Tomorrow afternoon, the Phillies will match up against the Mets in Shea Stadium. It will be the first time the two teams have played each other since the Phillies swept the Metropolitans in mid-September.
Speaking of September, 2007, there is a common perception that the Phillies won the National League East title because the Mets choked. Now, I know I am biased, but I tend to think it was really more a case of the Phillies coming on strong in the final month, more than the Mets falling apart.
The Phils went 17-11 in September 2007 which is quite a stretch of good play and the record should speak for itself, but sometimes pictures show more than words or numbers. Take a look at this graph of the NL East teams in relation to .500 last year. The blue line representing the Phillies takes much more of an upward turn in September than the Mets' y
ellow line takes a downward turn.
Still not convinced? Perhaps a moving picture will show you more than a still. Take a look at BaseballRace.com's 2007 NL East animation and you'll notice how the Phillies, well, race to the finish line much faster than the Mets do.
Now, a question for you: Does the outcome of the 2007 regular season make up for the way the 1964 Phillies came up lame down the stretch?
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Game time: 1:10 EST. Jamie Moyer for the Fightin's, Oliver Perez for the Mets. Go Phillies.
