Sean B. Fitzgerald It doesn’t go something like this, it goes exactly like this.

National League Championship Series

Tomorrow night, the NLCS begins. It will be the Philadelphia Phillies against Manny...er...I mean the Los Angeles Dodgers. Should be an interesting series. Alot of little subplots on the side. Mostly on LA's side. But Philly's does have a few intriguing stories surrounding the series. First off, the fact that the city of Philadelphia has not won a professional sports championship since 1983. That team being the 1982-83 76ers. When they won, Cole Hamels' parents were gettin' it on, thinking they would produce the Game 1 starter for the 2008 National League Championship Series. And I must say, well done Gary and Amanda.

Gary taking a victory sip.

Another obvious subplot to this series is Joseph Paul Torre's return to the NLCS. A place he has not been to since the 2004 ALCS. Lest we forget. Torre has made the Yankees look ever so silly for offering him a pesky incentive laden $3 million contract. But in all seriousness, things have always seemed to go Torre's way since 1996. Without Derek Jeter, Buck Showalter, Mariano Rivera, Bernie Williams, Paul O'Neill, George Steinbrenner, Manny Ramirez, Jim Leyritz, Scott Brosius, Tino Martinez, Jeffrey Maier, Grady Little, and others, he would have zero of his success. He was just in the right place at the right time. Which boils down to the fact that MLB managers are largely inconsequential. They "manage" highly paid professionals who just have to field, hit, and pitch. So if you just sit down, chew gum, and put them in any batting order, you'll be a successful manager. But I digress.

Man at Work