It can't get any worse. That's the only thing I could think while sitting in the first row in left field last night freezing my ass off. It was a completely disheartening game. The Mets showed why they are the real team to beat and the Phillies showed us that they are simply the same old Phillies.
Moises Alou seems to typify this very well. Pat Gillick, in all of the moves he has orchestrated since being in Philadelphia, has not pulled a single move like the Mets signing of Moises Alou. Sure, Alou is old, but last night he showed he can still play. At the plate, with two bombs, and in the field with an amazing catch, Alou showed why the Mets are a superior baseball team.
It was cold, it was windy, and it was ugly.
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After the game, there were fireworks. From the AP's summary of the Phillies 8-1 loss to the Mets.
Manager Charlie Manuel's frustration was evident after the game. The normally mild-mannered manager challenged a radio talk-show host to a fight. Manuel had to be restrained by hitting coach Milt Thompson at one point.
"We're going to win," Manuel could be heard yelling in his office.
Wow. I don't even know what to say. Manuel tried to get in a fight with 610 WIP host Howard Eskin. You almost feel sorry for Manuel and his wretched squad. I've got five bucks towards the pay-per-view match. As a reader pointed out, it's stories like this that make you respect Manuel a little.
Who's got the audio of that one????????
News
So here's the story I'm getting. All paraphrased here. Eskin reportedly asked a number of legit questions but followed them up with more provoking, wise ass type questions. When he asked a question along the lines of, "Don't you think it would help your players if they saw you fired up a bit more?" and Manuel responded with something like, "I think they see me fired up a lot more than you think. You can stop by my office later and I'll show you." After the press conference, Eskin went to his office and Manuel reportedly challenged him to a fight and Milt Thompson had to restrain the coach.
For the record, Manuel isn't the biggest problem this year. This year against the Mets, the Phillies are roughly 3-36 with men on base. Where has The Big Man gone?
UPDATE: NBC10 has video of the ordeal.