2009 MLB Season Thread

[Wheelhouse]

Weren't the 2006 Cards the same as the 2004 team? Two World Series appearances in 3 years wouldn't make you a one-hit wonder.

Totally forgot about that team.

...

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone remembers 2004.

I think you might've answered your own question there. These Phillies will probably be remembered as a great team in Philly no matter what because they gave you two great runs and one title, but they're going to at least have to win another championship before people nationwide talk about them as one of the best in recent times. Maybe if they had lost to the Angels it'd be a different story. When you lose to the Yankees, you were supposed to, because the Yankees are the chosen team and anything less than a title for them is a failure. Philadelphia was just the last hurdle between Derek Jeter and the Promised Land.

This is coming from someone who doesn't pay a lot of attention to MLB though, so take it with a grain of salt.

[BigEd76]

This is a question for Phillies fans. Did being the defending champions make losing the World Series a little easier to swallow? That is something I was wondering about while watching the game last night.

Surprisingly I wasn't that heartbroken about losing last night (I got all my anger out after game 4...haha) and it wasn't just because they won last year. Despite jumping from 92 wins to 93 in the regular season and winning the division easily, this year's team wasn't as good as last year's and it's amazing that they took the best team in baseball to the 6th game of the World Series with 2/3 of the roster performing below expectations (especially Hamels, Lidge and Rollins), zero production from the bench and a bullpen with a ton of questions. It makes me excited about the possibility of returning and winning again next year...

[VandyDelphia Mike]

nothing, not even if they won it this year, would ever top the feeling of being in the middle of the city celebrating with seemingly hundreds of thousands of fans, and then the parade

Pulling this one piece out because I agree with it the most, and that no matter how many the Yankees win, the entire NYC metro will not band together the way Philadelphia and its surroundings did in 2008.

The 371 days of being at the top of the baseball world may be over, but I still like the Phils' chances going forward, assuming the bench and bullpen are addressed. Not a bad rookie GM year for Ruben, too.

[BBTV]

This is a question for Phillies fans. Did being the defending champions make losing the World Series a little easier to swallow? That is something I was wondering about while watching the game last night.

Yes.

[Bmac]

Damn Yankees.

[scottysprings]

nothing, not even if they won it this year, would ever top the feeling of being in the middle of the city celebrating with seemingly hundreds of thousands of fans, and then the parade

Pulling this one piece out because I agree with it the most, and that no matter how many the Yankees win, the entire NYC metro will not band together the way Philadelphia and its surroundings did in 2008.

I mean I know it's different circumstances and not to take anything away from the Philly fans but in 2001, despite the loss, New York was electric. I actually cried when the Yanks lost, it just seemed like such a huge deal and meant so much to the city.

[BBTV]

nothing, not even if they won it this year, would ever top the feeling of being in the middle of the city celebrating with seemingly hundreds of thousands of fans, and then the parade

Pulling this one piece out because I agree with it the most, and that no matter how many the Yankees win, the entire NYC metro will not band together the way Philadelphia and its surroundings did in 2008.

I mean I know it's different circumstances and not to take anything away from the Philly fans but in 2001, despite the loss, New York was electric. I actually cried when the Yanks lost, it just seemed like such a huge deal and meant so much to the city.

No offense, but according to your profile you are 18 years old, so in 2001 you were 10. I'm not saying that you are wrong, but I don't think that a 10 year old has any way to guage the excitement level of an entire city / area.

[infrared41]

nothing, not even if they won it this year, would ever top the feeling of being in the middle of the city celebrating with seemingly hundreds of thousands of fans, and then the parade

Pulling this one piece out because I agree with it the most, and that no matter how many the Yankees win, the entire NYC metro will not band together the way Philadelphia and its surroundings did in 2008.

I mean I know it's different circumstances and not to take anything away from the Philly fans but in 2001, despite the loss, New York was electric. I actually cried when the Yanks lost, it just seemed like such a huge deal and meant so much to the city.

No offense, but according to your profile you are 18 years old, so in 2001 you were 10. I'm not saying that you are wrong, but I don't think that a 10 year old has any way to guage the excitement level of an entire city / area.

Agreed on a 10 year olds ability to gauge the excitement or disappointment of a city.

Unfortunately, whenever I see something like this I immediately wonder if it's a frontrunner trying to look as though they have been following the team forever type thing. I'm not saying he isn't legit, he probably is, but whenever it involves The Yankees, Red Sox, Patriots, Steelers, etc. I always wonder about the legitimacy of the fan. Having people always question your "fandom" is an unfortunate byproduct of following the aforementioned teams and I'm sure it sucks for legitimate fans. But it's the reality of being a fan these days. No offense Scotty.

