October 01, 2007

The Team to Beat

Yes, they did it. The Philadelphia Phillies ended their 14-year postseason drought today and won the NL East, by beating Washington in Philadelphia as the rival Mets simultaneously were defeated by Florida at Shea.

The Phils did this despite the following handicaps: A 4-11 start in April, injuries to several major players, lackluster relief pitching for nearly the entire season, a manager who most in town consider an idiot, a fan base that gave up on them about eight different times, and (last but not least), a seven-game divisional deficit to the Mets as recently as three weeks ago. The Phillies did not lead the division by themselves until the final Friday of the season.

The win gets a huge monkey off the Phillies' back, and will almost certainly buy the undeservedly maligned Charlie Manuel another season or two in the dugout. The playoffs start Wednesday; despite the bizarre scheduling, it should be an amazing playoffs in both leagues.

Posted by Stephen Silver at October 1, 2007 01:51 AM
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