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Don't judge Dodgers by Manny's shower visit

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Jon Paul Morosi

Jon Paul Morosi is a national MLB writer for FOXSports.com. He previously covered baseball for the Detroit Free Press and Seattle Post-Intelligencer. He began his journalism career at the Bay City Times in his native Michigan. Follow him on Twitter.

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Updated Oct 20, 2009 11:05 PM ET
     
 

PHILADELPHIA

When I asked Manny Ramirez how surprised he was to witness Jimmy Rollins' walk-off double in Monday's game, he said he was in the shower and didn't watch it live. But if the Dodgers' season ends Wednesday night, Ramirez's eccentricity won't be the reason. When someone asked Joe Torre how he's able to stay so calm and even-keeled, the 69-year-old manager quipped: "That's because I'm old and tired." But if the Dodgers' season ends Wednesday night, Torre's charmed weariness won't be the reason. When I asked veteran Doug Mientkiewicz if it is possible the Dodgers are too loose as they face elimination, he told me that there is "no such thing." And if the Dodgers' season ends Wednesday night, it won't be because they didn't care enough. No, if the National League Championship Series ends in five games, it will be because the Dodgers encountered a more perfect version of themselves. The Phillies are right now what the Dodgers may become in 2010, 2011 or 2012. The Dodgers being a Hollywood team, I'd like to point out that postseason series can have cinematic qualities. Some have subplots that persist. (See the once-cursed Red Sox against the tormenting Yankees or the Cubs against themselves.) Others are known more for character development than famous moments. After four games — aside from Rollins' gapper — I believe this NLCS fits into the latter category. The Dodgers, with a core of Andre Ethier, Matt Kemp, James Loney and Russell Martin, are developing the toughness it takes to win a World Series. The Phillies already have that, thanks to Rollins and Shane Victorino and Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. The Dodgers are building their rotation around Clayton Kershaw, who might one day be one of the best left-handed starters in baseball. The Phillies already have two of the best left-handed starters in baseball, Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels. Some have drawn the parallel between Torre's Yankees of the 1990s and Torre's Dodgers of '08 and '09. But the more apt comparison for those great New York teams is the club Torre is currently managing against. Charlie Manuel's Phillies understand how to win, and we see new evidence of their mental fortitude all the time. They won the World Series in 2008 and have no interest in relinquishing the crown. That is obvious in the way they carry themselves, and it was certainly obvious in the way they rallied to win Game 4: walk, hit batsman, double, bedlam. Dodgers veteran pinch-hitter Jim Thome thought for a moment about what the Phillies have built and said two words. "It's special." Thome, 39, might have been the most qualified person to render such an opinion among all those at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday. He reached the postseason six times with the Indians and played in two World Series. He debuted with Cleveland in 1991 and remained with the organization through 2002. Some of those teams were "special."
Then he played in Philadelphia for three seasons. Rollins, Utley and Howard blossomed during his tenure with the Phillies and began fostering the unity that has since produced "special" teams. So, here's the inevitable question: Do these Dodgers have that quality? Do they appreciate what they have? Yes, Thome said. The team's young players, Thome said, "are in the moment. When you have young guys in the moment, you let them live the moment. And they're enjoying it. They're good. They passionately care. If they didn't care, then, yes, you talk. But they know what's going on. They've been in this. "They're special. They're special." Thome has played in 64 postseason games but never won a World Series. He was two agonizing outs away in 1997. If the Dodgers lose any of their next three games, this chance will fade away, too. Thome might never get this close to the Fall Classic again. "We're in a situation where we got to win a game," Thome said, still confident, still hoping. "The urgency is there, sure. The urgency is definitely there." LeBron James and Sidney Crosby are locks to make the postseason in their sports, but baseball is different. Each year, every team is one or two pitching injuries away from disaster. Do the younger Dodgers truly value each chance to win a championship? Thome believes they do. "You cherish every moment, because you never know how long it's going to last," he said. With a staid, serious-minded group, there would be no reason to ask such a question. But these Dodgers are hardly uptight, for better or worse. Torre was asked Tuesday about the contrast between this group and his focused teams in New York. "That's a good question," Torre said. "They're not afraid. ... I think we played under a lot more pressure this year (than in 2008). They just seem to be a unique personality. We have a nice mixture of a little more serious-natured guys — like your (Mark) Lorettas and your Casey Blakes and guys like that. But the core group of young players are very confident. "Last year, early in the year, we sort of had to reel them in a little bit. But they never really lost the fun of playing the game, which is good. Yeah, we keep an eye on it, there's no question." It would be foolish to scold the Dodgers for their personality. They were one out away from tying this series on Monday night. If Jonathan Broxton hadn't plunked Carlos Ruiz — before Rollins' big hit — this space would be devoted to a discussion of how Torre might be able to win the pennant now that home-field advantage once again belonged to him. Yet, I don't see a Dustin Pedroia or a Derek Jeter or a Rollins on this team. I'm not suggesting the Dodgers need someone like that. But if they bow out in the NLCS in consecutive years — against the same opponent, in the same number of games — there is bound to be some introspection about what kind of team the Dodgers want to have. And you can bet Ned Colletti, who received a deserved contract extension on Tuesday, won't have an idle offseason. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Game 5 is Wednesday night at Citizens Bank Park. Ramirez will be criticized for Monday's ninth-inning shower, just as he was criticized for declaring, "If it doesn't happen, who cares? There's always next year," when his Red Sox faced a 3-1 deficit against the Indians in the 2007 American League Championship Series. Boston came back and won that series, on the strength of its pitching and grit. The '09 Dodgers can't match the '07 Red Sox — or the '09 Phillies — in either category. Their season might end on Wednesday. But give them time. If they are paying attention now, their title will come.
Tagged: Clayton Kershaw, Carlos Ruiz, Jonathan Broxton, Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Red Sox, Derek Jeter, Cliff Lee, Russell Martin, Indians, Cubs, Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Jim Thome, Dodgers, Dustin Pedroia, Yankees, James Loney, Cole Hamels, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Phillies, Casey Blake, Manny Ramirez

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