It’s Going to Be a Long Winter…

30 September 2006 by The General Published in: General musings 20 comments

Most of my regular readers know that I was born and raised in the Philadelphia area. I grew up a fanatical fan of Philadelphia’s professional sports teams. I stopped caring about the NBA when Julius Erving retired, and still don’t care. However, I remain a die-hard, life-long fan of the Phillies, Eagles, and Flyers. Every time my team has a game, I always skip my casino games at DaisySlots and start betting on my team to win or lose. I don’t really care.

For the City of Philadelphia, 1980 was nearly the greatest in the history of professional sports. We came within a hair of having all four professional championships in Philadelphia that year. The Phillies won the the World Series. The 1980-81 Eagles lost in the Super Bowl. The 1980 Flyers had a still unequalled 35 game unbeaten streak that year, and lost to the Islanders in the Stanley Cup finals. The 76’ers lost to the Lakers in the NBA finals in 1980. And, just for good measure, the University of Pennsylvania made it to the Final Four in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

Unfortunately, rooting for Philadelphia’s professional sports franchises is an exercise in frustration. Although they have lost the Super Bowl twice during my life, the last time that the Eagles won an NFL championship was about three months before I was born in March 1961. The Flyers have won the Stanley Cup twice in my lifetime, but that was in 1974 and 1975. It’s been 31 years since the last time. The 76’ers won the NBA title in 1967 and 1983, but they also posted THE mark for futility in professional sports, going 9-73 in 1973.

The Phillies have been to the World Series five times (1915, 1950, 1980, 1983, and 1993) in the nearly 110 year history of the franchise. Their record is 1-4 in the Fall Classic. I was 19 when they won it all in 1980, something I will remember clearly for the rest of my life. It was one of the happiest moments of my young life. They have not been in post season play since the 1993 World Series.

Even though the only thing consistent about their play this year was their inconsistency, I genuinely believed that they had a real shot at making the playoffs this year as the National League wild card. They put on a concerted push during the second half of the season and were in the race until today, with a record of 85-76. That with crappy starting pitching and a lot of turmoil on the team, with wholesale changes being made mid-season. However, they have two of the finest young players in the game–Ryan Howard (58 HR’s and 149 RBI in his first full season in the majors) and Chase Utley (leads the NL in hits, hitting .312, and with his second straight season of 100+ RBI)–and an excellent 22 year old left handed starting pitching prospect named Cole Hamels.

However, the Phils were eliminated today. They now have no chance at all of making the post season, and their season ends tomorrow. This now makes 13 years since the last time that they competed in the post season. It’s going to be a long winter, yet another year of frustration and foiled hopes.

I think I will root for the Tigers to win it all this year. They’re a team largely built from within without much in the way of expensive free agents, and they’ve had quite a run; two or three years ago, they were, without doubt, THE worst team in the major leagues, and now they’ve won 95 games so far this year. And rooting for them is consistent with my policy of rooting for whoever plays the New York Yankees (sorry, Michael).

Nevertheless, it’s going to be another long and frustrating winter waiting for opening day and yet another chance to have my heart broken by this team that has broken it so many other times over the last 45 years.

Scridb filter

Comments

Valerie Protopapas

Sat 30th Sep 2006 at 9:18 pm
Try being a Cubs fan! Frankly, I have little (or no) use for sports, but I should think that a perennial loser is at least less stressful than a team that has a chance and jjjuuuuusssst misses by a little bit. That must be VERY frustrating. :p

It must have been even more stressful when one’s favorite athlete was a gladiator! Talk about ‘no do-overs’! ;D
Jim Epperson

Sat 30th Sep 2006 at 11:15 pm
Eric, I feel your pain. On behalf of the entire state of Michigan,
I accept your offer to root for the Tigers.

JFE
Steve Basic

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 12:23 am
Eric,

Forgot to say thanks for Bobby Abreu. 🙂 As you know, I have been a Yankees fan all my life, and the only thing that has bothered me about the long playoff run, is that an average fan like me, who does not have a show on Fox, and was not an ex-mayor of NYC, can’t get tickets to attend a lousy playoff game.

Regards from the Garden State,

Steve
Mike Peters

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 1:14 am
Eric:

My Astros aren’t far behind. They have to win their last game & the Cards have to lose 2. And then the Astros have to beat St. Louis in a one game playoff. Very unlikely.

And Basecat, I’m still trying to figure out how Houston let Abreu go.

