Our heads are still spinning

So many thoughts flew through our heads, so little time to get them down.

The surprising return of Cliff Lee is like a good novel full of plot twists that has Philly fans psyched and Yankees fans crying.

The only way to improve that story is if it were true that there was a SoxandPhils trade for Joe Blanton that was motivated by the Red Sox helping the Phillies afford to add their fourth ace to keep him out of the Bronx.

That's probably a little far-fetched, but not so much more far-fetched than the Phillies signing a guy to a $120 million contract just about a year after they traded him away because they didn't think they could re-sign him.

Now, we have to worry about him matching up with Jon Lester in Game 2 of the World Series. I have to admit, I'm a little worried about the Game 4 John Lackey-Roy Oswalt matchup. We'll figure it out. Sox in 7.

Trent has never been so insulted

Three months after Trent arrived, I finally felt safe enough, sleep-wise, to make the two-hour drive to my parents' house for a visit today.

While we were visiting the Yankee - blech - side of the family, Trent would sometimes look at the TV, where the Rangers were on their way to a 7-2 win over the Yankees. (Stupid Rangers. They had CC Sabathia beat in Game 1, but blew it. They should be up 2-0 with Cliff Lee waiting to drop the hammer.)

Everyone kept saying Trent is a Yankee fan because he looked at the TV. Our son is not a brain-dead sheep. He's a free thinker capable of making his own decisions. He was simply scouting out the Phillies' World Series opponent. He found a hole in Josh Hamilton's swing and the secret to beating the Yankees - knock out their starter early and don't let them back in.

After our trek north, we tried to watch the hyped Roy Halladay-Tim Lincecum matchup, but, of course, we couldn't. It was on in the background as we battled some ants. Final: Giants 4, Phillies 3. Christine is cranky about it.

The day after

I tried my best to avoid coverage of Roy Halladay's no-hitter, but it was impossible.

It still hurts. I still suck. And the Yankees still suck.

At least Christine has started talking to me. But Trent won't say a word, which is odd because he wouldn't have been going anyway.

Yankees suck

Of course MLB wouldn't schedule the Yankees to play a game that's not in a prime-time slot. That wouldn't be fair to New Yorkers. They should never have to choose between work and watching a playoff game. That would be un-American.

We're not surprised that Phillies fans got the shaft, but we thought baseball would throw us a bone and give us a 6 p.m. start for Wednesday's game, not 5 p.m. We would have missed the beginning, but we still would have made it, unless Roy Halladay decided to set the record for the quickest perfect game ever. Unfortunately, it looks like we won't be attending an NLDS game for the first time since the Phillies four-year playoff run began - unless Trent's super-secret plan to get rich and allow us to retire occurs before Wednesday. He's been working very hard on it.

Rooting

I didn't think I'd care much about baseball today, but it was nice to see the Red Sox win the final two games against the Yankees, knocking them down to the Wild Card. Congrats to the AL East Champion Rays.

It was also nice rooting for the Phillies as they gave another scare to the Braves, who survived to make the playoffs. Finally, we were rooting for the Padres to win against the Giants and set up a three-way tie in the NL, but that also fell short.

I did it

It's 10:30 p.m., and we've been up since before sunrise.

I did my 75-mile ride today - 77.94 miles to be exact - in six hours, eight minutes and 15 seconds (not counting rest stops). Christine and Trent fashioned the cutest sign and attached it to his stroller to welcome me after my ride, and they were waiting with our parents at the finish line.

I was so proud and happy. Now, I'm kinda tired.

The Red Sox continue to play spoiler against the Yankees (7-3 win), and the Phillies blew it against the Mets (5-2 loss), making it tougher to clinch tomorrow in their home regular season finale.

SoxandPhils take on New York

And ... we're really not that interested. The only intrigue is whether the Phillies can manage to clinch at home this weekend against the Mets and whether the Red Sox can help the Rays and Twins knock the Yankees from the top seed in the American League to the Wild Card.

