Phillypurge.com-Today's News in Philly Sports Blog

Where have I been?

2009-01-22T09:57:00.000-08:00

In case you were wondering why my posts have been few and far between, my passion for writing about Philly sports has waned.

It was a fun experience over the past few years writing for Phillypurge.com and I enjoyed most of it.

Due to the deteriorating condition of our nation and our economy I have been inspired to write about some other things; the nation, the economy, politics, news, you name it.

You can catch my new website at www.adamscircus.com

I hope to see all of you there. Thank you to all of you for supporting Phillypurge.com over the past few years.

Dennis Bakay

Headed to the desert

2009-01-12T09:22:00.000-08:00

Eagles dismantle the Giants 23-11 and head to the NFC Championship

For anybody who remembers the 2000 playoff game between the Giants and Eagles you have to still remain bitter over it.

The Giants reportedly stole the Eagles' offensive plays through tapping of the phones and refused to sell tickets to the Eagles fans.

That still burns my ass until today. Vindication occurred yesterday as the Eagles with McNabb at the helm knocked off the defending Super Bowl champs in their stadium. It felt far more better than two years ago when the Birds knocked them off with Garcia at the helm. The defining image of the Giants fan sleeping yesterday capped off a wonderful game and an amazing playoff run thus far.

In a playoff run that looks eerily similar to the Phillies' playoff run the star are aligning just the right way for the Eagles. This is the year of the underdog as with the exception of the Steelers, three of the top four seeds in the playoffs have been jettisoned in the Divisional Round. The Titans, Giants, and Panthers all bit the dust.

With the way the Eagles' defense is playing it doesn't matter if they struggle in the redzone. Head to Arizona and put the pressure on Warner and game, set, match.

It's going to be a fun week as the Eagles have now made it to the NFC Title game for the 5th consecutive time with McNabb and Reid together.

Post Christmas Miracle

2008-12-29T10:17:00.000-08:00

All the stars align perfectly and Eagles crush the Cowboys to send them packing

Yesterday was the happiest day ever and I was never happier to be wrong. I couldn't have been more wrong on all my prognostications. I had the Eagles losing to Dallas, Oakland falling to Tampa, and us looking at another gloomy offseason.

Boy was it great to be wrong! We witnessed a miracle yesterday. How else can you explain Oakland coming back from 10 down and the Texans upsetting the Bears?

Yesterday's turn of events was about as improbable as you'll ever see and the Eagles particularly Andy Reid and the defense deserve all the credit in the world for taking advantage of the opportunity given to them. On a day with weather that was summer-like there was definitely something strange in the air in Philly.

First off, Oakland was down 10 points with a little over 12 minutes left and came on like a house on fire to take down the Bucs.

Then shortly after that the Texans sealed the deal over the Bears in Houston.

The Eagles then at kick-off had their destiny in their hands. And, they didn't let up from the opening moments.

Chalk this one up to Reid getting back into the balancing act and the defense. Those two turnovers for TDs destroyed the Cowboys and there was no coming back from it.

One could argue this one was over once the Eagles had a two-touchdown lead in the first quarter.

No matter what happens in the playoffs (and the Eagles can go very far in a wide-open conference) the lasting image of this season will be that of Reid waving his arms up to get the crowd pumped up. Finally, he got it...at least yesterday he did. And, the lasting image of the Cowboys will be of Romo laying face flat on the turf.

Amazing what this game has done for the fortunes of this franchise. Instead of discussing the Kolb-era it's almost a lock McNabb will return. And, you can bet Reid will return as coach. It's another story if he'll remain the GM though.

The Birds will head to Minnesota next week to take on the Vikings.

Leaving the Nest?

2008-12-26T14:18:00.001-08:00

Sunday's game against Dallas could be McNabb's last as an Eagle

The writing is already on the wall. For a year now Howard Eskin has been saying that the "contract extension" would be the deciding factor if McNabb remains an Eagle in 2009. And, that means Joe Banner put that in his ear.

We could sit here and talk about it until we're ready to pass out by analyzing the repeated failures of the Andy Reid regime and why he shouldn't return in any capacity to the Eagles. I happen to think he'll return as coach but the brain trust will actually put a real GM in there with a voice and not just some puppet like Tom Heckert. They realize the talent evaluation on this team is sub-par and by keeping things status quo it's going to further infuriate the fanbase.

Another huge change for the Eagles organization could be at quarterback. The word is he is going to want a contract extension after the season and the timing couldn't be better for the Eagles. Andy Reid wants to save his ass and will pin this "lost season" on McNabb, who didn't have a great season as he said or even a very good season. I'd say McNabb was adequate this year. He had some good games against poor competition, didn't lead the team to any 4th quarter comeback victories (he hasn't since the Raiders game in 2005), and stunk up the stadium against the Bengals and Ravens. I still think McNabb can hang with the big boys like Manning and Brady but he needs a better coach, more weapons, and a better system. It's not happening though-at least not here.

Sunday could very well be McNabb's last as an Eagle and it will mark the end of an era of another "what could have been" story in town. He'll join the ranks of Randall, Sir Charles, and Lindros as athletes in Philly who were very successful, but didn't win the big one.

And, we can pin that on Reid. McNabb should have won at least one Super Bowl and that year was in 2003. Had Reid kept utilizing Duce Staley in the game against Tampa Bay in 2003, the game known as The Debacle I, the Eagles would have went on to play Oakland and win. However, Reid in his stubborness blew many opportunities by abandoning the run in the big games. Look at all of the Eagles meltdowns and ye shall see a laundry list of out-of-whack pass to run ratios.

As you know the Eagles will not only need to win, but they'll need Chicago to lose and Tampa to lose as well. Oh yeah, Chicago plays Houston and Tampa plays Oakland. Don't bet on both of those teams losing.

Wasted Opportunity

2008-12-22T09:35:00.000-08:00

Eagles blow opportunity to leap frog Dallas

During yesterday's 10-3 nightmare loss there was not a single positive thing one could take away from the offensive play calling. It was quite frankly offensive.

In what is the latest chapter in Philly sports misery we witnessed some of the worst 60 minutes of offensive football you can watch.

46 passing plays were called to just 16 running plays. And, this was in a game that was never beyond reach for the Eagles.

You may know by now that 15 straight passing plays were called in a 3rd quarter in which the Eagles were down 10-0.

Suffice it to say this madman of a coach, whom has gone back to his addiction will never "get it." The Eagles were in a perfect spot to set the stage for a playoff appearance with a win yesterday and a win next week against Dallas.

The only thing, which saved the Eagles' season is the fact that the Bucs failed to get the job done at home against a San Diego Chargers team that stinks.

Now the Eagles need to beat Dallas and hope Tampa Bay loses to Oakland. And, Tampa is at home once again.

Unless a miracle happens we can expect another season without the playoffs for the Eagles. This will make it three out of four years that the Eagles will miss the playoffs.

At least they can ruin Dallas' season with a win next week. This is all we have to look forward to because Andy Reid has his head so far up his you know what he can smell the brill cream on his face, to quote Junior Soprano.

Let's think this through though. Should the Eagles finish up 9-6-1 you just know the organization will spin this somehow. They'll tell us, "if we had Brian Westbrook and Shawn Andrews healthy" or "if we had a few calls go our way" or "if (insert whatever other BS excuse)" we would have had our 6th playoff appearance in 10 years of Andy Reid's regime.

