Business-persons special

Despite some teasing threats to Christine, Trent and I didn't sneak off to the park for today's business-persons special against the Astros. It was also "kids run the bases," and Trent and I promised to bring home a scoopful of dirt from the infield.

We also, despite Trent's pleading, did not blow off our liquid lunch for some filet mignon to watch the game at the neighborhood steakhouse.

We just watched the game from Trent's blanket on the living room floor. It was very odd watching a Phillies game in the middle of the afternoon without Christine, especially when it marked the first time they've ever been swept in a four-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

It was fun watching the Roy Halladay perfect game tribute. It was a bit overblown and campy, but good mental mush for me and the boy. Christine would have liked seeing Carlos Ruiz get home plate. I couldn't decide whether I was touched or freaked out by the bronze casts of Doc's hand that was given to his sons. Maybe I'm just jealous because I don't think anyone will bronze my hands and stick them to a keyboard for Trent.

With no reason for Christine to watch the replay of today's game, we have the Twins-Rangers game on. Christine noticed that Trent was focusing on the game. We fear that he's now a Twins fan. As long as he doesn't root for a team with N and Y on its hat, we'll deal with it.

Go back to Minnesota

Christine and I played hooky from watching the Phillies today to go to Popcorn Park Zoo, a favorite home for needy animals.

We missed them not giving Roy Halladay any support and getting shut down 4-1 in a complete game by Carl Pavano. Incredible.

So the Phillies lost a series to the Twins, and many Twinkies fans will be leaving Philly happy. We couldn't believe how many Minnesotans ventured to the East Coast for the series. At first it was cute, then it quickly became nauseating because the fans didn't give them the Philly treatment.

Consider this couple who sat near us on Saturday, decked out in matching Nick Punto (why Nick Punto?) shirts. We got past that tackiness when we learned from their sign, which they waved incessantly, that it was their honeymoon and they were following the Twins from Philadelphia to New York.

The kind usher in our section loved their story, offered some tourist sight-seeing advice and gave them a ball he said he got in batting practise the night before. (We've seen several ultra-nice ushers at the park lately.) They cheered hard for their guy, Punto, but left when he walked in the 9th inning, missing the Twins great comeback.

We can't understand why they didn't catch any of the Phillies fans' vitriol. Late in the game, finally, someone told them to put down their stupid sign and helpfully pointed out that they misspelled "Philly's." And, yes, that was in reference to the team, not the city.

Christine and I appreciate the idea of spending a honeymoon chasing baseball, but we would not feel the need to advertise it, and we would not wear matching outfits.

These weren't the only Twins fans near us on Saturday. Perhaps a foreshadow for the honeymooners were a couple of retired folks. The gentleman wore a Michael Cuddyer T-shirt, and his wife wore a "Gramma Jan" Twins jersey with the No. 41 on it. She also wore big baseball earrings with Twins logos. She didn't really irritate me until we were leaving and she stopped traffic down the stairs to chat with some more Minnesotans who were still in their seats.

Other observations from the stands on Saturday: The kid next to me amused me until late in the game when he spit incessantly. He didn't have anything to drink, so I don't know how one boy could have so much saliva. Before annoying me, I learned that he and a buddy got balls tossed to them from Twins Francisco Liriano and former Red Sox Ron Mahay. The balls had logos for the Twins inaugural season at Target Field; apparently the road team brings its own balls. ... His buddy made us laugh when he started calling Jayson Werth shaggy. "He looks like Shaggy from Scooby-Doo," he said, breaking out his best Scooby impression.

Once again, we caught the Phillies' father-child game before the real game started, so the dads actually lost two games in one day.

Musically speaking: After stints with Journey, Sammy Hagar, Kings of Leon and others, Jayson Werth is using Metallica's Wherever I May Roam for his intro music. It's probably a slump buster, but I wonder if he's talking about his impending free agency. ... I'm addicted to Placido Polanco's into music, I Know You Want Me by Pitbull. I don't know why it never caught my ear when Pedro Feliz used it. ... They played Roller Coaster at one point. I think it should be retired in honor of Chris Coste. ... The Phanatic danced to Cab Calloway's Minnie the Moocher. We never heard that one at the ballpark before. ... The St. James Alumni Blue and Gray Voices directed by Pete McLaughlin did the anthem because it was St. James Alumni day. I don't remember their rendition, so it probably wasn't bad.

