The Phillies kickoff a holiday weekend series at the Friendly Confines of Wrigley Field at 2:20 pm this afternoon. It's a unique series because all three games are day games. Oh, and a guy who played 17 seasons in Chicago and earned himself a plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown will return to Sheffield and Addison as manager of the Philadelphia Phillies.
There's a flag with his number on it in the outfield he has plans to see:
“I guess the first thing is I’ll probably check out my flag out there on the right-field pole. I’m sure all the memories of all the games will [come back] and that I’ll reflect on that,” Sandberg said before Wednesday’s game against the Mets at Citi Field. “And then I’ll put myself in that spot over there in the visitors’ dugout, and once the game starts it will be business and I’ll feel good about it.”
CSN's John Finger wrote about the unique journey the former Cub took to get to where he is today as manager of the Phils. He was, of course, first a Phillies player before he became a Cub great and his first hit came as a visiting player at Wrigley Field off a borrowed bat from teammate Larry Bowa.
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How about this nugget:
When Sandberg gets back to Wrigley this weekend, he might be watching a game from the visitors’ dugout for the first time since 1981. He barely remembers stepping into the tiny, dungeon-like clubhouse on the visitors’ side because as a September call up, the clubhouse was too small for the entire team to use. The rookies like Sandberg were forced to use a storage room in the labyrinth of tunnels in the ballpark.
Click here for the whole article. It's worth a read to get to know a little bit more about your skipper.
And today's worth tuning in to the Phillies-Cubs game just a little bit early to see the kind of reaction the Wrigley crowd gives Sandberg. He sure deserves it for his playing days there.
News
Roy Halladay makes his second start back from shoulder surgery. He was quite impressive in his first outing. Can he match that effort and earn himself another Philly contract? He'll take on right-hander Jeff Samardzija (8-11, 4.03). Go Temple!
First pitch sometime around 2:20 pm. Enjoy your weekend.