Mike
"Stan" O'Donnell

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 8:25 am
My name is “Stan” from Hatfield, PA.
I sat under the Marlboro sign at the Vet during Game 6 of the 1980 World Series.
I was a Phila. sports junkie.
I quit Philadelphia sports on January 1, 2006.
One day at a time.
We do have meetings for this affliction Eric.
Don’t be afraid to seek help.
Sincerely,
“Stan” from Hatfield.
Ken Noe

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 9:53 am
Eric:

I’ve been a Dodger fan dince 1965, when my grandmother sat me on her lap to watch Koufax beat the Twins. She had rooted for them since Robinson came up. After the Fox years and the DePodesta debacle, yesterday was very, very sweet for me. (If only the Hokies had won, but that’s another story). I am truly sorry that the Padres make the payoffs instead of your Phils though, as I’d love to see Howard some more.

Ken
Valerie Protopapas

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 2:00 pm
I remember reading back in the 50s that the World Series was attended by people who didn’t know first base from their fundament. It was a ‘celebrity’ magnet like so many other big time events. How many people who go to premiere sporting events like the Kentucky Derby, the World Series or the Super Bowl have seldom if ever attended an event of that sport before they showed up at the ‘big one’? It’s a matter of being seen in the right places rather than any fundamental appreciation of the event itself.
Christ Liebegott

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 2:07 pm
If it’s any consolation, consider that I’ve been a Pirates fan for more years than you’ve been alive. This afternoon we’re about to finish our 14th…or is it 16th…or maybe 17th…..well, you get the picture….losing season!!!
Regards,
Christ
Michael Aubrecht

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 4:59 pm
As the guy who has written about every World Series for Baseball-Almanac, I can recall some GREAT Philadelphia teams. Back in the day (and I mean waaaay back), Phili boasted some tremendous ballclubs and players. Eric, you seem to forget the Philadelphia Athletics who were a major powerhouse in the major leagues. It is this highly qualified baseball historian’s opinion that the 1929 Philadelphia A’s showcased one of the best pitching staffs ever to share a mound. Please allow me quote myself in an effort to make you feel better. Eric, you’ll understand my sacrifice (on your behalf) in the last sentence.

â€œâ€¦On the American League side, one of baseball’s original dynasties, the Philadelphia Athletics were back on top after a lengthy rebuilding process. Connie Mack had finally assembled a line-up of talent that brought back memories of the perennial championship A’s and featured players like Al Simmons, who had topped the American League with one-hundred fifty-seven RBIs. The A’s were 104-46 in 1929 and won the American League pennant by eighteen games over the New York Yankees, who had swept the World Series in 1927 and 1928.â€

See Eric… the Yankees used to lose to â€œyourâ€ teams too. 🙂
The General

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 6:26 pm
Michael,

My 86 year old father was a young man then. 🙂

Eric
The General

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 6:27 pm
Stan,

I’ve tried cold turkey. Perhaps a twelve step program is the only way to go.

Eric
The General

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 6:28 pm
Ken,

Congrats on the Dodgers. It’s obviously a franchise with a storied history, and they deserve better.

Eric
Brett Schulte

Sun 01st Oct 2006 at 11:42 pm
Guys,

I’ve got a lot of responses to get to in this thread. Eric, as a lifelong Blues fan (i.e. the team who made the playoffs literally since the day I was born until last season but with no Stanley Cups) I understand the NHL pain. As a fan of basketball (especially college and the Illini) I understand your NBA pain. As a fan of baseball…I can’t totally understand your pain. The Cardinals, despite not winning it all in almost 24 years, have had an almost unprecedented run of playoff appearances (Cough…Braves!..Cough) the last seven years (only missing 2003 to the hated Cubs, Cough…BARTMAN..Cough, sorry Valerie, I have a lot of Cubbie fans as friends, BTW). The Astros had one helluva run these last two weeks (sorry Mike, Astros fans can definitely stand with their heads held high!), but my boys backed in. I had huge expectations in 2004 (NL best 105 wins) and 2005 (NL best 100 wins), so I’m hoping this year that reduced expectations equals better results. Honestly, I as a 27 year-old cannot remember a better or more wide-open MLB playoffs than this one. The Mets should have been obvious NL frontrunners, but Pedro’s gone. Seriosuly, who has a better number one than the Cards in Carpenter in the NL? The Dodgers with Penny have the only possible argument. PEavy is normally good, but he struggles a little this year. The Yanks could have been AL frontrunners (sorry Michael, if I can possibly feel sorry for you Yankees fans), but their pitching is a shambles as well (COugh…no Johnson..Cough), plus they face what I believe to be the best AL team in the Tigers. The Twins could have had an unbeatable one-two punch in Santana and Liriano, but the latter is gone as well for quite some time. And the A’s aren’t chopped liver! Don’t get me started on the NFL. Three fourths of America is nothing short of retarded for considering NFL football their favorite sport…
Brett Schulte

