Losing the Phight

Okay, I have a few rules in life.

Never play poker with a guy whose first name is the same as a city.

Never text photos of your junk to anyone at any time, unless you can always say you'll be proud whenever this comes up as a topic of conversation.

Never overdo it at a Mexican buffet style restaurant unless the restroom situation consists of one men's room and a separate women's room, with at least 2 or 3 private stalls in each (one unisex, locked-door bathroom for the entire place is a definite red flag).

And finally, always try go on the record when a Philadelphia sports team loses in the postseason.

For the third straight season, the Philadelphia Phillies made it to the National League Championship Series. And for the only time in those 3 years, they lost. Wait, let me take a moment for that to sink in. Three straight NLCS appearances. For the Phillies! That's effin' crazy! It's still hard for me to comprehend that they did this, let alone the fact that they were world champions just two years ago. It's insane-o.

Okay, I know that the fans have adjusted their expectations accordingly, and that plenty of them were fully expecting the Phightins' to make it back to the Fall Classic for the third consecutive year. But in reality, who the hell is anyone to think this was a lock? Yes, yes it sounds like a lot of pandering, and being satisfied with 'just having gotten this far.' But go ahead and do some quick research to find out how often it happens that any team, including the Yankees, experiences the kind of 3-year run the Phillies just had. Go on. Do the knowledge. No rush. Yes. You'll find that it doesn't happen that often.

So yes, the result is disappointing for Phillies fans. Yes, the San Francisco Giants seemed, on the surface, to be the inferior overall team heading into this series. But I can't imagine how difficult it must be to remain on top of the world and keep prevailing in these tense postseason clashes when so many other talented, determined, and even hungrier clubs are out there taking their best crack at you. You're not going to win them all. By the way, Philly's best power hitter, Ryan Howard, had zero RBIs in this postseason. And yet this team had a chance to win this game right up until the last pitch of Game 6 in the NLCS? That's just batty. I tip my cap to the Giants. To detract from them or just blame it all on the Phillies' inadequacies is insulting, and I can't bring myself to do it.

This is just how the game breaks down sometimes. I'll still take this over an 80-82 season and being mathematically eliminated from playoff contention in mid-August.

Am I the best gauge for this? Maybe I'm not, if you're looking at this from the hardcore sports fan's perspective. Oh I love sports, believe you me. Ask anyone who knows me, my stamina and ability to endure seemingly endless hours of televised sporting events is almost incomprehensible. Especially when it's the playoffs and stakes are high. But it's hard not to respect what the Phillies have accomplished as an organization big-picture wise over the last 3-4 years. Go back before 2007, and it was a completely different franchise. It's been nice to watch the transformation, and hopefully continued winning seasons are ahead.

For the 2010 season, the Phight is over. But let the San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers go at it in a World Series matchup that might be short on TV ratings, but will certainly be high on drama. Texas hadn't won a postseason series prior to 2010 in their 50-year franchise history. The Giants? Yeah, no World Series title for them since 1954, back when they were still a New York ball club. If you're a fan of sports and you can't get somewhat excited for this series, then I just don't know what to tell you.