Given S.I.’s track record of making picks and the infamous S.I. cover jinx, the Phillies are doomed. And cover boy Roy Halladay, the stud pitching free agent pickup, will likely be on the DL by Memorial Day.

S.I. picks the Yankees to win the American League East, but to lose in the playoffs to the wild card Rays. They also see the Twins and Angels winning their A.L. divisions. In the National League, the Phillies are seen winning the East, with the Braves as a wild card, the Cardinals taking the Central and the Rockies the West.

With the season starting Sunday, who are you picking?

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The good news is it’s actually listed on the schedule page at the Riversharks’ website — even the Phillies haven’t done this. The bad news is the insert says the game is on Thursday, July 13th…which is actually a Tuesday. At any rate, here are the details from the insert:

LGBTA NIGHT WITH THE RIVERSHARKS! July 13 at 7:05 pm

The Riversharks are officially making baseball an LGBTA sport and we want you to join us! Come on out to Campbell’s Field on July 13th as we celebrate our pride with the Philadelphia and South Jersey LGBTA communities!

For more information or to purchase tickets, contact Poorya Nayerahmadi:
(856) 583-0035 (direct)
Poorya@riversharks.com

I am proud of the fact that so many of these gay nights have been in Philadelphia, thanks in huge measure to Larry Felzer. March 1st saw the second such event at a 76ers game; this coming Thursday will be the first-ever gay community night at the Flyers (I’ll be there, and there are still a few tickets available, according to their Facebook page); and, of course, Phillies gay night number EIGHT will take place in August. Now it’s spreading to nearby teams as well.

By the way, on the website for that “Take Me Out” production, it states that on March 14th there was a bonus: a “post-show talkback” with the Riversharks’ pitching coach, Jeff Scott. That might have been interesting.

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Phillies Nation mourns today. Harry died at the age of 73 after collapsing at Nationals Park in Washington a few hours before today’s Phillies-Nationals game. He joined the Phillies in 1971, the year Veterans Stadium opened. Besides the opening (and closing) of the Vet and the debut of its replacement, Citizens Bank Park, as an Astros broadcaster from 1965-70 he was around for the opening of the Astrodome. He was inducted into the broadcasters’ wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002.

Harry’s “outta here” home run call became the stuff of legend here. Just about everyone has tried an impersonation of that voice at one time or another. As the saying goes: often imitated, never duplicated. Ironically, on Mike Schmidt’s 500th career homer in 1987 at Pittsburgh, the ball left the park so quickly that Harry didn’t get “outta here” into the call.

Harry loved the Phillies and their fans, and we fans loved him back. Maybe never was that more obvious than in 1980. That year, after 30 years of misery and frustration that included an epic collapse in 1964 and three consecutive playoff failures from 1976-78, the Phillies outlasted the Astros in a phenomenal NLCS to win their first NL pennant since 1950 and went on to win their first World Series championship.

In those days no local broadcasts of the World Series were allowed, as NBC TV and CBS Radio had exclusive rights nationwide. Phillies fans were denied the opportunity to hear Harry and company call what turned out to be the greatest moment in franchise history to date. They later did a re-creation for a commemorative record but it just wasn’t the same. There was such a deluge of outrage directed at the Commisioner’s office from Philadelphia — and this was in the days before e-mail made for instant complaints — that MLB changed their rules to allow local teams to do their own radio broadcasts.

Thus, after 28 more years of misery and frustration, Harry Kalas finally got to call the World Series. For real, this time. It made last year’s magical postseason run all the more special, getting to hear these words, spoken by that golden voice on that cold October night…”Brad Lidge stretches…the 0-2 pitch — swing and a miss, struck him out! The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 World Champions of baseball!”

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As a public service, here's the cap the Nats are giving away on Opening Day.

I thought it was a bit odd when, while logged onto my Facebook page a few minutes ago, I noticed an ad that said something like “Phils-Nats in DC, deals on tickets and parking for April 13, 15, 16.” Now I see why: earlier in the day, Washington Nationals president Stan Kasten appeared on the ESPN radio station here, and was pretty much begging Phillies fans to buy tickets for the games next week:

The first question was about the Nats’ roster, and after Kasten wound his way through that question, he ended with this. Unprompted. “It will be fun, and I think Philly’s our best, closest National League rival…”

Wait … what? Why? I don’t think Nationals and Phillies fans give a damn about each other’s teams. It’s not like the Yankees-Red Sox or even the more recently heated Mets-Phillies rivalries. Anyhoo, let’s continue the sports radio chat with Stan from DC:

“We always have great games with them here, because there’s so many Philly kids in college here. So we always have great, enthusiastic crowds, and we hope you all come back again. We have an opening day here Monday, we’d love for all our Philly fans to come down, because I know it’s gonna be so hard to get tickets in Philadelphia this year. It’ll be much easier if you drive down the road and come see us in Washington.”

