MANAGING expectations is one of life's trickiest tightropes. If you always expect the worst, you end up trapped in a destructive vortex of fear masked as cynicism. If you always expect the best, you end up with a baseball team of overpaid, underperforming veterans who collectively represent the worst $100 million-plus payroll ever assembled (although you do get to keep your job).
So while you may accuse me of excessive negativity with regard to the short- and medium-term future of your Fightin' Phils, I prefer to look at it as a compassionate management of your expectations. Back in April 2013, when I first labeled the Phillies an unwatchable abomination of a baseball team, local meteorologist Hurricane Schwartz took exception to my article and proceeded to list all of the reasons why the Phillies were victims of nothing more than a slow start.