Some numbers:
29-12, the team's record since July 21, the best in baseball.
23-14, the team's record in one-run games, the best in baseball.
18, the number of innings where the team has scored 5 or more runs, tied for the best in baseball.
2 #1 starters in the rotation and a third, their #1 starter 2 years ago, who's pitching like one despite a massive lack of run support.
A fully healthy starting lineup for the first time in a long time.
1 game out of first. The Braves have been in first since May.
The team also has a cumulative best record in September over the past 5 years.
In 2008, the team didn't hit well in the summer and had a 4-game series against the Brewers in Philadelphia in mid-September. The Brewers at the time were 4 games up in the wild card on the Phillies, and the Phillies swept them. They went 24-6 at the season's end to win the World Series (this record included post-season games), getting hot at the right time and combining good and timely hitting (although they did hit rather poorly with runners in scoring position against the Rays in the Series) to win the World Series.
Sure, I'm a fan, and yes, I'm looking forward to going to CBP tonight, because it's great to be part of an electric atmosphere, but they are 6-1 in their last 7, had a very good road trip (sweeping the Padres, taking 2 of 3 from the Dodgers and then winning a make-up game in Colorado coming from 7-3 down to go up 12-7 and then to hold on to win 12-11) and just won another 1-0 game. It's been an up-and-down season, to be sure, but it seems that the team is primed for a good part of an "up" swing to finish the season.
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4 comments:
Yanks-Phils WS. Just sayin'.
Hi Bomber Girl:
I hope that you enjoyed your trip to CBP and sitting in reasonably priced seats. Seriously, I think that you might be right. The Phillies are getting into gear now, but somehow I think that the Yankees will be tough to beat.
I did indeed. Phillies fans remind me of Yankees fans, although I am not sure either side would take that as the compliment it is meant to be!
The saddest seats I bought this year were the $30 seats right behind home plate at Camden Yards....NO ONE goes to those games. Who can blame them, I guess but I miss having a decent rival down that way. And a great ballpark.
A few years ago I sat behind home plate at CBP watching the home torch the Cards and Kip Wells for 20 hits. The next night we were in Baltimore, and saw a good game between the O's and the White Sox, with the O's winning in the bottom of the tenth. The joint jumped in Philadelphia on that Friday night; on Saturday night, it was funereal in Baltimore. And, yet, for some reason Corey Patterson and Jay Payton of the O's refused to sign autographs for the fans. I suppose that's okay, because no one remembers them anyway.
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