Yeah, despite the Phillies playing pretty terrible today, I was still feeling good about the prospect of facing Gagne and Torres. For the most part, they didn't disappoint in terms of edge-of-your-seat innings, but in the end the sweep wasn't to be. I've got to admit, I am already pretty nervous about facing an angry CC looking to get revenge (though we'd have an even more well-rested Cole Hamels going), so we absolutely MUST take care of business tomorrow. Blanton can't give up the walks we were giving up all day today, and the invisible Utley/Rollins are really going to have to contribute so we can just get this over with.
Re: Championships. That's funny, because one of my friends asked me this exact question the other day and it's one of the hardest questions I can think of (not having to do with quantum physics or thermodynamics or abstract algebra or Shakespeare or global economy, etc.)
Well, so the Sixers are definitely fourth in this debate, no question. That said, I watch a fair amount of Sixers games (the most I've watched in a season is probably around 30 (the AI/Webber experiment year), but I average about 15 + every playoff game if any). I had a lot of fun watching the young team develop last year, toppling Boston at Boston, Detroit at Detroit, Phoenix, etc. etc. in some big upset games down the stretch. We'll definitely be contenders for top 3 in the conference this season.
As much as I love the Phillies (and as truly ridiculous the amount of time I blow watching them or listening to them every year is), they have to be #3. I try to watch them whenever I'm not busy doing anything else, or even sometimes when I
am busy doing something else! And if I'm driving while they're on, they're guaranteed to be on my radio, which has been pretty often now that I have a long commute. I would go absolutely nuts with a World Series victory, but I'm just more passionate about football and hockey, where the true difficulty in answering comes up.
Hockey is my favorite sport, there are fewer commercials during the action (but plenty during intermission), the game is more paced (no standing around for 30 seconds between plays), and there are more games in an equally demanding athletic context. Additionally in hockey, a championship in my opinion means a LOT more. A victorious team has to survive FOUR BEST-OF-SEVEN ROUNDS. In football, you can make the playoffs as a slightly-better-than-mediocre team, more or less luck your way to win four playoff games (three if you're elite) and be done. Recent examples include the Pats in 2001, the Steelers, and the Giants last year. Hockey makes the best team prove that they're the best team.
On the other side of this coin, football has that "anything can happen" situation. Take the Falcons over the Vikings in the 199? NFC Championship game when the Vikes were double digit favorites and blew it. Hell, again, take the Giants last year. Football is exciting as anything, and boy do I bleed green. It's disgusting how many Cowboys fans, Giants fans, and even Redskins fans I'm friends with. Every year I have to put up with jokes about how many Super Bowls the Eagles have ever won (to which I always retort "who has more NFL Championships?
"). Since 2004, I've had to hear how McNabb isn't clutch and how we'll never be able to produce on the big stage. The Flyers have won multiple Cups before, the Eagles have not won any Super Bowls before.
All of this is just stalling, like I did when my friend asked me. The true answer is found when I stopped asking myself what the facts were and I started asking myself what does my heart say. My heart says that if only one of the things you mentioned were allowed to happen, I would want it to be a Super Bowl. The only Cup Finals I was of age for was a sweep. The only Super Bowl I was alive for was an amazing near miss that I watched with 20 people. It was a truly great moment in my life when we went up 7-0 and for the first time felt like, "hey, this is possible". I might be happier, internally, with a Cup, but nothing would galvanize this area more than a Super Bowl. The happiness would be palpable and would last for months or maybe years. It'd be a huge monkey off our back being the last one in the division to take down the crown.
I'd go insanely wild either way and definitely attend the parade and go more wild. And then get some sleep and then wake up and go wild all day again.
Also, my answer might have been different if you'd asked me in April :-D