And for what it's worth, the most upset I ever got over a Browns loss was when they lost the NFL (yup NFL not AFC) championship game to the Joe Kapp led Minnesota Vikings in 1969. I was all of 8 years old and I was miserable for days after that game.

[BBTV]

I was crushed in '93 when the Phils got beat by the Blue Jays. Of course, I'm 16 years old, and the Phillies were pretty much the only big concern in my life.

To be honest, for as much of a sports fan as I am, I just have so many other concerns and pressures in life right now to be "life and death" over a sports team. I'm pulling for them because it's great to be part of the party, and everyone is happier when they're winning, and it's a great excuse to go out, etc., but now that it's over, I just go back to doing what I'm doing.

Last year was certainly different, because that team represented the hope of ending the 25 year championship drout, and it was an experience (at least for baseball) that I haven't had in my adult life. Being an adult, and being out and about the city / area, watching the news and having the capacity to process what is happening (which a 10-year old just cannot), certainly gives you a better perspective on the "vibe" of the community.

For the longest time, the feeling in the city was that the Phillies organization had robbed an entire generation of children from the experience of watching exciting / winning baseball. I kind of feel bad (in a way) for the kids that are 10, 11, 12, etc. years old right now, who only know winning baseball, and have seen three playoff appearances, two league titles, and one world title. Spoiled brats!

[tp49]

nothing, not even if they won it this year, would ever top the feeling of being in the middle of the city celebrating with seemingly hundreds of thousands of fans, and then the parade

Pulling this one piece out because I agree with it the most, and that no matter how many the Yankees win, the entire NYC metro will not band together the way Philadelphia and its surroundings did in 2008.

I mean I know it's different circumstances and not to take anything away from the Philly fans but in 2001, despite the loss, New York was electric. I actually cried when the Yanks lost, it just seemed like such a huge deal and meant so much to the city.

No offense, but according to your profile you are 18 years old, so in 2001 you were 10. I'm not saying that you are wrong, but I don't think that a 10 year old has any way to guage the excitement level of an entire city / area.

Agreed on a 10 year olds ability to gauge the excitement or disappointment of a city.

Unfortunately, whenever I see something like this I immediately wonder if it's a frontrunner trying to look as though they have been following the team forever type thing. I'm not saying he isn't legit, he probably is, but whenever it involves The Yankees, Red Sox, Patriots, Steelers, etc. I always wonder about the legitimacy of the fan. Having people always question your "fandom" is an unfortunate byproduct of following the aforementioned teams and I'm sure it sucks for legitimate fans. But it's the reality of being a fan these days. No offense Scotty.

And for what it's worth, the most upset I ever got over a Browns loss was when they lost the NFL (yup NFL not AFC) championship game to the Joe Kapp led Minnesota Vikings in 1969. I was all of 8 years old and I was miserable for days after that game.

2001 was disappointing but one of the major things for New York then was that the Yankees making the World Series helped to provide a major distraction from 9/11 which happened just about six weeks before the series opened. That year the World Series was therapeutic for a city and region that really needed something positive to look to. It was also the only time during their run outside of 96 where you didn't here "they bought their team." Had they won that year and there been a parade I think it would have been the most somber championship parade ever especially considering the very close proximity of the "Canyon of Heroes" to Ground Zero.

But as I've said before I'm lucky. I've seen seven World Series titles in my lifetime and ten World Series appearances in my lifetime (yes there were 11 but I don't have memories of 76.) Not many fans of other teams can say that.

The most upset I ever got over sports was watching the Islanders' "Drive For Five" end at the hands of the Oilers back in 85, but I was 11 and it's something to be expected of an 11 year old.

[Shumway]

I was crushed in '93 when the Phils got beat by the Blue Jays. Of course, I'm 16 years old, and the Phillies were pretty much the only big concern in my life.

To be honest, for as much of a sports fan as I am, I just have so many other concerns and pressures in life right now to be "life and death" over a sports team. I'm pulling for them because it's great to be part of the party, and everyone is happier when they're winning, and it's a great excuse to go out, etc., but now that it's over, I just go back to doing what I'm doing.

Last year was certainly different, because that team represented the hope of ending the 25 year championship drout, and it was an experience (at least for baseball) that I haven't had in my adult life. Being an adult, and being out and about the city / area, watching the news and having the capacity to process what is happening (which a 10-year old just cannot), certainly gives you a better perspective on the "vibe" of the community.

For the longest time, the feeling in the city was that the Phillies organization had robbed an entire generation of children from the experience of watching exciting / winning baseball. I kind of feel bad (in a way) for the kids that are 10, 11, 12, etc. years old right now, who only know winning baseball, and have seen three playoff appearances, two league titles, and one world title. Spoiled brats!

