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Start-To-May Giveaway: A Philadelphia Phillies Fan Wins $50

Posted by on 4 May 2011, 12:23 am

Lady Loves Pinstripes hosted a Start-To-May Giveaway, where the two winners (picked at random) each receive a $50.00 gift card (2x$25) to MLB.com Shop, the Official Shop Of Major League Baseball.

Our first winner is a Philadelphia Phillies fan named Ted, who is a reader of Lady Loves Pinstripes.

I hope to hear from the second winner, who has until Wednesday May 4th to reply or someone else will be picked. Thank you and look for the next Lady Loves Pinstripes Giveaway…. Summer Is Here to be announced in about two weeks. Prizes TBA, but it will be BIGGEST yet (especially for Yankees or Mets fans).

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2011 MLB Team Preview: Philadelphia Phillies

Posted by on 23 March 2011, 7:27 pm

Over the past four seasons, the Philadelphia Phillies have easily been one of the top three teams across Major League Baseball.

In that time the Phillies have been the NL Champions three times, the 2008 World Series Champs, went back to World Series again in 2009 and made the post season in 2010. Also, the team won 97 games last year, which was the most in baseball.

This ball-club is clearly popular favorite with fans, in Vegas and with players because everyone seems to want to a piece of the Phillies. This off-season proved that after Cliff Lee chose the Phanatic over the Yankee pinstripes.

The pressure is on for this team in 2011, can they live up to the World Series or bust position they’ve put themselves in?

Let’s take a look at the Philadelphia Phillies heading into the season.

The Positives:

Pitching. There is no better rotation heading into 2011 across baseball.

Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels (and Joe Blanton) almost seems surreal, but then you realize this is reality in Philadelphia and that is nuts. Each of the names already so respected in the league by itself, that it would be no surprise if they went down historically as the best starting rotation ever. Just think about the fact that Blanton is the team’s fifth starter and anywhere else he would easily be a #2 or #3 guy.

SS Jimmy Rollins talents shine when the spotlight is on him and this season it is glaring in his face, as Rollins is in a contract year. Last year was an utter disappointment, as he played in just 88 games, posting just eight home-runs, 41 RBIs and a career low .243 batting average. Rollins showed up this Spring in incredible shape and is healthy as can be, so expect those numbers to shoot up big time because he knows that at 32-years-old, this will be his last big contract.

If the team ever needs a pick-me-up, the Phillies fans will surely give them that extra motivation. Citizens Bank Park will be packed without question for every home game, as the fans are nuts for this team.

It doesn’t hurt that the Phillies are managed by one of the best skippers in the game Charlie Manual. Manual is one cool customer and the players literally worship him.

The Negatives:

All-star 2B Chase Utley’s injury situation keeps looking more grim with each passing day. The latest confirmed by MLB Trade Rumors is the worst news yet, as the Phillies have signed Mets throwaway Luis Castillo. Castillo got kicked to the curb by NY’s other team a week ago, despite having to eat $6 million owed just to get him to leave.

This is the Mets, who financially are in serious hot water, presumably wouldn’t waste money unless the situation was dire. Same reason the Phillies went out and grabbed Castillo, desperation because Utley knee must be really bad. It is embarrassing for the Phillies, as Utley must have felt his knee had a problem during the off-season. Utley has yet to play in a game this spring. YIKES!

It would be impossible for the ‘fab four’ to throw for nine innings every start, but my bet is they will try. Handing the ball to Brad Lidge after working eight shutout innings does not reassure a win at all. Lidge hasn’t been the same since 2008 and a closer has to be consistent. Lidge has been flirting with biceps tendonitis this spring but he did pitch an inning in a minor league game and it went well. Lidge has to get back to his World Series Championship form so the starting rotations efforts aren’t a total waste.

I have said from the moment Jayson Werth was not re-signed that the team would seriously regret it. This I still firmly believe as Werth was their only power right hitter. Werth really carried the team in 2010 when Utley, Rollins and Ryan Howard were all on the DL.