Well guess what IF's don't win a damn thing sports. If I were a betting man I'd say the Eagles keep Reid and allow him to throw McNabb under the bus and start anew with Kevin Kolb next year.

Can you say four wins? Sign me up!

And, then when the Eagles are 4-12 they can trade down in the first round for a lower pick and a future first round pick and tell us they have a plan to rebuild for the future that includes drafting more players rather than the best players.

Look how far that's gotten them in the past few years!

In a bizarro world the Eagles are a championship team. They were 3rd in the NFL in defense heading into yesterday's game and 7th in total offense. And, they'll most likely watch the playoffs in January once again.

Meanwhile their coach pulls the plug on something that's working in favor of firing away.

And, anybody with half a brain can see this isn't working. We saw it with the Flyers when they had a lack of a goalie, with the Eagles in the early part of the Reid era before they had an elite wideout, the Phillies with lack of pitching, and we see it now with Reid.

The writing is on the wall, but does the ownership care?

Two To Play

2008-12-19T09:36:00.000-08:00

Eagles head into Sunday's contest 1/2 game behind Atlanta

Suddenly the Eagles look like contenders once again after winning three straight games and sporting the NFC's top ranked defense. Yep folks they have the top ranked defense in the NFC and third ranked in the NFL behind Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

And, the offense isn't too shabby either, clocking in at #7 in the NFL.

Why is this team fighting for their playoff lives? Is it incompetence on the part of the head coach? Is it lack of effort and toughness by the 11 and 11 on the field? Bad luck?

Probably a combination of all of these in some way, shape or form. They Eagles find themselves behind the Cowboys and Falcons, whom are 9-5 at this juncture. Meanwhile, they are sporting an 8-5-1 record and need to not only win out, but receive a bailout of their own in the form of a Vikings victory this weekend over the Falcons.

Matt Ryan on the road against the Vikings. Hmmm. I'll take that and say the Falcons win this Sunday unless they suffer a letdown. The Falcons are the NFL's best story this year, having crawled out from the depths of the ocean amongst the bottom feeders to become a contender in the NFC.

Matt Ryan is an NFL MVP candidate-yep the same Matt Ryan from our area. There hasn't been a rook in the NFL to take the most coveted individual award since Jim Brown did it over 50 years ago.

The Eagles are going to have count on a Falcons letdown this weekend or dare I say it against the Rams. And, those aren't good odds.

This season could be another case of "just what if" and they'll end up a 10-win team.

Who would have thought 10 wins couldn't get you in the playoffs in the woeful NFC. Newsflash, the NFC has gotten much better. Just like the Eastern Conference in the NBA.

There's little doubt that the Eagles will run over the Redskins this weekend. The Skins are a dead team and their coach as yours truly predicted, is a joke. And, little Danny Snider will fire him at season's end and hire his 27th head coach in the past 10 years.

And, what pray tell was the NFL thinking by putting the Eagles-Skins and Falcons-Vikings games on at the same time? Sure, they couldn't bump the Panthers and Giants from the spotlight, because that game has implications for who is the top team in the conference (great move trading for Carolina's 1st rounder by the way Big Red) but at the very least they should have put one of the games on at 1:00.

I wouldn't want a Sunday night game anyway. I don't know about you, but I'm about suck of staying up late to watch the Eagles on prime time. Some of us have to get up at 6:00 in the morning for work you know.

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The State of the Sixers = Sad

Sure, the Sixers are coming off a 2-game winning streak, but lets just put a fork into this team now shall we.

The easiest job in the world is being a Monday Morning Quarterback, but a GM's job is to not F up.

I praised the move of signing Elton Brand and still think he'll pan out-well at least I hope so.

However, there is no reason in hell the Sixers should have ever signed a second-rate player like Andre Iguodala for that kind of contract when he still had a year left on his rookie deal!

Heck, they should have let him walk if he wanted that kind of money. This is the kind of contract Billy King would have signed a player too. And, now the Sixers are stuck with a middle of the road player on their roster making superstar money.

And, unless Isiah Thomas is reincarnated or possesses the mind of a GM in this league the Sixers are going to be back in salary cap hell for the next few years.

After all they went through to get out of cap hell, they decided to sink right back into it.

What the hell was Stefanski thinking? I thought the guy was a smart basketball guy. Boy was I wrong.

So were so many of us.

Sloppy Blowout

2008-12-16T09:44:00.000-08:00

Eagles win 30-10 but look sloppy in the process

Those are two words you rarely see in the same sentence of phrase, but the Eagles were sloppy in their blowout win over the Browns last night.

First off, before I get crucified, the Eagles should get credit for overcoming their Monday Night jinx and beating who they should have.

By no means was it a great win and there was some real head-scratching moments, but there was no moment where I or any rational person thought they would lose.

Steve Olenski breaks down this snooze fest in his Morning After blog.

G Cobb thinks B West should have been worked a little less in this game.

And, Jon Runyan hit a milestone last night-his 200th NFL game and 190th consecutive start.

And, once again they nearly gave up a TD before the half. Just what McNabb was thinking on that throw is beyond me. The DeSean Jackson pass on the goal line was another Andy Reid special (stupid play).

All in all it was an OK win by the Birds. Asante Samuel took advantage of a horrific throw by Dorsey and looked like a player that deserved that fat contract...until he nearly dropped the damn ball before the goal line DeSean Jackson style. Fortunately the Birds got the extra point off before the play could be reviewed.

The Eagles are on a short week and take on the Skins next who are in the midst of their annual late-season implosion. Ah, it feels good to be right. Not only was I right about Zorn being a boob, but the Skins have imploded once again.

That's all for now.

Downgrade

2008-12-15T09:22:00.000-08:00

Phillies sign Chan Ho Park

Say goodbye to Jamie Moyer people. The Phils have inked Chan Ho Park to a contract.

Yes, the same Chan Ho Park who hasn't done jack squat since 2001.

So, the Phillies are going to replace their third starter Jamie Moyer with a borderline 5th starter in a hitter's ballpark.

Huge downgrade.

And, Chan Ho Park said publicly that the reason why he chose Philly is because he will start here.

You can forget about them signing Derek Lowe now. This is the Phillies' plan for replacing Moyer.

I gave the signing of Ibanez an A, but this signing gets a stone cold F.

Today the Phillies are a weaker team than when they were on Ocober 27th.

We caught up to Ruben Amaro today about this horrid signing and he had this to say.

"F**k you Bakay. I have to listen to your horses**t every time I don't go out and spend $100 million on some big name pitcher. What did the signing of Kevin Brown do for the Dodgers. Or, how about the signing of Randy Johnson for the Yankees. What in the f**k did that do for them? They watched in October", said Amaro as he spilled coffee on himself.

I guess Amaro never heard of Josh Beckett, Curt Schilling, or Roger Clemens. These were all big-name signings who enabled their teams to win championships.

Bye Bye Pat

2008-12-12T09:30:00.000-08:00

Pat Burrell era comes to a close with Phils' signing of Ibanez

Raise your hand if you're a little saddened by the end of the Pat Burrell era.

Sure, he drove us nuts at times and when things got bad he didn't come up big, but he really did help to get this team into the playoffs in 2007. 2008 was a bit of an up and down year. He started off the year like a house on fire and slumped in the latter months.

