philadelphia Uh-oh. The Tampa Bay Rays suddenly seem less Disney and something more sinister.
More along the lines of “For Whom the Cowbell Tolls.”
The Rays are acting their age. They are pressing, frustrated, and sloppy. They are also running out of luck, patience and, more than anything, time. The Philadelphia Phillies thumped the Rays 10-2 on Sunday night in Game 4 of the World Series, setting up an elimination game tonight at raucous Citizens Bank Park.
Forget the 10,000-loss indignity achieved last summer. The Phillies have three wins — and immortality to go.
All signs point toward Philadelphia’s first title since 1980 and only their second in 126 years. Phillies big hits finally arrived Sunday, reason and logic returning to their lineup. It was hard to believe they could be this bad. But when Ryan Howard sauntered to the plate in the fourth inning, the Phillies were 4-for-43 with runners in scoring position. And only two of those hits scored runs.
Howard, the first National League player to homer in back-to-back World Series games since Barry Bonds in 2002, changed everything with one swing. Tampa starter Andy Sonnanstine tried to fool Howard with a 2-1 curve. Howard kept his hands back and flicked the ball into the left-field seats for a three-run home run. It was the first of four homers for the Phillies.
