For the Phillies, It's Time to Make Some Hay and Erase the Ghosts

For some fans, the Phillies season is about the here and the now.

Sure, those fans remember Brett Myers striking out the last Washington Nationals batter to seal up the NL East crown on the last of the season in 2007.

But for those of us who remember 1980, including Phillies pitcher—the ageless wonder—Jamie Moyer, who was in high school in 1980.

The run to the Phillies only World Series championship started in 1974. The first division crown didn't happen until 1976, but 1974 is the year that second baseman Dave Cash joined the team.

He coined the term, "Yes, we can!"

That one statement brought a winning attitude to the team, and from 1976-78, the Phils reached the playoffs. The Pittsburgh Pirates won the World Series in 1979.

In 1980, the Phllies beat the Houston Astros in the NL playoffs, then the Kansas City Royals in six games in 1980 to win their first and only World Series.

The teams of the late 1970's and 1980 were reminiscent of this current crop of Phillies. Mike Schmidt, Larry Bowa, Greg Luzinski, and most importantly, the man who put them over the top, longtime Reds great and free agent, Pete Rose.

Today, homegrown products include Cole Hammells, Pat Burrell, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and Jimmy Rollins. Jamie Moyer, in a different way, sets the tone for this team: good work ethic, shaken by nothing, and gives a good effort to put the team in a position to win.

As exciting as the first round of the playoffs were—especially Game Two when pitcher Brett Myers coaxed a walk off Brewers ace C.C. Sabathia after starting the at bat at 0-2, then Shane Victorino's two-out, two-strike grand slam—the game's place in Phillies history will not matter outside Philadelphia.

As much as the town cheers, it’s the Phillies who hold destiny in their hands. They are blissfully ignorant of past failures, the way the town was enthralled with the 1980 team, and the "we'll get them next year" attitude.

Yep, I am sorry for the Cubs and their three-and-out opening round to the Dodgers. I even feel a bit bad for Mets fans, seeing their team miss the playoffs by one game two years in a row.

But ultimately, this is Philly.

We have our own hopes and dreams.

We stick our wagons to our own teams: the 1980 Phillies and the 1974-75 Flyers. But there are also the 1976-79 Phillies, the 2004 Eagles and the 2001 Sixers, all ultimately falling short of the crown as World Champions.

That's what I love about Philly fans. They wear their hearts on their sleeves and support their teams, win or lose.

But boy, do they love a winner.

Let's hope this batch of Phillies finds out what a victory parade in Philly feels like. No ride around the Meadowlands parking lot, or a parade in Disney World.  Nope.

This is Philly: soft pretzels, cheese steak wit' and an enduing passion for its sports teams.