Is Chone Figgins coming to town?

It's believed that the Phillies and Chone Figgins would be a perfect match. The Phillies offer just as good of a chance at a championship as any other team. And they have a gaping hole at third base and could use the higher on-base percentage out of the leadoff slot that Figgins would provide.

But it's also believed that the Phillies don't want to spend what Figgins will command, in hopes of saving some cash to re-sign Cliff Lee next year.

If that's the only hang-up: problem solved.

Seriously, I will grumble about the Phillies raising prices at Citizens Bank Park during poor economic times, but then I'll think of the ridiculous prices New Yorkers have to pay to watch their pathetically bombastic teams and be grateful.

And if Figgins does leave the Angels for the Phillies or another team, he can gain some insight about leaving a long-time team from one of our favorites, Doug Glanville, who has another must-read piece in the New York Times about how the first leg of his Phillies career ended.

On Halloween Eve

'Twas the night before Halloween and all through the park,
not a creature was stirring, the ballyard was dark.

After two games, the series was a knot,
Cliff Lee got a win, Pedro did not.

After a brilliant Game 1, we got too high,
But then A.J. took our heads right out of the sky.

Tomorrow's a new day, time for Hamels to shine,
Blanton will follow, then it's Cliff Lee - he's so fine.

The series may be tighter than a bunch of clamps,
But the Phillies will pull through like champs.

Sorry, I don't know what got into me. Anyway, it's Halloween Eve and there's not much happening as the World Series takes a break to travel from New York to Philly. They announced the Game 4 starters: Chad Gaudin and Joe Blanton.

I thought I'd indulge myself and share the stories of my two baseball-themed Halloween costumes from my childhood.

In 3rd grade, before I wised up to the evils in the world, I was still a semi-Yankees fan, so I went as my favorite player, Dave Winfield. I wore my Winfield T-shirt - it was a cheap giveaway from the stadium. I forget who the sponsor was, but I distinctly remember the No. 31 was way too small.

I didn't understand racism and couldn't understand why my mom wouldn't let me paint my face black. I just wanted to look like my favorite player. I settled for painting on a mustache.

A couple years later, I wanted something a little more creative, so my mom and I came up with the idea of a baseball card. Lots of people go as playing cards, but I never saw a baseball card. We went to a sporting goods store, but they had a weak selection of posters: Keith Hernandez, Eric Davis and someone else, possibly Dale Murphy.

I went with Eric the Red and spent the week painstakingly tracing the stats from his 1987 Topps baseball card for the back of my costume. It was a great costume; unfortunately, I don't think we have any pictures. I kept it hanging in my closet for quite a few years. I don't remember when I finally got rid of it.

If my Halloween tale didn't suffice, check out Doug Glanville's recent op-ed, in which he discusses trick-or-treating as a Phillie in North Jersey. It's a great piece and a rare occasion in which a player shows the "fan" side of himself. We here at SoxandPhils really like Glanville.

Happy Halloween - if a future Phillie shows up at your door, give him or her an extra treat.

[Photo credit: Cincinnati Reds Cards]

Ah, the reassuring sounds of spring agita

It has been almost too serene at SoxandPhils camps this spring. But today, news broke that Jonathan Papelbon piped up about Manny Ramirez in Esquire, calling him a clubhouse cancer that had to be removed last year:

"It takes 25 guys on a team to win, not 24, and that was blatantly obvious," Papelbon said today after the club's workout. "It doesn't matter who you are -- you could be Babe Ruth -- if you're not in that same cubbyhole with the rest of the guys going to war with you, you're all going to die. That almost happened."

I like the rhetoric, but why now? I would have loved it if Papelbon had said this last summer, but now it's just odd and creating an unnecessary diversion.

I, unfortunately, have to agree with Manny: "I've already moved on with my life. Like I said, I wish everybody the best. I'm in LA now."

And one other thing. I'm usually not overly PC, but I would hope Papelbon would reconsider using his use of the word cancer. Jon Lester had cancer. The team had a petulant prima donna who brought down morale.

Please, no more about Manny unless we have a rematch of last year's NLCS.

