The showdown: Philadelphia versus New York (pre series fun!)

As the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies prepare to face off in the World Series, publications have begun poking fun at the other city -- and offering witty observations on the match-up. Here are some of the highlights:

I think in interleague play this season the Phillies beat the Yankees two out of three . . . but Sabathia wasn't a factor in that set, and Alex Rodriguez was still on the DL. The Yankees staggered before A-Rod's return and shot the lights out after he returned. Factor that with Sabathia being a very different postseason pitcher this year than he's been in years past---and a lefthander who could neutralise the Phillies' power (most of which is lefthanded). Concurrently, Cliff Lee being a lefthander can neutralise most of the Yankee power. Which is why the Game One matchup is intriguing for reasons having nothing to do with former Indians teammates squaring off to start a World Series.

The shame of the 1950 Phillies---That was a young team coming into their own who got throttled almost at once when Curt Simmons, their second-best pitcher, got drafted. With nothing much else to go behind future Hall of Famers Robin Roberts and Richie Ashburn---and if you want a real good impetus for the formation of a players' union, just take a look at the manner in which the Phillies rode Roberts for the next six years until his arm gave out and forced him to re-learn how to pitch without much of a fastball. I can't think of any pitcher in major league history who was more overworked and even abused than Robin Roberts in the first half of the 1950s.

Did you know: Robin Roberts was a Yankee for a very brief period. When the Phillies finally devolved to that horrible 1961 season, and Roberts himself could only go 1-10 on the season, the Yankees bought him at season's end . . . but never used him. They released him in May 1962, the Baltimore Orioles took a flyer on him, and Roberts turned in three useful seasons for the Orioles before they released him in 1965.

Did you also know: Robin Roberts has something in common with Sandy Koufax---both men went to college on basketball programs (Koufax on a scholarship) but ended up being signed as baseball players when they kind of stumbled onto their school baseball teams . . .

Trivia: a) Roberts is the only man in major league history to beat the Braves of Boston, Milwaukee, and Atlanta.

b) Roberts is a kind-of member of the 500 home run club---he surrendered one more home run lifetime than Hall of Famer Eddie Murray hit. (505.)

What's you're prediction? I used to think that the Phillies of the late 70’s early 80’s was the best squad they ever had. Grown not aquired. They had 2 stud starters in Ruthven and Carlton, 2 hall of famers in Schmidt and Bowa on the left infield, a solid 2nd baseman in Manny Trillo (whom they traded away in one of the worst deals in Phillies history for that amazing Von Hayes!) and a solid center fielder in Gary Maddox. Greg Luzinski was a slugger of the first order as was Schmidt but the rest of the team including Pete Rose were placement hitters but they were well managed By Paul Owens, Danny Ozark, and Dallas Green.

But now I think this squad is the all time best with young stud stars in Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and Shane Victorino. Jason Werth is starting to show some star power of his own and we stole Raul Ibañez from Seattle to replace Pat Burrell. Carlos Ruiz and Pedro Feliz are solid at their positions with Carlos always good for a clutch hit. Cole Hammels had a bad year but is a stud pitcher as is Cliff Lee. Pedro Rodriguez has and probably will give the Yankees fits as always. Bull pens are mysteries but thats why they are in the bull pen. I am hoping that Lidge has regained his form. I don't know how he ranks against McCarver, Mitch Williams (in his prime) or Ricky Botalico who was one on the few relievers to win the Cy Young award. I’l take this team over the 70’s team any day. They are young and they will be around for at least a couple more seasons.

Go Phillies!!!

My prediction merely begins with observing that neither Dick Ruthven nor Larry Bowa were Hall of Famers---either in fact or on the best days of their careers, though they were solid enough.

My prediction continues with observing . . .

a) that Steve Carlton (who is a Hall of Famer, though he's been giving evidence since that he was probably way better off keeping his yap shut) and Mike Schmidt (who is also a Hall of Famer, and perhaps the greatest all-around third baseman ever to play the game, pending the end of Chipper Jones's career but even then) were the stud Phillies on those late 1970s-early 1980s teams;

b) that Manny Trillo was a useful but very average second baseman who wasn't much if anything off the league averages even if his best seasons were in Philadelphia;

c) that Greg Luzinski was a middling outfielder who resembled a dump truck as often as he resembled a baseball defender, though brother could he mash; and,

d) you might care to know that Von Hayes---who probably had an impossible time of living up to what you'd expect when you're the one a team swaps five players including a future batting champion to get (and who almost went to the Mets for Lenny Dykstra, until the Mets inexplicably took Juan Samuel instead, never mind that Hayes could and did hit well enough in Shea Stadium when the Phillies played there), but was a good player when he wasn't trying to remodel a swing that wasn't broken, really, in the first place, and when he wasn't trying too hard to live up to the five-for-one hype---has been making a rep as a minor league manager; he was Manager of the Year in the California League (2004) and the Texas League (2005), and now manages Camden in the Atlantic League.

And, that Hayes was the inadvertent catalyst for the Phillies of 2008-2009: he was traded to the California Angels after the 1991 season for Ruben Amaro, Jr., now the Phillies GM and the man who finished building this pair of pennant winners, including pulling the trigger on the Cliff Lee deal.

