"Outta here!"

Every Phillies game I've ever listened to on the radio was called by the same guy, Harry Kalas. The next one won't be.

Harry passed away this afternoon at the age of 73. Never again will we hear the dolcent tones of Mr. Kalas. There will be no more, "Michael Jack Schmidt"s, "Mickey Morandini"s, "Ricky Botalico time", or "Pat Burrell"s.

For 38 seasons, and the only 2 world championships in their team history, Harry called nearly every game the Phillies played. The only days he missed were for the enshrinement in the Hall of Fame of his best friend, Richie Ashburn, and his own enshrinement. I never met Harry Kalas, but I feel as if I've lost a friend. The friend who told me stories of Greg Luzinski and Garry Maddux home runs and Steve Carlton and Tommy Greene no-hitters. I didn't get to hear the game today without Harry behind the microphone, and that may be a good thing. In my head Shane Victorino, Raul Ibanez, and Ryan Howards homeruns still got that familiar, "swing and a long drive, watch that baby, way out of here!" call that I've heard every summer I've ever known.

I know that the season will go on, and the Phillies will continue to hit homeruns, they may even win some games. This season just won't be like any other. The Phillies aren't the same Phillies without Harry. To me, baseball won't ever be either. Maybe he didn't call a game on the radio the way the experts would like, but you certainly knew he was calling the game-- you just may have had to wait a couple of seconds to get the count.

Twelve years ago, Harry lost his best friend. I can imagine the stories they are sharing together up in heaven. Chances are Harry is asking Whitey if J-Roll should be bunting more, and Whitey probably replies that the game is easy. And then they'll wish some Phillies fan a happy birthday.

The game is easy, but it will never be the same.