Wall of Fame: The Phillies announced their Wall of Fame nominees. There are several candidates more qualified than Juan Samuel, who was last year's inductee:

Pitchers Jack Baldschun, Ricky Bottalico, Larry Christenson, Gene Garber, Jim Konstanty and Rick Wise; catcher Darren Daulton; infielders John Kruk and Fred Luderus; outfielders Lenny Dykstra, Doug Glanville, Greg Gross, Von Hayes and Roy Thomas; manager Jim Fregosi.

Scott Lauber is not endorsing a candidate, but I will. My write-in endorsement goes to Ken Ryan. My other two votes will go to John Kruk and Doug Glanville.

{Ricky Bo? The only award he gets is the "What the hell is he doing on this list?" award. I want to vote for Dykstra; I know he's tainted, but he embodied the '93 team. Same for Daulton; not all there now, but he was the leader. I would also accept Kruk and be happy with Glanville, just because he seems like a genuinely good guy. But I will go with Dykstra and Daulton, but my dark horse will win it - Von Hayes. The fans are in a good mood and have seemed willing to forgive for the past, so it's his year.}

Let's try this again

The Phillies stand nine outs away from a World Championship - providing they score one more run than the Rays over 4 1/2 innings tonight. I feel less certain about their chances now that Cole Hamels is out of the game, but find me a Phillies fan who wouldn't sign up for this scenario seven weeks ago before the Brewers series.

Before we conclude Game 5 tonight, here's a look back at the wet, wild and weird first half of it from Monday.

We sat out in right field. We couldn't see the pitch count or a large portion of Jayson Werth's territory. But we were in the park for the potential clincher. For the first time in more than a decade, I didn't attempt to keep score or take notes - there was no way with the rain and wind and all the layers of clothes I wore.

The crowd was loud at points, but definitely muted a bit because of the weather. A friend just asked me about the awe and spectacle of being at the World Series, and I had to shrug a bit. It was more just trying to survive the weather than soaking in the atmosphere.

What a weird feeling for what is probably Pat Burrell's last home game in Philadelphia. He's still hitless in the series. The night belonged to Cole Hamels. He survived the slop, giving up two runs (one was very cheap) on a walk, five hits and three strikeouts in six innings. And even though we couldn't see the pitch count, we knew he would have pitched more if the game didn't end after six innings. We were surprised to later learn his count was only at 75. And, there is no way he would give up that second run in the 6th if the field were dry.

I'm still concerned about the offense. They had Scott Kazmir on the ropes but could only muster the two first inning runs on Shane Victorino's bases loaded single. Tonight, they need to come out angry and prove to the world that they are champions no matter what is thrown their way.

The Phillies relievers, pictured here walking out to the bullpen Monday even though they wouldn't be needed for a couple of days, should be well-rested and able to get the nine outs. Game starts at 8:37 after Barack Obama's talk; the partying should start about 9:48.

Observations from the stands: For the World Series, a lot of people were clueless about the game. I'd expect it in the rich seats, but not in our section. The guy next to us cheered for the Hawaiian Thunder. His lady friend had to correct him. He was also taken aback that there were so many umpires on the field. There was another stupid comment behind us, but I forget the details. ... Brad Lidge got his Delivery Man of the Year Award. ... John Oates, filling in for the ill Daryl Hall, sang the National Anthem, one of the better renditions of the playoffs. ... Jim Bunning threw out the first pitch. ... Will they have such festivities before the resumption of the game?

We saw one of our favorites, Doug Glanville, deliver the game ball. I took it as an omen, like the fact the game was played on the same date the Red Sox clinched the 2004 World Series. ... The ballpark's coffee wasn't as bad as I expected. They also served chili, soup, cupcakes and cookies. We were too wet and too cold to try them.

Peeves: I think we weathered the weather pretty well. We had layers and ponchos, but our gloves and coat sleeves got soaked. When we were walking in the concourse, I removed my gloves and kept squeezing water out of my hands as if they were a sponge. ... It's hard to pee with numb hands and three layers of pants. ... Walking into the stadium, we smelled the food from the large tents Major League Baseball set up for VIP post-game parties. Walking out, we heard a band playing inside. Who the hell can party after what had happened? ... We're not calling for Bud Selig's head, like many are, but we just wish he had called the game at a fair point - not when the Rays had an extra half inning to take a lead because of the sloppy field.

Enjoy the conclusion of Game 5 - finally a playoff game that should end in prime time. We'll check back Thursday night to hopefully post a picture of Burrell, Elvis and a trophy.

