New Years Resolutions

Written by Mike Mariano

Saturday, 02 January 2010 10:12

2010 is here and for Mets fans that's a dream come true. 2009 was a forgettable one for our Flushing friends and another banner one for the Philly faithful. The 2008 World Series Championship wounded Mets fans and they vowed to outdo us in 2009, but we all know how that worked out. The Mets got bit by the injury bug, well, a swarm of injury bugs, all carrying the swine flu or west-Nile to be sure. The Phillies basically cruised to the division title, despite not playing exceptionally well throughout the season, eventually losing to the better team in the World Series. But, as I said it's 2010 and all that stuff is now in the past -- we're moving onward! It's time for some New Years Resolutions:

Jimmy Rollins: To get on base. The Phillies' feared and fearless leader and leadoff hitter was none of those things in 2009, putting forth his worst season by far. Three straight trips to the series might not be possible if he doesn't return to or near his all-star form.

Carlos Beltran: To reconnect with his inner child. Carlos is one of the best centerfielders in baseball, but he's getting old and he sat a few stretches on the DL last season. Beltran needs to inject a little youth into that body to produce over a full season again.

Cole Hamels: To be more of a man. Hamels remains one of the most California people I've ever seen. His soft personality and laid-back persona make him an easy target for rival and bitter fans alike. So in twenty-ten, drink some Milwaukee's Best, eat some bacon burgers, and watch all the Rocky movies, twice. The Phillies need a warrior on the mound who goes out and battles for 7-8 innings every start and Cole can be that like he was the '08 playoffs. He just needs to man up a little (and stop talking to the media in the playoffs).

David Wright: To start having fun again. DW looked like a battered wife for most of this past season. Just watching him play sucked the life out of me. He was miserable. The kid needs to start enjoying himself again and all the power numbers will start climbing back up.

Ryan Howard: To stay thin. This big man dropped 20-30 lbs. last offseason and finished third in the MVP running at the end of the season. He was a drastically improved defender and lead the Phillies to the series with a scorching hot bat, until he cooled down as the rest of the non-Chase Utley team did. Stay thin Rhyno.

Francisco Rodriguez: To learn a few more moves. K-Rod could very well take this rivalry to the next level, he only needs to expand on his post-save celebrations a little. With some more juice in the finger-point and scream routine, Phillies fans would understandably lose all control and things would get hairy (aka fun).

Raul Ibanez: To ignore the rumors. Raul's dream season was derailed by an injury and also the speculation that he was taking steroids. Let's thicken that skin a little and play ball.

Johan Santana: To continue his Buddhist-Monk-like self-control. Can you imagine how angry you'd be if the bullpen came out and blew you win even half as often as it's happened to Johan in his Mets tenure? I would causing fist-fights in the dugout on a daily basis. Mets fans thank god for such a genial superstar -- it could be so much worse.

Roy Halladay: To unleash a holy war upon the National League. There are two camps of Phillies fans right now: "The Roy trade was fuckin' awesome we're the shit now" and "I hope Ruben knows what he's doing I'm not sold on it". Either way, king-sized expectations rest on the shoulders of the Doc.

Angel Pagan: To never come into the game again. I hate Angel Pagan.