Antiquated shirts: Jimmy Rollins (not being snarky, I saw a Rollins No. 6, ironically walking next to a Howard No. 6), Jim Thome (also saw a current version of his Twins shirt), Bobby Abreu, Cliff Lee and former Twin Carlos Gomez.

I don't consider shirts of Hall of Famers antiquated, so it was nice to see a Kirby Puckett jersey, even though the guy wearing it should go back to Minnesota.

Oh well, almost time to see the Red Sox try to complete a sweep of the Dodgers to remain a game behind the Yankees and pull into a tie with the Rays for the Wild Card. Who was worried about their slow start?

I can't believe we sat through that

We were at the park today as the Phillies played a sloppy first inning and fell behind the Twins 3-0.

"This is going to be an ugly one, huh?" I asked Christine.

"These aren't the Phillies of last week," Christine said confidently.

Turns out, we were both right. Hitting season continued in earnest, and the Phils knocked out Twins starter Kevin Slowey in the 2nd inning with seven runs and two of the five home runs they would hit today. Cole Hamels overcame his rocky start to set down 13 in a row from the 1st to 5th inning.

It was a beautiful day at the park, and everything was perfect until Jim Thome came up with one man on in the 9th inning against Jose Contreras, who was trying to protect the 9-4 lead. Stupid Phillies fans cheered Thome before and even after he hit a two-run homer, giving the Twinkies life. That was bad karma that caused the Phils to cough up a five-run lead in the 9th inning for the first time since July 16, 2000. Brad Lidge also participated in the fun. Both teams volleyed until the 11th when Danys Baez, officially Christine's least favorite Phillie, gave up three runs. Twins 13, Phillies 10. {I am really not happy about this game. It seems just as bad as, if not worse than, last week's debacles against the Red Sox.}

At least the Red Sox, who blew a lead in the 7th inning, came back to win in the bottom of the 9th against the Dodgers.

We'll do a full recap of today's game in SoxandPhils style tomorrow. Warning: There will be a lot of discussion about Twins fans. I never knew there were so many. {And that they could be so annoying.}

Unwelcome return

I logged on thinking that Davey Lopes' comments about Chase Utley and his knee, and the Phillies' offensive explosion, would give me an excuse to downplay the return of Manny Ramirez to Fenway.

Nope.

An even bigger former Red Sox/roider/horse's ass stole my attention. Roger Clemens decided tonight would be a good night to catch a game in the Monster seats. What an ass. Doesn't he have a lawsuit to worry about?

The Globe reports that Manny was largely booed, but that there were some cheers and a video tribute to the former Red Sox slugger. He rewarded the appreciation by showing no acknowledgment. I probably would have neither cheered nor booed.

Manny aside, Felix Doubront won his big league debut despite giving up five runs (three earned) in five innings. The Red Sox beat the Dodgers 10-6 behind home runs by Manny's bud David Ortiz and former Dodgers Adrian Beltre and J.D. Drew. Former Phillies prospect Carlos Monasterios got shelled.

If you care (I don't) Manny was 1-5 with a run. Daniel Bard struck him out looking to end the game. {Greg cared so little that he stood up and cheered when Manny struck out.}

Phillies: Davey Lopes told Baseball Prospectus that Chase Utley has a knee injury, confirming much speculation. Utley denied it, but said he wouldn't ever say if he's injured:

Chase Utley said today he is a private person, so he probably would not admit if an injury affected his play.

Utley then said he is fine.

The Phillies said he is fine, too.

He looks fine tonight. Utley, who dismissed before the game that he has an injured right knee, singled and scored from first on a triple in the first inning, hit a three-run home run to right field in the second inning and made a fantastic diving catch in the third inning.

He also specifically refuted Lopes' comments:

"I think there's a little confusion and maybe a little bit of a difference of opinion with what Davey said," Utley said before the game. "In my opinion, an injury is something that keeps you off the field. When you play 162-games-plus over the course of the year you're going to have aches and pains. That's part of this game. That's part of being a baseball player. In my opinion there's no injury whatsoever."

In case you don't believe him - because he said he wouldn't admit if an injury affected his play - Chase was 2-5 tonight with two runs, four RBI and a home run. He was a big cog in what we hope is the official start of hittin' season as the Phillies beat the Twins 9-5. Ryan Howard was a bigger cog, going 4-4 with three runs, three RBI and two home runs, a triple and a double.

