We knew it was coming, but the Met fan’s October got a lot worse last night.
I couldn’t watch most of the Philly clincher last night, but I did end up watching the celebration. It could have been a lot worse – I saw an interview with Pedro Martinez, but not one with Shane Victorino. And TBS got booed.
But the more I think about it, the less I like the fact that the celebration seemed relatively subdued. The Phillies acted like they have been there before. And they have – three division titles in a row, a World Series last year and a championship last year.
The Phillies franchise had only been to the World Series twice before 1980 and had never won. Now they have been there five times in the last 30 seasons, with two championships and a chance to make it three.
The Phillies are no longer a downtrodden franchise enjoying a day in the sun. They are a dominant team with the players to keep it that way for a long time.
It was only 2 1/2 years ago that Jimmy Rollins stirred up controversy by proclaiming the Phillies the “team to beat” in the NL East. Now the only controversy would come if a Met dared to utter that statement.
The Phillies are the team to beat, both in the division and in the league. And if Brad Lidge continues to hold up, maybe in all of baseball.
I hated them less when they were the scrappy underdog.
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The Phillies are the first National League team to win back-to-back pennants since the 1995-6 Atlanta Braves. So the last time an NL team returned to the World Series to defend their title, they were facing a Yankee team that was back in the Fall Classic after what for the Yankees was a lengthy absence, trying to end one of the longest title droughts in Yankee history.
Will 2009 be a repeat of 1996? We shall see.
Also, in 1996, the Mets won 71 games, one more than this year. Toward the end of the year, they hired Bobby Valentine. Just sayin’.
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