I’ve reached a new zen state when it comes to Phillies games, even playoff ones, it seems. Once upon a time last night’s game would’ve been a frightful affair, the enjoyment sucked out by the anxiety of another potential Game 2 loss. My family has attended a bunch of Games 2, so we know the feeling of a series slipping through our fingers, only to watch the Phils dominate as the away team. It’s their thing, it seems.
I really thought the wheels had come off when they turned to J.C. Romero after 5 agonizing innings from the usually reliable Roy Oswalt. They had, but not for the Phillies. Watching the Reds’ comedy of errors was the stuff baseball nightmares are made of. As they unraveled last night I couldn’t help but think how much better they’ll be next year once they get some experience and maybe a top of the rotation starter, but that’s for another time. The Phillies took advantage of every miscue and hit batsmen to win 7–4.
The ballpark was typically nuts. We sat in Section 307. The stadium shook when Utley plated two runs to make it a game. When Chooch and Ben Francisco were hit by a pitches, the crowd’s anger bubbled over and CBP became that hostile environment teams must hate so much. We even cheered when Jay Bruce caught a fly ball. It was deliciously vicious, but playful at the same time, a far cry from the tense atmosphere of last year where the entire stadium fell silent when Brad Lidge entered the game.
The Phillies extinguished any hope the Reds had of winning the series last night. We fans know that experience, plus a retooled rotation and a revived bullpen made last night’s win a done deal once the Phils took the lead. We weren’t wrong.