Fighting two enemies

My head hurt last night figuring out where my hopes should lie in the battle between the first-place Rays and wild card-leading Yankees.

Christine said I should focus first on the wild card, but I hate conceding anything, no matter how tough and talented Tampa is. And hey, we have a chance to win our third straight tonight against a playoff-caliber team.

This morning, the Globe suggested the Empire is crumbling and vulnerable. I guess the Globe and Christine make rational arguments, but I'm a fan. Let's knock 'em both off.

There's no doubting where my allegiance lies this weekend: I'll be anti-Phillies, and Christine will be anti-Red Sox. (She usually is anyway.)

Red Sox vs. Phillies history: Click here for a look back at the Red Sox and Phillies battles, SoxandPhils style. Our posts from June 2008 have details from each year of interleague play between the two teams.

Today: I had a long day at work, the Phillies beat the Cubs, and the Red Sox lead the Twins.

Sunday switcheroo

Last night, as we watched Roy Halladay dominate the Pirates in a 2-1 complete game loss, Christine noted that he was on track to start Sunday against Josh Beckett.

I almost cautioned her not to count on Beckett. Unfortunately, or hopefully fortunately in the long run, I was right. Despite the Yankees protest, he is injured and has been placed on the DL, so it will be Tim Wakefield vs. Doc on Sunday. Game on.

Red Sox vs. Phillies history: Lifetime, Josh Beckett is 8-4 with a 3.98 ERA in 19 games (17 starts) against the Phillies (including his Marlins starts). He has hit them well: .222/.276/.444 in 27 at-bats, including two of his three career home runs. We were there for one of them in 2006. As a Red Sox, Beckett is 2-1 in three starts, including a debacle last year.

Against the Phillies, including his time with the Pirates, Wakefield is 3-1 with a 3.15 ERA in nine games (seven starts).

As a Blue Jay, Halladay is 14-14 with a 4.28 in 41 games (38 starts) against Boston.

So, give the Red Sox the edge on Sunday. C'mon, despite last night's victory, delusion is all I have right now.

Tonight's games: Jamie Moyer pitched well, but the Phillies bats are still silent. In the 7th, Cubs 2, Phillies 0.

David Ortiz hit another home run (MVP! MVP! MVP!), and the Red Sox lead the Twins 2-1 in the 6th.

Closing the federal deficit

In our state, the transportation commissioner made a little stir when he mentioned the possibility of selling naming rights for rest stops on the Turnpike to help with the state's budget gap.

It even got a satirical segment on the Rachel Maddow Show.

So we were quite surprised on Opening Day to see that Congress has sold naming rights to the Capitol building to close the federal deficit. Our federal reps even slapped the name of a Philadelphia bar on the white dome, yet no one seemed to complain or object.

If a rest stop's name could be worth $1 million per year, how much did Chickie's & Pete's pay for this ad? I hope they didn't pay in cash, because after the 5th inning, Congress apparently reneged on the deal and the name was removed.

Other SoxandPhilsandJersey naming issues: Rapper and part-owner of the New Jersey Nets, Jay-Z, is suing David Ortiz, claiming infringement because Papi named his Dominican Republican night club Forty-Forty, similar to Jay-Z's 40/40 club. Poor Papi, he just can't catch a break this year.

Afternoon games: The Phillies bullpen decided to honor Brad Lidge, who was in town because the 2009 NL Champs got their rings today, by blowing a lead to the Nationals.

Danys Baez lost it in the 8th, coughing up the lead on a two-run pinch-hit home run by Ryan Zimmerman, making his first appearance of the series. Ryan Madson didn't help things by allowing two more runs in the 9th in the 7-5 loss.

The Red Sox just got whupped 8-0 by the Twins. Tim Wakefield got shelled, and Dustin Pedroia had three of the team's six hits. But it's only April 15.

Lady Pha Pha turns on Pat Listach

When the Phanatic came out for his skit on Opening Day, Christine didn't immediately break out the camera because I haven't been using these photos in game day posts, and she assumed I wouldn't be interested in the big green guy dressing in drag to spoof on Lady Gaga as Lady Pha Pha.

Normally, she'd be right, but this was not a normal encounter between the Phanatic and an opponent. Pat Listach, the Washington Nationals third base coach, made a gesture. It appeared as if he were practicing his Shake Weight technique, or he just really likes Lady Gaga, or the Phanatic. I don't know which scenario is worse.

