Interlude

I had a heck of a time picking the "Dodger of the Game" for yesterday's NLCS game. It was probably the most difficult decision of the entire year. Who do you pick for a game like that?

I could have named Jim Thome, who had the big pinch-hit single in the middle of the two-run eighth inning to get the eventual winning run to third base.

Or I could have picked Casey Blake, who started the inning by hitting a single after going 0-for-5 the night before. Or I could have picked Ronnie Belliard, whose bunt past a sliding Chan Ho Park, put runners on first and second. Or I could have picked Andre Ethier, who worked the bases loaded walk from J.A. Happ to score the winning run. Or maybe it was Vicente Padilla, who matched Pedro Martinez inning for inning.

In situations like this, I usually end up going with the closer, which I did, picking Jonathan Broxton. The lead was a very tenuous one run when he came in in the ninth, and the Phillies had the top of the order up. But he retired them in order. Now that's relief. And since that's the overriding emotion that I felt at game's end, I went with Broxton.

But I know who some would say deserves the honor:

I like Chase, so I'm not crazy about seeing him take the fall for the Phillies' loss, even though my favorite team was the beneficiary. But his blown throw to first base did play a part. I'm starting to wonder if some of the commentators are right and Utley has a physical issue. That last turn at second base did not look natural.

Anyway, I'm quite pleased the series is tied at 1-1 and the Dodgers are very much in it. And that's after thinking "I guess the Dodgers aren't going to do it this year" as late as the seventh inning yesterday. The only thing that kept me going is that I watched so many Pedro Martinez efforts go for naught when he pitched for the Mets that I couldn't help but think that it would happen again.

I'm also happy that there's a break before the series resumes Sunday. I could use a tension-free day. So, what is synonymous with no tension? Featuring cards!

A little while ago, Brian from Play at the Plate sent me an "altered" pack of cards (the cards were in a Ticket to Stardom pack, but only one card was TTS). On it were instructions to open the pack only after a Dodger playoff loss.

Now, I never follow instructions I get in the mail. Vote for this candidate. Shop at this store. Buy this cable/cell phone service. Do this, do that. Unless it's a bill, I ignore them all. And when it comes to cards, I have very little willpower.

But, for some reason, I actually waited until after the Dodgers lost Game 1 to open the pack. And he was right. I felt better after opening it.

The pack included two Buffalo Bills cards. I must have mentioned on the blog that I like the Bills at one point, because I don't know how Brian knew that.

But here are the baseball cards he sent:

Two Manny cards from two recent releases. Ramirez has got some swing issues. He's late on everything. He's got to lay off the inside stuff until he figures it out.

The rest of the cards are from 2008 Stadium Club. All cards that I needed, which is very cool because I've pretty much given up on completing the set for three reasons:

1. The divisible-by-three cards are a pain to find
2. The Stadium Club blasters at the stores near me are still full price. That makes me so angry I will not even consider them when I stand in front of the card aisle.
3. NOBODY collected this set. Hard to find trade partners.

So, these cards, which are all divisible-by-three cards (I just love it when they incorporate mathematics into baseball card collecting, don't you?) are much appreciated. Even Mr. Iribarren up there, whose bio on the back of his card is the only thing I know about him.

Here's Beltran, who has watched some of those blown Pedro Martinez starts in the past.

Here's Tulo, who I'm glad is watching the playoffs now, or golfing, or snowshoeing, or whatever he's doing.

A super tiny part of me hoped the Rockies got to the World Series and played the Yankees and it snowed in both places for days and baseball would have to figure out the mess it's gotten itself into. But then I thought about how they'd rectify it: all World Series games would be played in Miami or Los Angeles or under a dome. And I went back to rooting for the Rockies to lose.

My big hope to win Game 1 of the ALCS. Oh well.

I didn't watch much of the Angels-Yankees game last night. It was nice to get through the tension of the Dodgers game and then not have to care that much about the Halos and the Stinkies. Besides, it really irks me when teams help the Yankees by doing stupid stuff like letting pop-ups drop. The Yankees don't need help, boys. They have every built-in advantage known to man. Try to at least give it a go, eh?

Question: Is Hamels the Game 4 starter? Has anyone said? I can't figure out who it would be if it's not Hamels. (EDIT: Phillies announced today that Joe Blanton will start Game 4).

Lousy photo of him, by the way. I'm sure all the gals who think he's dreamy were disappointed.

Thanks for the pick-up, Brian.

He also sent another card, which you will see in an upcoming post. Now it's on to the card show and, hopefully, watching Game 3 (if it doesn't pour).