The 2012 Phillies' Improbable Run to the Championship

BradC · 12-13-2012, 08:10 PM

Just finished an amazing run with the 2012 Phillies in iOOTP and wanted to share the fun. My experience also reinforces something we've heard so many times: It ain't over 'til it's over, even when you lose three guys to injuries during the NLCS.

The Phillies' 2012 season started with three straight wins, followed by five straight losses. That set the tone for an erratic campaign. From April 24 through May 3, however, we knocked out nine straight wins, which I should have realized at the time was a harbinger of the wild finish that was in store.

The season was up and down, but it was more up than down through July. I'm the type who tends to not want to switch horses midstream if I think my team is doing okay, so I stayed put at the trading deadline, despite losing Roy Halladay for the rest of the season on July 29. Five- and six-game losing streaks in mid-to-late August made me reconsider that decision. I figured I should have held a fire sale, like the real-life Phillies did.

On August 24, Joe Blanton was declared out for three months due to elbow inflammation (he was 7-12 with a 4.86 ERA at the time). The rotation that got us through the rest of the season and the playoffs was Lee (8-11, 4.17), Hamels (17-10, 2.98), and Worley (14-7, 3.21), with Dave Bush (5-4, 3.59) and Brody Colvin (2-1, 4.35) coming up from the minors to do what they could.

The season seemed to be a lost cause, so I figured I would sim as quickly as I could through September and regroup in the offseason. The Phillies dropped further and further behind the eventual division champion Marlins, and the wild card-leading Cardinals and Dodgers quickly seemed out of reach too.

On September 21, the Phillies beat the Braves, 9-4, with Colvin getting the win, and they began an amazing 10-game winning streak that suddenly put the wild card within striking distance. September 30 saw Ryan Howard gone for the rest of the year with a broken finger (.269-27-70 in 106 games), but the Fightin' Phils won two of their last three games and found themselves tied with the Dodgers for the second wild card.

Now I realized I should start playing some games, rather than keep simming merrily along.

The wild card tie-breaker game against the Dodgers saw Hamels give up five runs in 4 1/3 innings, but Kershaw had to leave after three innings with back spasms, giving the Phils a shot at getting back into it. The Dodgers, who were the home team, clung to a 6-5 lead after five innings, but a three-run burst by the Phils in the eighth enabled them to pull out an 8-7 thriller.

On to the play-in wild card game on the road against the Cardinals. Worley and Wainright each lasted six innings and the Phillies carried a 4-2 lead into the eighth only to see the Dodgers tie it up. In the top of the ninth, though, redemption came in the form of Chase Utley, whose two-out solo blast gave the Phils a 5-4 victory. Papelbon allowed a hit and a walk in the bottom of the ninth but still managed to shut the door.

The Brewers were the Phillies' opponent for the NLDS. Milwaukee jumped out to a 2-1 series lead, but the Phils won Game 4, 7-3, on the strength of a five-run first inning. In Game 5, they used a three-run seventh inning, highlighted by first baseman Laynce Nix's two-run homer, to win, 5-3.

The NLCS saw the Phils square off against the Rockies (yeah, I know). The Phillies had a 2-1 series lead, but they lost Polanco (.400 in the postseason, .292-3-65 in 161 regular season games) for the rest of the year in Game 3. The next day, Worley couldn't get the job done in Game 4, and the team lost Qualls (2.82 ERA, 78 Ks, 67 IP) and Mayberry (.260-24-86 in 150 regular season games) to season-ending injuries too.

Despite only having 22 players on the roster, the Phillies captured Game 5, 6-5, with a four-run sixth inning, and in Game 6 they cruised to victory, 8-3.

The Phillies faced the Mariners (again, yeah, I know) in the World Series. Despite having lost a chunk of their everyday lineup between the end of the regular season and the NLCS, the Phils had no trouble scoring runs. They opened the series with a 10-4 Game 1 victory and followed it up with 6-2 and 8-1 wins.

Hamels stumbled in Game 4, won by Seattle, 4-2, but the Phils regrouped in Game 5 and carried a 6-4 lead into the eighth inning. The bullpen unraveled, though, with reliever Contreras committing a costly error, and the game headed into extra innings tied at 6-6. In the top of the 12th, the Phils broke out with four runs for a 10-6 victory. Papelbon pitched two innings and picked up the win. Perhaps it was fitting that Dave Bush was on the mound for the bottom of the 12th inning and the team's third world championship.

I haven't started any offseason maneuvering yet, but I was told that Thome has retired and received a Hall of Fame induction. I had relegated him to the minors early in the season (I put him on the trading block, but his .194 average ensured there wouldn't be much interest), but it was nice to see him wrap up his career that way. I'm sure the real-life Thome will end up in the Hall too.

scootermojo · 12-13-2012, 08:41 PM

That's pretty cool!!! I play a real-time MLB season making all the trades, injuries and roster moves as real MLB teams do for all 30 teams as each day of the season progresses on MLB The Show for PS3 each year....and this year the Phillies made it to the World Series against Texas and I won using the Phillies in an epic 7 game series. Since that's a different game I won't get into details unless someone wants to hear them....either way, though, it was fun as I'm sure your season was, too.