But, he epitomized what it is to be an athlete in Philadelphia-he's a hard worker. You can't take that away from him.

Gonna be sad to see him go, but Raul Ibanez isn't exactly chopped liver. The Phils have signed the former Mariners outfielder to $30 million over 3 years. Yes he's 35 years old, but he gives the Phils a bat that produces 20-plus homers and over 100 RBIs annually. And, he did that in Seattle. The 36 year-old outfielder hit .293 with 23 homers and 110 RBIs last year.

Fans are going apes**t about this signing though because god forbid the Phillies add "another lefthander" in the lineup. Is the lineup too heavy on lefthanders sure, but they can break it up with Werth and Victorino. Don't forget that Rollins can switch hit.

I give this signing a B-plus. Good move by Rube.

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TO is losing his mind again

In case you haven't heard, T.O. is losing it once again. This time he's accusing Tony Romo and Jason Witten of conspiring against him by putting together a secret gameplan that cuts him out of the plans.

One of our people in the Dallas area spoke to TO about this.

"Look, I know what Tony and Jason are doing and the s**t aint cool. Terrell doesn't want to be left out of the loop. Terrell wants to win a Super Bowl and the only way to do it is if Terrell gets the ball as much as possible. And, that aint happening. I know they is conspiring. And, I know this because history repeats itself. You know Hitler's soliders wanted to shoot him because they was jealous of the man. And, like any great leader I had Jeff Garcia conspiring against me in Frisco. In fact he tried to make me a gay. And, in Philly Donovan and Andy plotted against me.", said Owens as he shot some baskets outside his driveway.

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Whitey's Picks Week 15

Whitey's Weekly Winners
Last Week: 9-7
YTD ATS: 102-101-2

Monday night games are killing me this year (losing 10 of 14 on Monday Nights- that
is hard to do if I tried to lose the damn pick!).
Now I'm just in a pissed off mood...

Super Bowl Prediction
Giants over Titans

Thursday Night
New Orleans at Chicago (-3): I know the Saints have had some problems playing in
Chicago the past few years, but I think that offense is going to be too much for
Chicago to overcome. Teams have had success passing on them this season, and nobody
throws the rock better than Brees...
Saints 27 - Bears 20.

Sunday
Green Bay at Jacksonville (+2½): The Jags have been terrible at home, while there
aren't any real glaring deficiencies in the Packers game. They just haven't been
nearly as good this year as last, and it has little to do with #4...
Packers 30 - Jaguars 20.

Detroit at Indianapolis (-17½): The Lions have a chance to do something special in
the upcoming weeks as the first ever 0-16 team during a regular season. I don't
think Indy will have any need to run it up on Detroit, who have played better away
from their home field all season...
Colts 30 - Lions 17.

Washington at Cincinnati (+7): Even though the Bengals are a complete disgrace
this season (and most seasons if we are keeping it real), I don't like the Skins
offense enough to lay a TD...
Redskins 21 - Bengals 17.

Tampa Bay at Atlanta (-3): I've done well backing the Falcons at home this year,
and see no need to change up now...
Falcons 31 - Bucs 26.

San Francisco at Miami (-6½): Never a good idea playing the west coast team
traveling east for the early game. The Dolphins at home have had some success, but
offensively I don't think they're a team that is good at laying anything over a FG.
Heck, the 49ers could march in the Joe Robbie, or whatever the hell its called and
steal this one...
Dolphins 20 - 49ers 17.

Seattle at St. Louis (-3): Both suck. Coaching difference is enough to lay the
number...
Seahawks 28 - Rams 21.

Buffalo at Jets (-7): "Same old Jets" last few weeks, with a defense that has
broken down for no visible reason. "Same old Jets" philosophy works well here
though, as they usually are tough at home vs. Buffalo, a team who has folded up like
a pup tent down the stretch...
Jets 31 - Bills 17.

Tennessee at Houston (+3): Line looks very low for me, even though the Texans did
play Tennessee pretty tough earlier this year in Memphis. I don't think the Titans
stumble here though, they are too well coached...
Titans 26 - Texans 16.

Pittsburgh at Baltimore (-1½): Love Baltimore at home. Will be a very long day for
Ben Roethlisberger...
Ravens 30 - Steelers 13.

Denver at Carolina (-7½): Panthers are rolling, and have to continue to do so to
win the scrappy NFC South. Denver continues to under impress...
Panthers 30 - Broncos 19.

San Diego at Kansas City (+5): Since nobody on planet earth knows what to make of
San Diego, I'll take the Chiefs at home to cover. They nearly won big in Southern
Cal the first go around...
Chiefs 27 - Chargers 26.

Minnesota at Arizona (-3): Love Arizona at home. It doesn't hurt for them to know
what Minnesota is good enough to win this game too, so they won't mail this one
in....
Cardinals 31 - Vikings 14.

New England at Oakland (+7): Okay, I'll give you the whole Seattle at home can be
a tricky opponent, and thus the non-cover last week for New England. This week's
opponent carries no such mystique...
Patriots 34 - Raiders 10.

Giants at Dallas (-3): Dallas is falling apart, and even though the Giants don't
need the game, losing to the Cowboys is never an option...
Giants 36 - Cowboys 27.

Monday
Cleveland at Philadelphia (-14): I like the Eagles to take advantage of a lousy
Brownies team, but the way Cleveland has played in the national spotlight it's tough
not to jump all over the gratuitous line here, with or without Dorsey...
Eagles 31 - Browns 24.

Bored? Stop in for a mental cocktail at Whitey's Pub!
www.geocities.com/crwhitey2000

Deals to be made

2008-12-10T09:30:00.000-08:00

Phillies in talks to land DeRosa, while Moyer wants 2 years

It's quite fitting that this year's 2008 Winter Meetings are taking place in Vegas. This is the time of the year when teams take gambles. Sometimes they work out incredibly.

The Rays hit the jackpot when they landed Matt Garza for Delmon Young, who is turning out to be a jagoff.

The Phils hit the jackpot with Brad Lidge who was their MVP.

Both of these moves helped these respective teams to make it to the Fall Classic and the rest is his.

Ruben Amaro Jr. would do best to abstain right now. Who the hell wants the Phillies to help the Cubs land Jake Peavy? Are you kidding? And, the word around the proverbial grapevine has the Phils sending J.A. Happ (a future #2/3 starter) for Mark Derosa, who is a rich man's David Bell.

If the Phillies make that move, it would be David Bell Part Deux. DeRosa is an aging journeyman coming off a couple career years. And, Happ solidifies a rotation that may be without Jamie Moyer and in need of a replacement.

One of our flunkies at Phillypurge.com went up to Ruben at a crap's table in the Bellagio and put this to him and he had this to say, "I'm not going to comment on any of that. We don't comment on other team's players, but if you think I'm going to s**t the bed right away and start making bad moves then f**k you", said Ruben as he gave us the finger and walked away.

I personally don't think Amaro Jr. will do a bad job at this point. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and hope he's learned the lessons from Ed Wade's blunders and learned a good deal from Gillick about how to make those small moves to build a winner.

DeRosa for Happ would be a bigger mistake than swapping Polanco for Uggy Urbina. And, yes the Phils did win the World Series with Feliz, but imagine how good they would have been in '06 and '07 with Polanco in that lineup.