Christine had started taking pictures when she saw the Phanatic was goofing with an opponent, and I hectically told her to get an action shot, thinking it was gold for the blog. She got flustered and was in disbelief because she thought I was trying to say the Phanatic was making un-fan-friendly gestures. In the end, she did get a shot of Listach taking aim at Lady Pha Pha and proving that his career did not peak with the 1992 Rookie of the Year award for the Milwaukee Brewers.

I have no way to transition out of that topic: As expected, since he was unexpectedly yanked from Monday's starting lineup after slapping hands with the fans moments before the game, Jimmy Rollins was officially placed on the disabled list. He's gone for two to four weeks. So the starting shortstop of the reigning NL Champs is Juan Castro. (And Christine and I were worried that we would always forget that he was on the team.)

J-Roll's infield mates are compensating for his absence tonight: Through four innings, Chase Utley, Placido Polanco and Ryan Howard have a combined line of 5-8 with five runs, five RBI, and a double and a homer.

Unfortunately, the Phillies needed all of the offense and then some because Kyle Kendrick couldn't get out of the 2nd inning without giving up six runs. In a wild one, the Phillies and Nationals are tied at 7 in the 5th. It's going to be a long night.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, beat the Twins 6-3 in an afternoon game behind a solid outing by John Lackey.

Opening Day

The Phillies opened Citizens Bank Park today, and we were there to see the 7-4 win over the Washington Nationals.

We don't have time to give the day justice in tonight's post, but throughout the week, we'll recap our experience in true SoxandPhils style, including: getting to the parking lot before it opened, a new hot dog, all the patriotic pageantry, Jimmy Rollins' surprise injury, an old lady in a goofy hat and possibly an obscene gesture from a Nationals coach.

Red Sox: Jon Lester and the Red Sox were also in a festive mood, giving the Twins a 5-2 win so they could enjoy the opening of Target Field. But John Lackey won't be as nice in the next game on Wednesday.

Ready to ride

Christine and I have followed our teams for 324 games, and now it could all be over in three games each, or we could have a long, intense month that ends with one of us not talking to the other.

Nothing is better than winning in the playoffs, and nothing is worse. The long marathon comes down to minutiae right now. Just ask the Twins and Tigers, whose season ended in game No. 163 before the Twins pushed across a run in the 12th inning to win 6-5. You have to love that they needed extra innings in an extra game to complete one of the biggest comebacks in baseball history. And, yes, we're quite familiar with how the NL East was won in 2007.

Before we make our predictions for the first round, here's a quick recap of today's SoxandPhils playoff notes: Cliff Lee starts game 1; Joe Blanton and J.A. Happ join the reality TV stars in The Pen; and Eric Bruntlett, Clay Condrey and Tyler Walker aren't on the roster for this round.

Christine is upset about the last one because Walker has been arguably the second best reliever on the Phillies this year. And he's been prominently featured as the Phillie most looking forward to his playoff debut.

No real surprises today for the Red Sox (although they're not announcing their roster until tomorrow), except for the fact that Manny Delcarmen was in a car crash on Saturday. That's odd they managed to kept that quiet for so long. And I forgot how good Jonathan Papelbon has been in the playoffs, so he's probably going to get rocked in his first appearance now.

Our picks: Of the SoxandPhils' preseason predictions, only Christine and I have our World Series in tact. She has the Phillies over the Angels; I have the Red Sox over the Phillies. We each stand by our picks, but mine was more precise {thanks for rubbing it in}:

World Series: Red Sox over Phillies. Jason Bay hits a walkoff home run in Game 7 - the first blown save in three years for Brad Lidge.

Here are my picks for the first round: I'm not as confident in the Sox as I have been in the past two years, and I am nervous that their dominance over the Angels in the playoffs is bound to even out eventually, but I think the Sox will pull it out in five.

I'll go with my heart over my head and take the Twins over the Yankees in four. But if the Twins lose Game 1, they'll be swept.

Despite the Phillies bullpen issues, I think they have enough to beat the Rockies in four. I'll take the Cardinals in four.

Christine's picks:

Rockies vs. Phillies: Phillies, no doubt.

Cardinals vs. Dodgers: Cardinals. I want an easy road to the World Series, and the Cardinals would definitely provide that.

Twins vs. Yankees: Yankees. Blah. But don't worry, they won't win it all.

