Of the Phillies, the Yankees, Spike Lee, and O Fortuna

Last night, I was the guest of old friend Alan Keiser of Commonwealth Lawyers Title's Philadelphia Commercial Services group at Game 4 of the 2009 World Series between the Yankees and the Phillies in Citizens Bank Park in Philly. In the row in front of me sat filmmaker Spike Lee and his entourage, bedecked in caps designed by Spike that feature a superb design of the championships of New York Yankees throughout the crown, embroidered sweatband, silkscreen lining and a special New Era sticker designed by Spike Lee.

Now, being a Philadelphian, a city renowned for the "passion" (a euphemism for "combined alcohol and testosterone poisoning") of its sports fans, I have no standing to complain of the "insufferable" nature of Yankees fans: I will leave that to Red Sox fans. I will confine my observations to those that follow.

I sat next to a knowledgeable and completely civil gentleman who also wore a Yankees cap. After one of the key plays of the game -- the alert baserunning of Yankees leftfielder Johnny Damon, who stole 2nd base in the top of the 9th, and, quickly realizing that no Philly was covering 3rd base, promptly high-tailed it right on to third -- the civil Yankee fan said, "I've always hated Damon because he was with the Red Sox for so long, but I sure do love him now!"

Although there were several Yankee fans who announced their affiliation with a trifle more gusto than is generally recommended in a Philadelphia sports venue (at least for those who prefer their nacho cheese sauce without expectorated fluids), thereby causing me to wince in anticipation of the outrages sure to be visited upon them, no such outrage occurred in my presence. Instead, two "passionate" Phillies fans spent the last two outs of the 9th inning disputing with each other (i.e., dropping F bombs and brandishing fists) about one blocking the view of the other. I took it as a sign of the depth of Philadelphia's despair that its fans were abusing each other when there were perfectly prominent and visibleYankees fans available to be abused (e.g., the aforementioned Mr. Lee), all of whom nevertheless seem to have emerged from The Bank entirely unscathed.

Mr. Lee made a few happy noises in the first inning when the Yankees scored a few runs, but nothing that struck me as out of the ordinary. Of course, once nearby Philly fans heard that, every subsequent ripple of positive news for the Phillies in the game invariably stimulated a "passionate" remark, in Mr. Lee's direction, to the effect of, "How do you like that, Spike?!? You're being pretty quiet now, Spike!!!"

Spike Lee's true theatricality emerged in the middle of the ninth inning. The Phillies, after trailing all night, had tied the game in the bottom of the eighth, and had two outs and two strikes on the Yankees in the top of the ninth, and the pensive mood of The Bank suddenly lifted, and the stadium was full of Phillies fans with high hopes, when, just as suddenly, the water came out of the bottom of the tub for the Phillies. Due to the heroics of the aforesaid Mr. Damon and others (i.e., Jorge Posada and He Who Must Not Be Named), the Yanks went up by three runs, with their Hall of Fame closer, Mariano Rivera, warming up on the mound. At this point, the Phillies played a video montage of great Phillies' home runs, to the musical accompaniment of Carl Orff's O Fortuna from his cantana Carmina Burana. This is the point at which Mr. Spike Lee actually started dancing to Carmina Burana. He and I made eye contact, and a whimsical smile crept across his face.

Even before I saw Spike dancing, I had been remarking to Alan and the Yankee gentleman about how inappropriate it felt to me that the Phillies seemed to be celebrating Mariano Rivera's entry into the game with this particular piece of music. Today, having had a chance to review the words of O Fortuna, I have located more precisely the source of my discomfiture:

Fate, in health
and in virtue,
is now against me
driven on
and weighted down,
always enslaved.
So at this hour
without delay
pluck the vibrating string;
since through Fate
strikes down the strong,
everyone weep with me!

Yes, Fate, whose name is Mariano Rivera, certainly did strike down the strong Phillies last night, while Spike Lee danced to Fate's favorite song. O Fortuna! Everyone weep with me (except Yankees fans)!