Do You Believe In (Multiple) Miracles (At The Meadowlands)?

Okay, so it wasn't actually at the same venue as Herman Edwards' improbable fumble return for a touchdown in 1978, but it's close enough.

Gotta admit, diehard Eagles fan that I am, I bailed on the game once it got to be 24-3 Giants, late in the 1st half. I know a lot of Eagles fans kept watching the game, but nobody thought they'd come back and win it. NOBODY.

Even after the Eagles scored to make it 24-10, the Giants came right back and scored again to make it 31-10. Should have been the ballgame.

Amazingly, the Iggles kept fighting, and turned a 21-point deficit with only 7:00 remaining into a probable division clinching victory.

Don't stop now, boys.

And, as much as Joe Buck gets ridiculed for his (too) relaxed style of calling big moments, he raised it to the proper level on his "GETS A BLOCK!" call. I've always liked Buck's play-by-play. Could do with out the smug, "I'm funnier and hipper than you, and my sh!t don't stink" attitude, but the play-by-play is solid.

Here's the actual video, with Buck's call first, followed by Eagles play-by-play man Merrill Reese (along with former Eagles Mike Quick in the background).

Cliff (Phil)Lee Returns!

The Phillies' rotation has just gone from H20 to H.H.O.LEE Crap!

Watch Out...

...Andy Reid is letting it fly, and the Eagles are creeping toward a playoff berth.

Just Checking...

...so, when does the NLCS start, anyway?

Next!

Sadly, there may only be two other times I get to enjoy watching Jayson Werth shake champagne out of his Brady-esque hairdo.

But, I'm not going to let the impending loss of the Phillies' all-star right fielder get in the way of my enjoyment of this year's postseason run.

So far, so good. The Phillies have gotten tremendous pitching from Halladay and Hamels, and, even on a night when Roy Oswalt was below average, the Phils were able to rally -- thanks to some fortunate calls, and horrible Reds defense -- and steal victory from the jaws of defeat in game two.


In fact, anyone with any kind of favorable feeling toward the Phillies probably did their best to stick their hands in their pockets, start whistling, and walked away from that game as soon as possible.

Game three was vintage Cole Hamels. The 2008 version, that helped carry the Phils to the World Series title. Not the 2009 version, when the slightest little thing, like a runner getting on base, or the wind blowing a certain way, seemed to send Cole down a slope that always seemed to lead to a 4-run inning, with no way around it.

Credit to Uncle Chollie for letting Hamels finish that game, even after allowing a leadoff single. No matter how good Brad Lidge has been throwing lately, no Philly fan wanted to see him trot out of the bullpen to try to close it out.

Bring on the Giants.

Halla-lujah!

Yep. That'll work.

H2O Here To Quench Our (Title) Thirst

Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay, and Roy Oswalt, or H2O as they're referred to, are leading my favored Phillies into the postseason this afternoon against the Cincinnati Reds.

There's nothing quite like the anticipation of the MLB playoffs getting underway when your team is one of the participants.

Baseball can be so unpredictable that any of the eight teams have a shot to win it all. No matter how many "experts" think the Phillies have the best shot, all it takes is the offense to go into a funk, or one -- or more -- of theses guys above to struggle a bit, or for Brad Lidge to throw like it's 2009, and the Phils' hopes of creating a mini-dynasty with a 2nd world championship in three years gets devoured as fast as a plate of food in front of Joe Blanton.

And, for me, it's time to actually start watching some games. You know my long-standing rule of thumb with the Phillies: watch, or follow along to as few of their actual games during the regular season as possible -- because the stress of the day-to-day grind of a baseball season, and the many ups and downs of an individual game can be very damaging to my health and sanity -- but then try to catch every pitch of the postseason.

That's the plan again this year, beginning this afternoon.

And, as the playoffs are just minutes away, I sit here thinking about what these next few weeks will be like. This is the beauty of the pre-postseason, if you will.

Nobody knows how it will play out. Who will be the heroes, or the goats? How many late inning heroics, or choke-jobs are about to happen? Dramatic finishes, breakout performances, memorable plays and moments...all about to unfold.