Red Sox vs. Angels: Angels. If you'll recall my preseason pick, I wanted to say the Red Sox for the Wild Card, but Greg was kind of pissy over that. So I elevated them to AL East champs over the Rays (my division pick). Should have stuck with my Wild Card instinct. Anyway, this part of the prediction will stand. This is the year the Angels finally beat the Red Sox in a round of the playoffs, setting up an Angels-Phillies finale.

Busy day in 10 clicks

Since I last posted:

• The Red Sox tied a record last night for wild pitches, and Tim Wakefield wasn't even pitching.


• Brett Myers wasn't pulled from last night's game for ineffectiveness, but for a hip injury that he's had for awhile. He may need surgery, which could end his Phillies career.


• Harry Kalas will be inducted to the Wall of Fame. It's such a no-brainer, but I hadn't thought about it before.


• Pedro Feliz might get his 2010 option picked up.


• This afternoon, the Red Sox beat the Twins 3-1 behind a good performance by Josh Beckett and switch-hit home runs by Jason Varitek, who managed the feat before getting ejected along with Terry Francona and two Twins.


• Someone with a vested interest read my book report post. More Roger Clemens posts can be found here. {Hi Rusty Hardin & Associates!}


• Our observation, not previously mentioned on the blog, that Charlie Manuel has lost weight has been confirmed.

Funny, this morning I thought that with an off-day for the Phillies and an afternoon tilt for the Red Sox that I would just write tonight about Todd Zolecki's Random stuff post. I still will.

Like many of our SoxandPhils readers, Zo says he is a fan of intro music. He noted that when Brad Lidge last pitched, he came out to the silly music for a scoreboard bobblehead race instead of Soldiers. I had wondered if they would keep playing that tune if his struggles persist. Lidge might have a similar thought:

"I was coming in to some circus music," Lidge said. "That's about right."

Another favorite silly Phillies thing for Christine and me is Sarge. Especially his hats. He's not only a fashion plate, but also a shrewd salesman:

Gary Matthews' hat collection is available at the Majestic Clubhouse Store, but I told him yesterday that I could not pull off the Sarge hat look. I just don't think I have the cool factor to do it. Sarge assured me that I did, which I thought was nice of him to say.

But then I remembered he's trying to sell hats. Why I oughta (shaking my fist in the air) ...

Final note: I'm always bummed when the Phillies aren't on, especially after a long bad day at work. But the Spelling Bee finals will substitute nicely tonight.

Alternate universe

Since the great '04, I've said rooting for the Red Sox has forever changed. I predicted a similar experience for the Phillies fans who waited decades for a championship.

But I didn't think things could change so drastically that the Philadelphia fans (I'll spare the stories of snowballs and D batteries) would be too soft on the defending World Champion first-place Phillies.

"I notice sometimes when they're talking to us around the dugout, they're always talking about last year and thanking us for winning and all that," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said before last night's 5-3 victory over the Florida Marlins. "Of course, they're enjoying the game and they love us, but ... well, maybe they should get on us a little bit."

What? Charlie Manuel, who was nearly run out of town before writing his first lineup, is asking for grief from the fans?

It's a recipe to repair the homefield oddity, to ease the manager's concerns that our newfound niceness is hurting, not helping his ballclub.

"If you notice, our fans are still into everything," said Manuel. "They fill our ballpark up. And they stay. And that's good. I want them to keep coming to the games.

"But I want our fans to start telling them, 'Hey, look: We've got to win this year, too.'"

Be careful what you wish for Charlie.

Speaking of boos, in my haste to wrap up the post and get to bed last night, I forgot to mention that there were some boos for Brad Lidge when he walked his first batter.

Tonight: Brett Myers' hot streak ended - he was removed in the 6th down 5-1 to the Marlins. ... Red Sox and Twins are scoreless in the 3rd. Daisuke Matsuzaka threw 24 pitches in one inning, Kevin Slowly threw 35 - in two innings.

Semi-completed book report

Whenever I get the chance to read during my lunch hour, I've been enjoying Jeff Pearlman's The Rocket that Fell to Earth, a birthday gift from Christine.

It's quite different from the last Roger Clemens book I read - Rocket Man: The Roger Clemens Story, written by Clemens with Peter Gammons.

In fact, a lot of the current book points out inaccuracies in Clemens' "autobiography," such as claims he was offered a D-1 scholarship and was drafted by the Twins in 1980.

