By Matt Valentine
With the first pitch of the World Series due to be tossed in less then 24 hours I have to take stock of how improbable this match up between the Phillies and Tampa Bay Rays really is.
Baseballs ultimate prize.
Well, really the only improbable part of the equation is the Rays, unfortunately for me (sorry Philly I’m not a big fan…deal with it…I’m kidding…sort of) the Phillie’s have been an up and coming team for quite some time now. They have captured the NL East title two years running, and have been priming themselves for their first World Series appearance since 1993 and possibly their first World Series title since 1980. Despite my hatred for most things Philadelphia, except for cheese steaks, and It’s Always Sunny, I actually feel for Philly fans. They have not seen any of their major professional sports teams win a championship since 1983, to put that into perspective not only could I not write, I couldn’t do anything, cus’ I wasn’t even born yet. Still, their misery is my joy. Hell, I’ve seen every single team I love win a championship, most of them multiple times. People my age who love Philly teams have yet to see one…ouch.
So, actually it is fairly improbable that a Philly team has made it this far, but not nearly as much of an improbability as it is for the team they’ll be playing. If you want some perspective on just how improbable it is for the Rays to be in the World Series check this out.
The Rays came to life in 1998. In the decade since their birth they have finished out of last place just twice. Once in 2004, and once again this year. The Rays have NEVER had a winning season until now. They’ve never even had a .500 season until this year. The team was pretty much a joke. A triple A team playing way out of their own league. Constantly signing veterans well past their prime in a desperate effort to make themselves appear legit. And legitimacy was hard to come by for this franchise. They brought in legitimate managers like Sweet Lou Pinella, but could never put a legitimate team on the field.
Then something changed , someone in the Rays organization finally had the bright idea to build from within, to start with youth and let them mature. And after a decade of futility came a major surprise…a winning season! Not just a winning season, but an AL East title season. And now a shot at one of the most improbable World Series titles in recent memory.
Oh, and we can’t forget that in the franchises’ first ever postseason appearance they handily defeated the Chicago White Sox in 4 games, and even more impressively were able to hold off the defending World Champion Red Sox in seven, a team which has made a living doing some improbable things of its own.
So yes, we’re all about to see a World Series most of us probably thought would never happen. The Tampa Bay Rays will play the Philadelphia Phillies for a chance to say, for one year at least, that they were the best. So, instead of mourning your teams lost season, sit back, rejoice, and marvel at the fact that in the wold of sports, absolutely nothing is impossible. Just pretty damn improbable.