We're more focused on tomorrow's big ride and our first night away from Trent. (He's at Grandmom's so we don't have to worry about him while stumbling out the door at 5:30 in the morning so I can get to the starting line.)

So far, so good for the Phils. They beat the Mets 3-2 while the Nationals lead the Braves 7-3 in the 8th. If that holds up, the Phillies could clinch tomorrow with another win and a Braves loss, but Sunday would make a better clincher, in our opinion.

Things started out well for the Red Sox. They were up 10-1 in the 6th, but it's now 10-7 in the 9th.

I hope that tomorrow I finish my ride stronger than the Red Sox are finishing this game.

Off day

The Red Sox and Phillies are off today, so we're taking the day off, too (but just from blogging). Besides, I don't have anything to add because I have been preoccupied with getting mentally geared for a 75-mile bike ride for which I may not be physically prepared, taking care of Trent and ignoring the suckitude of the Red Sox.

Heck, I'm so out of it, I didn't realize the Red Sox are about to start a series against the Yankees.

{Though I'm well aware that the Phillies may be able to clinch against the Mets this weekend! Preferably on Sunday.}

Quick playoff picture

Trent and I finished the doors today and serviced the heater before the season changes. Tomorrow, I'm taking my last training ride in preparation for next week's big bike ride, and on Sunday, we'll paint the new doors.

Trent couldn't convince Christine to go SoxandPhils and paint them red and blue. She tried to reason with him that both teams have white in their uniforms.

The Phillies beat the Nationals 9-1, lowering their magic number to 12. (Despite Christine and Trent's rooting, the Mets couldn't beat the Braves.)

The Red Sox lost to the Blue Jays, and the Yankees beat the Orioles, so the Red Sox magic number remains at 21.

Yes, the Red Sox are still alive. They just have to go 10-5 and hope the Yankees go 3-12. Stranger things have happened (see: ALCS, 2004).

7th inning stretch

We're approaching the final stretch, and I hope today's 7th inning turns out to be a metaphor for the season.

Clinging to a 2-0 lead against the Empire, Jon Lester loaded the bases with no outs. You had the sense that this would be the moment the 2010 Red Sox would finally succumb after battling through so many injuries and facing very tough Rays and Yankees opponents.

But Lester struck out Curtis Granderson. Daniel Bard came in from the pen, and six pitches later, Derek Jeter and Nick Swisher also struck out. Bard gave up a run in the 8th, but Jonathan Papelbon nailed down the save.

The Sox are still kicking. Don't count out a SoxandPhils series, Trent says.

The Phillies are off today.

Mobile madness

Christine thought Trent could use a mobile for his room.

I disagreed.

A SoxandPhils baby should have two mobiles: a Phillies mobile with the Phillie Phanatic and a Red Sox one, even if it has Wally the Green Monster.

Christine didn't go for my idea of dueling mobiles, so we set out (on Trent's first day as a vaccinated baby) to the local baby supply store to find a more traditional mobile - something in a jungle animal theme to complement his room. We also stopped by a bookstore to beef up the Dr. Seuss selections in his library.

We found the prefect mobile - it had the required jungle animals, and they were playing different sports. (The baseball player is an elephant.) But it was out of stock, so we headed to another store a couple towns away while we listened on the radio to Roy Halladay lead the Phillies past the Mets 6-5.

Trent was doing well on his first day out and mobile and we were getting hungry, so we decided to push our luck and stop at a chain restaurant to attempt our first dinner out as a family of three.

Dinner was flawless, and when we got home, we set up the athletic critters to spin around his crib. I read Trent some Dr. Seuss as the Red Sox started their game against the Yankees. The only bad part of the day is that Josh Beckett got knocked out in the 5th and the Red Sox trail the Yankees 7-2 in the 7th.

I've been telling Trent that you can't quit on your team, but reality is starting to sink in.

Long day

It started with Trent's first batch of shots. It was a big batch - lots of pricking for such a little pin cushion. But he took them like a champ.

Then, I left Christine and Grandmom to deal with some of the vaccines' side effects while I learned that a 50-mile bike ride isn't as easy as it was a month ago. Go figure.

