If we start with the fact that people live up or down to expectations, we should not be surprised when the Dodgers lose to teams like the Phillies. I honestly think Los Angeles lifestyle is too laid-back and maybe the stadium is too beautiful and the Dodgers just fade into a semi-comatose state. Joe Torre is too laid-back which just makes this problem even worse. He has a very passive style, no base running, no brush back pitches, its just plain sad. Imagine Bobby Cox with this talent!
On the contrary, Philly is a hardcore, blue-collar city with an inferiority complex (because of its proximity to New York) and their fans DEMAND winning. In fact the NEED it. Same goes for cities like Pittsburgh, Chicago, Boston, and Washington D.C.
The Lakers are an exception because they simply buy the best talent on the planet. But wait a minute, Kobe is from Philly!