The Providence Journal's Sean McAdam is quoted in the book:

He was a liar, plain and simple. Roger was as full of shit as any athlete I've ever seen in my career. He said whatever worked for him, whether it was truthful or not. Reality didn't matter for Roger Clemens in any way, shape or form.

Today I learned that Clemens named his split-finger fastball Mr. Splitty. That was pretty much the only endearing thing I read about my former idol in a 30-page span that covered a large chunk of his Red Sox career.

The other positive, besides a fascinating glimpse of the meltdown in the 1990 ALCS, was a quote by the SoxandPhils' own Ken Ryan:

Roger was Roger. As a young player, he wasn't the easiest person to approach. It's not like he wouldn't talk at all, but if you needed anything substantial or worthwhile, you first had to show that you were worthy in his eyes.

If Clemens hadn't ruined his reputation by selling himself to two devils (the Yankees and steroids), this book could be a crushing blow to the memories I have of the guy responsible for me being a Red Sox fan. But he destroyed his own image long before Jeff Pearlman documented his downfall.

I have read a lot of negative stuff I hadn't heard before. I wonder how much of that I would have known and whether it would have affected my fandom if the Internet had existed when I was young.

Clemens is a waste, but The Rocket that Fell to Earth isn't.

Non-book quotables: Shane Victorino on trying to steal second base when down by two runs in the 9th inning on Monday: "There's no excuses to the fact that I f'd up." David Ortiz's no comment today after the media learned he was dropped to sixth in tonight's lineup: "I'll talk after I go deep."

Tonight's games: Joe Blanton was moneyball tonight, giving up no runs in seven innings with a career-high 11 strikeouts in a 5-3 win over the Marlins. Victorino didn't F-up tonight, going 4-5 with a run and RBI. The 9th got a little dicey with Chad Durbin and Scott Eyre on the mound, but Brad Lidge eventually cleaned up the mess after walking his first batter. ... Papi isn't talking yet, although he has a double and a walk in his first three plate appearances. Jon Lester imploded in the 5th inning, giving up five runs. The Sox trail the Twins 5-2 in the 7th.

[Photo credit: JeffPearlman.com and Amazon.com]

Concerning pitching

Entering the year, the SoxandPhils had two of the most certain closers in baseball. Brad Lidge's struggles have since been well-documented here, and now Jonathan Papelbon is joining him.

The Sox won this afternoon, 6-5 over the Twins, but it should not have been so close. Up 6-3 in the 9th, Papelbon gave up a two-run home run to pinch-hitter Joe Mauer, which raised Papelbon's ERA to 2.57. (But it's still minuscule compared with Lidge's 9.15.)

Papelbon has been so automatic for the first few years of his career that any blip is a concern. One mitigating factor is that he needed only 14 pitches to give up a hit and a home run while still managing a strikeout. Without seeing the game, those facts make it seem that today was just a case of a great hitting beating a great pitcher, who managed to preserve his team's lead.

Other notables: The Red Sox didn't drop David Ortiz in the lineup; he was benched against lefty Francisco Liriano. Jacoby Ellsbury went 2-5, extending his hitting streak to 20 games, but he still has an OBP of .333. Mike Lowell led the way with four hits, and Dustin Pedroia had three and four others had two. Decent game for Brad Penny (5-1) who won his third in a row, giving up three runs in 5 1/3 innings.

Phillies: I have a feeling the 4th inning will sum up the night for Jamie Moyer. After pitching three scoreless innings, he walked Hanley Ramirez and Jorge Cantu. He ran the count to 2-2 to Wes Helms before throwing a fastball right over the heart of the plate. The former Phillie was frozen, but the umpire called ball. Next pitch? Home run. J-Moy then set down the next three, but now, thanks to a bum call, he's down 3-2 in the 5th inning in another pursuit of his 250th career win.

Incidentally, no Phillies starter issued a walk against the Yankees this weekend.

A season's series in one day

Assuming the Red Sox (currently up 7-3 in the 8th inning, thanks to just-called-up Jeff Bailey's three-run homer) finish off the Twins before midnight, then they would have swept their entire slate of home games against Minnesota in one day. This is the only time the Twinkies visit Boston, and the schedule makers made it a two-game set.

Rain cancelled Monday's game, shortened today's day game and has delayed the nightcap. I hope they get this one in so the red-hot Red Sox can keep their Thursday off day and rest up for the first meeting against the Yankees this weekend.