When I returned, the Red Sox seemed ready to cruise to a victory against the Yankees, but John Lackey lost it in the 5th and CC Sabathia shut down the Sox after they got an early two-run lead in the 2nd inning. Yankees 5, Red Sox 2. Funny - when this series started, everyone thought the Red Sox had the edge in pitching matchups in every game except this one. I thought that meant we would wind up losing three of four with today's mismatch the exception.

This evening, Johan Santana and Cole Hamels. Cole was a tad better - six hits and 11 strikeouts in seven innings compared with Johan's five hits, three walks and six strikeouts. The difference? One of the hits Hamels gave up was a home run, and Johan didn't give up any runs. It seemed like a game destined for Trent's comeback magic, especially when the Phillies knocked out Santana in the 8th and loaded the bases against Francisco Rodriguez. But the little guy's still not completely over the shots. Mets 1, Phillies 0.

The Red Sox signed Carlos Delgado. Thrilling.

Babies on the brain

I've been preoccupied with my little guy for the past month or so, and even now when the Red Sox are playing the Yankees in a series that many consider their last chance to hang in the playoff hunt, I can't get babies off the brain.

That's because Trent isn't the only SoxandPhil babe experiencing his first Red Sox-Yankees series:

Meanwhile, it's baby time in the rivalry. Jon Lester welcomed a son last weekend. Clay Buchholz and his wife had a baby girl a few days ago and yesterday CC Sabathia and his wife had their fourth child.

Hopefully, Papa CC gets tired like Lester and Buchholz have been:

Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz have had trouble resting this week, as both became fathers for the first time. "We got a run going on — on babies," Francona said. Lester told Francona after Wednesday night's loss that his left hamstring was fine. Francona said Lester was just dehydrated.

Tonight's games: Papa Clay pitched well - three runs in 7 1/3 innings as the Red Sox won 6-3. This is also Trent's first Phillies-Mets series, and the good guys won that series opener 7-5. So, Trent's first SoxandPhils vs. New York series has started off well.

Mike Lowell almost was the next Mike Stanley

Good news: Mike Lowell is in the starting lineup, which means he wasn't traded to the Yankees.

Bad news: Mike Lowell is in the starting lineup, which means Kevin Youkilis is on the DL.

The last time the Yankees and Red Sox swapped players, Mike Stanley was traded back to the empire and we got Tony Armas Jr., who was included with Carl Pavano in the Pedro Martinez deal. So I guess dealing with the devil isn't necessary all that bad.

Joining Youkilis on the DL is his fellow SoxandPhils first baseman, Ryan Howard. Unbelievable.

Tonight's games, aces up: Roy Halladay and the Phillies lead the Marlins 6-1 in the 8th, and Josh Beckett has the Red Sox ahead of the Indians 3-1 in the 7th.

Quick thoughts on departed Yankees

Here's my take on the two iconic Yankees who died this week.

Bob Sheppard: I'll bestow upon him the highest honor I'll give a Yankee. Like Mariano Rivera, I would love him if he were on any other team. His voice was golden, but the Yankees went a little overboard with the "Voice of God" stuff and the pre-recorded intro for Derek Jeter. Like Rivera, my animosity for him is solely because he's a Yankee.

Ricky Bottalico did a good impression of Sheppard this morning on WIP. He also did a pretty good Harry Kalas.

George Steinbrenner: The epitome of Yankee arrogance and bombast. He's everything that baseball shouldn't be. And the Yankee fans who came to love him when the Yankees started winning in the 1990s are hypocrites because they all hated him just a couple years before.

The Yankees are honoring their departed legends by wearing not one but two separate and gaudy patches. In my day, when a Yankee died, they put just a black band on their sleeves. Steinbrenner was classy with things like this; I'd think he'd prefer the simple black band.