They completely missed out on the whole Mark Whiten/Greg Jeffries era (not to mention the Relaford-Brogna administration). Lucky buggers.

[BBTV]

Juan Bell.

Thread. Over.

[GMac]

ah i love that... perfect model for that hat

[scottysprings]

I agree that I didn't really have much of a grasp on the significance of the series but I could still detect it somewhat. To be fair, I'm a white kid from Long Island, it's not like I grew up and lived in the Bronx or Manhattan so I don't have the first hand experience to back myself up regardless. As an 18-year-old I can say in retrospect that the unity New Yorkers were feeling in wake of 9/11 carried over to the Yankees and the series so it held that extra importance, even to me as a 10 year old. Like tp said, 9/11 had some sort of personal impact on nearly everyone throughout New York, not just the boroughs, and the series provided a necessary distraction. One thing in particular was there were 3 FDNY firefighters from my town who died during the attack which troubled me quite a bit but seeing the Yanks wear FDNY caps really got me into the game.

Infrared, I certainly didn't mean for that comment to come off as me making myself out to be all-time Yankees fan. My beginnings as a Yankee fan came in the form of watching the Yankees win 3 World Series between the ages of 7-9. My dad isn't a big sports fan so I didn't have any allegiances to mutually abide by and the Yankees were just the team to root for. When you're 7 and given the choice to root for any team without worrying about being called a frontrunner, why not pick the dynasty?

In additional news, I took a bus into the city this morning for the parade and it was quite an awesome experience.

[infrared41]

I agree that I didn't really have much of a grasp on the significance of the series but I could still detect it somewhat. To be fair, I'm a white kid from Long Island, it's not like I grew up and lived in the Bronx or Manhattan so I don't have the first hand experience to back myself up regardless. As an 18-year-old I can say in retrospect that the unity New Yorkers were feeling in wake of 9/11 carried over to the Yankees and the series so it held that extra importance, even to me as a 10 year old. Like tp said, 9/11 had some sort of personal impact on nearly everyone throughout New York, not just the boroughs, and the series provided a necessary distraction. One thing in particular was there were 3 FDNY firefighters from my town who died during the attack which troubled me quite a bit but seeing the Yanks wear FDNY caps really got me into the game.

Infrared, I certainly didn't mean for that comment to come off as me making myself out to be all-time Yankees fan. My beginnings as a Yankee fan came in the form of watching the Yankees win 3 World Series between the ages of 7-9. My dad isn't a big sports fan so I didn't have any allegiances to mutually abide by and the Yankees were just the team to root for. When you're 7 and given the choice to root for any team without worrying about being called a frontrunner, why not pick the dynasty?

In additional news, I took a bus into the city this morning for the parade and it was quite an awesome experience.

That wasn't my point. I don't doubt you're a true Yankees fan. I was using your post as an example of how it is for fans of great teams these days. Even if you're as hardcore as they get, people may still wonder if you're legit. I think that sucks for the true fans. The frontrunners always make fans of other teams wonder and it makes real fans have to defend their fandom. It ain't right but it's the reality.

Here is an example of what I was talking about. Back when I was a hardcore fan I was a hardcore Indians fan. From the time I was old enough to know who they were right up to the day I realized that maybe being a "hardcore fan" wasn't all that important to me anymore I lived and (mostly) died with them. I followed the Indians every year and suffered through some of the most inept baseball ever. In 1994 my team suddenly got good and they went on a pretty good roll for about 8 seasons. Starting in 1995 I had people asking me if I was "really an Indians or did I just like them because they were winning?" I was a guy who had sat through doubleheaders in August watching a team that was out of it in April for my entire sports life. All of a sudden I'm being accused of being a frontrunner. Why? Because when they started winning The Indians had more fans than they knew what to do with. True fans started quizzing each other just to make sure they weren't in the company of a frontrunner. We'd ask each other questions about teams from the 70's and 80's. Stuff that anyone who actually paid even a little attention to The Indians would know. That's how silly it got.

That's what happened with the Indians so you can imagine why people often wonder about the legitimacy of Yankees fans or fans of The Red Sox, Steelers, Cowboys, etc. Success always creates a bandwagon and there are always plenty of people willing to jump on it.

[Jigga]

ah i love that... perfect model for that hat

Why, because that logo kind of resembles a dildo?

[infrared41]

ah i love that... perfect model for that hat

Why, because that logo kind of resembles a dildo?

C'mon Jigga. We both know that making a phallic symbol joke is about the funniest thing out there. Damn dude. Did you lose your sense of humor or what?

[Jigga]

Sorry. I shall hang my head in shame now.

[infrared41]

Sorry. I shall hang my head in shame now.

As you should my friend. As you should.