JUST WONDERING...

...Why the long faces, guys? It looks like someone ran over your pet puppy-dogs. You actually look like you're mourning something.

Oh, right. You're mourning the loss of yet another playoff opportunity. You're sad because again, your playoff hopes hinged on the last game of the season, which you blew. You're pissy because your rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies, were right (again!) in saying that they're the team to beat this year.

You're pissed that even the mighty Santana couldn't get you to the playoffs. And that your bullpen blows. And that Wagner needs surgery. Those are all valid reasons to be aggravated.

Equally valid is the point that you guys will be sitting at home sullenly watching your televisions as the Phillies take on the Brewers on Wednesday night. (You'll probably be rooting hardcore for the Brewers and chucking empty beer cans at the TV every time J-Roll or Ryan Howard comes up to bat. I understand--you're bitter.)

S'OK, Mets. Maybe next year, right *snicker*? But hopefully--and probably--not!

PHIRST PLACE...AGAIN!!!

Beautiful! Just beautiful. :) For the second year in a row, my beloved Philadelphia Phillies are the NL East Champions! For the second year in a row, it almost looked like they weren't going to get that title, but somehow--somehow!--they did it again.

Hopefully this year they won't get the shit kicked out of them in the first round of playoffs like they did last year (I'm still a little bitter toward the Rockies for so thoroughly trouncing my Phillies). Hopefully this year they're a more seasoned team that knows what to expect in the playoffs and goes in there and gets the job done. It looks like they'll either be playing the NL Wild Card winner or maybe the Dodgers. I'm hoping they play the Brewers, because I like them better, and I think (hope) the Phillies would have an easier time beating the Brewers than they would the Dodgers. It all comes down to today (and potentially tomorrow, too!) to determine which team gets the NL Wild Card. Right this very minute, the Fish are up 1-0 over the Mets in the 6th, and the Cubbies are up 1-0 over the Brew Crew in the 5th. If both the Mets and Brewers lose today, they'll play a tiebreaker game tomorrow. I'm waiting rather anxiously to find out what happens with both of these teams. As a die-hard Phillies fan, I don't wanna see those icky Mets go to the playoffs!

Anyway. Congratulations to the Fightin' Phils for a second stellar (albeit nail-biting, harrowing, and downright frightening at times) season of kickin' ass, takin' names, and (Hamels, Utley, Dobbs, Werth, Burrell...I'm talking to you here) lookin' hot! In honor of the Phillies, I've painted my nails red and am going to wear my red pants to work tomorrow. Yeah, I know--I'm such a girl.

But I'm a girl who gets to watch her favorite baseball team compete in the playoffs this year! WOO-HOO!!!!! (And guess what? Hamels is scheduled to pitch Game 1 of the NLDS series. HOT!)

LET'S GO, TWINS!

I have never been to Minnesota. The closest I've ever been in proximity to Minnesota was Chicago. I know next to nothing about Minnesota. So I probably shouldn't give a damn about the Twins, yet I'm rooting hardcore for them to make it into the playoffs this year.

The Twins have been through a lot this year (namely: bye-bye Hunter, bye-bye Santana...and as a Phillies fan, do I ever wish the Twins had kept Santana and not shipped him off to the Mets). I think perhaps people started to not take the Twins seriously as playoff contenders. But...they've got Morneau (swoon), who you may recall won this year's Home Run Derby (even though a certain gorgeous Mr. Hamilton hit more home runs than Morneau did, but whatever). They've got Mauer (swoon again), who is hoping to lock up his second batting title. And right now the Twins are 1/2 game ahead in the race for the AL Central Division Champs title, just ahead of the White Sox. It all comes down to today (and, potentially, tomorrow) as to who wins this race.

At work, we get into lots of discussions about baseball teams, and last week I got a lot of shocked looks when I proudly proclaimed that I hoped to see the Twins in the playoffs. I was like, "What? They're hot!," to which one of my co-workers replied, "You are the worst baseball fan ever, you know that?", which made me laugh uproariously. But there's certainly something to be said for having eye candy in the playoffs--right, ladies? And if that eye candy just happens to have a lot of talent, too, so much the better, right? ;)