"Rocky" took place in Philadelphia
And that flick is pretty much considered the gold standard for sports story with an inspirational ending. The Dodgers will be traveling to the City of Brotherly Love for their seven game NLCS series with all the ingredients of a potential dandy. But will that town provide the setting for yet another feel-good tale of an underdog (over the course of the season, if nothing else)? Well, that remains to be seen. After all, we are talking about two teams that proved capable of sweeping each other. And when it came time for the Dodgers to endure the sour end of the broom, they were outscored to the tune of 27-5. But similar to Rocky's early struggles while training, that butt whipping inspired Joe Torre to inform his troops that a divisional title was nigh. Ever since, the Dodgers have been running with a confidence on full tilt.
Whether you're talking about Big Jon Broxton throwing big fastballs for big outs as a (hopefully) big-time closer in the making or various youngsters looking to emulate a certain future HOF slugger, the lineup from top to bottom is dead set on maintaining the mo' kicked off in September and brewing at its highest all season. Joe Torre reminded his largely young roster remain focused and chock full of belief, which led to them developing ambitions matching those of their jewelry-laden Skip.
Put all that together and you're talking about an outcome that could take a cue from Rocky's. Well, hopefully not too literal a cue. All smiles produced by the film's climax aside, the Italian Stallion did end up losing to Apollo Creed.
Dare we think ahead to the mother of all World Series plot lines?
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Mister Blaad drools at the prospect of a doyer-bosox ws...
but Mister Blaad thinks we should concentrate on this upcoming NLCS first.
how much trouble do you guys believe this whole righty-lefty thing will cause us? Miser Blaad believes such a line-up calls for a kershaw game 4 start(after all he performed fairly well against the phills this year, right?), although Mister Blaad does worry about putting a twelve year old center stage.
Posted by: Mister Blaad | October 06, 2008 at 11:36 AM
AK/BK,
I just thought of a BRILLIANT idea and I figured I’d run it by you two before I pitch it to Congress.
How about a media playoff system?
The rules are quite simple. At the start of a series, have all the so-called experts from the media around the country make their predictions backed by their expert and superb analysis. If they’re right, they get to move on and opine about the next series. If they’re wrong, they have to shut it down for the rest of the season.
I think it’s a great system. Unbiased, simple, and it will weed out all media members who make it a habit to talk out of the wrong hole. It will also weed out all the bandwagoners who make it a habit to make the chic pick. Win or go home! Do or die! Put your money where your mouth is! By the end of the playoffs you will only get true “expert” analysis. At the very least the analysis will come from someone who got hot at the right time and performs when it counts the most; in the postseason. Of course, there’s a chance that some excellent writers will not make the cut from time to time, but you have to break a few eggs in order to make an omelet, know what I mean?
What say you?
Posted by: LoLo | October 06, 2008 at 11:55 AM
BK/AK,
What's the word on what Torre's having the boys do this week to stay hot and fresh for Thursday?
I am particularly worried about the young bats and D-Lowe, as I think they are the most prone to the effects of layoffs...
Posted by: VA Blueblood | October 06, 2008 at 12:11 PM