We're approaching the best part of the baseball season, and I have to say I'm a little dismayed. My beloved Philadelphia Phillies are looking very much like contenders this year, as they currently hold a half-game lead in the National League wild card standings.
Don't get me wrong. I am in no way worried about the Phillies' chances of capturing their first playoff berth since 1993. I whole-heartedly believe this is the year that they return to the playoffs and I sincerely believe they're going to make some noise. Can they beat the Mets? I'm not ruling it out.
The Phillies have the NL MVP (Ryan Howard - 58 home runs and counting), the best power-hitting second baseman in baseball (Chase Utley), and a strutting shortstop who is almost a 30-30 guy (Jimmy Rollins). Throw in two solid starting pitchers in Brett Myers and Cole Hamels and you have yourself a good team.
I'm dismayed because I want to continue my path to academic achievement here at this fine university. I care about my classes and want to remain in good academic standing, and a playoff series has a legitimate shot of derailing that goal.
It would be so much easier to be a Red Sox fan right now. You guys are going to be able to bear down and study this month because you won't have a team to follow. You guys can sleep easy knowing that you can focus on your classes, rather than the time-consuming, desperation-inducing sport that is Major League Baseball.
Now I know what you loyal members of the famed "Red Sox Nation" are thinking.
"Bloom, the Red Sox would totally be the best team in the National League. They should stop calling it the NL and start calling it the JV, because it's pathetic."
I'll admit the Red Sox did play very well against the National League. In fact, back in June, Boston played every team in the National League East (including the Phillies) in five straight series. Over that span, the Red Sox went 14-1.
I even had the nerve to wear my Phillies jersey into Fenway Park back in June, only to see the Red Sox pound the Phillies, 10-2. Josh Beckett of all people was pitching a perfect game against them through six innings.
But don't try to tell me that the Red Sox were victimized by injuries and a tough schedule. The season ended well before the Boston Massacre and the lifeless 9-21 August record for this year's team. When August started, the Red Sox played their first 12 games against teams with a combined winning percentage of .415. Boston went 5-7 against those teams, including a three-game sweep at the hands of the Royals.
The Royals actually won the season series against the Red Sox this year, taking five of six games. That means that of the Royals' 58 wins, eight percent of them came against Boston. Now that's a team you Red Sox fans can be proud of. That just says that the Red Sox weren't that good anyway.
So now that I have to spend the next month at the mercy of the baseball gods, I have to ask you Red Sox fans how to cope with the drama and suspense of the playoffs. After all, your team has been in the postseason in five of the last eight seasons, made the ALCS three of those trips, and won a World Series title in 2004. You seniors haven't spent a year at Tufts without watching the Red Sox in the playoffs.
Don't fret, Red Sox fans. If you still want to cheer for a playoff team (out of some sense of withdrawal or something) you can get behind my Phillies. While I can't promise you that they won't get massacred by the Yankees (World Series, here we come!), I can promise you that they won't lose to the Royals anytime soon.
