Red Hot Phillies May Only Need Five

Wow. What can you say? The Phillies continued their drive towards the World Championship last night by embarrassing the stumblin' bumblin' Rays in Game 4 by a score of 10-2 to take a 3-1 lead in the Series. After eking out just a 1-run victory in Game 3, it seemed the guys in the home reds might just finish these hotshot Rays in five games.

Over the weekend, the Phils hurlers Moyer and Blanton outdueled the Rays Garza and Sonnanstine while a little-known guy named Carlos Ruiz showed why he can be added to the list of nobodies to star in a World Series. And Ryan Howard showed everybody why he's Ryan Howard.

But last night it was all about Joe Blanton. He was friggin' magnificent. It's so good to see a guy come up big in the World Series. He not only pitches great, he hits a home run too. Now, this shouldn't have come as so much a surprise as it was. Joe had actually helped win 9 of the 13 games he pitched for the Phils since he was acquired from the A's in July. And any fantasy player knew how good he was.

But Joe was lost in the whoop-de-doo over the Rays starters and the Phils ace, Cole Hamels. And he was only the fourth starter behind Hamels and Myers and Jamie Moyer, who is about a hundred and three years old. So big Joe looked like he meant business last night as he pitched 6 strong innings for the NL Champs, surrendering just two solo home runs. Oh, and he cranked a low fastball over the fence in the bottom of the fifth to make it 6-2 Phillies. The place became electric.

This self-proclaimed pundit thought it would be the Phillies in seven when this whole thing started. But I didn't count on Jamie Moyer coming up quite so large in Game 3. I figured that game for the Rays. And I thought either Myers or Blanton could come up big. But it seems like everything is going the Phillies way.

The Rays are having some trouble in the field as of late. When had that last happened to the sure-handed Rays? When they do make a play, the umpires miss it. But between Longoria and Iwamura, they've produced adventure to rival some Indiana Jones movie. And then Ryan Howard came to life with two dingers, and Jayson Werth came back to life too.

And then there's a guy like Carlos Ruiz behind the plate for the Phillies. Ruiz just took over a large part of this Series from Game 2 on. Just when the Rays have finished with the likes of Rollins, Utley, Werth and Howard, here comes Carlos Ruiz. It's really been kind of comical. The Phils catcher got the game-winning ground ball the other night and has been just a real pest since Game 2.

But, here's the funny part about baseball. The worm could turn at any time. Now the Rays are up against the wall. And the Phillies have been riding high. And , while the Phils have their ace Hamels going one more time, the Rays Scott Kazmir ain't exactly chopped liver. And, if the Rays get Game 5, it's back to that monstrosity of a ball field in Florida for Games Six and Seven. The Rays would like that.

Would they ever. Then it would be just a matter of winning two straight at home. With Shields and Garza on the mound. They would have to like their chances.

So the real key is tonight. If the Phils can't win this one tonight, they might have to wait another twenty years or so to win a World Series. Not that they can't beat Shields and Garza in Tampa but can guys like Moyer and Myers do it again? I don't even want to think about it.

But it would make this Series one for the ages rather than just a footnote in Red Sox history. In five games, it’ll just be the year the Rays shocked the world but fell apart against a veteran Phillies team. In seven games, it’s something else entirely, and maybe guys like Longoria and Upton and Pena make more of a mark on this Series.
<>If the Phillies really are a smart veteran team, they’ll realize that Game 5 might be the now or never game. They’re hot now and have the Rays on the run. Let the team that beat the Red Sox live one more day at their peril. <>

I’d still like the Phillies to win this thing, even if they do lose tonight. I sense that they’re a team that’s ready now. The Rays have too many excuses for a breakdown with that much youth on their squad, no matter who’s on the mound. And the Phillies do have Utley and Rolo and big Ryan Howard. And that little sparkplug of a Victorino whose “I Got It I Got IT I Got It” is the loudest in either league. <>

But for a New York fan, even a rabid National League and Mets fan, who’d like nothing better than a World Series victory for the team that knocked off his team, yesterday wasn’t all about the baseball. There was a whole lot of football being played in Pittsburgh by the defending champion Giants. And the Jets managed to play a bit more football than the lowly Chiefs.

As well as the Giants played down the stretch, I did see the single ugliest play I’ve ever seen by a secondary man in safety James Butler’s horrible coverage on Roethlisberger’s long pass to Nate Washington. Not only did he appear to just let his man run by him, but when he caught up, he pirouetted away from his man.
<>The Jets are just awful. But not as awful as a Herman Edwards team that ran three into the line when they desperately needed a first down. Count your blessings, Jets fans.

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