Surprise recall

1. We didn't know Antonio Bastardo was injured.

2. We didn't know Scott Mathieson was a fan favorite, though we've been rooting for him here.

3. We didn't know that Mathieson would be the next pitcher recalled from AAA.

We learned all those things tonight as Mathieson has made it back to the big leagues after two Tommy John surgeries:

This completes Mathieson's grueling journey back to the big leagues. He went 1-4 with a 7.47 ERA in nine appearances (eight starts) with the Phillies in 2006. His struggles led to the Phillies acquiring Jamie Moyer. Mathieson injured his right elbow Sept. 2, 2006, and had Tommy John surgery Sept. 29. He made seven rehab appearances in August 2007, but felt more discomfort and required ulnar nerve transposition Sept. 24, 2007.

Mathieson had his second Tommy John surgery in 2008.

The chances of returning to the big leagues following two Tommy John surgeries are slim, but Mathieson did it. He's back. And I know fans have been eager to see him pitch at the big-league level again.

I'll never forget that his best work (so far) had come in relief in a blowout loss against the Red Sox. I was doing some electrical work in our spare bedroom and listened to the game on the radio. Mathieson's recall reminded us to check on the progress of another one of Christine's favorites, Mike Zagurksi. He's pitching well in AAA, so maybe we'll see him join Mathieson again.

Tonight's games: Playing an hour early so the Fenway Faithful could watch Game 7 of the NBA finals, the Red Sox finished off the sweep of the Diamondbacks behind a mediocre performance by John Lackey. Daniel Nava (he needs a good nickname) went 3-4 with two doubles, two runs and an RBI. ROY! ROY! ROY! I know, this run won't last long, but I'm going to enjoy it as long as I can.

In New York, meanwhile, Kyle Kendrick, who is preparing for a demotion, put in a strong effort -one run on four hits, two walks with three strikeouts in seven innings. His mates actually put some runs on the board, beating the Yankees 7-1.

Former Red Sox slugger returns to Fenway

Lost in the shuffle of the NL West portion of the Red Sox' interleague schedule is the return of a former Red Sox whose exemplary character and offensive contributions are still missed long after he was traded to the National League.

I speak not of Manny Ramirez, whose Dodgers play in Boston this weekend, but of Adam LaRoche, who had an interesting nine-game stint as a Red Sox last year:

The first baseman spent little more than a week in a Red Sox uniform last year, acquired on July 22 and then traded nine days later.

In between, he managed to homer in his first game, stroke a big double to help beat the A's in his third, and move in with teammate and fellow hunting enthusiast J.D. Drew. The arrival of Victor Martinez made LaRoche expendable, so he was traded to the Braves at the deadline for fellow first baseman Casey Kotchman.

LaRoche, now on the Diamondbacks, could be bitter about having been moved around so much, but he's not:

"I see it as a pretty classy gesture on the Red Sox' part," LaRoche said. "When they got Victor in that trade, they easily could have forgotten about me and not tried to trade me. I could have stayed here and been a platoon guy and played a couple of times a week.

"But I remember Tito (manager Terry Francona) calling me into his office and saying, 'We feel bad we got you and now we've got Victor and there's going to be this big circle of guys playing third and first. We’re doing everything we can to get you moved before the deadline.'"

Classy remarks on his part.

The phenom starts again: Yes, Stephen Strasburg makes his third major league start on Friday (another national broadcast, of course), but I'm more interested in Felix Doubront getting his first call-up to make a spot start for injured Daisuke Matsuzaka.

Today's games: Things went well tonight for the Phillies in New York on the 24th anniversary of Jamie Moyer's big league debut. J-Moy didn't pitch well that night, but the young Cubbie was able to beat Steve Carlton and the Phils. Gary Matthews went 2-4.

That was win No. 1. Tonight was No. 265, as Moyer went eight innings in the 6-3 win. (Only two were his; Brad Lidge struggled but allowed only the one run.) Tonight was win No. 700 for Charlie Manuel. I felt good when the Phillies scored six runs in the 2nd and 3rd innings, including their first back-to-back homers of the season (Jayson Werth and Ryan Howard). But I was worried that they didn't keep piling up runs. Baby steps, I know, but you need to be relentless to beat the Empire.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, kept it closer than they should have against former Phillie Rodrigo Lopez and the D-Backs, but they won 6-2 behind seven solid innings from Jon Lester.