Rumbings and Grumblings

Jamie Moyer wants two years and $10 million annually according to Bill Conlin of The Phila Daily News.

Ruben Amaro Jr. isn't worried that the Mets signed Francisco Rodriguez.

Charlie Manuel gets his extension.

Eagles Draft History

2008-12-09T09:49:00.000-08:00

Phillypurge.com has you covered from Jay Berwanger to King Dunlap

Taking a different track today and unleashing a little something I put together with some research; the Philadelphia Eagles draft history.

I compiled the list of every single Eagles draft pick since 1936. What's insane is how many rounds their USED to be when football was small fries compared to the other sports.

Eagles Draft History

Enjoy!

Giant Victory

2008-12-08T09:38:00.001-08:00

Eagles pull off the upset in Sunday's 20-14 victory over the Giants

First off, we at Phillypurge.com would like to say congrats to Andy Reid and the Eagles on their resounding victory over the Giants. And, we will be the first to say when we're wrong on something.

We expected the Eagles to get bushwhacked by the Giants on Sunday because the evidence over the past 9-plus seasons suggested that Andy Reid would go into New York yesterday and try to beat a good team with a pass-first strategy. We felt the only way they'd win is if the Giants made plenty of mistakes. Turns out that wasn't the case.

Now, onto the game. This is what happens when you emphasize a balanced mentality on offense; good things happen.

Even though the Eagles had just 6 yards on their first 7 carries, Andy Reid decided to stick with it. Hell Brian Westbrook had a career-high 33 carries yesterday.

Let's not give the entire credit to the running game though. The Eagles' defense was terrific. And, Trent Cole's blocked field goal was as picturesque as Sedona Arizona at sunset.

"I was trying to impersonate Bobby Boucher, you know dude from that Adam Sandler movie", said Trent Cole as he got onto the bus after the game.

Judging from yesterday's victory you'd think the Giants just gave the game to the Eagles. And, the New York scumbag fans were in a frenzy after the game.

"Hey yo, the f**kin refs f**ked us the game. It was bulls**t call after bulls**t call and if there weren't those 40 mile an hour winds we woulda won", said a Giants fan as he cleaned up puke from his filthy sweatshirt.

Another Giants fan had this to offer. "Philthadelphia had a cheap ass victory and that's all the f**k I'm gonna say. If they woulda played us 100 times we woulda beat them f*gs 99 times", said another drunken Giants blowhard fan.

Isn't that what happened in the Super Bowl though? The Patriots played their worst game and the one time the Giants could have won out of 100 times, they actually did.

One of our reporters saw another Giants fan urinating on someone's lawn in the 'burbs of Jersey afterwards and they attempted to chase after them mid-urination when they saw our reporter had on an Eagles hat.

Suffice it to say Giants fans aren't a happy bunch. And, we couldn't be happier to see them miserable after a great victory.

Andy Reid was all smiles when we caught up to him back in Philly late last night. "You a**holes happy now? We ran it down their throats and we're winning", said Reid. Then we asked him if he'd continue to go with the balanced attack he had this to say. Reid said, "Look I may be stubborn, but I'm not an idiot. I know this team stinks if we pass 50 times a game. And, I still want to have a job next year."

What does this portend for the 7-5-1 Eagles? They now just have to leapfrog the Falcons and Cowboys for that 6th playoff spot.

All three of the Eagles' NFC East foes lost yesterday. And, Dallas has some brutal games coming up against the Giants, Ravens, and the regular season finale against the Eagles. The Eagles on the other hand have the Browns and Redskins up next.

With the Redskins imploding once again late in the year you can count them out.

As long as the Eagles continue to utilize a balanced-attack and getting the job done on defense, it's not unreasonable to think they can finish up 10-5-1 and sneak into the playoffs.

Does that make them a Super Bowl team? Not even close. Let's just see what they do these next three weeks first.

7-point Dogs

2008-12-05T09:41:00.000-08:00

The Eagles head to New York a 7-point underdog

The amazing thing about Sunday's game coming up is that the Eagles are just a 7-point underdog to the Giants. These are two teams who headed in opposite directions since their last meeting.

Sure, the Eagles beat up on the Cardinals 48-20 on Thanksgiving, but let's keep it real and admit to ourselves that it was more a matter of the Cardinals heading East and suffering what NFL observers have termed "The West to East coast travel effect" during this 2008 NFL season.

The Giants are 11-1 and since their 36-31 defeat over the Eagles they are 3-0. The Eagles are 1-1-1 since they met and two of those games were hideous.

Don't tell that to Andy Reid though. He told us all is well in Eagle-land. "You guys on your blogs or whatever can say that I don't know what I'm doing as a coach, but I think we have a good football team. That Bakay a**hole who writes for your website can talk about winning close games, getting turnovers, and running the ball all he wants, but he needs to keep his mouth shut and let me do the coaching", said Reid as he stepped out of the bathroom.

Rich Hoffmann is drinking the Kool-Aid now. In his column on the Daily News he says "playcalling not the problem with Eagles' running game."

Huh? Really?

Is he watching the same Eagles team as the rest of us? I'm sorry, Andy Reid must not have called over 60 passing plays in the Cincinatti and Baltimore games.

We caught up to Mr. Hoffman today outside of the Starbucks on Walnut Street in Philly and he had this to say. "Look I know what I wrote is complete bulls**t, but that's my job when I'm taking a paycheck from Joe Banner. How come you guys aren't tougher on Eskin. He's been kissing Andy Reid's ass so much over the years he no longer has a sense of smell", said Hoffman as he sipped on his latte.

While that may be true to a certain extent, but Eskin didn't write this fluff piece, you did Mr. Hoffman.

Look at this gem right here, which stinks of the spin that only Joe Banner or Dave Spadaro could rival.

"The Eagles run the ball 25 times a game. The average NFL team runs it 27.4 times a game. That's it. That's the difference between Reid and typical - two play calls a game. People say that if they would just stick with it, they would be better at it - as if they never try. It isn't true. Yes, Reid likes to throw the ball a lot - but deal with reality."

The reality is Mr. Hoffman that in the Eagles' defeats this year they didn't emphasize balance. And, historically the Eagles are much better football club when they run the ball then when they aren't. Their record speaks for itself. They are 37-5 when they run the ball at least 30 times. That's a fact. And, another fact is they got knocked out of the playoffs every time when they called a plethora of passing plays.

After our little chit-chat with Hoffman, we happened to run into Sean Avery of all people who is spending his 6-game suspension in the area.

"Dude, the Eagles are a motherf***in' joke. Why even bother writing about them? They're not even worthy of being the Giants' sloppy seconds", said Avery as he grabbed his crotch.

Now, onto Sunday's game. What can we expect out of the Eagles? I'll say the same thing I said before the Ravens game. I expect Reid to think he's going to call over 50 passing plays and expect a win.

And, the Eagles will go home with their season down the drain once again. Nothing he has shown makes me convinced he'll do otherwise against a good team.

And, if this game does become a close game do you expect the Eagles to pull it out when they have just a 1-8 record in their last 9 games that were decided by 5 points or less? The Giants on the other hand are 10-1 in their last 11 games decided by 5 points or less.

He'll tell us after they lose that the season isn't over and they just need to keep "firing away."