Werth still preformed pretty much knowing he was a goner at the end of the season.

How did he know this? Continue reading ‘2011 MLB Team Preview: Philadelphia Phillies’ »

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2010 Baseball Bloggers Alliance Announces Connie Mack Award Winners

Posted by on 17 October 2010, 1:39 am

Ron Washington of the Texas Rangers and Bud Black of the San Diego Padres were named winners of the Connie Mack Award by the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, noting them as the best managers in their respective leagues for 2010.

Washington, who weathered a drug controversy in spring training, led Texas to their fifth divisional title since 1994 and their first since 1999. While the voting was based on his regular season accomplishments, Washington also guided his team to their first ever postseason series victory when they eliminated the Tampa Bay Rays in five games in the American League Divisional Series.

Washington received ten first place votes in route to accumulating 74 total points. He edged out Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, who received 67 points.

In the National League, Black’s guidance of a Padres team almost universally expected to finish last to first place most of the summer helped him edge Dusty Baker of the Cincinnati Reds by the slimmest of margins. The fact that the Padres fell just short of the playoffs while the Reds won the NL Central helped lead to the tight race. Black garnered nine first place selections and 53 total points to Baker’s seven first place nods and 51 total points.

The complete voting results are as follows (first place votes in parenthesis):

American League

Ron Washington, Texas (10) 74
Ron Gardenhire, Minnesota (7) 67
Joe Maddon, Tampa Bay (4) 35
Terry Francona, Boston (3) 20
Cito Gaston, Toronto 9
Buck Showalter, Baltimore 9
Joe Girardi, New York 2

National League

Bud Black, San Diego (9) 53
Dusty Baker, Cincinnati (7) 51
Bobby Cox, Atlanta (2) 33
Bruce Bochy, San Francisco (3) 29
Charlie Manuel, Philadelphia (1) 27
Brad Mills, Houston 3
Mike Quade, Chicago 2

The Baseball Bloggers Alliance was formed in the fall of 2009 to encourage cooperation and collaboration between baseball bloggers of all major league teams as well as those that follow baseball more generally. As of this writing, the organization consists of 224 blogs spanning all 30 major league squads as well as general baseball writing.

The BBA is organized under a similar structure as the Baseball Writers of America, where blogs that follow the same team are combined into “chapters” and only two votes from the chapter on an award are counted. The blog chapters that are focused on general baseball were allowed two votes as well, which they could use both on the same league or split between the two leagues.

Chapters generally followed one of two methods when casting their ballot. Either representatives of the chapter were given the ballots for voting or a “group ballot” was posted, accounting for both of their votes.  Ballots are posted on the respective blogs and tabulated on a 5-3-1 point scale for first, second and third.

This is an official press release from the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.

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Jamie Moyer Pitches Solid Bullshit To Beat The Yankees

Posted by on 17 June 2010, 2:33 am

After Roy Halladay got smoked 8-2 by the New York Yankees on Tuesday night, Philadelphia Phillies skipper Charlie Manuel made another pitching change.

Manuel swapped Kyle Kendrick and Jamie Moyer‘s starts. So, Kendrick would face Andy Pettitte on Thursday, and uber-veteran Jamie Moyer would start against AJ Burnett on Wednesday night.

Manual’s reasoning made no sense, nor difference to me. It seemed a tad ridiculous. Did Manuel think it was October 2009 again?

Maybe Manuel was living in the past. It did seem desperate, but can you blame Manuel?

Thinking about how bad the Phillies have been playing, you can’t call Manuel crazy because the Phillies won.

It is ridiculous that Moyer’s breaking ball looked, (excuse me, was) more toxic than Halladay’s cutter. Odds are it’s the last time that will ever happen again.

Majority of MLB media predicted that the Yankees would take BP (batting practice) on Jamie Moyer no matter when he started.

