Barack Obama didn't see the Philadelphia Phillies defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 5-1 last night as they continued their march toward baseball's annual October prize, the World Series championship. I know this, because I missed the live telecast of the final presidential debate, choosing instead to be one of the few loud and long-suffering, some might say suicidal, Philly fans sitting among the Dodgers' faithful at Chavez Ravine. It was a beautiful thing for the city of Philadelphia and all its natives. But, as I sat in front of my TV after the game watching a replay of the debate, I found myself hoping that Senator Obama was doing the same thing in reverse -- watching a replay of the game.
You see, last week, in a rare twitch of cutesy political indulgence, Senator Obama declared the Phillies to be "his team" in this year's baseball playoff chase. And while the implication of this declaration is clear to anyone who parses those incessant battleground state maps [though one wonders if Obama will digress should Florida's Tampa Bay Rays emerge as the Phils' World Series opponents], Obama may gain more by watching and learning from his newly adopted team than by pandering to their fans.
The Phillies refused to sit on their lead. They entered last night ahead by a commanding 3-1 games advantage in their best-of-seven League Championship confrontation with the Dodgers. History shows that blowing such a lead in such a series -- much like a 10-point lead in the national polls 19 days before a presidential election -- is less likely than Sarah Palin giving an unscripted interview. In other words, the odds are way against it.
The Phils had reason to feel confident. You betcha. But given their long-tortured history, they had no right to feel over-confident. Because, in sports, as in politics, things happen. Right when you think you have the whole thing locked up, it can slip away, like when a third-tier wide receiver pulls a rabbit out of his hat...or, in the case of the 2007 New England Patriots, has a football miraculously stick to one. Or when a Hall of Famer swipes a tag a split second too late...with apologies to Yankees fans, circa 2004. In sports, you can look like a winner right up to the last minute, the last second. It doesn't mean you are one until you seal the deal.
Last night, from the very first at-bat, the Phils came at the Dodgers with everything they had. When Jimmy Rollins lead-off homerun sailed across the azure Southern California sky and into the right field pavilion -- that's LA-speak for bleachers, all you Cubs and Sox fans -- he told the Dodgers right then and there: We're putting this thing to bed right now, right here. When his running mate Chase Utley sprinted home with abandon after the Dodgers' shortstop flubbed an easy grounder ["um, Senator Government..."], he put the Dodgers on their heels, forcing another error. The man at the top of the Phils' ticket, an [ahem] attractive, cool-as-a-dry-martini, articulate hurler named Cole Hamels, attacked the Dodgers with his complete arsenal of darts and daggers. By the time he was finished, all the Dodgers could do was reflect on what might have been, addressing the throng of cameras and microphones with the only sentiment everyone knew to be true: "They were better. And they won."
Indeed, the Phils won by understanding how to play with the lead. They stayed aggressive. They played like they were the ones with their backs against the wall. They dispatched the Dodgers with both a machete and a scalpel.
I'm delighted and proud this morning that I stuck it out with my beloved Phils through all those losing years, the constant frustration, the repeated high hopes dashed, season after disappointing season. It's all worth it this morning. But it pales in comparison to the sense of hope and optimism I will feel if I wake up on Wednesday, November 5th with President-elect Barack Obama headed to the White House, ready to lead America into a much-needed era of bona fide change.
Obama picked the right baseball team to support. Now, let's hope he learns from them. Watch the game, Senator. Watch the game.
Joe Kessler is an Obama supporter and lifelong Phillies fan.