Walk-Up Music

We finished up a series sweep of the Astros today by showing that we don't just need to score 8 runs a game to get the job done. Halladay pitched a complete game and let the offense and bullpen take a bit of a rest in a 2-1 victory. Moyer struggled yesterday, but our hitters picked up the slack in a 9-6 win. That completes our 6-game road trip to start the season, and this brings us to our home opener tomorrow against the Nationals.

One of my favorite parts of going to my first Phillies game of every season is hearing the players' walk-up songs for the first time. A great question to ask people is, "If you were a Major League Baseball player, what would your walk-up song be?" For those who are unaware, each player picks a song to play as he steps into the batter's box. Some choose just one song for the whole season. Some switch their song every week. Some even use a different one for each at-bat in a game. Some people decide to go with a song that gets them pumped up. Some go with songs that they just really like. Some choose songs that fit their name or personality.
Since I will not be able to go to the game tomorrow to find out what players' walk-up songs are, I have made a list for myself of what each players' walk-up song should be, along with an explanation of why. We'll start by going through a standard lineup:

Jimmy Rollins - "The Waiting" by Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMyCa35_mOg
-As some of you may know, I have a big problem with Jimmy as our leadoff hitter. This is mostly due to the fact that he is not nearly patient enough as a hitter to consistently get on base by drawing walks as well as see more pitches in an attempt to let those hitting after him get a look at a few more. It seems that for Jimmy, "the waiting is the hardest part," just as Tommy and his buddies sing in this classic

Placido Polanco - "Motown Philly" by Boyz II Men http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHzkICG47LU
-Polanco spent part of 2002 through part of 2005 in Philadelphia before heading off to Detroit. He is now back from Detroit in a Phillies uniform again. This song by Boyz II Men talks about how they started in Philly, went to Detroit (Motown), and came back again. Although Polanco didn't actually start in Philly, his journey is similar to that of this classic R&B group.

Chase Utley - "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" by Various Artists http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qscED3psy_U
-Chase Utley's walk-up song is and, hopefully will forever be, "Kashmir" by Led Zeppelin. He has used this for years and it is a great intimidating start to a song to set the tone for his at-bat. However, if I were to pick a song that exemplified Chase Utley, I would have to pick one that exemplifies baseball. So, because Chase Utley is baseball, he gets this song sung during the 7th inning stretch of ballparks across the country

Ryan Howard - "The Boss" by Rick Ross http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78hT0H8nt_E
-This is actually a song that the Big Man used in 2008 as a walk-up song. It is very fitting for him, seeing as it says, "I'm the biggest boss that you seen thus far." Ryan Howard is gigantic and he is definitely a boss. There is no denying either one of these things

Jayson Werth - "Hungry Like the Wolf" by Duran Duran http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJRCE6e2xIg
-Look at Jayson Werth and tell me this doesn't fit

Raul Ibanez - "Naked Mole Rap" by Ron Stoppable http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6scHgACSD0
-Look at Raul Ibanez and tell me this doesn't fit

Shane Victorino - "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFvENQBc-F8
-This is one that was actually suggested to me by my fellow William Tennent High School student teacher Jack Holmes. It is a great fit for Victorino, seeing as everything he does seems to be very smooth and graceful. Along with that, he is considered quite the criminal by opposing pitchers and catchers as he has racked up 98 stolen bases in the past 3 seasons

Carlos Ruiz - "Wake Me Up When September Ends" by Green Day http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoBaZmmdluM&feature=related
-Chooch has a lifetime .247 batting average during the regular season. As a catcher batting 8th in our lineup, that's not the worst thing in the world, but we certainly cannot count on him for production. Once we get to October and the playoffs, though, Chooch becomes an absolute animal. He has his .303 in the playoffs in his 32 career games. Last season, he hit a whopping .341, nearly 100 points better than his lifetime average. I don't know what goes on with him through September at the plate, but he certainly wakes up when it really counts

And now for a few bench players...

Ben Francisco - "Sally the Camel" by who knows/cares http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3X5mWR80qA
-Look at Ben Francisco and tell me this doesn't fit

Brian Schneider - "My Own Worst Enemy" by Lit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sc5iTNVEOAg
-Schneider is another Phillies newcomer. In the past, he has been one of those pesky players who isn't necessarily all that great but seems to step it up against the Phillies. These are some of Christopher Wheelers' favorite players to keep track of, and he always seems to be making a comment along the lines of, "Boy this guy always seems to do well against the Phillies doesn't he?" Shut up, Christopher. Schneider does, however, fit that description. Playing for the Expos/Nationals and the Mets for his whole career up until this season, he has consistently been one of our worst enemies. Now, he is one of us, though

And finally, I picked a few songs for some pitchers. The only pitchers that ever have this type of song are generally closers, but I felt that a few of them earned a "walk-up" song of some sort.

Roy Halladay - "Philadelphia Freedom" by Elton John http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhyMvQ_N7Zc
-Halladay has spent his entire career toward the bottom of the AL East behind at least the Yankees and the Red Sox. He can now finally escape that prison and experience the freedom of being in Philadelphia with the 2-time defending NL champion Phillies

Jamie Moyer - "You Make Me Feel So Young" by Frank Sinatra http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1llj6uCI-j8
-Jamie must feel this way about the game of baseball, seeing as he is 47-years old and still going out there to pitch. Although he struggles at times, we all must admit that it's nice to see that he can still move after this many years in the majors

Brad Lidge - "Glory Days" by Bruce Springsteen http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vQpW9XRiyM
-Lidge is probably hoping that Phillies fans can remember the "glory days" of 2008. He was horrifying last season. On the flip side, Phillies fans are hoping that Lidge can remember the "glory days" of 2008

I don't know about everyone else, but I will be making a CD with these songs on it so I can listen to it on the way to any Phillies games that I can make it to this season. If you have any suggestions of your own for some walk-up music, I know I would love to hear any other input on this. Or if you want to share your own awesome walk-up song, do that.