my stuff this morning, you lucky dogs. I'll update later.
1. The Rays look cooked, don't they? Offense, defense, starting pitching, relief pitching - they all look like they're ready to go home.
The manager, too. Why Andy Sonnanstine was still in the game to pitch to Ryan Howard in the fourth inning, with Trever Miller warming up, only Joe Maddon knows.
No matter what goes down tonight, it will have been a remarkable season for the Rays. But those 1969 Mets comparisons will probably die down some, if the Rays go home without the title.
All this said, the Rays have the right person on the mound tonight in Scott Kazmir. Even with Cole Hamels going for the Phillies, it wouldn't surprise me if Kazmir brought the season back home to Tropicana Field. That said, I'll be checking out of my hotel this afternoon, ready to hop on I-95 back home with Newsday teammate David Lennon, in case the Phils get 'er done.
2. Yet another blown umpire's call, as Evan Longoria clearly tagged Jimmy Rollins when the Phillies' shortstop got caught in a first-inning rundown. Did you see how long it took Fox to come up with the conclusive replay? About 30 seconds, right? Throw in the 45 seconds or so it would take the crew chief to get to the replay area, and you're talking about something that would take two minutes, tops, to dramatically alter - for the better - the game's course.
3. Joe Blanton. Wow. Was it the smudge on his hat? Maybe, although the umpires didn't act upon Joe Maddon's alert. If you look at Blanton's career numbers, you'll see a league-average innings-eater. The guy who could, conceivably, come up with a game like this one.
You'll also see that Blanton was part of Billy Beane's notorious, Moneyball draft class of 2002. The A's did all right for themselves, despite the highly publicized failure of Jeremy Brown. Blanton and Nick Swisher contributed to the A's 2006 playoff run, and Blanton, Swisher and Mark Teahen all brought back interesting pieces in trades.
4. Howard. You know the tables have turned for him when, earlier in the Series, the Rays were pitching around Chase Utley to get to Howard. Last night, with a runner on second and none out in the sixth, Edwin Jackson struck out Utley and then intentionally walked Howard to go after the ice-cold Pat Burrell, who hit into a double play.
5. Finally, the city of Philly and their fans, as pictured. Can you imagine going 25 years since any of your sports teams won it all?
The passion here has been tremendous, notably Saturday night, when the fans patiently waited out a 91-minute rain delay and stayed for the whole game, even as it ended at 1:47 in the morning. Here's hoping that, if they get what they want, they behave themselves.
Have a great day.
UPDATE: 1:26 P.M. Here is my column off the game. Here is my World Series Insider, which leads with an update on Rays senior baseball advisor Don Zimmer.
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Comments (28)
Too much of the passion comes in a bottled form, which is another reason to avoid professional sports contests..
I fear for the Philadephia PD and those with a clean blood alcohol content if/when the Phils clinch, as it could be am absolute disaster akin to Detroit 1984.
Ken, I thought you had a remote access device that allowed you to pick-up an internet connection? Why can't you use that to pick-up Newsday, etc?
All of a sudden Ryan Howard has gotten hot at the plate at the right time. Howard has now hit 3 home runs in the last 2 games. The home run he hit off Sonnanstine in the 4th to make it 5-1 broke the game open for the Phillies.
Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria are a combine 0 for 29 in the World Series. Joe Blanton has more hits and more home runs than Pena and Longoria combined..When a pitcher is out hitting you, that's not a good sign.
I am paying $10 a day to use the hotel's connection, JMH. But for some reason, Newsday's site doesn't work. I've seen stuff like this happen before. And I know that Nancy, down in Florida, says she struggles to get the Newsday site.
I understand all of that. But, if you have the remote device that you said you used on the train, you presumably wouldn't have needed the $10 service and could use Newsday's site, etc? Do you follow? If your cell phone works in the hotel room, the device should work. Why didn't use it instead of the hotel service?
What was more awesome yesterday -- the Joe Blanton home run or the 43-yard pass Joe Flacco caught? I might have to go with Blanton...
Anyone else horrified by that weird Guitar Hero commercial with A-Rod and Kobe (along with Tony Hawk and Michael Phelps) dancing around in their underwear? Whoever dreamed this thing up should be fired and banned from commercials involving athletes for the rest of existence.
How did the ump miss that tag at third? Yes, instant replay would help, but they should really address his competency first... like was he in position for the rundown?
Blanton doesn't even try to hide the substance on the brim of his hat. Whatever it is he does go to it before every pitch.
I saw the Rays ineup last night and thought it was going to have a hard time scoring.
Ken - I wish you and David well if the Phils do clinch Tuesday. I have the image of you driving the Vista Cruiser through the urban blight and suddenly one of you shouts "Ok, roll 'em up"! Which one of you is Clark and which one is Rusty?
The best thing for a pitcher to do when they want to use a substance and NOT be questioned like Blanton is to use a pine tar stick and apply it UNDER the cap lid where you usually pull on it. The pine tar will get on your thumb, you can easily transfer the stickiness to your other fingers and you can then get a better grip. And the older and sweatier the cap is, the less likely the dark discoloration will be found.
The wireless card can be erratic, JMH. It wasn't working very well this morning. Just tried it again, and voila, my Newsday links are up and working.
Bob, I guess I'm Rusty, since I'll be in the passenger seat. Gosh, I really hope it doesn't get too crazy...
Murray Chass quoted an unnamed baseball executive taking a few shots at the notion that Bowa is the best third base coach in the game and adding that he likes to talk about his players behind their backs to the media. So, the media likes him.