Great. What has that accomplished? Oh, it's gotten them a 54-53-1 record over the past four years since that Super Bowl loss to New England in Jacksonville.

Phils After Lowe

2008-12-04T09:41:00.000-08:00

Phillies and a mystery team make offer to Lowe

Word on the street is that the Phillies and a "mystery team" have made offers to Derek Lowe.

We at Phillypurge.com have figured out who that mystery team is.

It's not even a team in Major League Baseball. Nope. The Yomiuri Giants made a lucrative offer to Lowe in the range of $80 million over 4 years and partial ownership in their team.

An unidentified spokesperson for the Yomiuri Group, which owns the Yomiuri Giants said the following, "We're offering Lowe the real money. We offer him f**k you money. We want to give big f**k you to Major League Baseball and especially the Phillies. Bud Selig can suck on my b**s two times after this!"

Now apparently a darkhorse has entered the Derek Lowe sweepstakes. We're talking about Hugo Chavez, the president of Venezuela. Chavez has reportedly flown Lowe into Venezuela and is hoping to lure him to the Venezuelan Baseball league in hopes of raising the league's international profile.

"Nothing would bring more joy to me than to see Derek Lowe become the new face of Venezuelan baseball. Well, that and for Dick Cheney to have a stroke", said Chavez as he enjoyed a prime rib steak.

Now, if the Phillies can outbid the other suitors it would give them a formidable rotation with Hamels and Myers at the top, with Lowe as the number three starter. Blanton would be the four. And, there would be a myriad of possibilities at the fifth spot ranging from Jamie Moyer (if he re-signs), Kyle Kendrick, J.A. Japp, or Carlos Carrasco.

As of yet, no big-name players have signed anywhere. All eyes are still on C.C. Sabathia because the player's association is pressuring players to wait until the highest paid players sign so they can set the market.

Don't you just love the player's union? It's bad enough that you have the Scott BorASSes of the world ruining the game, then you have the union basically holding players hostage.

At the rate they're giving money away in baseball, the MLB.com store is going to have to blow out a lot of merchandise to keep up. By the way, raise your hand if you're annoyed with their incessant emails about the so-called "blow out specials" and the buy one get one free specials. I took a look at their "blow out special" today and the only buy one get one free items which are eligible are complete junk. Sure, I just can't contain myself with the excitement I have of being able to purchase a Chris Carpenter bobblehead doll for 15 bucks. I wonder if it's arm falls off like his in real life.

Good luck with that.

Suspended

2008-12-03T09:37:00.001-08:00

Burress is suspended for the final four games of the regular season

Plaxico Burress was suspended by the New York Giants for the final four games of the regular season yesterday.

And, don't expect him to be on the field in the playoffs either.

Not that the Giants need him anyway because they are what...oh just 11-1 and since his 10 catch 133 yard game in week one, he's managed to catch just 25 balls for 321 yards.

We asked some Eagles fans about their thoughts on Burress' suspension and many are relieved.

Eagles fan #1 proclaimed, "F**k yeah dude this is great that Burress is gone for the year, I mean he's their #1 receiver and having a great season."

When we told Eagles fan #1 that Burress has basically s**t the bed the entire season he couldn't believe his ears and stormed off.

Another Eagles fan we spoke to agreed and said "Burress is an overrated bag of s**t and couldn't hold Mike Quick's d**k to take a p**s."

Whatever that means.

The bottom line is the Giants are getting it done with the best offensive line in football, a smash-mouth running game, and stellar defense. Eli Manning isn't put in a position where he has to win games and voila you have yourself an 11-1 football club.

We caught up to Burress at the Hard Rock Cafe and he had this to say.

"Whatever happens, it's all good man. I been in this game for 9 years and s**t. I still got my loot. Got my ladies. Got my bling. Got my ride. Got my nine you know. It aint not motherf***in' thing man if I never play in NYC again. I might just start a new career and s**t. I'm already working on some lyrics for my first rap album. I got my man Jerome ready to spin s**t and lay down some s**t in the studio. I already got my first song ready to go and it's called "She aint nuttin' but a hoe to me." Mark that s**t down it will be a hit! Double platinum bitches! So, I don't need football. If football don't need Plax, Plax don't need it. So, y'all can write that on your website and print that s**t. Alright, we're done here", said Burress as he was woofing down an overpriced hamburger and sipping on an insanely overpriced drink.

Seriously Hard Rock Cafe is to the food and bar industry what Acura's are to the car industry. Acuras are nothing more than glorified Hondas but cost much more. Well Hard Rock Cafe is an Applebees with overpriced crap.

--------------------------------------------

The McNabbs have twins

Last night the news broke that Donovan McNabb's wife Roxie gave birth to a pair of twins.

A source inside the hospital tells us that McNabb wanted the papers to "keep his family members names out their mouths."

No names have been revealed for the twins as of yet.

And, we took the high road and didn't even bother trying to speak to him or try to track him down outside of the hospital.

------------------------------------------

The Sixers get off the schide

Breaking News! The Sixers won a game last night.

Yep, they managed to beat The Bulls 103-95 in overtime.

And, in other news Andre Iguodala still hasn't learned how to hit his jumper.

"Get away from me man. I aint talkin' to y'all. I just gotta work on my game and the game will come to me", said Iguodala as we watched him clank his 10th shot in a row off the rim in practice this morning.

The Sixers take on the Lakers tonight in South Philly.

Burress Gets Out

2008-12-02T09:55:00.001-08:00

Plaxico Burress gets out on bail

So, the Giants are in turmoil right? Burress is looking at 3 1/2 years in the clink, Antonio Pierce is being investigated and all hell is breaking loose in The Meadowlands.

Not so fast. We caught up with Burress in an exclusive one on one on the streets of New York yesterday evening after he posted $100,000 bail on his weapons charges, thereby getting released from the joint.

"I aint worried about that s**t. It aint no thing. I know coach gonna let me do my thing when I come back and s**t and this will be history when my lawyer do his thing", said Burress as he sipped on a Remy Martin at a local bar.

We asked him how he feels about playing this Sunday against The Eagles. "I'm gonna make Lito, Sheldon, and Asante my bitches like I do everytime I face them chumps."

Antonio Pierce wasn't quite as forthcoming. "I aint talking to you fools. You motherf***rs are just trying to dig up s**t and I aint playing into it. I'm gonna knock you the f**k out if you come any closer", yelled Pierce.

Burress is officially back with the team and Tom Coughlin could really care less. Coughlin said, "Our team has gotten the job done with and without Plax. We're 11-1 and the Eagles and Redskins are a joke. And, the Cowboys have a tough schedule and can't catch us. We pity whoever faces us in the playoffs."

----------------------------------------

Andrews Done?

A renowned orthopedic surgeon was on with Angelo Cataldi and The Morning Team on 610 WIP this morning and he feels that it's highly unlikely Shawn Andrews will ever play football again.

He feels because of his back injury coupled with his mental issues, his career is likely over.

That's a far cry from preseason when Andrews returned and we expected him to contribute.

Shawn Andrews had this to say when we grilled him about it. "I will let this be in God's hands. Whatever he wants me to do, I'll do. If I don't play that's fine. I can just watch Sponge Bob Squarepants in my bedroom and I'll be happy", said Andrews as he was watching an episode of Spongebob Squarepants on his iPhone.

