I had him in my cross hairs and was prepared to level him in today's post. I am, of course, referring to Ryan Howard. I had him dead-to-rights and then the SOB went and drove in the winning run in last night's game against the Marlins - as a pinch hitter of all things! I felt deflated despite being happy that the non-hitting Phillies were able to pull out a win.
I was going to start by reminding all of you that Howard was on an 0-15 tear during which he struck out with the bases loaded at least twice, leaving all of you sabermetrics freaks in a tail spin. I was going to remind all of you who have been calling for me to give the guy some slack that his defense of late had been atrocious and that, once again(Sept 15 - being a pay day) the guy was stealing his money.
I was going to do all of that and then the guy drives in the winning run, so I'll move on and away from this fraud of a superstar and mention that he is not the only Phillie who can be accused of stealing their money. This team has not been a good offensive team all season. This will come back to bite them in the ass during the playoffs when, unfortunately, they won't have teams like the Mets or the Marlins to pick on. Shit, last night they faced a guy who was making his first MLB start of the season after a horrible nine starts in the minors and they proceeded to make him look like the next coming of Tom Seaver. Way to go guys!
The look on Cliff Lee's face after giving up the home run to Lopez in the bottom of the ninth with two outs and two strikes says it all. Lee had pitched a gem and deserved better from the offense, just as Halladay had deserved better the other night. The lack of offense is putting a ton of pressure on our staff who must believe that they have to be perfect every time out in order for the team to win. Something's got to give. Halladay, Lee, and the others have been good team members by not being critical of the offense in public, but I wonder what is being said behind closed doors. It must be salty at best.
Without a doubt, the Phillies are headed for their fifth division title in a row but, given their lack of offense and occasional defensive lapses, I wonder how many of you are confident that they will be able to get to the series, let alone win it? I am not confident at all. I am so unconfident that if I could buy puts on their chances I would go all in and load up. My friend Bob assures me that once the playoffs begin all will be well, but Bob is a Kool Aid slurper of the first magnitude and he is unable to believe anything else. What are you thinking? Have you ordered your Kool Aid yet?
I am getting aggravated talking about the Phillies, so I'll move on. Michael Vick returns to Atlanta this weekend when they Birds take on the Falcons. The Falcons are coming off an opening week loss and could provide a big test for Fat Andrew and his charges. It wouldn't surprise me if the Falcons are able to stop Vick, although I hope the O-line can continue to protect him and give us a chance for the win.
After a humiliating loss at home to a real team (Alabama), the Nittany Lions travel to the Linc to take on Temple. Last year the Owls were on the short end of a 22-13 score, but they have the horses and the desire to beat PSU for the first time since 1941. The Lions have over the years tended to feast on teams like Temple (they still have Youngstown State on the schedule) but this time I'll be rooting for the Owls. I have never rooted for a team to beat the Lions in fifty years of watching them, but I am sick and tired of watching them schedule weak sisters in order to pad their record and their check book. Not all schools do this, and it's time for the Lions to schedule teams like Pitt again. They won't do it, but they should.
That's it from me. Enjoy your weekend.
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