Speaking of the evil empire, I had fun watching and listening to bits of their game with a co-worker who is a typical Yankee fan and apparently still believes in mystique and aura after all these losing years.

In the Red Sox day game, Tim Wakefield pitched his second consecutive complete game - even if the game was shortened to seven innings. He gave up a run on five hits and a walk with four strikeouts. Is it too late to change my Cy Young prediction?

Kevin Youkilis, my MVP pick, continued to click, joining Mike Lowell and Nick Green with two-run home runs in the first three innings of the 10-1 win.

***BREAKING NEWS*** The Phillies game wasn't on TV, so we were listening to the radio broadcast as we cleaned the house for a weekend party. They said every time the World Series trophy handlers make an appearance, they buy a plane ticket for the trophy so it can sit on a seat, not in the cargo area. OK, this looks stupid in print, but Christine and I were very amused by this. {Does the trophy ask for the window seat?}

In the game, Phillies wasted a serviceable Joe Blanton performance - three runs over six innings should be a winnable game, but despite putting the potential tying run on base in the 9th, the Phillies could only manage one run off Braden Looper and the crappy Brewers bullpen.

Sox hit like Inspector Gadget

On Sunday we bought the Phillies 2008 Yearbook. Instead of listing height, weight and other basic stats for the Phillies, they had the team answer questions to give the fans some insight into 31 members of the Phightin' Phils. We're going to review their answers.

First category: Favorite Gadget

Best answer: Tom Gordon's "Inspector Gadget."

I loved that cartoon. Go-Go-Gadget!

Other noteworthy responses: Ryan Madson picked his universal remote. Then for another question, he said a broken remote annoys him. Clay Condrey likes his drill. I love my drill, but I'm not sure it would rank as my favorite gadget. I don't know what would.

The runaway favorite with 10 mentions was the iPod. I'm not surprised that five Phillies picked a video game system, but I'm a little surprised they all said Xbox 360. The other multiple answers were iPhone (3), computer/laptop (3) and cell phone (2).

There were no answers to the question from Pat Burrell, Ryan Howard or Chase Utley.

Today's games: The Red Sox couldn't have scored more runs if they had Inspector Gadget in the lineup, completing a sweep of the Twins with an 18-5 drubbing despite a subpar performance by Josh Beckett. {Greg seems to be misremembering Inspector Gadget. Everyone knows that Penny and Brain were the, well, brains in that operation and had to save Gadget in every episode.} Jacoby Ellsbury led the charge with four hits. Every starter except Brandon Moss had at least two hits. Hopefully that's the wake-up call to get them back to winning consistently.

The win puts them 3.5 games in front of the Twins for the Wild Card and two behind the Rays for the division.

The Phillies made like Inspector Gadget and escaped their four-game losing streak. J.A. Happ had a good start, and Ryan Howard hit the go-ahead homer in the 8th to beat the Cardinals, 4-2.

The Mets and Marlins won, and each remains 1.5 games out. Mets fans, unaccustomed to a winning streak, were quite full of themselves on WFAN today.

Baseball Mogul update: I had a good season, winning 109 games. But everything fell apart in the NLCS against the Diamondbacks, who nearly swept. The best I could do was force a fifth game before losing the series 4-1. I think I'll switch to the Red Sox for awhile.

[Photo credits: Phillies 2008 Yearbook (Tom Gordon) and Disney (Inspector Gadget)]

A SoxandPhils alumnus

If I were to start a SoxandPhils Hall of Fame - I'm not, but if I were - the first inductee would not be Tom Gordon, Terry Francona or even Curt Schilling. No, it would be the legendary Ken Ryan.

He played for eight years, amassing 30 saves with a 3.91 ERA in 240 games split evenly between the Red Sox and Phillies. In a convoluted way, he can take some credit for the Red Sox recent championships. He was traded to the Phillies before the 1996 season with Glenn Murray and Lee Tinsley for Heathcliff Slocumb and two minor leaguers. Heathcliff "Slocumb if you got 'em" was traded the next season for Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek.

But Ryan's place in SoxandPhils lore was cemented only recently. In fact, I can't say I've given him much thought at all until Sunday, when I opened my Phillies program and saw "Catching up with ... Ken Ryan." These days, he runs a baseball academy, plays in celebrity softball games and does some commentary at minor league baseball games. And the Rhode Island native still follows his big league teams:

Oh, yes. Of course I follow the Red Sox the most because of where I live, but my favorite National League team is the Phillies. So, I root for two teams.

