Monday Sports Update

Thank god for the Phillies. This was another busy weekend for me and sports and, by Sunday, it had the potential to turn into a pretty depressing scene. All in all, I came out 2 for 3, which isn't bad, with the Phillies finally taking the NLDS and moving on to the next round of the playoffs.


Okay so the Phillies were up 2-0 in the NLDS against the Milwaukee Brewers heading into Milwaukee on Saturday evening. I was pumped, Boyfriend was pumped, but we were both very cautious. Milwaukee has a dome stadium (which I think is stupid--you can't play baseball indoors), so it tends to get really loud in there. Jamie Moyer was pitching and he is, well, Jamie Moyer, so his "fastball" usually doesn't reach higher than 84 mph. He's a steady force on the team and can usually get some good strikeouts with young teams, like the Brewers, who can be impatient with his contempletive pitching style and swing at everything. Unfortunately, the Brewers came prepared and dashed the Phils' hopes of a sweep, beating the Phils 4-1. Boyfriend and I left the bar where we watched the game in almost-silence and just went home for the night.

So Sunday rolled around and we were set to play the Brewers at 1pm, in Milwaukee. Boyfriend and I watched the game in our pajamas on the couch, hoping for the best and fearing for the worst. Although, if we lost, the teams would head back to Philly for a Cole Hamels start, I just wanted to nip it right there and then. So Jimmy Rollins leads off like always and bam! Solo home run, right off the bat. I couldn't believe it. I started to relax a little. Then in the 3rd, Pat the Bat--who the Brewers walked Ryan Howard to get to--shot one high into left for a 3-run homer and the Phils were up 4-1. He would have another solo shot in the 8th. Jayson Werth would also have a home run, right after Burrell's in the 3rd. It was really some kind of bizarro world, where Joe Blanton pitched a really solid 6+ innings and Pat Burrell was the hitting machine we've grown to love (and tease) over 9 years. So the Phillies leave Milwaukee with a 6-2 win and the NLDS behind them. Indeed, it is a good day to be a Phillies fan.

Now the Phillies face Manny Ramirez and the Dodgers on Thursday for Game 1 of the NLCS. It should be a great match-up, with the Phillies at home and Cole Hamels on the mound.

Penn State played Purdue on Saturday at noon. I'll be honest, even though it was on ESPN, I was in and out of sleep for most of it. But I was happy to find out that we did indeed win on the road, 20-6, in another Big Team match-up. The Nittany Lions are now 6-0 and are ranked #6. But we have three huge games coming up in the next three weeks that will really determine our season: Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio State. Although those teams haven't performed as well this year as they have other years, these are all Big Ten rivalries in which many more factors come into play than just talent. I just hope JoePa will make it through the season.

Okay so now the Eagles. Fortunately for us, the game against the Redskins was on at the same time as the Phillies on Sunday, so we didn't have to watch it's awfulness. Boyfriend was following the game on Gamecast, so we at least knew what was happening and for a while, we were relieved. By the end of the first quarter, the Eagles had a comfortable 14-0 lead. But then slowly we watched the points in the WAS column increase, little by little. 14-3. 14-6. 14-9. All the while, the PHI column was at a standstill. By the end of the game, the Redskins had outdone the Birds: outplayed, outran, outdefended, outplaycalled, outscored, 23-17. Another embarrassing loss from a team that we all thought was better than that. Apparently, they think they're better than that too, but can't do anything about it but whine. They need a new coach, a new kicker, and a new attitude. Until then, they can have fun at the bottom of the NFC East--again. The Phillies really need to make it as far into the playoffs as possible because I don't think I'll survive on Eagles alone.