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| Photo: Philadelphia Phillies |
You see the title for this article, and some of you may be thinking I'm crazy. As I write this on a Sunday morning with a cup of strong french press coffee (outstanding, by the way), the Phillies have just won their 9th straight game. It was an exciting come from behind game that went 11 innings, featuring a game-saving throw from Brandon Marsh in the bottom of the 10th that kept the A's from winning. Confession...I did not see it live. That is WAY past my bedtime on a Saturday night. I know...party animal, right?
Listening to sports radio in Philly, it seems like people are buying into this team. And I get it. Maybe it's my Philly-area upbringing, dealing with so many sports disappointments. Or maybe it's that I don't have to go back that far to recall when THIS team disappointed me. I just can't buy in yet.
Plus, in this winning streak...who have they beaten? The A's, The Rockies, and the Pirates. Not exactly the best that MLB has to offer. Having said that, the Phillies are supposed to beat up on the bad teams and that's what they are doing. But let's not get TOO excited at beating baseball's worst.
Please don't get me wrong. I am caught up in the winning. I watch and listen to the games, and I love how this team is playing and how they're picking each other up. It's awesome to see. It seems like lately they're truly in every game until the very end. When they're down, you think they have a chance to come back. It happened Saturday night. Max Kepler hits a two-run home run in the 9th to force extra innings, and they win in extras.
But can you really tell me you're not watching this team, recalling how last year ended? Or the year before that? I still worry that this team goes cold all at the same time, like the last couple years. I'll tell you what REALLY worries me regarding the post season...and this is something I haven't heard anyone on sports radio mention. Do you recall how cold this team was in April? How cold the bats were? Well "cold" apparently was the key word. They told us once the chill of April gives way to the warm weather of May, the bats would heat up. Sure enough, they were right. The chilly weather had an impact on their hitting. Come playoff time...in October...what will the weather be like? Cold. The Fall chill will be in the air. Will that impact their hitting? Was that the issue the last couple Octobers? It's something to think about.
One other huge issue is the bullpen. With Jose Alvarado out for 80 games and the playoffs, who will step up? It looked like Jordan Romano was coming around, but then he fell back down to earth Friday night. Without a stable bullpen, how far can the Phillies really go? In the post-season, you're facing baseball's best. The bullpen needs to be fortified for this team to have a legit shot at a title. Dave Dombrowski has to work some magic this summer before the trade deadline.
I would love for you to look back at this article in November, and tell me what a moron I was for thinking this...because the Phillies won it all. I would love to be wrong about this. But I just can't buy in yet. Beating up on bad teams doesn't prove anything to me. What do you think?