It took them 162 games to do it, but the Phillies finally proved Jimmy Rollins right. Jimmy Rollins started Spring training by declaring his team the "team to beat" despite their 14 year absence from postseason play. But after defeating the Washington Nationals 6-1 on Sunday, combined with a 8-1 Mets loss at the hands of the Florida Marlins, the Phillies clinched their first N.L. East division crown since 1993 - the only time the team reached the playoffs since 1983. In doing so, the Phillies completed an amazing comeback - being down seven games with just 17 games to play - and became one of the most beloved teams this city has ever seen.
The pitching problems are well documented, the injury list is long, and the number of times this team has been written off is multiple, but none of that matters now. This particular version of the Philadelphia Phillies will go down as a team that never gave up; no matter what happens in October.
No team, even remotely close to the playoffs, has the poor pitching stats that the Phillies have. Their team ERA, 4.76, is good for 13th out of 15 N.L. teams. Their key free agent acquisition, Adam Eaton has an ERA of 6.29. Their bullpen was so bad that they moved their opening day starter, Brett Meyers - who also threw the final clinching pitch of the season on Sunday - into the closer's role. And they have overcame it all.
Injuries are a part of baseball, but I'm not sure anyone had as many key players on the D.L. at some point this season as the Phillies have had. Previous closer, Tom Gordon, missed about a month. Brett Meyers, after moving into the bullpen, missed a month or more. Reigning MVP, Ryan Howard, missed a few weeks and was slowed for a few more before the trip to the D.L. Chase Utley missed a month with a broken hand, and shortly after his injury, Shane Victorino and Michael Bourn also went down - in the same game. And then to cap it off, the Phillies lost their ace, Cole Hamels for a month, and a key middle reliever, Ryan Madsen, still has yet to return. And they have overcome it all.
Combining the injuries with the pitching woes, it miracle this team didn't just pack it in, and say that this just wasn't their year. In fact, just about everyone in Philadelphia counted them out numerous times. After a 4-11 start, the season was done, right? Nope. When their best hitter, Utley, went out, at a time when they really need offense to make up for the poor pitching, their season was done, right? Nope, newcomer Tad Iguchi, came in and kept the team afloat. When they lost Cole Hamels right before a huge 10 game homestand at the end of August, the season was finished, right? Nope, guys like Kyle Kendrick and Kyle Lohse came out of nowhere to keep the team afloat. Then they lost 4 of the first 6 games in that homestand, heading into a 4 game series with the Mets, trailing by 7 games. Season over? Nope, they go on to sweep the Mets, and overall, gain 5 games on the Mets in 5 days. Then the Phillies struggled immediately following that sweep, and the Mets increased their lead back up to 7 games with 17 games to go. The season was definitely over now. Except, the Phillies went into New York and swept the Mets again. Then the Mets collapsed, and here we are. Division champs.
The 1993 Philadelphia Phillies are not one of the most beloved teams in this city's history just because they made one of the franchise's few World Series appearances. They were fun. They were exciting. They were a bunch of blue collar guys who the city just identified with. While this team is not so much a blue collar team, the city has fallen in love with their never-say-die attitude. They have fallen in love with their attitude - the attitude that was created when Jimmy Rollins made those much criticized statements in Spring training. Unless this team performs miserably in the postseason - which I can't see happening - the city of Philadelphia will never forget this remarkable season.
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