Philadelphia Baseball History

Philadelphia sports fans are not the most patient fans in the world.  After the Phillies won the World Series in 2008, returned to the Series in 2009, and posted the most wins in team history on the backs of the four aces in 2011, it is understandable that Phillies fans got, well, frustrated as the team slid into the bottom of the standings for the last few years.  The frustration level had reached such a low that the fans demanded, and received, the dismissal of then General Manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. But while a new era was ushered in under  President of Baseball Operations Andy McPhail and General Manager Matt Klentak, fans were advised to show patience.  Building a new team that could contend would take time.  The team embarked on a strategy of dismantling the remainder of the championship team, slashing the payroll and obtaining as much young talent in trades as was feasible.  The ultimate goal was to develop a cadre of young players in the minor lea...

It was five o'clock in the morning, and my roommate, Jim, was waking me up so we could hop in his brown, sporty but beat-up Nissan to travel across Alligator Alley and up the Gulf Coast to Clearwater. In my junior year at the University of Miami, this was the first time I had ventured to see the Phillies in Spring Training. Just the day before, Jim made the suggestion. I packed my books so I could get some studying in during the five hour drive, and off we went. Jim was something of a odd bird. Unlike me, who was raised in Fishtown and spent much of my childhood at Veterans Stadium, Jim was from North Carolina. He rooted for the Phillies because he loved Mike Schmidt. Although we were two years removed from Schmidt's retirement, he continued to be a Phillies fan. This created a strange combination for him, as he was a Cowboys fan in football; something I always teased him about. At the time, baseball card collecting was in its hay day. In Miami, a Jose Canseco rookie card cou...