Random Ramblings After a World Series Game One Victory

I spent a good portion of the game last night on my couch with my hands on my head, pulling my hair out. And the Phils were winning.

It's reached a point where the fan in me is really bursting through. It has become increasingly difficult as the playoffs roll along to come up with coherent things to say. During the season, you analyze this mistake and that botched play, but in the World Series, those things don't really matter as much. Ryan Howard was awful last night both at the plate and in the field, the Phillies bats with runners in scoring position were pathetic, but none of these shortcomings really matter. The Phillies got the win and in a seven game series that means three more and utter pandemonium.

During a particularly tense portion of the game, my brother sent me a message, "Why's it gotta be like this?" Without thinking twice, I responded, "'cause this is why it's fun."

Watching the game and seeing the "fans" in Tampa got me to thinking about something from the previous series.

Aside: I was watching game four of the NLCS with a bunch of kids I go to grad school with, none of which were Philly fans and none of which were particularly interested in the game at all. (I know, I know. Bad Idea, but situation called for it.) We're sitting at a table in a bar/restaurant and these business school kids are talking about their interviews with J&J, Booze Allen, and some BS about corporate social responsibility. Meanwhile, I want to close my eyes and wake up at Chickies or the New Wave Cafe or something. It was when Shane Victorino slapped his glorious home run to tie the game at five in the eighth that I literally jumped out of my chair, screaming and cheering like an idiot and then slowly realized I'm the only person in the place doing so and these people look at me like I have three heads. In Philly, I'd be the norm. They don't get it. As Bill Simmons said in one of his columns last week, "You either love sports or you don't." Philadelphia loves sports. image via Yahoo!

I sent this picture to my buddy last night and he responded, "Thats intensity. Even if the rays have a better team, which I dont even believe, I dont think you can rival whatever it is that has gotten into these Phillies."

Then he added, "Very soon, we could be waking up in a world completely different from the one we live in today..."

That would be quite fun, I do believe.