It won’t be long now. The trucks and planes are on their way to Florida and Arizona. Spring training is almost upon us. My beloved Philadelphia Phillies will begin their championship title defense in a few weeks.
That’s the beauty of baseball. Your favorite team can start over each year and redeem itself from the failures of the previous one.
However, what if your team has won the World Series? How do you get a fan to approach that season knowing that anything short of a victory in the Fall Classic is going to be a disappointment?
This is a strange concept to me, since the last time the Phils won the Series I was 10 years old. He was more concerned with Space Invaders and Centipede than giving much thought to defending the title.
Today, as a slug fast approaching forty, I’d like to think I’m ready to take on this challenge with a few “new years resolutions.” So, here are the things I promise to commit to when this baseball season begins:
1. I’m not going to expect Brad Lidge to go through another season without blowing a save. I mean he was Superman last year, but kryptonite has to go into 2009 somewhere, doesn’t it?
2. I will no longer reflect on 1950, 1964, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1983 or 1993. I can stop having those nightmares about Whitey Ford, Chico Ruiz, Joe Morgan, Dusty Baker, Manny Mota, Jim Palmer and Joe Carter. .
3. I’m going to expect great things from Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Cole Hamels, Jimmy Rollins and Clay Condrey. Ok, well, maybe not Clay. 4. My final resolution is one that I keep close and dear to my heart. As I sit in my living room this fall with my father and son, I want to be able to watch Mr. Lidge throw the last out of the 2009 World Series.
I know I know I am preparing for a difficult ending. But a man can dream, right?
