Chase Utley

The boo birds are lying in wake. They are getting ready to let loose a tirade the likes of which have not been seen in a very long time in the Bronx. Last night there were rumblings, signs of things to come.

Despite the fact that Alex Rodriguez was hitting over .430 in the post season and hit clutch tying home runs late in games, here he was on baseball’s greatest stage with the opportunity to completely bury his past failures and finally be accepted as a true blue New York Yankee.

Not only does Cliff Lee compLEEte me, he pulled another compLEEte game out of his hat. His domination of the team with the best record in the majors, the most home runs, and the highest payroll was something out of a storybook.

Hey, they should act that out on Broadway.

Wait, they are.

We should have known.

Back in late May, during Memorial Day weekend, as people were lighting up the BBQ, cuing up the music, and opening up swimming pools, a series was being played in Yankee Stadium.

In a rare and intriguing interleague match up, the world champion Philadelphia Phillies paid a visit to the new Yankee Stadium to play the Bronx Bombers. At the time, both teams had identical records coming in; the Phillies were 23-17, and struggling to take off on the 2009 season.

In fact, the Mets were in first place at that time!

It was unofficially announced last night that Major League Baseball will only be using umpires with previous World Series experience for the Fall Classic this season.

The move comes as a result of numerous botched calls throughout the first two rounds of the postseason.

Last week the lady behind the counter at Wawa told me people are always nice when the sun shines and the Phillies win.

Well, it’s a great time to work at Wawa.

I bet you can remember your first kiss. It’s likely that you can remember your first car. And I’m sure you can remember your first drink, right? …right?

How about that second kiss? What car did you drive after your first lemon? And after that first drink, well, it’s all down hill from there.

The point is familiarity begins to set in. That first kiss created a feeling unlike anything you had ever felt before. The first time you revved your engine etched a memory forever in your consciousness. And the first drink, actually, never mind.

Chase Utley tied Boog Powell's record on Wednesday for most consecutive postseason games reaching base. Utley walked in the first inning of the Phillies' NLCS clinching 10-4 victory over the Dodgers to reach base for the 25th consecutive playoff game, equaling the record Powell held alone for 38 years.

Boog established the original mark before there was even a League Championship Series much less a Division Series.

Can someone take their finger off the replay button? Last year is over.

Sure, it was a great run. We get it. It was a run even Dr. Seuss couldn't have conjured up in his wildest dreams.

The golden left arm of Cole Hamels, backed by the indelible offensive onslaught pushed the Phillies to a level unseen in Philadelphia in over a quarter century.

The clincher was magical. The parade was dizzying. The feeling was indescribable.

One morning my kid wandered into the kitchen half asleep and accidentally sent my favorite coffee mug to its demise on my hard ceramic tiles. Okay, accidents happen. But this wasn’t just any mug. This was a 32-ounce monstrous work of art I earned from an overpriced jousting show at the Excalibur in Las Vegas on one of our rare real vacations.