The Philadelphia Phillies 12 Days of Christmas

With Christmas being just a week away, Christmas music has taken over the airwaves. Sitting in my car listening to "The Twelve Days of Christmas," I couldn't help but sing along, adding my own lyrics.

Then I thought, why not make it about the Philadelphia Philies? There have been so many gifts the Phillies have given the fans over the last few years, so it should be easy to make a song with 12 different gifts. Well, it wasn't. After a few hours of sitting at a blank computer screen, I finally came up with what I think is a pretty good song. To save some time, we'll start off with the twelfth day.

If you have any ideas for different lyrics, or any suggestions, feel free to post a comment.

On the 12th day of Christmas, The Phillies gave to me...

Twelve Pitchers Pitching

Twelve Pitchers Pitching (based on Opening Day 2012 prediction)

- Roy Halladay

- Cole Hamels

- Cliff Lee

- Vance Worley

- Kyle Kendrick

- Joe Blanton

- Jonathan Papelbon

-Antonio Bastardo

- Mike Stutes

- Dontrelle Willis

- Jose Contreras

- David Herndon

- Michael Schwimer

Eleven Jimmy Rollins

11 Jimmy Rollins

This one works on two levels. Not only was the resigning of J-Roll a present, but he's been playing at the Major League level since 2000, which is 11 years (yay puns).

Ten Ben's a Belting

10 Ben's-a-Belting

He may not be on the team anymore, but Ben Francisco's eventual game-winning home run in NLDS Game 3 last year was definitely a present for everyone, and since he wore No. 10, it works out well.

Nine Dom Browns Dropping

9 Dominic Browns Dropping

He may be one of the Phillies' top prospects but boy is No. 9 Domonic Brown terrible in the field. Brown committed eight errors between the Phillies and Class AAA Lehigh Valley in 2011, and his "dropping" back to Class AAA last July adds up to nine drops. 

Eight Blantons Starting

8 Blantons Starting

Another not-so-positive gift that the Phillies gave the fans in 2011 were the eight times Joe Blanton started. The injury hampered Blanton had a 1-2 record with a 5.17 ERA in those eight starts last season. Here's hoping he can turn it around in 2012 and turn into a present that Ruben Amaro won't want to regift to another team. 

Seven Charlies Coaching

7 Charlies Coaching

Charlie Manuel is arguably the best manager in Phillies' history, and he has been with the organization for seven years. Under his leadership the Phillies have made the playoffs each of the last five years, and won the World Series in 2008. Thanks Charlie!

Six-ty Two Days Until Pitchers And Catchers Report

Six-ty-Two Days Until Pitchers and Catchers Report

Even though it's Christmas time, many fans want nothing more than for baseball to come back. The good news? They'll only have to wait sixty-two days.

FIVE IN A ROW!

 (With Emphasis) FIVE IN A ROW!

The Phillies have won five straight division titles, dating back to 2007. That's a huge gift to fans, considering before the five-peat was a playoff drought that went back to 1993.

Four Injury Prone Starters

Four Injury-Prone Starters

In addition to the three players pictured, (Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Carlos Ruiz), third baseman Placido Polanco makes four everyday starters that can't seem to stay healthy. When at 100 percent, their play is surely a gift, but it seems that in the last few seasons they have all been given the injury bug.

Three Pitching Aces

Three Pitching Aces

Last year, it was the Four Aces featuring Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt. With Oswalt gone, it's down to three. These pitchers, though, are a huge part of why the Phillies won 101 regular season games in 2011. Three healthy aces is still a tremendous awesome present to have. 

Two World Series

Two World Series championships

The Phillies have won two World Series titles, one in 1980 and another in 2008. Hopefully next year's "12 Days of Christmas" will have "Three World Series championships" instead of two.

And an Inning Pitched by Wilson Valdez

And an Inning Pitched by Wilson Valdez

Seeing as how this was the most fun part of the 2011 season, I thought it would be appropriate to end this song. How often does one get to see the utility infielder pitch an inning during a 19 inning game?

By the way, Wilson pitched a scoreless 19th inning that night (May 25) and earned his first major league win.

The Full Song

On the twelfth day of Christmas the Phillies gave to me...

Twelve Pitchers Pitching

Eleven Jimmy Rollins

Ten Bens-a-Belting

Nine Dom Browns Dropping

Eight Blantons Starting

Seven Charlies Coaching

Six-ty Two Days Until Pitcher and Catcher Report

FIVE IN A ROW!

Four Injury Prone Starters

Three Pitching Aces

Two World Series

And an Inning Pitched by Wilson Valdez