Well, that was a switch.If you watched last night's 5-2 win over the Braves (who am I kidding, of course you watched it), you saw Chipper Jones make an uncharacteristic costly error that fueled the Phillies' three-run third inning. Chipper tried to tag Chase Utley, who was running from second to third, and when he missed, he airmailed a throw high and wide of first base, allowing Utley to score and keeping the inning alive for Greg Dobbs to line a two-run single that scored Ryan Howard and Aaron Rowand for a 4-0 lead.
As I was writing about the play, something occurred to me. This was the sort of mistake the Phillies usually make in late-season, pressure situations. The playoff-tested Braves, and especially Chipper, have rarely failed in those moments.
Then, a few hours later, the right-field scoreboard at the Bank showed the free-falling Mets had blown a big lead at Shea Stadium against Washington. Incredibly, impossibly, the Mets, who have been in first place every day since May 15 and for most of the past two seasons, were swept by the Nationals, leaving the Phillies one game off the division lead.
So, yes, maybe the balance of power really is shifting in the NL East.
But, before you get too giddy, the Phils still have to beat John Smoltz tonight. He'll be opposed by young Kyle Kendrick, who needs to channel Kyle Lohse's performance from last night. Meanwhile, Pedro Martinez goes to the mound for the Mets in New York in a makeup game against the positively dead Cardinals.
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Last night's game was all about Lohse, who reminded everybody why agent Scott Boras is going to make him very, very rich in the offseason. I thought his comments about testing the free-agent market were refreshingly honest: "To be able to come here and jump in a playoff race with this group, it's good to finish it off in this kind of atmosphere. But I've kind of earned that right to go out [on the market]. You put your time in, you owe it to yourself to see what's out there."
Prediction: Some team will offer Lohse $55 million for five years. Is he worth it? You tell me.
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Charlie Manuel swears he isn't thinking about the uncertainty of his future as Phillies manager. But, if he was, GM Pat Gillick wonders how anyone would know. And J.C. Romero compared last night's towel-waving crowd at the Bank to the atmosphere in Anaheim, where the "Rally Monkey" gets everyone stoked. "We played Anaheim in the playoffs in '02," Romero said. "I had migraines for a week after the season was over."*
With all the talk of Jimmy Rollins for NL MVP (he has officially overtaken David Wright as my MVP pick), Martin Frank reminds us how good the reigning MVP is.
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Here's how Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News, an old friend of The Blog, breaks down the Mets' free fall. Just in case the Mets keep losing, here's a look at the all-time choke jobs in MLB history. The Mets, of course, led the Phillies by seven games on Sept. 12.
1938 Pittsburgh Pirates -- led by seven games on Sept. 11
1934 New York Giants -- led by seven games on Sept. 6
1995 California Angels -- led by 6-1/2 games on Sept. 4
1964 Phillies -- led by 6-1/2 games on Sept. 20
1951 Brooklyn Dodgers -- led by 6-1/2 games on Sept. 8
OK, time to take an official Blog poll: Who will win the NL East -- Mets or Phillies? And why? Talk amongst yourselves. I'll check in from the Bank in a few hours. Meanwhile, I'm going to have some birthday cake. You only turn 31 once.
3 comments:
a tie with the phillies winning a tie breaker. phillies go 3 and 1 and the mets go 2 and 2
Happy Birthday Scott. Great job on the blogs all year, I know a lot of people who appreciate all you have done.
As far as Lohse, I wouldn't give him that kind of money mainly because he's only done this for two months. Where was he the first 4 ? His career numbers aren't that great either, sort of like Suppan, does anyone think he's worth what he got last year? As far as the Phils, I think they win it, they may have to go to a playoff or criteria but they go into the playoffs as a Champion!
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