Moyer is 47 years old and his fastball‘s mph is not much higher. The difference is time has not affected Moyer, because speed was never his forte.

It is common knowledge that Moyer’s breaking ball causes hitters to acquire strike early in the counts. The whole pitch is false, but plenty of batters think it’s true, making it worthwhile enough.

With the Yankees being the most patient hitters in all of MLB, they see pitches just like Moyer’s breaking ball, but don’t fall for it’s bullshit. Moyer has been in the majors since 1986 so no shortage of footage on him.

In no way am I trying to take away from Moyer’s 265th career win. It is pretty amazing to flank the Yankees for eight innings, allowing only three hits at his age. Continue reading ‘Jamie Moyer Pitches Solid Bullshit To Beat The Yankees’ »

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Baseball Bloggers Alliance Predicts World Series Rematch

Posted by on 7 April 2010, 3:35 pm

Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 8 AM EDT, April 7, 2010


Baseball Bloggers Alliance Predicts World Series Rematch

The World Series will have a familiar look in October, according to the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.

For the first time, the membership of the BBA was polled for their preseason predictions, with the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies being the most common selections for World Series participants.  The Yankees received 36 votes to easily outpace Boston’s 18, while the Phillies’ 31 votes edged out St. Louis’s 24.  The rematch ends the same as last year, with New York being the choice of 20 of the 75 that cast ballots. Continue reading ‘Baseball Bloggers Alliance Predicts World Series Rematch’ »

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Yankees Don’t Want To Party Like It’s 2004

Posted by on 4 November 2009, 4:07 am

The Yankees sure gave fans a flash-back, when game five wrapped up.

New York got a reality check from the Phillies Cliff Lee and Chase Utley. The pitcher and second baseman carried their team, in avoidance of having to pass on the title of champion.

AJ Burnett gave the Phillies some help back to the Bronx, getting pulled in the third inning. Burnett was far from the pitcher in-game two, but in all reality he was up against Lee.

Lee pitched well but more importantly the Philly bats picked him up, for the win.

The Yankees came on strong at the start of the game, hitting off the Lee. Then the bat of Utley smacked in a three run blast and that was only his first of the night.

At the top of the eighth, the Phillies lead 8-2. In typical Yankee fashion the Bombers scored three runs in the eighth and first two batters got on base in the ninth.

It just was not the Yankees night. Jeter hit into a double play and Tex struck out to end the game, 8-5.

Phillies had to win this game or else it would have been a New York celebration right in Citizens Bank Park. Don’t think the unruly and crazy (not in the good way) Philadelphia fans would have been able to tolerate it.

These fanatics could barely cheer for their own team and gave the Yankees a lot of energy. Energy that was wasted on the opponent, who took two of three games right in their home.

As the saying goes, press is press and the Phillies fans sure gave lots of noise for the Yankees. It gave much attention to a struggling home club.

That does not happen in New York. Surely, some Yankee fans are embarrassing and attack the visiting fans, but it is far and few. In Philly, never have heard so many angry spectators.

If I were Charlie Manual, I would ask the fans to stop focusing on the Yankees and help the Phillies. Manual could blame his managerial decisions on confusion, with all that towel waving and that dancing green animal.

The Yankees are home and thats exactly where their fans want them to be. Taking two in Philly is a job well done.

Game six features Pettitte and Pedro. It is just a classic for fans. Pettitte will be great and lets show the Pedro who his daddy is for one last time.

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Don't Get In The Way Of The Yankees

Posted by on 2 November 2009, 5:22 am

Going into Philadelphia tied at one, to play three against the defending champs left the notion of uncertainty among the Yankees faithful.

Well, Yankees fans can sleep well tonight. The Bombers have taken the first two of three in Philly, securing a 3-1 lead.

One win away from being the champions feels pretty sturdy but it’s still not over, till that last out.

The Yankees are playing extremely solid baseball, taking advantage anytime given.
Anytime has a lot to do with not having the Phillies ace Cliff Lee on the mound. The rest of the Phillies pitching is unreliable, which was on full display for the Fanatic and company to witness.