Getting The Message?

2008-12-01T09:27:00.000-08:00

Sixers lay an egg after Mo Cheeks' speech on Saturday

Mo Cheeks reportedly delivered a message to the Sixers at practice on Saturday after an ugly loss to Boston on Friday night.

The players pulled a George Costanza and did the exact opposite of what he told them to do in taking a dump in yesterday's 103-92 defeat.

"I just try to do the opposite of whatever the coach says to us. If he says to go high, I go low. If he says to go into the paint, I try to run out of bounds", said Samuel Dalembert.

A few players on the Sixers have nicknamed Dalembert the preying mantis because he resembles one when he handles the ball on offense.

"That's cool man if they think I look like a praying mantis. I don't give a s**t. I just go out there and play. Sure, I'm making three times amount of money player like me should make, but I didn't put gun to they heads to pay me. I tell agent, make 'em pay me. He did so they pay me", Dalembert acknowledged as he was programming songs into his iPod at his locker.

Mo Cheeks is losing his mind watching the players make fundamental mistakes and he can't take it anymore.

"There's an old saying where I come from. You can't teach a dog how to take a s**t. You can't try to reach up the dog's a** to pull it out. You just gotta hope the dog can learn how to do that on it's own. Dribbling a motherf***ing basketball, passing the f***ing ball, and manning up on D is some fundamental s**t. If these guys can't do that, then why am I even coaching?", said Mo Cheeks.

Elton Brand was all smiles after the game though. Brand said, "I'm just glad I'm out of that s**thead franchise in LA. I mean, I came here for the money, but what player isn't doing this for the money? I'm just glad I got paid and now I can just ride this out and hope the team doesn't take a complete s**t this year."

The Sixers are now 7-10, last in their division and showing as much life as the zombies from Night of the Living Dead. The only thing more excruciating to watch than their horrific defense is the inept decision-making of Andre Miller, coupled with Dalembert's failures on offense. What has to boggle even a casual observer's mind is why Dalembert is being given more looks on offense.

Back to the drawing board Mo.

---------------------------------------------------

Plexiglass Burress turns himself in to the cops

Idiotic Giants receiver, Plexico Burress, who did his best impersonation of the character Cheddar from 8-Mile in shooting himself in the thigh, has turned himself into the police today.

Lost in all of this suspension talk is the real issue at hand and it's 3 1/2 as in 3 1/2 years, which is how many years in prison Burress is looking at for failing to carry a concealed weapons permit.

The penalty for violating this law is felony and the 3 1/2 years is without exception.

Burress has retained the services of high-profile defense attorney Benjamin Braffman who has defended mobsters.

An anonymous client of Braffman's had this to offer us. "If I were Burress, I wouldn't worry too much. Braffman knows the right people and he'll find some sort of loophole to get Burress off. And, if that doesn't work, he'll have the evidence tainted by the right guy. It worked for me when I whacked my brother in law for f***ing my wife. I couldn't eat for a week and then I got the call that the evidence got "fixed" and I was a free man", said the anonymous client of Braffman's.

When we mentioned this to Braffman he had us escorted away from him and shouted some obscenities at us.

Whether or not Burress plays this season should be irrelevant because the Giants are 11-1 and have done it largely without their so-called star wide receiver. They have arguably the best offensive line in football, their run to pass ratio is nearly 50/50, and their defense has been fantastic.

Balance

2008-11-29T07:42:00.001-08:00

Eagles exhibit balance on Thursday night

The Eagles' running game was released from the witness protection program on Thursday night and the results were obvious.

48-20 was the final score and when Andy Reid was asked about balance on offense after the game.

"I tried to explain that," Reid said. "Efficient balance is . . . say you are running the football and for the first eight carries you average 1.2 yards, and you're throwing the football and averaging 10 yards per throw. To me, you're probably going to throw the football a couple more times than you're going to run the football.

"Efficient balance would be to get it up around 4 yards - 31/2 to 4 yards per carry - then let's have a good completion percentage, and let's go to work."

Rueben Frank grilled him further about it and Reid told him "he's probably right" and that he'd get his "little book out about the stats."

And, off camera when Reid was grilled about it further by our reporter on hand and he had this to offer. "Look I know my passing offense is a joke, but I'm in so deep that I have to continue to act like what I do is right. (cough) (cough) If I come out and say that passing the ball 50 times might not be such a good idea then I look like a complete a**hole."

As assistant coach on the Eagles chimed in with this nugget the day after the game at the Novacare complex. "I don't know how many times I tried to tell that a**hole (Reid) about running the godd**n ball more. Hell, just run the ball 7 more times a game. Andy, you'll be surprised to see the difference it makes. He told me to just shut the f**k up and let him run the team."

Ray Didinger spilled the beans when it comes to the Eagles and running the rock. Since 2000 when they have more rushing attempts than their opponent they're 52-10, and 37-5 when they run the ball more than 30 times.

Don't tell that to Andy though.

Brian Westbrook was giddy about his four touchdown performance. "About damn time Big Red let me do my thing. I was telling him that I was healthy and just let handle the rock. Look, I aint trying to hate on coach, but a blind man can see how good we are when we run the rock."

L.J. Smith threw a bottle of water at us when we asked him about his opinion on the Thursday night game. He's a little pissed at us about the you know-name of the blog and all.

The Eagles are off until next Sunday when they take on the Giants.

2008-11-26T09:28:00.000-08:00

Blow it Up

When I think about the Giants anymore I am pretty envious. Hell, it borders on jealousy. They had one shot to win it all during their latest upswing and got the bleeping job done.

What comes to mind is the scene in Harold and Kumar when Anthony Anderson's character thinks of those tasty burgers at White Castle and how it's enough for him to "burn this motherf***er down."

With that said, it's time for the Birds to "blow this motherf***er up."

One of our insiders spoke of the prospect of blowing up the team to an unnamed source in the Eagles' organization. Here's what they had to say.

"Sure, we want to blow it up. Why the (expletive deleted) not? That means Reid must go though because if you mention "blow it up" to Reid and he thinks you mean the toilet after he takes one of his dumps following a meal from Wawa", said the unnamed source.

We ran into L.J. Smith after practice yesterday and he had this to offer. "I don't give a (expletive deleted) what they do. I'm just glad I suckered them into franchising my ass. Hopefully someone else thinks I'm not a stiff when I sign elsewhere next year", said Smith while drinking his 7th Corona at the Fox and Hound in Center City.

So, what about the game tomorrow night?

One of the coaches said we can expect the following in tomorrow night's game. "You'll get your usual 15 scripted plays. McScabb (I guess that's what the coaches call him now) will throw some worm burners at the receivers' (bleeping) feet and Reid will call passes on about 12 of those plays. They'll have a delay of game on at least one no huddle play. Then the defense will be on the field for 12 of the first 15 minutes, be gassed and game over. I'm just pissed I gotta miss the (bleeping) dinner for this sheep s**t."

This coach, who refuses to be identified despite not caring if he loses his job, had some other things to say about Reid and his kids but we will take the high road and not print it.

-------------------------------------------------

Utley's surgery is successful

Dr. Bryan Kelly said Chase Utley's surgery was successful. Then again, when the hell does a doctor not say a surgery is successful.

Sure, the doctor is gonna say this, "Yeah we (bleeped) up Utley's hip and he'll be lucky to be on the field in another year."