It gets better…

“You can come here early, we open two and three hours early, have a good time,” he said later, when asked specifically about visiting Nats Park. “The neighborhood, which had so many plans for an exciting nightlife waterfront area, frankly has been pushed back a year or two because of the economy, so there’s not a lot in the neighborhood. But let’s face it, any trip in Washington, which is among the world’s most visited cities, among the world’s best tourist cities, there’s plenty else to do if you want to make a day of it or a night of it. But I promise you, just coming to a ballgame will be more than worth the trip.”

Guh. Please. Stop.

“No, we want to play you, we want to see you here, and we would WELCOME your fans here,” he said later, when the hosts joked about avoiding this improving Nats ballclub. “And I’ve got to tell you, I have gone to enough games in three different sports in Philly to tell you that I haven’t always felt welcome in your parks, ok? But you can root for whoever you want, you will be welcome when you come to Nationals Park.”

At one point Kasten had a complaint, though, and it seems to contradict his little sales pitch: “Well, first of all, the aggravating thing for me is the last few years, the Philly games, it feels like a damn Philly home game,” he said. Gee, Stan, you think? I can’t really blame him, though. As I talked about here, the franchise is at a low ebb. The move from Montreal hasn’t helped much, and the fans aren’t turning out, even to the brand new Nationals Park. I assume he’ll call into the New York stations to invite Mets fans to DC as well.

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Based on his facial features this was pre-steroids.

With the recession continuing to ravage the nation, there’s been a lot of discussion about last week’s interview of CNBC’s Jim “Mad Money” Cramer by Jon Stewart on The Daily Show. Stewart effectively picked apart Cramer’s reputation as a financial expert (at least from some reports — I didn’t watch it myself so I can’t comment personally). Putting aside how pathetic it is that a show on Comedy Central is doing a better job of journalism than any of the so-called “news” networks, now one of Cramer’s proteges — a former pro athlete — is also under attack.

Kevin Coughlin, a former photo editor for a magazine founded by former New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Lenny Dykstra, has written an article, “You Think Your Job Sucks? Try Working for Lenny Dykstra,” for the April issue of GQ magazine. It’s not a flattering picture, to say the least. It depicts seeming financial mismanagement, not to mention racist, sexist and homophobic comments, by Dykstra.

Dykstra managed to parlay his baseball career into a chain of car washes, and then turned his attention to the stock market, eventually becoming a columnist for TheStreet.com, a site co-founded by Cramer. He then started a magazine called The Players Club, distributed exclusively to professional athletes, with plans to expand it into a full-service company providing financial advice, luxury concierge services, etc. to those very same athletes.

In the GQ article, Coughlin says that Dykstra’s company is in terrible financial shape and the magazine is unlikely to publish another issue. He says there are multiple lawsuits pending against Dykstra and TPC because of bounced checks, nonpayment of bills for services rendered and loans not repaid. He alleges Dykstra, ostensibly a wealthy man, used Coughlin’s credit cards to rent private jets, sometimes without Coughlin’s permission, and refused to pay Coughlin’s final paycheck unless Coughlin signed a confidentiality agreement (Coughlin refused and hasn’t been paid).

Coughlin also paints an ugly portrait of Dykstra as a person:

At one meeting, Lenny goes off on how a particular layout looks “faggy”-despite the presence of a gay page designer in the room. (Later, Lenny says to me: “Did you see the look on that fag’s face?”) On another occasion, I field a call from Lenny about potential cover subjects while I’m at home; Lenny’s on speaker when he proudly states, for both my wife and me, that “nobody can call me a racist-I put three darkies and a bitch on my first four covers.”

The first four Players Club covers featured Derek Jeter, Chris Paul, Tiger Woods, and Danica Patrick.

“What was that, Lenny?” I ask.

“I said I put three spearchuckers on the cover!” he replies.

Dykstra told the Philadelphia Inquirer that “everything in there is a lie.” And perhaps it is. The article was written by a disgruntled former employee. On the other hand, Dykstra denied using steroids during his playing days, always joking that he took “real good vitamins” when his body suddenly turned larger, but he was named as one of baseball’s steroid users by the Mitchell Report in 2007, which cited clubhouse employee/steroid distributor Kirk Radomski and other sources.

