You think it’s rough watching this team…you should be there watching that team.

The city of brotherly love, or something like that.  Philadelphia, where the summers are hot and humid, the winters-cold and raw, and the fans and media brutal.

San Diego Padres fans may not be pleased with the product on the field, nor the 87M payroll on a team supposedly flush with TV revenue.  But it’s worse where the Friars play later today, Philadelphia.

It’s pretty bad baseball back there.  Losers of 22-of-32, with an injured old pitching staff, and an older everyday lineup, paid well, but not producing well.

It’s the risk you take as an owner, when you lose like the Padres, but even when you win, like the Phillies.  You have to pay your stars, to keep your stars, especially when you have been winning.

Not so now.  Now Philadelphia is stuck with an aging strikeout prone Ryan Howard; with a hurt Cliff Lee; with a young stud with an arm issue like Cole Hamels; with age in Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins; and with a farm system whose pipeline has run dry.

They had a good run under Charley Manuel as manager.  They fired him, and here came Ryne Sandberg, but it hasn’t improved.  The message may be harsher-different, but the players are not any younger, nor healthier.

But at least Philadelphia won, and at least Owner Dave Montgomery spent to keep his stars.  He could have never imagined they’d all get hurt at once, or grow old so quickly.

183-million in payroll for this, a team headed towards rebuilding, and they are stuck with contracts.

It may not be easy being a Padres fan, considering how much the Dodgers spend or how often the Giants win.  But at least you are in San Diego, not Philadelphia.

Phillies fan facing a long hot summer, lousy weather, bad baseball, and some real suffering still to come with those contracts.  They’ll be booing more than Santa Claus, the Eagles or 76ers soon.  It’s hate in the city of brotherly love.

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