Screen Shot 2011-08-09 at 8.32.38 AM
Jeez, as if Tom McCarthy’s opening dissertation about the plight of the Dodgers wasn’t enough reason to take pity on the dying franchise (and your ears), perhaps watching Roy Halladay go to work in front of about 12 people, most of them Phillies fans, helped you locate your heart.

In the span about 22 months, Dodger Stadium has gone from a packed October house to a bleak, mostly empty aging structure. Sad, really.

The Phillies beat the Dodgers, 5-3. Full highlights can be found here.

For those of you who didn’t stay up late, know that the Phillies got out to an early 3-0 lead, and despite some hairy late-inning moments, were able to hold off the listless Dodgers.

Halladay was removed with one out in the seventh. Predictably, as you see above, he wasn’t too happy. The other aces, however, were having themselves a ball in tinseltown. There is a 99.9% chance they're talking about hunting here:

This video really needs to be dubbed over with some sort of cartoon crash-bang sounds. Or Boomhower.

Perhaps it was Lee’s enthusiastic chuckles combined with Doc’s intensity, but I had a dream last night that I was best friends with the two top aces and would ride with them in the bed of a Ford pickup truck following games. Each night, they would solicit me – the league minimum closer – for money to help add another right-handed bat. Really. I wanted Cliff to like me, so I obliged.

I think I need to get out more.

Thankfully, that was just a dream and the Phillies already have their much needed weapon- otherwise we wouldn’t be treated to such incredible screen grabs:

Hunter_pence_faceHungry Hunter face

One guy who is truly friendly with some of the Phils, Rob McElhenney from It’s Always Sunny, was in attendance with his wife, Kaitlin Olson. That’s them cheering for Doc as he left the game (Kaitlin in lower right).

Screen Shot 2011-08-09 at 8.15.34 AM

News:

Placido Polanco has a sports hernia and surgery has not been ruled out. Not good.

In an ironic twist of fate, since Bruce Bochy helped set up a rotation that would have Doc skip right over the Giants – twice, the Giants were blanked by Charlie Morton, the Doc clone, last night. Sorry, Bruce.

H/T to (@ianhirsthermans), (@phillyguy_nati), and (@TheeBlueMeanie) for the grabs