It had to be this way

I try not to be too much of a fan boy when I post on this site, but on the occasion of my Phillies winning the World Series, I was left with no choice. It took me longer than planned to get this ready, but I have to post it anyhow, even if it's a bit late.

It had to be this way.

When the season started, the Phillies weren’t even the popular pick to win their own division, despite their status as the defending champions. That honor belonged to the New York Mets, who had made a big splash in the offseason by trading for ace Johan Santana. They weren’t even necessarily the second most popular pick, as many people were picking the Braves as a result of, well, I never did figure out why the “experts” liked the Braves so much this year.

It had to be this way.

The big acquisition of the offseason, closer Brad Lidge, hurt his knee the first time he threw off the mound in spring training. Another poor spring training performance left the team with all kinds of concerns, mainly about the starting pitcher. The marathon of the regular season kicked off, once again, with a loss. Brett Myers couldn’t pitch, Ryan Howard couldn’t hit, Jimmy Rollins got hurt. The team muddled through, showing flashes of brilliance, but overall being maddeningly inconsistent.

It had to be this way.

Brett Myers went to AAA and returned pitching brilliantly. The bullpen locked down one late game lead after another. The offense sometimes sputtered and sometimes flourished. They spent weeks in first place, but could never come close to putting away either the Mets or the surprising Marlins. A late August, early September swoon left them once again staring at a significant deficit to the Mets with 17 games to play.

It had to be this way.

Another late charge sent them roaring past the swooning Mets and Brewers, and with a week to go, the postseason suddenly looked like a forgone conclusion – until 2 straight losses to the Braves, who they had previously dominated, left them but a single game ahead of both teams with 3 to play, and doubt started to creep back in. With a 2 run lead in the potential division clincher, the thus far perfect Brad Lidge used every bit of his breathing room, needing a fine defensive play from Rollins to turn a double play and preserve a 1 run lead, letting a team and its fans exhale and celebrate a 2nd straight trip to the postseason.

It had to be this way.

They weren’t the favorites to win the National League. No, that honor belonged to the Cubs, sentimental favorites for sure, in this their 100th year since their last World Series title, but this year also the favorites on paper, having been 5 games better than everyone else in the league. But as the Phillies efficiently dispatched the Brewers, including roughing up the seemingly invincible CC Sabathia, everyone’s favorites fell to the Dodgers in resounding fashion.

It had to be this way.

They weren’t necessarily the favorites in the NLCS. No, despite their hot play (13-3 to close the season, 3-1 in the postseason thus far), many bestowed that honor on the Dodgers, led by the incredible Manny Ramirez and on a roll of their own. And they certainly weren’t the team “everyone” wanted to win the series. Not with Joe Torre seeking vindication after the way things ended for him in New York, and Manny seeking a potential matchup with his former Boston teammates. After two quality wins at home, the Phils were defeated soundly in Game 3, and were trailing late in Game 4 when a Flyin’ Hawaiian and a 40 year old Canadian re-wrote the script, and left it up to ace Cole Hamels to send them on to the 6th NL pennant in team history.

It had to be this way.

They definitely weren’t the favorites in the World Series, neither in the eyes of Vegas or of the public. After all, the AL was a much better league, don’t you know? And the Rays turn around from last season’s worst record in baseball was such a great story.

It had to be this way.

The ace got the job done in Game 1, almost no thanks to the offense. A couple of bad calls, and the offense still struggling, and Game 2 goes the wrong way. Another bad call and some late game bungling in Game 3 had Phans thinking they’d seen this script before, when suddenly the Phils got the final set of late game breaks to take the Series lead, and then broke out with a resounding victory in Game 4. Could it be? A chance to win the Series at home in Game 5, with Hamels on the mound?

It had to be this way.

A quick lead had us believing this was finally going to happen, and then nature intervened to make us doubt again, leaving the game timed, taking the ace off the mound, and making us all wait. After all that wait, suddenly a quick run made it look like it was going to happen again. And then the previously unhittable bullpen lets one out of the park, and hope fades again for moment.

It had to be this way.

Unshaken, the bottom of the lineup responded with a quick run, and there we were again, on the verge of jubilation, before a leadoff baserunner made us hold our breath once more, until the glorious double play! Finally, the 9th inning arrived, and the “perfect” closer stepped. First out came easy enough, and then that weak broken bat hit, and a pinch runner stealing second. There was the gasp when that line drive jumped off the next bat, and the sigh of relief when we realized it was right at Mr. Werth.

It had to be this way.

One out away. A weak ground ball foul, a check swing on a slider called a strike, and one final swing and a miss, and pandemonium ensues! 28 years of baseball frustration, and 25 years of sports frustration in general melt away on that pitchers mound, and in that stadium, and in that city, and even beyond.

It had to be this way.

It had to be this way because, more than just a championship, this city and these fans needed to be able to believe in a team. In the end, it looked like it had come easily (24-6 finish, 11-3 postseason run), but it certainly didn’t feel easy. So many times this team was presented with the moments where it had all gone wrong for other teams, and this team somehow made them go wrong. This city, these fans, needed to see a team that embraced the history they were fighting against, and overcome it – a team that represented them, without quit, without acceptance of defeat. They needed a team that could both win the games and win them over when they took the field.

I’m not sure which was the bigger challenge, but it had to be this way, so they could do both.