Back to the present: The Red Sox entered the bottom of the 8th trailing the Twins 5-2 tonight. A three-run homer by Manny Ramirez - who got $10,000 today - followed by a manufactured run gave the Sox a 6-5 lead. Jonathan Papelbon saved it despite a lead-off double by former Phillie Nick Punto.

That's the kind of win the Phillies used to get. Tonight they entered the bottom of the 9th trailing the Cardinals 2-0, with Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell due up against Ryan Franklin. Last year, that would have been a 3-2 win. This year, it's game over, another hard-luck loss for Cole Hamels. It's official, especially with last night's failed comeback: The 2008 Phillies have lost their 2007 mojo.

Competitors: Rays lost. Mets won. Marlins haven't played yet. Sox trail the Rays by three, but lead the Twins by 2.5. Phillies lead the Mets by 1.5 and the Marlins by one.

We have some races

With the Red Sox entering play five games out, I'm thinking the unthinkable. It might be time to be - gasp! - rooting for the Yankees against the Rays this week. A solid 1-0 win over the Twins (7.1 scoreless innings by Daisuke Matsuzaka) crept us back to four out and extended our wild card lead to 2.5 games over Minnesota. I'll put off rooting for the Empire, but if the Rays don't start losing soon, I may be forced to root for evil next time.

The Phillies, meanwhile, dropped their third straight to the Mets, who are now just 2.5 games behind. A lousy start by Adam Eaton culminated in the Phillies being down 10-1 entering the bottom of the 6th. The ghosts of 2007 seemed to return as the Phillies scored in all of the remaining innings, including two in the 9th off Billy Wagner. But Jayson Werth, who had been perfect against B-Wags, flew out to end the game with the potential tying run on second base. Mets 10, Phillies 9.

One more day

Tomorrow we'll learn who is an All-Star and who got snubbed. For the Phillies, we know Chase Utley will be starting, and Pat Burrell, Brad Lidge and Cole Hamels have a good chance of joining him. If it were up to SoxandPhils, and we could select only one of the three, we'd give Pat the Bat his first selection. Who knows if he'll ever get another shot like this one.

For the Red Sox, looks like David Ortiz will be elected but won't play because of injury. Manny Ramirez will also be elected, but he hasn't said yet he won't play. Kevin Youkilis should hold on to win the ballot; Dustin Pedroia's lead is tenuous. Jonathan Papelbon is the only pitcher who warrants consideration. J.D. Drew deserves it more than Manny, but he'll get crowded out, especially with so many Red Sox in contention. Same holds true for Jon Lester. So I predict at least Manny, Papi, Papelon and Youk will be named to the squad, maybe more if the numbers shake out.

{There is only one guaranteed Red Sox to be at the game - Terry Francona. Don't count your all-star ballots before they're hatched.}

But no matter what happens, don't take it all too seriously. An All-Star for one team can become something else for another team a decade later ...

Still some games before the All-Star break: Good wins yesterday against two irrelevant New York teams: The Red Sox beat the Yankees 6-4, and the Phillies won in their last-at bat, 3-2 over the Mets.

Chad Durbin is getting all of the attention for his shutdown relief of J.A. Happ and keeping the Phillies in the game until Johan Santana exited. Speaking of the savior, he's now 0-4 in his last six starts despite a 2.48 ERA. Since Johan's last win (June 1), the Twins, the team he left for dead, is 19-11. Lester, the guy the Red Sox wouldn't give up to get Johan, is 4-0 since then. I wonder who's happy with how things worked out?

We'll be back tomorrow with our normal Sunday game-day Phillies post.

Close, but no carnation for Mother's Day

The Red Sox tried but couldn't rally past the Twins for their moms yesterday. The Phillies also dropped a one-run game, with J.C. Romero taking the loss against the Giants instead of Adam Eaton.

The failed Red Sox rally reminded me of the 1997 Mother's Day game, when they rallied for four runs late in the game against the Rangers but still lost 8-6. A young whippersnapper by the name of Tom Gordon dropped to 1-5.

I remember this game because I was in Fenway that day with my brother and cousin. It was a long day trip from North Jersey. We snuck down to the box seats to watch the Sox come up short.

Mom wasn't happy that I - just home for summer break after my sophomore year of college - took the trip.

Hopefully, the Sox, playing on ESPN tonight, will not have another failed comeback.