Ruben Amaro told us to leave him the hell alone when we tried to chase him down yesterday, but told the Daily News that "I don't think anyone can predict until he is into his rehab and moving around."

New Format

2008-11-26T07:51:00.001-08:00

Starting today, we're going with a new format for the daily blog at Phillypurge.com. I decided to call it the L.J. Smith blog, because he epitomizes the muck and crap that has become the Philadelphia Eagles. And, the Philadelphia Eagles deservedly so are our whipping boy in this town.

Now that the blog format has changed this doesn't mean I won't continue with my observations of our teams, rather think of it as an evolution for Phillypurge.com. Rather than reveal the new style of my blog, I'll just let the words speak for themselves in the coming days and months.

I'd like to thank all of you for supporting my site and hope you enjoy the new format.

Dennis Bakay

Still Confident

2008-11-25T09:49:00.001-08:00

Reid and McNabb still remain confident

I'm sure you know by now that Andy Reid abruptly cut his press conference short after 10 minutes when he was being harrassed by the media.

Howard Eskin, who is annoying me to no end with his defense of Reid insisted it was the PR department that cut it short and that radio stations and the TV media alike shouldn't ask the same questions over and over for their personal needs.

I've never heard such excuses. Eskin's defense of Reid is beyond ludicrous at this point. It's one thing to "be on an island" and defend somebody, but it's another to completely ignore the ship sinking into the ocean.

Merrill Reese was on WIP this morning and thinks Reid is as confident as ever and one thing is certain he won't quit. That might be the danger in all of this though. Just like when they were 5-8 last year and on the way to at least getting a better draft pick this team won 3 straight games almost out of spite-to prove a point how bad they weren't.

Now they're sitting at 5-5-1 and Reid and McNabb are confident once again and ready to shake off this latest calamity as but another bump in the journey.

This is the type of logic that an addictive gambler exhibits after losing 10 straight hands of blackjack, hoping to make it back on the 11th.

And, soon they end up with both legs broken.

On the other hand, you can't expect Reid and/or McNabb to just say they flat out give up. It sure would be great if Reid did though.

One guy Reid is pretty mad at is Sal Palantonio, who he got pissed off at during the press conference yesterday for talking about the team meeting, the same team meeting that was public knowledge.

And, Reid had this to offer later on yesterday.

Reid was quoted as saying, "I forgot more about this game last night then you people will ever know-you too Sal Palantonio" as he grabbed a cheesesteak at Geno's on Monday.

Emmitt Smith had an interesting comment too on Monday Night Countdown last night.

Emmitt Smith was quoted as saying, "Them Eagles is a bits off but and sure looking to make change to be on the right track for Friday Night's Thanksgiving game against my former team the St. Louis Cardinals."

So, am I the only one who's had an opportunity to get tickets to this game? The company I work for is putting them up in a raffle. And, my company rarely does this. They hold onto tickets like gold bulliion, but of course this is a game nobody wants to go to.

Hell, you couldn't pay me $200 to go to the game Thursday night.

I'll be relaxing comfortably in my apartment with drink in hand cursing at another Eagles loss on primetime TV.

That's all for now.

Gutless

2008-11-24T09:26:00.001-08:00

Eagles lose to Ravens in blow-out fashion

The key thing I can take away from yesterday's 36-7 loss to the Ravens is that the Eagles are a gutless team and it stems from their gutless coach.

I happened to agree with the coach's decision to pull McNabb after a woeful first half. But, for him to have one of his cronies tell McNabb he was being benched is absolutely gutless.

Reid is gutless-period and it's ironic considering the one thing that stands out on him is his enormous gut. Week after week he refuses to answers questions head on and does nothing but speak in doubletalk.

He didn't have the guts to look his quarterback of ten years in the eyes and tell him he was being yanked. That's all you need to know about Reid as a head coach.

And, during the press conference today as the reporters continued to harangue Reid about McNabb's status and his control over the team he eventually walked out on the reporters.

Reid is one thing and it starts with the letter "P" and ends in "Y." Period.

He is an embarrassment to the organization and if he had any respect for the fans he would step down as coach of this team.

But, he won't because he's so full of himself and so committed to proving to us his pass-happy system works that he'll continue to run this franchise down the drain.

Is it any wonder that this team is collapsing further than oil futures? Yesterday you have the franchise quarterback looking like a rookie against one of the elite defenses in the NFL and he's yanked. So, what does this bumbling fool of a coach do? He throws a rookie quarterback out there to pass, pass, and pass some more.

I predict Reid will either be fired or forced to resign as coach at the end of the season. Nothing will save him at this point, not even trying to throw this all on McNabb's shoulders.

Let's not get things confused-McNabb has worn out his welcome too. You can't say he doesn't have the offensive personnel. If this team were run properly and there was a semblance of balance on the offense they'd have at least three more wins. But, the point is they're not because the coach is a gutless madman and he's determined to "do it his way" or else.

McNabb is slated to start on Thursday, but the real story is that Reid has lost this team and is clearly ready to lose it.

If you listened to or watched the press conference today then you witnessed someone on the brink of self destruction.

The Eagles have yet to hit rock bottom. Oh, if you think yesterday was rock bottom think again. The Eagles will lose by at least 3 touchdowns on Thursday night in front of their home crowd. The Cardinals will be hungry after taking a tough loss yesterday to the Giants. And, let's not forget that primetime is the Eagles' kryptonite.

Even when they lose on Thursday night it won't be rock bottom yet.

Rock bottom will occur when this team gets slaughtered by the Giants next weekend and falls to 5-7-1.

And, here's something I thought I'd never say. I actually think George Bush might be better at being a president than Reid is at coaching a football team.

My, my, my how far Reid has fallen.

We'd better hope whoever takes over this new regime knows if Kolb is the answer. Let's not judge him on that one half of football though. Remember John Elway was 1 for 8 in his NFL debut. And, Kolb was thrown to the lions yesterday.

The Eagles will take on the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night. Who cares at this point?

Rocking The Boat?

2008-11-21T09:25:00.000-08:00

Andy Reid reportedly rips into the players yesterday

In Bob Ford's column today for The Inky he states that Andy Reid "rocked the boat" when he had a meeting with the players yesterday.

Quinten Mikell reiterated what Reid brought up in the meeting yesterday. "That's what we need [to hear]. We need to get back to playing football and stop worrying about the B.S. that we can't control. Just play football. Sometimes you've just got to say what's on your mind, and he did that."

Wow. That's a quantum leap! On second thought, no not really.

If Reid would come out and say they are going to start running the ball 30-plus times a game, allow their offensive line to attack (instead of being attacked by pass blocking), utilize Brent Celek more, and try to find somebody, anybody to play fullback then maybe I'd be on board. The only chance they have of salvaging this trainwreck of a season is to do those aforementioned things and maybe by chance if their defensive tackles step up.

Otherwise, it's more of the same. And, that's what I expect to see on Sunday. I expect them to use Buckhalter two times, bench Brent Celek, throw to L.J. Smith (and he'll drop about 3 balls), force Westbrook to play on a bum leg, and get their asses handed to them by the Ravens' pass rush and running game.

I hate to sound so negative, but this team has done nothing to show me they can beat good teams. And, this coach has done nothing to convince me he'll consider adapting.

