It’s even worse than that.  Bottom of the 9th, Phils leadings 7-3, Brett Myers comes out to pitch, WTF Charlie?  But OK, whatever, he wants the CG.  Single, Single, then a Dan Uggla triple makes it 7-5.  Ramirez hits a grounder to third, does Dobbs go for the out?  Nope, he tries to get Uggla out at home, only it wasn’t even close, not if he had Vlad Guerrero’s arm and they were playing at the Vet does Dobbs make that play.  Simply boneheaded.  That put Ramirez on in the first place. Myers guts out two more strikeouts leading 7-6 before Boone’s single to left and Barajas letting Ramirez slide free through his 5 hole.

John—for the same reason Braves fan boo him: he really, really sucks.

Saw this somewhere today:

Rod Barajas, 2007 Season with Phillies, 48G: 4HR 10 RBI
Rod Barajas, Last 5 games vs Phillies: 4HR 10 RBI

Perhaps it would be tacky to point this out the Phillies’ fans, but it is illegal for the catcher to block the plate without the ball.  Hence, Barajas performed properly.  Sorry, Phans.

Mr Armour -

As we all know, there are the rules of the game, and there are the unwritten rules of the game.  Catchers block the plate all the time, and I cannot recall a single instance of a runner being ruled safe on the basis of the catcher blocking the plate illegally. 

Of course, not all catchers block the plate all the time.  Some merely position themselves next to the play, ready to tag as quickly as possible.  Barajas MOVED OUT OF THE WAY TO AVOID POSSIBLE INJURY.  Moving out of the way earns you boos.  “I didn’t want to give him a good shot at me” recalls in the Philadelphia collective sports mind, the Eagles’ RB, Ricky Watters, infamously asking “For who? For what?” when questioned about a failure to block. 

Fans want to believe that the players on their teams want to win as badly as they do.

Oh, don’t be.  The Bank is a mostly friendly experience, and most of the jerks are in their teens and early 20s, trying to live up to the city’s reputation (ya know, instead of providing it naturally.  Most of these idiots hang out in the upper deck behind the right field foul pole.  Sit anywhere else in the stadium, and you’ll nearly always have a pleasant experience.

Oh, Philly… Thanks for the reassurance, guys. I’m in my early 20s myself, but it’s good to know where the goons hang out—I’ll avoid. I wouldn’t want my party and I—a small pocket of Cardinals fans—to get mustard packets thrown at us, like Joe Maddon’s granddaughter…

utpal

I have brought my son to games since he was born.  There’s never been a problem.  As far as being a fan of the opposition, most are treated well.  If opposing fans try to talk trash, they get shot down quickly.  If they get obnoxious, Phillies’s fans will get even more obnoxious. 

But, if you go to have a good time and have a good nature.  You’ll be treated well.

although, staying out of the cheap seats is probably a good idea.  Tailgating is also a pretty good at CBP.  but “college nights” and saturday night games bring out some idiots

If a team offers you the most money ever offered to a drafted player as a starting point in the negotiations, that player should at least visit the city once to negotiate in good faith.

Instead he became a Boras stooge and sat out a year while Boras unseuccesfully tried to have him declared a free agent.  Then he took an offer after sitting out a year that he likely could have received from the Phillies if he had any interest in negotiating. 

He had no interest in playing for Philly.  So that was a big “F-you” to phillies’ fans. so, you know, “F-him”

Boras is asking for $50M for Strasburgh, should the Nationals not have drafted him because they have no intention of paying $50M?

I still don’t understand why it’s completely acceptable to railroad a catcher.  In any other position on the diamond, this type of play would be considered completely unacceptable (imagine a runner stealing second and instead of sliding into the bag, diving shoulder-first into the covering shortstop) and all it can lead to is injury for one or both of the parties involved.  Sure, everyone likes a good collision, there’s a visceral rush that comes with it, and all that.  But I don’t see how there’s really a place for it in baseball.  If A-Rod can’t slap the ball out of the pitcher’s hand when he’s coming over to tag him out at first, why can Prince Fielder crush Todd Greene?  It’s unfair to players who already play the most physically demanding position in the game that they should be expected to risk potentially serious injury any time a runner is coming to their base to be tagged out.

That said, given the current rules of the game, Barajas has to make that tag.