And Ryan Howard knew what he was doing. He had obviously put some thought into it and had a plan for what he would do after the last strike. Most importantly, he knew that the only way to properly celebrate on a baseball field is with a pileup. So, he made sure that he was the first player to the mound and he made sure that the pitcher and catcher went down. He was skillfully able to take both Brad Lidge and Carlos Ruiz down in one tackle. This started the pileup and everyone was able to easily jump on top. Howard also pulled off the rare celebration double-play by successfully protecting Lidge and Ruiz from too much pressure. He was able to get his arms out and brace them from the flying bodies. Big Ups to you, Ryan Howard.
However, Brad Lidge nearly blew the celebration. He showed awful technique and obviously didn't have any kind of strategy. Come on dude, just a little forethought is all. Immediately after the last strike, Lidge simply went down onto his knees in one of those bogus "praise God" poses and wouldn't get out of it. This left his teammates in a difficult position.... It's hard a tackle a guy that is already on his knees. It's also impossible to leap into the arms of a kneeling pitcher. Lidge was lost out there and really put Ruiz in a tough spot. Ruiz did his best to do an awkward hug just before Howard saved the day.****
The Phillies celebration ranks as one of the best I've seen recently. I don't exactly have a list written out, but I probably should. What I remember though, is that the '04 Red Sox, a team that hadn't won the World Series since the Jefferson administration or whatever it was, they had one of the worst celebrations I've ever seen. Their "celebration" consisted of the team jumping up and down in a circle. They followed that with hugs and a couple dumbasses talking about "Cowboying" eachother or some stupid shit.
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The #1 celebration of all-time is owned by the '86 Mets. I've never seen a celebration as powerful and the pitcher and catcher have never gone down as hard.
