Literally

Alright so the Phillies lost last night, 4-2 in Tampa. We played terribly, stranding 11 runners in scoring position for the second game in a row, sometimes with only 1 out. Brett Myers did a fine job pitching--it wasn't his fault. It was the complete ineffectiveness of our offense that caused us to fall behind early, come close to evening out, just to blow each opportunity. We had the kind of game that has plagued us throughout the entire post-season: one player comes out to play while the rest just kind of phone it in. Last night it was Carlos Ruiz, who did a great job blocking the plate and went 3 for 3 with two doubles. Basically, we beat ourselves last night.

And that's all the negative stuff I'm going to say. I spent a minute after the game last night being upset and then I moved on. Because here's what's up: if that was the worst baseball we could play last night and the supposed best team in the best league only beat us 4-2 on their home turf (seriously---turf), then things can only look up from here. We took one from them in Tampa, potentially erasing their home-field advantage. And now we head home to Philly where the fans are very excited and the stadium is real (not that I'm trying to define real baseball and fake baseball--that may lose me my congressional seat).

I hope the Phillies are thinking the same way as I am. Because as obvious as it may seem, they have to play to win.