The "Altogether now .... 'Take me out to the ballgame, take ...'" Story
It was an ordinary day. Watching my Phils play the Yanks on TV. Roy Halladay is mowing them down. Would love to be in Florida right now watching in person, but watching the game on my 42" HD big screen is almost as good. The game ends with the Phils beating the Yanks 7-0. A sign of what is to come this year, I hope. After the game I check my email and had one from the Phillies. I have my name on their email list and I get press releases at the same time that the newspaper
s, TV and radio get them. Today they are releasing a story about Jim Palmer visiting the Phils yesterday in spring training camp in Clearwater and talking to Charlie Manuel, the Phils skipper, about the chances of his top four starting pitchers all winning 20 games this year. In 1971, when my favorite team in the American League, the Baltimore Orioles, had the
last team in big league history to have four 20-game winners in the same year; Dave McNally (21-5), Mike Cuellar (20-9), Pat Dobson (20-8) and Palmer (20-9). I can remember traveling down Rt. 83S to the old Memorial Stadium and watching the pitchers make baseball history. Yesterday Palmer was asking Charlie about the chances of the his Phils top four starters having 20 win seasons. Palmer went on to say that you're not expected to go nine innings any longer, but you certainly can pitch at the same level of intensity. The Phillies do have t
he talent to have 20 win season's from those four top starters with Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels, although it is a long shot. If they all stay healthy they can get at least 130 starts between them. Charlie told Palmer that the pitcher that most resemble
s him is Roy Oswalt. "He's got the fastball up with some velocity." That's the fastball that knocked Manuel out of the majors and to Japan to finish his career. I used to love to watch Jim pitch for the Orioles and I can hardly wait for the season to start so I can catch every game the Phils play and hope that they can duplicate the success of the '71 Orioles! It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. PS - photos from the top are: Jim Palmer at spring training, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt, and Cole Hamels.
It was an ordinary day. Watching my Phils play the Yanks on TV. Roy Halladay is mowing them down. Would love to be in Florida right now watching in person, but watching the game on my 42" HD big screen is almost as good. The game ends with the Phils beating the Yanks 7-0. A sign of what is to come this year, I hope. After the game I check my email and had one from the Phillies. I have my name on their email list and I get press releases at the same time that the newspaper
No comments:
Post a Comment