With Fish Like These ...

The prospect of snaring home-run balls was at the forefront of my mind when my brother and I changed our season tickets to seven rows up from the left-field wall. And, indeed, last night the Marlins tagged Randy Wolf for a pair of dingers in the early innings. But the fact that I had absolutely no chance on either round-tripper tells you a bit about the kind of game Wolf and the Phillies had.

Damon Easley's first-inning blast made it to the back of the section, about 15 rows or so behind me. Miguel Cabrera's cannon shot in the third reached the upper deck. Throw in a Juan Encarnacion homer, also in the first, and the Phils were in a 4-0 hole out of which they never could climb. A late charge, spurred no doubt by the rally cap I wore in the eighth and ninth, made the score close, but Florida hung on for a 6-4 win.

After the Phillies' unimpressive 2-4 road trip, the Citizens Bank Park crowd's restlessness deepened last night. Struggling Jim Thome was booed quite a bit, at least until he laced a bases-loaded double to the track in center in the eighth inning. You might think I simply copied and pasted this from posts in 2003 and 2004, but, no, this is fresh content: Once again the Phils squandered substantial scoring chances, and each wasted opportunity brought fresh abuse from the crowd. Everyone came alive as the Phillies rallied late, but overall the fans, their optimism dulled by over two years of unfulfilled expectations, have lost their ability to give this team the benefit of the doubt. And it's starting to show more and more -- in the increasing numbers of empty blue seats, and in the harsher and harsher treatment of previous untouchables such as Thome.

Comments

[Tom G]

A rally cap? How much beer did you have?

[Iain]

//You might think I simply copied and pasted this from posts in 2003 and 2004, but, no, this is fresh content//

Ouch!

[Tom]

TG: Just two. I was really trying to help the team! Iain: I'm just saying.

[gr]

rally caps are for suckers! check out this line from marcus hayes' roundup today:

"Thome, Bell and Lieberthal all sat yesterday... and the Phillies scored their most runs in 19 games."

basically, that makes their salaries hefty pensions.

[gr]

by the way, i dug Hard Candy the first time I listened to it, but it quickly wore on me and i never spent time in the "enchanted" camp. i used to love that band when they came out and my old band sounded just like them.