If It’s Rarely “Sunny” in Philadelphia (In My Opinion), Why Do I Love “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia?”

I was born and raised in Philadelphia. “The Great Northeast,” actually…which is not “Center City” or even all that close to downtown. But our mailing address was Philly, so we were official.

And I didn’t realize until we moved to Texas in 2006 how I basically never really dug where I was from. Yes, I’m still a Philly sports fan — despite the negative connotations. And I love me some Tastykakes and soft pretzels. (Thankfully, Rita’s Water Ice has made it to Texas.)

I don’t know if it’s my love for the open spaces, warmer climate, better cost of living and Southern hospitality (yes, it exists) of the Lone Star State or my distaste for the crowded streets and frozen slushy winters of the Illadelph. Whatever the case, I’m happy where we are now.

So why do I love “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia?” Possible reasons:

a) It’s funny.

b) I’ve described it as “Seinfeld with Philly jerks who own a dive bar.” And I love Seinfeld.

c) Danny DeVito’s finest and most absurd work.

d) Occasional shots and mentions of Philly places that are somewhat nostalgic/sentimental.

Did I know people like Mac, Dennis, Charlie, Sweet Dee and Frank? Not really.

Did I hang in dive bars? Rarely.

Bottom line: It’s a funny show, and it’s a weird love/hate letter to my hometown.

Oh well, too much unnecessary examination. Just know that I recommend the show. It’s an acquired taste for some, given its mostly unlikable cast of characters.  But so was the world of Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer.

Fantasy baseball: Draft report

OK, so I had my draft this past Saturday night. (And on the heels of that last blog, it was pretty clear that this particular hobby will be taking a back seat to many things once the twins are born.)

Anywho, these were my keepers:

C: Dioner Navarro, TB, $7; Taylor Teagarden, TEX, $0 (Prospect)

1B: Albert Pujols, STL, $40

2B: Kelly Johnson, ATL, $11; Emilio Bonafacio, FLA, $1

SS: Alexei Ramirez, CHW, $10

3B: Ryan Zimmerman, WAS, $13

OF: Matt Kemp, LA, $25; Colby Rasmus, STL, $0 (Prospect)

SP: Matt Cain, SF, $14; Jered Weaver, LAA, $9; Max Scherzer, ARZ, $8; Jonathan Sanchez, SF, $5; Ubaldo Jimenez, COL, $4; Joe Blanton, PHI, $1; Jordan Zimmermann, WAS, $1; Shaun Marcum, TOR, $1 (will go straight to DL); Scott Elbert, LA, $0 (Prospect)

RP: None

So the draft was its usual fast-and-furious auction bidding war, with plenty of good-natured ribbing and fun. At some point, we were discussing Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman’s anatomy, but such is the rapid-fire, stream-of-consciousness mindset of the drafter.

As you can see above, I clearly needed help in the outfield, bench depth, an ace pitcher and an entire bullpen. Lemme know if you think I addressed those needs:

–Daisuke Matsuzaka, SP, BOS, $32

–Corey Hart, OF, MIL, $32

–Jonathan Papelbon, RP, BOS, $28

–Andre Ethier, OF, LA, $26

–Joakim Soria, RP, KC, $23

–Jose Lopez, 2B, SEA, $12

–Hong-Chih Kuo, RP, LA, $7

–Andrew Sonnanstine, SP, TB, $4

–Felipe Lopez, IF, ARZ, $3

–Ryan Madson, RP, PHI, $3

–Hideki Okajima, RP, BOS, $3

–Brandon Lyon, RP, DET, $2

–Jason Kubel, OF, MIN, $2

–Denard Span, OF, MIN, $2

–Chris Snyder, C, ARZ, $1

Since I haven’t blogged in a while, I never posted the results of our Prospect Draft (we get to carry six minor leaguers now):

–Elvis Andrus, SS, TEX

–Carlos Triunfel, SS, SEA

–Jesus Montero, C, NYY

My other three prospects were the keepers listed above.

