Hey, Phillies fans, don't worry -- this series is yours

PHILADELPHIA -- The only thing left for this city to do now is spit polish the trophy and ready the riot gear.

Soon, very soon, you won't be hard luck, you won't be a sports town to pity, you'll be champions thanks to a Phillies team that's playing as great on a national stage as the Tampa Bay Rays are stinking it up.

It's the beginning of a new day in Philadelphia and the death of the cowbell.

The series is so over that Ryan Howard has already applied to the Department of Motor Vehicles for his series MVP vanity plate. Letterman is on line two.

The rout is on, the dismantling nearly over, the co-Cinderellas are no longer sharing footwear.

I'm not certain what's more impressive: the way the Phillies have thoroughly intimidated and battered the Rays since the series shifted here or how the Rays' spines have crumpled into little pieces under the dynamo that is Philadelphia.

The Phillies are one win from their first title since 1980. (AP)

The pounding Tampa Bay has taken won't change what was a historic and an impressive overall season, but it does make you wonder just how good were these Rays now that they're getting the Buffalo Bills treatment.

You knew the Rays were in trouble when they got smoked by the 75-year-old Jamie Moyer and his stubborn case of diarrhea.

The Rays won six of their initial eight playoff games but have lost five of their past six, falling to 8-7 in this postseason. They're faltering and it's not just the competition. I think, finally, the pressure is getting to them.

This is where we go from here. For the Phillies, their challenge is to make certain they don't make the wrong kind of history. They're this close, and Philadelphia can't take the chance and allow this series to return to Florida. If it does, anything can happen. It won't likely come to that but if you're Philadelphia don't even ponder letting the series leave the state.

Just don't get cocky, Phillies, and it's yours.

When Manuel was asked about what he'd tell his team regarding potential overconfidence, Manuel explained, "Same thing I've been telling them about seven months. We've got a game (on Monday). We played (Game 4) to win the game. We did. We've got a game (on Monday). We're going to play that game to win. And we take it one day at a time. I've been saying that now, I'm sure, people around here are getting tired of it."

In terms of verbal eloquence, Manuel makes George Bush sound like a Shakespearian actor but the players love him and his messages seem to hit their marks.

If you're the Rays, you're playing for your pride. It sounds corny but it's accurate because with one exception, Tampa Bay's been thoroughly outclassed by Philadelphia. One thing that's concerning is Tampa Bay's manager, Joe Maddon, raising the specter of a smudge on pitcher Joe Blanton's cap. There's no question Maddon was attempting to utilize a little gamesmanship and perhaps break Blanton's grip on the Ray hitters by practically alleging cheating but the move also looked desperate, like Maddon was making excuses.

Maddon does possess the right attitude about one thing. As he state, the Rays can't try and win three games. They first need to try and win one, the first one, on Monday night.

"I don't want them to look too far into the future," Maddon said.

Don't worry, Joe. You and the Rays won't have to.

Your future ends in a matter of days and maybe hours just as the city of Philadelphia begins a well-earned party.