In case you forgot or want to see what happened, read on for a fan’s outline of game three and four.

GAME 3 – Rain-storm went away and Yanks beat Phillies to close the day.

Saturday night’s game looked near to be a wash-out as the rain came down in Philadelphia. The downpours stopped about an hour after the real start, but the drizzling continued for the rest of the game.

The weather was not the only variable in Citizens Park, but Phillies own Cole Hamels, last year’s World Series MVP.

Hamels gave a burst of his MVP stuff for the first two innings. In-addition, Jayson Werth,

added with on of two homers to take an early lead.

Then Yankees responded with a two-run ruled homer by Arod, followed by a Swisher double and a thriller by Godzilla to give the Yanks a continuous advantage.

In the fifth, Johnny Damon whacked a true Damon style double, after our Southpaw hit a line drive single. Both adding RBI’s for the Yanks.

Pettitte looked like a conventional hitter at the plate, as well as got the job done on the mound. The first inning was an adjustment but Pettitte got back to himself after the second inning.

Record breaking #17 will go down in books for the most number of wins for any pitcher in the playoffs, in history, as Andy Pettitte’s to keep.

Cole Hamels walked off the field to the sound of sorrow from his fans. This has been Cole all season, so it is not that much of a surprise especially in Philadelphia. Hamels is not the same MVP pitcher that has been his only consistency.

Game finished up in typical Yankee tradition. The dominant Mariano closed out the win, with a result of 8-5 and Yankees to take 2-1 series lead.

The Phillies manager, Charlie Manuel made some poor choices that only cemented the Yankees win. Not pinch-hitting Ben Francisco in the sixth, with a runner on first and Pettitte over 100 pitches just made no reason.

The second issue, is why did Manuel not take Chad Durbin out of the game? No one even got up in the dugout to warm-up, when Durbin was struggling.

GAME 4 – Winners play to win, as Yankees prove that in Philly

Two things best to sum up game four of the World Series.

The first is a quote from former Yankee player and manager, Billy Martin.

“Another club can be beating you for six innings but for some reason the good ball clubs get tough and win them in the last three.”

The second is the standard for this quote, which was clearly, seen in the performance of Johnny Damon.

Damon is a formidable player this is common knowledge but it takes a talented player with passion and knowledge that becomes inspirational.

Pedro Feliz hit a home-run in the eighth to tie the score, and the Philly crowd went wild with the reality of a win.

That feeling turned to revolt pretty quickly with two outs in the top of the ninth.

Damon fought off wild-card closer Brad Lidge and finally hitting a single into left after nine pitches.

The once strong Lidge and company shifted over for Mark Teixeira lefty bat with no respect for Damon. Damon stole second, saw no one at third and took advantage of the Phillies mistake.

Smart baseball at its best as Damon still on top of his game in the ninth is what a champion is made off.

Lidge apparently shaken went onto hit Teixeira, give up an RBI double to Arod and finish a two-run single from Posada.

Lidge caught the virus from Hamels this season as he blew 11 saves, highest in the majors. Lidge seemed back to himself again at the beginning of the playoffs but in fact he should have been covering third-base.

The Yankees won 7-4 because in the World Series careless mistakes cannot be made. The Phillies regard to staying mentally in sync is hurting. Team leaders Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins struggling, a wild-card closer and a starter who just wants the season to be over.

Champions need to win and will do what it takes to get there. That is clearly what the Yankees came to do in the World Series thus far, and it shows.

In game five the Yankees have the burden of Cliff Lee who is an genius of a pitcher. Burnett will take the mound for the Yanks on three days rest and cannot have a rough inning, nor 15 crazy pitches in a row. AJ was impressive in game two but now facing Lee he has no other option.

Yankees can win the whole thing on Monday night, and if things continue on, there will not be a game six in New York. That I can guarantee you.

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