Philadelphia Baseball History

At 18-14, this Phillies team has been fun to watch.   Some might even say surprising.   Although, for those who were paying attention in Spring Training, this early season success isn’t that surprising.   This was a team that, according to some pundits, was supposed to be tanking.   Yet the Phils sprinted out to a 10-3 record in the early Spring, and it looked like they didn’t know that they were supposed to lose.   Now, just as the early Spring Training success signaled cautious optimism, so too should this early season success.   There are still over 100 games to go in the regular season.   Nonetheless, watching the pundits react with surprise has been amusing.   Sportswriters, quite frankly, are not known for original thought.   Pre-season prognostication of gloom and doom appeared to be nothing more than lazy group think.   Many of the predictions were based on the dismal 2015 season.   Indeed, ESPN in one article noted...

I have to admit, personally I feel disappointed. Last year, in late September, I sat in the nosebleed section of Nationals Park with my daughter and a group of her friends when the Phillies came to DC. I remember distinctly when Arron Altherr hit a line drive to centerfield with the bases loaded and Michael Taylor misplayed it.  Altherr turned on the speed and almost ran over Jared Eickhoff on the base pads. The result was an inside the park grand-slam home run. I have been a fan ever since. Altherr was likely to make the major-league roster as a starting outfielder this year. In a spring training game, he dove to try to catch a fly ball and landed awkwardly on his left wrist. Now he needs surgery to repair a torn tendon in the wrist, and will mess 4 to 6 months in recovery. I feel bad for Altherr. I pray that this is nothing more than a minor setback in what hopes to be a fine major league career. I was certainly looking forward to see how he would handle a full ...