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No more annoying Frank TV ads during postseason baseball! According to this story promoting Frank Caliendo’s appearance in Atlantic City this weekend, the show has been canceled by TBS after two seasons.

Phillies release pitcher Adam Eaton! Sure, they still have to pay him even if he’s picked up by another team, but at least he’s gone. He signed a 3-year, $24.5 million contract with the Phils as a free agent before the 2007 season. In two years he was 14-18 with a 6.10 ERA. After agreeing to pitch in the minors last summer, he was 0-5 with a 7.16 ERA in starts with the Phils’ A, AA and AAA affiliates. It has to rank as one of the worst free-agent signings in team history, if not all of major league baseball.

Tom Brady marries Gisele Bundchen! Both US Magazine and People report that the ceremony took place in Santa Monica yesterday, and that the Patriots quarterback’s 18-month-old son with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan was in attendance. Why does this make me happy? I certainly don’t care if he’s made an honest woman of her. I’m happy because TMZ will undoubtedly air the video posted here on its show tonight. “Errand boy! Errand boy!”

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After a 25-year wait, compounded by an unprecedented two-day suspension, Philadelphia finally has a championship to celebrate. The Phillies won the World Series tonight.

I’m quite intoxicated, and extremely happy. We’re finally having a parade!

There are two people I’m truly happy for (besides myself).

For one, Harry Kalas. He’s been broadcasting games for the Phils since Veterans Stadium opened in 1971. But when the Phils finally reached the World Series in 1980, after a 30-year wait since their last Series appearance, he was out of work. MLB rules at that time dictated that, once the League Championship Series ended, the local broadcasters couldn’t work any further. Exclusive rights were given to national TV and radio networks. Thus, when the Phillies won it all in 1980, the TV call came from Joe Garagiola on NBC, and the radio call was from Vin Scully, the longtime Dodgers broadcaster, working for CBS radio. I surely have nothing against Vin Scully. I gave his Dodgers broadcast the highest grade this summer in my reviews of baseball telecasts. But back then, it just wasn’t the same without hearing Harry Kalas. Though Kalas eventually did a re-creation of the Series that was sold in local record stores, it just wasn’t the same.

But the uproar from Phillies fans after the 1980 Series caused MLB to reconsider. After that, local announcers were allowed to broadcast the games locally on radio. So, tonight, Harry Kalas finally got to call a championship. For real, this time.

Then there’s Jamie Moyer. He’s a native of the Philadelphia area. He attended the parade celebrating the 1980 World Champion Phillies. Now he’s a member of the Phils and gets to re-live that moment, except this time he’ll be riding on one of the parade floats. When I signed up to play in the Phila. gay softball league this year, for the first time in over 20 years, I chose to wear Jamie Moyer’s number 50 for my team this year. Okay, I have to admit that my first choice was number 26 (Chase Utley’s number) but someone on my team already had that. So I chose the number of the oldest player currently in the majors because, for the first time ever, I am older than every major league player. Little did I know at the time that Moyer would win 16 games during the season, and then — after struggling during his NLDS and NLCS starts — come through with an impressive effort in game 3 of the World Serires, helping his team to a 2-1 Series lead.

The next night, Joe Blanton not only pitched well, but homered — the first pitcher to hit a homer in a World Series game since 1974. The Phils were just one win away. Then came the bizarre suspension caused by the sudden intensification of a storm off the coast, which caused heavy rain on Monday evening. There was a lot of speculation about how this suspension would affect the game. There were quite a few people who thought, after the Rays tied the game in the monsoon in the 6th inning on Monday, that this was a turning point to take away a championship that — with Cole Hamels on the mound for the Phils — seemed to be inevitable. But I decided to be optimistic.

I was at the Bike Stop, a gay bar here, on Monday night, hoping to be happily intoxicated and celebrating a championship, and I wanted to be with other people when that moment finally arrived. Then the rain stopped the game and screwed everything up.

I recalled the last two times I was at the Bike Stop during a crucial playoff game — the Eagles’ loss to Carolina in the NFC title game in January 2004, and the Eagles’ loss to the Patriots in the Super Bowl the following year. So, after the rain on Monday, I decided to stay home when the game resumed.

Also, I have a Phillies t-shirt, with the name and number 32 of Steve Carlton on the back, that I wore on Saturday and Sunday. Since the Phils won both games, I wore it again on Monday. Thanks to the extra day off after the rain, I was able to put it in the laundry and wear it again tonight. Superstitions — gotta love them.