LaRoche, who was 1-4 last night, went 1-4 again tonight.

The Phanatic's long-lost brother

I can't decide what's more surprising: that the Yankees had a mascot named Dandy who I never heard about, or that I agree with George Steinbrenner about something (that mascots don't belong in baseball).

Although, my anti-mascot stance has weakened after being around the Phanatic so much.

Kudos to the Wall Street Journal for unearthing this nugget about the Yankees secret mascot, who was cut from the same cloth as the Phillies iconic green furball. I know I was just a toddler when this thing roamed the upper deck at Yankee Stadium, but I can't believe he didn't become part of Yankee lore. To me, he's more impressive than that mystique and aura crap New Yorkers used to toss around.

But the Yankees consider him a bigger dud than Hideki Irabu, Eddie Whitson and Carl Pavano:

The biggest bust in Yankees history was 7 feet tall, made $40 every home game and spent most of his brief career in the upper deck.

From 1979 to 1981, the Yankees employed a mascot named Dandy. He was big and blue and a spectacular failure—a historical oddity for a proud franchise that has collected 27 world championships but would just as soon forget he even existed. Which, to be fair, isn't terribly difficult to do.

"It's one of the sadder stories," said Wayde Harrison, who created Dandy with his wife, Bonnie Erickson.

The story is worth a read.

Not so dandy: I fully expected Roy Halladay to dispatch the Empire in his Cy Young matchup against CC Sabathia, but he struggled. In the 7th, Yankees 6, Phillies 3.

Red Sox: Clay Buchholz fared a little better than Doc, but he better step it up if he wants to fulfill all the All-Star buzz that has been surrounding him. In the 6th, Red Sox 6, Diamondbacks 3. In the battle of the Drew brothers, slight edge to Stephen who is 1-3 with a run and a stolen base. J.D. is 2-3 with no extracurricular stats.

[Photo credit: Wall Street Journal]

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.

Kicking a dog when he's down

It's been a ruff week for Pat and Elvis Burrell. They were designated for assignment by the Rays, which might end their baseball career. And the following day Ronnie James Dio - whose Holy Diver served as their intro music during some of their Philly days - died. Just when you thought they couldn't sink any lower, they had to endure this insult:

[Sports collectible expert Ted] Taylor says the plethora of bobbleheads available is exactly the problem. "Every team has just been cranking them out," Taylor says. "In the catalog there are 13 pages of bobbleheads in small type."

Taylor pauses and adds with a chuckle, "I have a Pat Burrell one you can have."

That was in a pretty interesting story the Daily News did on the Phillies' history with bobblehead promotions. They also compiled a complete list of Phillies bobbleheads. Christine has long been a fan of the trinkets that we just learned are also called nodders. She predicted they'd be popular when they started to make a resurgence in the late '90s.

Chase Utley is one of the rare Phillies to have two bobbleheads in his career. I guess he deserves it because, if you consider fielding and base running, he's been called the best player in baseball.

Tonight's games: Tonight's bobblehead honoree, Roy Halladay, pitched a complete game but lost to the Pirates 2-1.

Coming off last night's debacle - Jonathan Papelbon's gave up his first-ever walk-off home run. to Alex Rodriguez, no less - the Red Sox are trailing the Yankees in the 5th inning in a 3-0 rain-delayed game.

Tonight's starting pitchers, Halladay and Josh Beckett, are scheduled to face each other on Sunday at Citizens Bank Park.

Red Sox vs. Phillies history: I hope Papelbon doesn't give up a walk-off homer against the Phillies this weekend; he has pitched well against the Phightins' in the past. In 7.2 innings over six games, he has given up a run on four hits with two walks and 11 strikeouts. He has given up a home run. He's 1-0 with three saves and at least one blown save because of that home run hit by the best player in baseball. The Red Sox won it in 12 innings, though. That was June 2006.