In 1980, armed police with German Shepards ringed Veteran's Stadium in the top of the 9th in order to prevent the fans from having any desire to storm the field.
But this is 2008, and ne'er do wells are not as easily intimidated by authority, even if it is the Philadelphia police department, which is not known for subtle tactics. To quote Otter, they "could do it with conventional weapons that could take years and cost millions of lives. "
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Any Dick Allen sightings?
This is the same Philly police force that in 1985 dropped a bomb from a helicopter on an occupied row house in a neighborhood. I wouldn't put anything past it. I'm glad I don't live there.
Ken, Islander/Mets/IKnicks/Jets fans (and that is a normal combination) have waited since 1986. That 25 year mark is fastly approaching.
Plus Ranger fans waited 54 years and even if you were another fan...that trumps anything Philly had to go through.
JMH, I'm not going to deny that Bowa is a great quote. He is. But do you think the Yankees wanted him back so badly because he's a great quote? You saw him in action for a couple of years - wasn't he outstanding making decisions at third? And didn't Cano thrive under his watch?
I don't know whom Murray's source is, but I'd bet that Bowa, after sticking with the Dodgers last week, is the highest-paid third-base coach in the industry. That'd be tough to confirm, but I'm confident, that's how highly regarded he is - by baseball people, not the media.
No Dick Allen sightings...
The anonomoys was me. It appears Newsdays site doesn't just suck from Philly!!
I know the Islanders/Knicks/Jets have no chance to win by 2011, so the Mets are the only thing standing in the way of that 25 year drought.
Playoffs are such a crapshoot anyways.
Ken, we all know that Larry Bowa is a big-mouth. Well, let's be nice; Larry Bowa is a man of strong opinions who likes to share them. That said, he appeared to be on his best behavior in NY and worked well as second or third fiddle. I would like to have Bowa back.
I merely passed along information that Chass wrote about in his Sunday column. Bowa isn't universally loved. Evidently, he does talk about his players in a not so nice way, at times.
I don't know why Cano slumped this year. The big contract, decline of skills, bad luck, the absence of Bowa. I'd like to see Bowa come back and then try and determine if Cano needs someone on his back or someone that seems to have connected with him.
Let's hope tonight that if the Phillies clinch, that we don't see any riots or bomb fires occurring after the game. But knowing this is Philadelphia, nothing would surprise me.
JMH, your boy Phil Hughes is struggling in the Arizona Fall League. You have a excuse for his performance in the AFL?
Dennis, if Phil Hughes threw a perfect game and then the next start he gave up six hits and three runs you would say he is declining. I am starting to think you just don't like Phil Hughes. How come 30 big league teams like him? He must have talent, huh? When I have dinner with him next week I will let him know that he better shape up because the "fans" back home are getting tired of his struggles.
But Richie - are you battling Joe Klein for the "Anonymous" handle? :) - the point is that Rangers fans could turn to the Yankees, or the Giants. The Philly fans have had nowhere to turn since 1983.
JMH, I don't hate Hughes, in fact I like Phil Hughes. I'm just pointing out what is going with Hughes. Hughes hasn't proven himself in the big league yet. He also has been hurt the last 2 years. In 2007 Hughes show some of the potential that the Yanks were taking about it. But this year Hughes took a step back. And Hughes will be link to Santana forever because the Yanks refuse to include Hughes in a package for Santana.
I remember watching Nolan Ryan pitch on a very cold spring day 40 years ago. He was wild and threw pitches to the backstop. People trashed him in the stands and yelled for Gil Hodges to take him out. He ended up in the HOF. I'm not giving up on Hughes. He's very young. Every pitcher is unproven when they first come up. In three years if Santana isn't doing too well and Hughes is, we might be having a different conversation. Of course, if you trade young players for vets the vets are going to produce right away. But, teams can't operate this way. They need to employ strategic planning.
Ken, I unfortunately do not get your reference ;(
And yes most Ranger fans could turn to the Giants or Yankees, though my point with them is a curse or 50 year drought me be worse than what Philly is going through. Look at Cubs fans. Yes they have The Bulls and Bears that won championships, but being a Cubs fan means you can never possibly win it. So you dont even have hope in some way. And the other championships dont mean as much as that one would.
But dont think the Islanders/Jets/Mets/Knicks is a weird combo...its not. My brother is the first three (he dont care about the Knicks). I have a ton of friends with that combo (though no one cares about the Knicks). And come 2011 it will be 25 years. So a lot of NY sports fans do know Philly's pain.
Ken-Why did Cliff Floyd go on the D.L.?
Joe Klein wrote a book about politics titled "Primary Colors," but no one knew it was he who wrote it. The author was listed as Anonymous.
Richie, we're talking apples and oranges, I think. I see where you're coming from. I just think it's interesting that one city has not held a parade in 25 years. That's unusual. And thanks to JMH for the Joe Klein clarification.
Tenn Tom, Floyd injured his right shoulder.
Ken, my only point is its actually worse for those NY fans than it is for Philly fans. Think about it...the NY fans have had to see their ARCH rivals celebrate. They've had to endure their brothers and sisters laughing at them while they sulk.
At least in Philly, they all cry together. I remember when the Rangers won the Cup, I stayed up all night and made posters and put it on my brothers lawn. (I'm all class) The best part was I KNEW he couldn't retaliate because he had to be on a plane that morning and wouldnt' have time to get me back. When I woke up, there were posters on my lawn. He didn't miss his flight, but he was willing to if that was the cost. So all I'm saying is, a lot of us do know how they feel and we may feel even worse.
But it is interesting that Philly is a bunch of losers haha.