DYNASTY DEFERRED: First off, hats off to the San Francisco Giants and their fans. You earned these wins through clutch hitting and pitching which held out bats at bay, and as much as many in the Delaware Valley would like to attribute this result to a lack of talent/clutchiness/whatever on our team's part, the Giants pitchers are at least equally culpable in inducing said lack of awesomeness.
And this remains a damn good Phillies team, and sadly one which we're likely to never see reconstituted in this form again. Jayson Werth is likely gone, and his replacement will not match him in moxie and bearditude. But that's it -- all the other core players will be back.
Yes, I'm disappointed about this result. I'm disappointed in the weakness of our bench, a question for which "Ross Gload" ws not an answer. I'm disappointed in how sloppy the fielding was this series. I'm disappointed in the failure to drive in runs when the situations presented themselves. And I'm prematurely disappointed in the Philadelphia fanbase for what's going to be a long winter of turning Ryan Howard into the next Donovan McNabb, designated for Azazel to take on all the team's collective sins. Make no mistake: it will be ugly, and it is unearned.
Making the playoffs requires having a talented team. Winning in the playoffs requires them to be playing at the height of their talents come October. In 2008, the Phillies did; in 2010 they didn't, and many months will now be spent ascribing excessive meaning as to why, until pitchers and catchers report and hope begins anew.
In the meantime, I'm going to try to enjoy whatever baseball we've got left.
