A self pitying Red Sox fan guide to picking an NLCS team to root for

The Red Sox season is done. It's been done since Sunday afternoon. Hopefully Red Sox fans have calmed down a little bit.

The playoffs march on and there are some questions to ask... like who should we root for?

Now only a total sadistic Red Sox fan is questioning who they are rooting for in the ALCS. It's pretty cut and dry. Root for the California Angels (or whatever the hell they are calling themselves) and avoid the displeasure of seeing a parade in New York.

We need a few more years to chant "2000!"

The NLCS is a little harder to

Well there are pros and cons for each team and this being Sully Baseball I will break them all down before the first pitch of tonights NLCS.

LOS ANGELES DODGERS

5 reasons for a Red Sox fan to root for the Dodgers:

- Joe Torre's revenge would be nice. Let's face it, any chance to see Steinbrenner and company get their come uppance is nice.

- Don Mattingly wins a ring... but not as a Yankee. You can't hate Don Mattingly. He was a classy and intensely unlucky player. It's nice to see guys like Mattingly, currently on the Dodgers coaching staff, get rings. Even nicer when that doesn't include the Yankees.

- Jim Thome deserves a ring. He would have a ring with the 1997 Indians if Jose Mesa could have held on to the lead in the 9th inning of Game 7. He's a bench player now, but I'm sure he doesn't mind.

- Frank McCourt is getting a divorce. He's a nice Boston boy who also happens to be a multibillionaire. That multi is going to get a lot smaller once he heads to divorce court and pretty soon this Dodger team will be dismantled faster than the 1997 Marlins squad that denied Thome a title. Better get that World Series title in NOW!

- Manny Ramirez gave us too many good memories. Yeah he was on juice and he pushed a dude to the ground and quit on the team... but remember all of the home runs? The peeing in the Green Monster? The 2004 World Series MVP? Come on! It's MANNY!

5 reasons for Red Sox fans to root against the Dodgers:

- We're supposed to root FOR Joe Torre? Really? Isn't it more fun knowing that he couldn't make it back to the World Series after the 2004 collapse?

- We're supposed to root FOR Jim Thome? The guy hit 7 homers in 3 Division Series against the Red Sox... and every one of them seemed to travel 14 miles.

- LA fans should be satisfied with the Lakers winning! It is unseemly for a fan base to be overly greedy (keeping in mind some Patriot fans are still pissed the 2007/2008 season wasn't PERFECT.)

- You know Frank McCourt did something really bad. You don't file for divorce from a multi billionaire without some serious sh*t hitting the fan. Once we find out what he did, we'll be glad he never hoisted a World Series trophy.

- We're still mad at Manny! Let's face it... it didn't end well. And if he wins with the Dodgers, it will start all of the short term memory barkers saying "See! The Red Sox should never have let Manny go!"

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

5 reasons for Red Sox fans to root for the Phillies:

- It would be fun to have a new Back to Back World Series winner. Especially to have people stop reminding us that the 1998-2000 Yankees were the last champs to repeat.

- They are building a potential dynasty from within. With all the talk about only teams that buy stars winning titles, it would be nice to see a team become a force with home grown stars. They already have 2 home grown MVPs (Howard and Rollins) and a home grown NLCS and World Series MVP (Hamels.) Maybe they can create a blue print for other teams and have everyone stop whining about the Red Sox and Yankees signing every free agent.

- It will really P*ss the Mets off. Hey 1986 will never be totally in the rear view mirror... and besides with big price busts and front office scandal, isn't it fun seeing the Mets turn into MLB's answer to the Knicks?

- PEDRO! The Phillies have Pedro Martinez, the guy who was the ace during the single most exciting period of Red Sox fandom in our LIVES. He deserves another ring!

- They are hard boiled passionate Northeastern fans with a New York complex! Sound familiar?


5 reasons for Red Sox fans to root against the Phillies:

- I don't want anyone else laying claim to the title "Team of the Decade." This is OUR decade damn it! We won two World Series titles and we're the only ones!

- I'm still not over the Jamie Moyer trade. Granted Moyer might not even play in this post season, but who knew that when the Red Sox traded him away in 1996 he'd still be a big league pitcher worth 12 wins a year 13 years later?

- What kind of a stupid name is Phillies? Seriously, it's not the Boston Bostonians. Our team has a dignified name based on the color of our footwear.

- The Phillies were originally in Worcester. You can look it up... the city of Philadelphia snatched a Massachusetts based team and tore the heart out of a fan base! Granted that happened in 1882 when Chester Arthur was President... but in New England old wounds heal slowly.

-Phillies fans are obnoxious. Seriously they boo their best players. They are never happy and complain even after they win. Who could like a fan base like that?... oh wait.



So make your choices Red Sox fans... and make your reasons as petty as possible.

As for me, I have rendered my decision and I will be saying... (Drum Roll Please.)

LET'S GO PHILLIES!

Yup, back to back titles from a home grown club like the Phillies is good for baseball. Plus I have many Phillie fan relatives and friends.

Now if you will excuse me, I need to see which NL Team will probably get their butts kicked by the Yankees in a week or so.