World Series begins tonight

It seems like it's been months since the regular baseball season ended, but finally the World Series is here! Game 1 is tonight between the Phillies and the Yankees up in New York. We had a lot of rain here yesterday and today, but that appears to be gone now, and things should be good to go in an hour when the game gets underway. I think this will be a great series. I'm tempted to say that the Phillies are going to win, since they're playing so well I can't even imagine them losing. But I know from experience to never count out the Yanks. Of course, I'm rooting for the Phillies. I'd love to see them get at least a split in the first two games and then come back to Philly and win it all in home territory.

Phillies set to return to WS

Lots of baseball playoff action going on this past week, and the Phillies were right in the center of it. They opened up their NLCS against the Dodgers with a win out in LA. They lost game two but won game three back here in Philly. Game four was a thriller which they ended up winning on a 2-RBI double by Jimmy Rollins in the bottom of the 9th. So now the Phils have a 3-1 lead in the series, and with a win tonight could return to the World Series for the second year in a row. Meanwhile, in the ALCS, the Yankees have taken a 3-1 lead over the Angels. The one game the Angels did manage to win was an extra inning affair. There's still a lot of baseball left to be played, but right now it looks like the World Series will be between the Yankees and the Phillies.

Baltimore half-marathon

On Saturday morning I was down in Baltimore to run the half-marathon, which I've done every year since 2004. The past couple of years were not good races, but I was definitely pleased with this year's performance. My time was 1:36:32, which put me at 203rd place overall. The weather was less than perfect with temps in the upper 60s, but fortunately it was overcast, so I didn't have the sun pounding down on me the entire way. We even had a little rain at certain spots on the course. I tried to keep mile splits, but I missed quite a few of the markers. Here is what I did get:
1 - 7:29
2 - 14:57 (7:28)
3,4,5 - 38:13 (23:15)
6,7 - 53:36 (15:23)
8 - 1:01:09 (7:32)
9 - 1:08:21 (7:12)
10 - 1:15:27 (7:05)
11 - 1:22:26 (6:58)
12 - 1:29:21 (6:55)
13 - 1:35:53 (6:31)
13.1 - 1:36:32 (0:38)

At some point between miles 3 and 4, I stopped in a port-a-pot, so that obviously cost me some time. I'm not sure why miles 6 and 7 were so slow. I do remember that I felt strong between miles 7 and 8, and I consciously picked up the pace. It looks like I kept accelerating all the way to the finish. I'm very happy with those splits, and overall I think I ran a great race.

Phillies open playoffs with a win

The Phillies began playoff action this afternoon against the Rockies at home, in a game that started at 2:37pm. Not a very convenient time for baseball fans who have to work, but apparently TV dictates the schedule, and somebody decided that the Phillies-Rockies matchup was going to be the least interesting of all the games. I was unable to listen to the play-by-play, but I did follow online whenever I could. Cliff Lee was the starting pitcher for the Phils, and he did an excellent job, shutting down the Rockies until the 9th inning and getting a complete game victory. The Phillies gave him some run support by scoring 5 runs in the middle innings, and that was the game. It was an impressive performance by all accounts. Game 2 will be played tomorrow; same time, same place.