We’re less than an hour away from the first pitch of the much anticipated Dodgers – Phillies series. The big headline going into this series is that this will be Chase Utley’s last time playing in Citizens Bank Park. Utley, who recently announced his retirement, is a god amongst men in this town and is sure to be greeted accordingly. In fact, I was there for Utley’s initial return to CBP when he got a standing ovation for hitting a grand slam against the Phillies. That was one of my favorite moments I’ve experienced in sports, so cheer Utley as loud as you can – but you also have to be sure to cheer for Machado.

I get it man, we all wanted Manny. He was the only true “big bat” available at the deadline and getting him would have greatly helped the Phillies’ chances of making a run. But at the end of the day, a deal couldn’t materialize and he ended up becoming a Dodger.

Sure, it sucks to see Manny in a Dodgers uniform after being blue balled by talk of a “handshake deal” that was agreed upon before the All Star Game, but it’s not his fault that he’s in LA. Ultimately, the Orioles front office liked the Dodgers’ package better and that’s just the way it is. It stings, but we’ve got to remember just how good a chance the Phillies have at landing Machado this winter.

Get Off The Super Bowl Victory And Be Patient

We’ve also got to keep in mind that this is the first time the Phillies have been in the playoff hunt since 2011. There has been a-lot of misery since then, including having to watch Grady Sizemore in the 2015 Opening Day lineup, so stop complaining and enjoy it. The way I’ve seen people talk about this front office, you’d think the Phillies have been in contention for a decade and Manny was our last chance to win. If Klentak does nothing this off-season, then I’ll be right there with you – but it’s too early to make that call.

I’ll say it; the Eagles winning the Super Bowl has made us all spoiled. We saw a team that was written off defy the odds and deliver a much needed championship, so now we’re hungry for more. Understandable, but we need to be patient. If we can handle the process, we can handle the careful finishing of a Phillies rebuild that only really began in 2015.

So relax and enjoy the ride. He is sure to command an enormous contract, but Philly is well situated to give him just that. There are only a handful of teams that make sense for Machado and the Phillies are certainly one of them.

Also keep in mind that him being in LA isn’t the end of the world. Sure, players love playing there, but the Dodgers are going to have an issue both paying and playing him next year with Seager set to return. This was a “win now” move, period and done. There seems to be this consensus that LA has some mystic appeal just because Lebron wanted to go there and shoot expensive Sprite commercials. Baseball and basketball are much different and I don’t think Manny is going to be staying in LA just to pursue his acting dreams. At the end of the day, he’s following the money and we have the money.

So cheer him again. It was such a Philly thing to do, cheering Manny when he was in town with the Orioles, and I wanna see it again.

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