My prediction continues with observing that there's no question but what this year's Phillies are better than the 1970s-1980s model; they're probably better than the 1993 "Philthy Phils" team, and they may be better than the 2008 world champs. Carlos Ruiz is a better player than people credit him with being; Robin Roberts was talking recently about how remarkable it is to find a catcher, any catcher, with good speed on the bases, which Ruiz has and which may be a sleeper weapon for these Phillies, in hand with how he knows what he's doing behind the plate. The Dodgers must be kicking themselves for giving up on Jayson Werth too readily, but I could have smelled that one coming---the guy was a stud in the making when the injuries clipped him in Los Angeles.

I don't usually like to predict a baseball outcome because there's no outcome less predictable than that of a baseball game. I'm too devoted an adherent to Berra's Law. (It ain't over until it's over.) But neither do I see this Series going much short of the distance. Six or seven games, but that's it. Right now it's either team's Series to lose. You're talking about two great teams who have it packed up and down the lineup, have it pretty well together on the mound, and know what they're doing on the field. I'd be extremely shocked if either team could pull off a sweep or a five-game win. If either team has a weakness, it's probably their bridges to their closers, with a very slight edge to the Yankees, depending on whether either Charlie Manuel or Joe Girardi, or both, start to outsmart themselves with their bullpens again.

But unless there's something I haven't seen missing in these Yankees, I think Jimmy Rollins was talking out of his chapeau about five and done . . .

By the way, I personally think the first pitch honour in Yankee Stadium tonight should have gone to the battery who'd helped beat the Phillies in four straight in 1950---Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford. (Rookie Ford pitched and won his first World Series game in Game Four of the 1950 Series; Allie Reynolds was brought in to save it for him with two out in the ninth. It would be Ford's last game until 1953; he was drafted and served his hitch in 1951-52.) Even if you don't root for the Yankees you have to respect the history. And there'd have been nothing more appropriate for a new Yankee Stadium finishing its inaugural season with a World Series.

Same would hold when the set moves to Philadelphia. Robin Roberts, who pitched stoutly in that 1950 Series---it isn't remembered much because of the sweep, but the first three Yankee wins were one-run games---should get to throw out the first pitch. It was Roberts who'd beaten the Brooklyn Dodgers in a final-day tiebreaker for the pennant, though he almost didn't---with Cal Abrams taking a lead off second and future Hall of Famer Duke Snider at the plate, Roberts missed a pickoff play and fed Snider a fat fastball that got lined into center for a base hit. Future Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn, fleet but with a weak throwing arm, somehow threw Cal Abrams out at the plate (the Dodgers never thought of holding him at third with the pennant in sight) with what would have been the winning run, before Dick Sisler ended it with a tenth-inning bomb for the pennant. Roberts then went the distance in a ten-inning, 2-1 loss in Game Two of the World Series.

By the way, none of the Whiz Kids' starting lineup (minus pitchers: Andy Seminick [C], Eddie Waitkus [1B], Mike Goliat [2B], Puddin' Head Jones [3B], Granny Hamner [SS], Dick Sisler [OF], Richie Ashburn [OF], Del Ennis [OF]) is still alive. Nor is Jim Konstanty, the unlikely National League MVP in 1950: at age 34, he went 16-7 in relief, before starting and pitching a stout Game One in the World Series against Vic Raschi, who beat the Phillies 1-0. Nor is Monk Meyer, who relieved Konstanty toward the end of that game and ended up being part of two Dodger pennant winners in 1952-53.

Of the entire team, the only members still living are Roberts, reserve catcher Stan Lopata (who was a late inning replacement for Seminick in the Roberts World Series game), reserve outfielder Jackie Mayo, reserve infielder Putzy Caballero, and pitchers Curt Simmons (whose draft induction into the military on the threshold of the World Series probably hurt those Phillies the most; he missed the next two seasons because of it as well; late career, Simmons got his shot at a Series with the 1964 Cardinals and took particular satisfaction in beating the Phillies down the stretch of that crazy 1964 collapse, since the Phillies cast him off at last), Bob Miller (not even remotely one of the two Bob Millers who turned up pitching for the 1962 Mets!), and Paul Stuffel.

Wow! Thanks for that! I have been a lifelong Phillies fan but you are reminding me of a lot!

I agree with you about Luzinski in your previous post. I think the reason he is held in such high regard was The Bull was the first star to shine out of that group. Mike Schmidt had had just started to develop into the slugger he was but Luzinski was the first real slugger the team had in a while. Ryan Howard reminds me of him but Howard is a better athlete and I think a more disciplined batter in spite of all his strikeout.

I don't know if you know this but Mich Williams does (or did) host a call in radio show and had Greg Luzinski as a recent guest. A caller called in and said to Greg that he was in the ball park when he hit an inside the park home run. Luinski denied that he ever hit one. William's comment was that for that to happen the ball would have to have been hit to deep to dead center field, hitting the center fielder in the head knocking him unconscious and the two other fielders, chasing the loose ball, colliding and spontaneously exploding!

Thanks for the trivia. Cheers and Go Phillies!!!

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