Tonight, the game resumed in the bottom of the 6th inning. Geoff Jenkins led off as a pinch-hitter for Cole Hamels. I feared that Charlie Manuel would send up Greg Dobbs at that point to pinch-hit, which likely would’ve brought a lefty pitcher in. Instead, he wisely sent Jenkins up to the plate. Grant Balfour, a right-handed pitcher who finished the 5th inning on Monday, stayed in the game to face Jenkins. Jenkins ripped a double to right-center. At that point, I knew the Phils would win.

Jenkins eventually scored on a single by Jayson Werth in that inning. Even though Tampa Bay tied the game in the top of the 7th on a homer by Rocco Baldelli, I knew the Phils would win. Sure enough, Pedro Feliz drove in the winning run in the bottom of the 7th inning. Brad Lidge, who went through the entire season without blowing a save opportunity, but was still thought of by many as a choker after he gave up a homer to Albert Pujols in the 2005 NLCS, finished it off.

Phinally.

P.S. Yesterday I bought a bottle of rum, to mix with diet cola, because I wanted to have some alcohol to celebrate if and when the moment of joy finally came. So, just like my post after the 2007 NL East Division clincher, I am happly intoxicated. Woo-hoo!!!

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This is bad news for Fox, however. The ratings through three games are down 23 percent from last year’s Series, and the 91-minute rain delay for Game 3 caused it to be the lowest-rated World Series game ever. Fox desperately needs a six- or seven-game series in order to get the most out of its investment. With ace Cole Hamels on the mound for the Phillies tomorrow, well, Fox is in a difficult situation. Can’t say I feel sorry for them, though.

One more win…

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The rules are simple:
- All gifts made via the internet are included
- Gifts by mail explicitly stating “World Series of Community Support” are included
- Gifts must be made between 10/21/08 and 7 days after the final game of the World Series
- The LGBT Center that can raise the most money in a short time span wins!

But really, both centers are winners for coming up with this idea. Click here to contribute to the Tampa Metro Center, and click here to support the William Way Center.

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Before 2008, Tampa Bay finished out of last place in the American League East only once, when they won a franchise-record 70 games and finished 4th in 2004. This year the Rays went from worst to first, and promptly tossed out an old pair of mismatched Sox (White and Red) to become American League champions.

The Phillies, meanwhile, weren’t supposed to win the National League East because of the Mets’ signing of Johan Santana. Then they weren’t supposed to beat Milwaukee because the Brewers had CC Sabathia. (Okay, that’s a stretch, but the “experts” did figure that a Phils loss in game one of the NLDS would then make the Brewers the clear favorite.) Then they weren’t supposed to beat the LA Dodgers because of Manny Ramirez. But here they are, NL champs for the first time since 1993.

The Phillies are thought of as a team that hits, but they’ve been maddeningly inconsistent offensively this year. Key players stepped up at different times — Chase Utley in April, Ryan Howard in September, Shane Victorino in the postseason — but for the most part, their success has been due to consistent pitching. The bullpen has been mostly strong all year, and the starters (except for Jamie Moyer) have been particularly good in the postseason.

The Rays, however, have been the slugging team in the playoffs, scoring almost 6 runs per game and clubbing 22 home runs in 11 games, led by B.J. Upton (7) and Evan Longoria (6). (The Phils, by contrast, have just 10 homers in 9 games.) The Rays’ pitching has been strong all season as well, though regular closer Troy Percival is sidelined by injury and the Rays had a pair of blown saves in the ALCS against Boston.

Thanks to the debacle that the All-Star game has become, the Rays have the home-field advantage. While the Rays had the best home record in baseball, the Phillies had the 2nd-best road record, behind only the Angels. One might question whether the Rays’ young pitchers might be freaked out by Citizens Bank Park’s reputation as a hitter’s paradise — although this season it was only the 11th-easiest park to homer in, according to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark. It certainly affected Dodger starter Derek Lowe in NLCS game 1, however.

Another possible factor is the Phillies’ long layoff after beating the Dodgers. Both the 2006 Detroit Tigers and the 2007 Colorado Rockies had to wait around for their opponent to be determined. The Rockies were swept by Boston and the Tigers lost in 5 to St. Louis.

The ’04 and ’05 Series ended in sweeps as well. Regardless of which team wins (and I’ve already gone on record with my admittedly biased pick of the Phils in 6), let’s hope that this year’s Series doesn’t end as quickly as the last four.

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