Finally, a nice day at the park

An innings-eating start by Jamie Moyer, a clutch comeback by the offense and a shut-down performance by the bullpen. It was quite a win for the once-again first-place Phillies, 7-5 over the Marlins. (And, for the first time this year, we went to a game when it wasn't raining, freezing or both.)

The Phillies hung tough, even after the Marlins took a 5-1 lead in the 3rd. The turning point came in the 6th with the Phillies down 5-3. Geoff Jenkins pinch hit for So Taguchi with Pat Burrell on and two out. Moyer, who had thrown 81 pitches to that point, was on deck. I mused out loud whether Charlie Manuel would let him hit if Jenkins hit a homer. As soon as I said it, Jenkins crushed one to right. (Moyer struck out and then pitched a good 7th, making Cholly look like a genius, according to Christine.) The rest of the game seemed like a formality. It was just a matter of how they would win it.

Burrell answered that with a two-run double to the delight of this guy in our section who must be the biggest Pat the Bat fan out there. He always wears his jersey and starts a pronounced clap every time Don Henley starts playing Burrell's intro music. Although Burrell won the game, it wasn't all good for his fan. A kid about 12 years old dumped some chocolate ice cream on the back of the jersey. (You can see some of it near his left shoulder.) We're not sure if he felt it because he didn't seem to wipe it off.

In-game notes: Ryan Howard made not one but two great plays in the field. A diving catch of a bunt in the 7th. The inning before, he speared a liner and then doubled off the runner at first. ... Marlins CF Cody Ross had a nice catch off Pedro Feliz in the 3rd. We'll be watching Web gems tonight. ... Mike Jacobs' 2nd inning homer hit a billboard that says "great home run." ... Tom Gordon started out shaky in the 8th, walking the first batter and going two balls on the next, Hanley Ramirez. Jimmy Rollins went to the mound. It worked. Ramirez struck out and the next two flew out.

Pre-game festivities: Michael Scott Lieberthal, possibly the greatest Phillie to ever don the tools of ignorance, signed a one-day minor-league contract to retire in the red pinstripes. He threw out the first pitch, then caught a second first-pitch from some corporate sponsor.

Observations from the stands: J-Roll, who had been using the song from the Geico caveman in the airport commercial, has gone back to rap intro music. The Geico music ended just as quickly as it started; it was weird. ... I filled out 19 All-Star ballots. It got tedious, but I didn't want them to go to waste. ... Saw some odd jerseys today. We thought we'd see plenty of Lieberthals, but saw only one on the way out. We did spot a Curt Schilling from his Phillies day and a Daisuke Matsuzaka hat. But the kicker was a couple near us wearing home and away Doug Glanville jerseys.


We thought it was funny because we were at the game when New Jersey native Doug Glanville signed a one-day contract to retire as a Phil. He may have been the last player to do this before today.

Giveaways: Like Mother's Day, Father's Day was celebrated early at Citizens Bank Park. Although not a dad, I'm older than 15 and qualify for the giveaway: a picture of a hat. On a hat. Sometimes the Phillies marketing department is quite clever; sometimes they got nothing. Here's the hat on a hat, next to the pink visor Christine got on Mother's Day. (We forgot to post a picture of it last month.)


Red Sox: Another decent outing for Bartolo Colon and Manny Ramirez's 501st homer led the Sox past the Orioles, 9-4.

1986

One of my favorite seasons in baseball is 1986 -- the year I became a Sox fan and first tasted the curse. (I didn't believe in the curse but I don't have a better word for the Billy Buckner, Grady Little and Don Zimmer type experiences.)

So, given this context, and my fascination with Baseball Mogul, I don't know why I haven't been following more closely Sporting News' 1986 Take II. Especially since it features SoxPhils as managers -- the World Series Hero, and Doug Glanville, a fellow North Jerseyan. Christine and I were at the game where his retirement was officially announced. He signed a one-day contract to retire as a Phillie and the team had him throw out the first pitch.

Anyway, they're apparently not doing so well. Fine, Glanville's got a bum hand with the '86 Phils, but Curt, c'mon, no excuse to have the '86 Sox 10 games under .500. Glanville's having the better season, and he's probably got the better blog.