Mon 02nd Oct 2006 at 12:33 am
Steve,

I forgot to add: I had such respect for your opinions, and now I find you are a Yankees fan! j/k One of my best friends is a Yankees fan. I like the guy, despite that fault! 😉

Brett
Steve Basic

Mon 02nd Oct 2006 at 1:21 am
Brett,

LOL. 🙂 Folks tolerate me as well, despite what they conceive as a character flaw for being a Yankees fan. 🙂 Am no band wagon fan of the team, and the first game I attended at Yankee Stadium back in the 1960s, Mickey Mantle hit one out. 🙂

Regards from the Garden State,

Steve
Michael Aubrecht

Mon 02nd Oct 2006 at 12:10 pm
We lifelong Yankees fans wear this as a badge of honor as there are far too many non-baseball fans, bandwagon jumpers, and/or rap artists walking around with NY caps on – yet they could not name a single member of the current pitching rotation, or tell you what the Yankees’ current record is. Many fans are more than welcome to hate Mr. Steinbrenner, and the organization in the modern era, but I think if you talked to historians and die-hard fans (like Steve and I) you would find that our affections go back to players who graced the diamond before our parents were even born. You would find that we love the ’27 team or ’61 line-up more than today’s. We stuck with them through the 1980’s when they were laughable, and yes, we basked in the glory of the 90’s dynasty, but who wouldn’t.

George may have been the first owner to truly monopolize on the dollar, but that argument doesn’t really work anymore as I believe that 6-8 (not sure of exact number?) of the top 10 or 12 team payrolls are NOT in the post season. In addition, we ALL have been lucky to have witnessed epic dry-spells end in the last few years (Red and White Sox) and payrolls only played a part in that magic.

So as much as I understand people’s dislike for George and the Yankees, it really gets old. Here is what every sports fan has to learn to accept (and something that goes back to our innocence we had a kid’s who loved the game…) Sports… ALL professional sports are NOT a game, they are a business. It is NOT meant to be fair, and it all comes down to winning at all costs. Anyone who still looks at professional sports (NFL, MLB, NBS etc.) like it is supposed to be a fair and balanced game is stuck in a bygone era. Money, steroids, mercenary players… whatever – its a Capitalist society and it all comes down to selling tickets and merchandise. The actual game – is just a byproduct of the machine. Fairness doesn’t even enter into the equation anymore (IMO). And as one who has studied this game for years, I’m not sure that it ever really did. I think “fairness” is a fine, moral ideal that people want to embrace, but it has no place in the modern game anymore. It’s simple 21st-century math: Team + Win = Money. (Just my own jaded opinion.) I still LOVE it, but I definitely feel that I understand it for what it is, a business and a team is really a corporation.

And the biggest reality check that I have had to accept in regards to sports is this… Players used to play for the name on the front of their jersey. Today, they play for the name on the back.
Brett Schulte

Mon 02nd Oct 2006 at 12:25 pm
Michael,

As a Cards fan and SABR member, I have much respect for the three original New York teams: the Yankees, Dodgers, and Giants. IMHO, these are the only franchises with valid claims to being more successful than St. Louis. The Yankees are obviously #1 with their large number of World Series wins, and the three NL teams are pretty close in terms of World Series wins and NL Pennants. What some people don’t realize is that there has always been a large payroll discrepancy between the haves and have nots, even in some fondly remembered “Golden Age”. St. Louis is firmly a mid to small market team, and I accept that. The Cardinals have to get help from unexpected places (Tony Womack in ’04, John Rodriguez and others in ’05, Chris Duncan in ’06) in order to be able to compete. And my response to those who complain about the Yankee payroll is to take a look at teams like the A’s and Twins. You CAN win without a top payroll if you are smart and lucky with player development. Anything I say about the Yankees is just playful ribbing. I don’t hate the Yankees or any other team. I just enjoy watching good baseball teams play good baseball. I look forward to the playoffs this year (and with some luck I’ll be able to attend a few Cards’ playoff games if they can advance past the Pads).

Brett S.
Michael Aubrecht

Mon 02nd Oct 2006 at 12:42 pm
Great points Brett.
Brooks D. Simpson

Tue 03rd Oct 2006 at 12:55 am
Welcome to Yankee Stadium.
Paul Taylor

Wed 04th Oct 2006 at 7:57 am
Tiger fan here (licking my wounds). Now I understand why everyone outside of NY hates the Yankees. The Best Team Money Can Buy, indeed.

Paul