And there’s a trade in the works for another guy’s Prospect – sending him $2 for next year’s MLB Auction Draft.

Fantasy geek out.

LiveBlog: Phils/Dodgers, NLCS Game 3

10:21 p.m.: Oh well. This was pretty much a “must-win” for L.A., and I didn’t really think this would be an easy series for the Phils. See you tomorrow night for Game 4!

10:20 p.m.: Huge Jonathan Broxton is the Dodgers’ closer. He’s allegedly something like 6’6″, 290 and throws about 99MPH. I had him in one of my fantasy leagues. I’m sure being in the NLCS (and possibly the World Series, though I hope not) will drive up his “price.”

10:17 p.m.: Sharp Aquos, that’s who it is.

10:14 p.m.: I hate that creepy “physicist” guy in the commercials for Sony or Visio or whatever TV manufacturer it is. He looks like Florence Henderson, if she were a tall college professor with that “prematurely white hair” look.

10:09 p.m.: Are you serious? The best celebrities (after Tiger Woods) that L.A. can turn out for this game are Mary Hart and Pat Sajak? I saw Henry “The Fonz” Winkler in a super-box, but I think I read somewhere he’s a Phillies fan. And the guys from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” were uncharacteristically lame in doing the Phillies’ lineup at the beginning of the broadcast. (It was “Mac” and Danny DeVito.)

10:03 p.m.: Not sure if I’ve mentioned it for a while, but I intensely dislike Tim McCarver as a “color commentator.”

10:02 p.m.: Of course, the chances of a comeback this large in the 9th inning must be astronomical.

9:49 p.m.: Never mind. We can’t even throw out Russell Martin stealing a base – and he’s been hit by a pitch like three times tonight. This game is 97% lost cause. I only give the Phils that 3% because there was that one time…(flashback alert)…

It was June 8, 1989. I was experiencing my first bout of major disease (undiagnosed at the time), and had missed the last several months of school. I couldn’t even sit up with my legs over the edge of a chair or couch.

I remember being on the couch in the living room, watching the Phillies give up 10 runs in the first inning to the Pirates. Yep, 10-0 in the 1st. Grandpop Morey was there, and he gave his usual “man, they suck” look. And with my insanely annoying optimism, I said, “you watch, they’ll come back.”

And oddly enough, they did. They won 15-11, after getting 2 runs in the 1st, 3rd and 4th, they got 4 in the 6th and 5 in the 8th to get the W. That was also the game when one of the Pirates broadcasters (Steve Blass?) said there was no way they would lose, and that he’d walk back to Pittsburgh if they did. (And he did it at a later date, as a charity event.)

9:27 p.m.: So we’re maybe starting to chip away at the lead…7-2, men on, no outs. If by some miracle we come back, this series will be ours.

9:26 p.m.: Been busy – bathroom break (reading Hary Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) and then doing the cat litter. Yes, it’s a charmed life. 😉

8:50 p.m.: Shane Victorino was absolutely right. You wanna retaliate, just hit me in the arm, the butt, the leg. You go huntin’ my head, and that’s not right.

8:34 p.m.: I swear. One more commercial with Frank Calliendo or the GEICO Cavemen, and I will kill something.

8:28 p.m.: I still feel bad for Jamie Moyer. He just couldn’t get it done tonight, but he’s still aces in my book.

8:25 p.m.: I can’t believe it’s 6-1. It’s not insurmountable, but with Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard not hitting AT ALL, it doesn’t look good. Hope the bullpen can hold the Dodgers.

8:23 p.m.: Screw you, Manny Ramirez. Your beef should be with your wimpy pitchers who don’t retaliate by throwing at the opposing team. I, and so many Red Sox fans, would have loved to see Ryan Howard beat the snot out of you.

ALL TIMES CENTRAL.