12-13-2012, 08:10 PM	#1
BradC All Star Starter Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: northern CA Posts: 1,872 Blog Entries: 1	The 2012 Phillies' Improbable Run to the Championship Just finished an amazing run with the 2012 Phillies in iOOTP and wanted to share the fun. My experience also reinforces something we've heard so many times: It ain't over 'til it's over, even when you lose three guys to injuries during the NLCS. The Phillies' 2012 season started with three straight wins, followed by five straight losses. That set the tone for an erratic campaign. From April 24 through May 3, however, we knocked out nine straight wins, which I should have realized at the time was a harbinger of the wild finish that was in store. The season was up and down, but it was more up than down through July. I'm the type who tends to not want to switch horses midstream if I think my team is doing okay, so I stayed put at the trading deadline, despite losing Roy Halladay for the rest of the season on July 29. Five- and six-game losing streaks in mid-to-late August made me reconsider that decision. I figured I should have held a fire sale, like the real-life Phillies did. On August 24, Joe Blanton was declared out for three months due to elbow inflammation (he was 7-12 with a 4.86 ERA at the time). The rotation that got us through the rest of the season and the playoffs was Lee (8-11, 4.17), Hamels (17-10, 2.98), and Worley (14-7, 3.21), with Dave Bush (5-4, 3.59) and Brody Colvin (2-1, 4.35) coming up from the minors to do what they could. The season seemed to be a lost cause, so I figured I would sim as quickly as I could through September and regroup in the offseason. The Phillies dropped further and further behind the eventual division champion Marlins, and the wild card-leading Cardinals and Dodgers quickly seemed out of reach too. On September 21, the Phillies beat the Braves, 9-4, with Colvin getting the win, and they began an amazing 10-game winning streak that suddenly put the wild card within striking distance. September 30 saw Ryan Howard gone for the rest of the year with a broken finger (.269-27-70 in 106 games), but the Fightin' Phils won two of their last three games and found themselves tied with the Dodgers for the second wild card. Now I realized I should start playing some games, rather than keep simming merrily along. The wild card tie-breaker game against the Dodgers saw Hamels give up five runs in 4 1/3 innings, but Kershaw had to leave after three innings with back spasms, giving the Phils a shot at getting back into it. The Dodgers, who were the home team, clung to a 6-5 lead after five innings, but a three-run burst by the Phils in the eighth enabled them to pull out an 8-7 thriller. On to the play-in wild card game on the road against the Cardinals. Worley and Wainright each lasted six innings and the Phillies carried a 4-2 lead into the eighth only to see the Dodgers tie it up. In the top of the ninth, though, redemption came in the form of Chase Utley, whose two-out solo blast gave the Phils a 5-4 victory. Papelbon allowed a hit and a walk in the bottom of the ninth but still managed to shut the door. The Brewers were the Phillies' opponent for the NLDS. Milwaukee jumped out to a 2-1 series lead, but the Phils won Game 4, 7-3, on the strength of a five-run first inning. In Game 5, they used a three-run seventh inning, highlighted by first baseman Laynce Nix's two-run homer, to win, 5-3. The NLCS saw the Phils square off against the Rockies (yeah, I know). The Phillies had a 2-1 series lead, but they lost Polanco (.400 in the postseason, .292-3-65 in 161 regular season games) for the rest of the year in Game 3. The next day, Worley couldn't get the job done in Game 4, and the team lost Qualls (2.82 ERA, 78 Ks, 67 IP) and Mayberry (.260-24-86 in 150 regular season games) to season-ending injuries too. Despite only having 22 players on the roster, the Phillies captured Game 5, 6-5, with a four-run sixth inning, and in Game 6 they cruised to victory, 8-3. The Phillies faced the Mariners (again, yeah, I know) in the World Series. Despite having lost a chunk of their everyday lineup between the end of the regular season and the NLCS, the Phils had no trouble scoring runs. They opened the series with a 10-4 Game 1 victory and followed it up with 6-2 and 8-1 wins. Hamels stumbled in Game 4, won by Seattle, 4-2, but the Phils regrouped in Game 5 and carried a 6-4 lead into the eighth inning. The bullpen unraveled, though, with reliever Contreras committing a costly error, and the game headed into extra innings tied at 6-6. In the top of the 12th, the Phils broke out with four runs for a 10-6 victory. Papelbon pitched two innings and picked up the win. Perhaps it was fitting that Dave Bush was on the mound for the bottom of the 12th inning and the team's third world championship. I haven't started any offseason maneuvering yet, but I was told that Thome has retired and received a Hall of Fame induction. I had relegated him to the minors early in the season (I put him on the trading block, but his .194 average ensured there wouldn't be much interest), but it was nice to see him wrap up his career that way. I'm sure the real-life Thome will end up in the Hall too.

12-13-2012, 08:41 PM	#2
scootermojo Minors (Double A) Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 125	That's pretty cool!!! I play a real-time MLB season making all the trades, injuries and roster moves as real MLB teams do for all 30 teams as each day of the season progresses on MLB The Show for PS3 each year....and this year the Phillies made it to the World Series against Texas and I won using the Phillies in an epic 7 game series. Since that's a different game I won't get into details unless someone wants to hear them....either way, though, it was fun as I'm sure your season was, too.