A Plea: Go For the Walkoff Walk

I don't remember much about the game. It was 1995. The Phillies were going through another sub-.500 season, despite being "defending National League Champions" thanks to the 1994 strike. They were almost 20 games out of first. But I do remember how they won this random game in September against the Reds. In the bottom of the 13th, with the bases loaded, Xavier Hernandez walked in Mark Whiten1. I don't so much remember the play as I do Phillies announcer Chris Wheeler: "Way to keep that bat on the shoulders, Whit'!" My dad and I laughed. Yeah, good play Mark, way to work the walkoff walk2. How naïve we were. Chris Wheeler was right, though he didn't know why. I don't think any players (besides OLE CHIP) read this site, but if anyone stumbles across this site in the future, I beg of you: Go for the walkoff walk. It might not be as pretty as a walkoff homer, but it's probably a better strategy. Let me explain: I just finished Scorecasting,...