I'm not asking for Reid to blow up like Lee Elia or Tommy Lasorda, but he is delusional if he can't see the forest through the trees and adapt. Maybe he doesn't care because he knows he has job security.

My prediction for Sunday is the Ravens will win 21-7.

-------------------------------------

Who the hell is Mayberry?

That's probably what you were thinking when the Phillies made that trade with the Texas Rangers yesterday, a trade which sent outfielder Greg Golson to the Rangers for outfielder John Mayberry.

Just who is this Mayberry you're probably wondering? He, like Greg Golson was drafted in the first round, but in the 2005 draft. Golson was the Phils' first round selection in 2004.

Mayberry, 24, played in double-A and triple-A ball last year and hit a combined .264 with 38 doubles, 20 homers, 71 RBI, and 10 stolen bases in 135 games. In 2007, he had 30 homers in single-A ball. So, the power numbers are there.

Could he be the next Pat Burrell?

He is a big kid, standing at 6'6" and 230 pounds. He comes from a baseball pedigree. His father John Mayberry Sr. played in the majors for 15 years and topped 20 homers eight times.

Greg Golson, who is thought to be the next Michael Bourn isn't what this team needs in the long run. They're going to need to add power to that outfield eventually and whoever replaces Burrell this year will likely be a stop-gap option until one of the youngsters is ready.

Could turn out to be a brilliant trade by Ruben Amaro. Only time will tell.

Spadaro-isms

2008-11-20T09:41:00.000-08:00

Some classic quotes by our favorite Eagles' spokesperson Dave Spadaro

Gonna take a different track today. It's getting old talking about the same things everyday. We all know that the Eagles drink swamp water. Their coach is clueless. Their talent evaluation blows. And, McNabb has made an ass of himself.

But, let's have a little fun shall we?

I frequently check out Igglephans.com, which is the greatest thing since galvanized steel if you're a Birds fan. It's a great message board and there are many knowledgable posters on there, plus it's fun to rip on the Eagles haters and nitwits who post on there. A poster on there posted some Spadaro quotes, and I felt it would be a great idea to post them in a blog for you all to see.

Let er' rip.....

"I expect a great rest of the season." - October 14, 2008
"16-0 and here we come, NFC playoffs!!" - 4/13/05
"Eagles Better Now Than in 2004? I'm Saying Yes..." - 6/26/07
"Jeremy Bloom can play. It is time to take him seriously." - 7/28/07
"Jeremy Bloom is coming, folks." - 8/1/07
"J.R. Reed will run hard and break tackles and Greg Lewis will be sure on his punt
catches and has quick feet to get up the field."- 9/8/07
"Jevon Kearse is having such a good camp, it's ridiculous." - 8/6/07
"David Akers is the best in the history of the franchise and not ready to slow down
anytime soon." - 8/6/07
"Takeo Spikes is going to make a gigantic impact." - 6/26/07
"There is more young talent waiting in the wings along the offensive line than this
franchise has ever had. It isn't even close." - 6/26/07
"[Reggie] Brown is likely to be the "No. 1" receiver, whatever that means." - 6/26/07
"Brown Continues To Grow Into Top-Flight WR" - 7/10/2007
"The Eagles have used their salary-cap room brilliantly, locking up a gaggle of
young and talented players to long-term contracts and still having one of the most
-- the most, maybe, right there with New England? -- active off-seasons in the NFL."
- 3/27/07
"I watched [Winston] Justice with great interest, and he was extremely impressive.
He has outstanding mechanics and tremendous athletic ability. If something happens
with William Thomas at left tackle, there would be no qualms here if Justice were to
step in and start." - 5/16/06
"However, I will go this far: There is more talent here than I've ever seen." - 6/9/05
I have to tell you that I don't see one matchup that the Eagles are lesser than the
Bengals in. I'm being honest. It doesn't mean the game is going to play out this
way, but I think the Eagles are a far, far superior team. - 11/15/08

The Eagles are about to play the Bengals in a game that I just can't fathom the
Eagles losing. Oh, I know this is the NFL and I have respect for every team in the
league, but I just don't see it here. I don't see the Eagles losing. No way. -
11/15/08

Part of me, I admit, is stuck in the early part of this decade. I remember those
teams and I look at this team and I think there is no comparison. This team is far
superior -- on paper, which means nothing -- to the teams from the 2000-2003
seasons. - 11/1/08

Super Bowl? Yeah, the Eagles are good enough to win it all. I honestly believe that
as training camp races closer, ever closer. - 7/13/08

The idea that the Eagles haven't "significantly improved the offense" just doesn't
wash with me. - 5/26/08

Lorenzo Booker has lived up to the pre-camp hype. - 7/28/08

It is hard not to be impressed with Lorenzo Booker. - 5/23/08

Kris Wilson is an impressive player in this camp. - 5/23/08

I bristle when I hear that the Eagles are the same-old, same-old on offense. That
just isn't the case, and when you see the structure of the personnel and the way the
additions can help, I think you will agree that this offense has a chance to get to
where it wants to go -- the end zone -- on a much more consistent basis than a year
ago. - 5/26/08

...the combination of Smith and Celek recalls the primo combo the Eagles had years
ago with both Smith and Chad Lewis. - 6/2/08

What the Eagles surely will have is a threesome at tight end that can make a lot of
plays. - 6/2/08

Eat clock in the second half running the football behind a powerful offensive line.
- 7/19/08

Now, I've never been one to just bash the guy for the hell of it. He seems like a really nice guy who has fun with his job and at times gets carried away with his cheerleading for the Eagles' organization. But, he runs the website and it's his job.

I met the guy once when I was hanging out with some friends and one of them is a pretty good friend of his. I've never heard anything bad about the man on a personal level.

But.....yes but, these quotes are foremost ludicrious, but disturbing.

For him to honestly say that Lorenzo Booker lived up to the hype in training camp is preposterous. Number one, Low Rent as I call him was only hyped up by the organization. I call this Ryan Moats II. They figured Westbrook would probably hold out and his career would be done in Philly so they needed a back-up plan to Westy, much like when they drafted Ryan Moats-another jagoff.

Low Rent Booker is one of those guys the Eagles acquire or draft and you just know immediately it's a mistake. I knew it when they drafted Matt McCoy and I knew it when they wasted a fourth round pick in a trade for Booker. He couldn't get on the field in Miami last year when they lost Ronnie Brown for the season and didn't even play much after their back-up Jesse Chatman went down. And, Miami was a 1-15 team. If that doesn't tell you enough you need to know then I don't know what does.

The way this organization hyped him up in the offseason you'd think they have the next Marshall Faulk in the stable. Well, here's your Marshall Faulk for you Banner and Spadaro:

16 rushes for 32 yards, good for a 2.0 average and 5 catches for 10 yards, also good for a 2.0 average.

Woo hoo! Make that reservation for Canton! I'm friggin' stoked over those numbers!

There are so many other ridiculous statements in there that you have to question this guy's football knowledge. Or maybe it's all bullshit-just because Joe Banner forces him to say these things. But, why? Any football fan with any knowledge whatsoever would see through this slop.

Another classic was on November 1st of this year after the Eagles had many disappointing games when he said, "
Part of me, I admit, is stuck in the early part of this decade. I remember those
teams and I look at this team and I think there is no comparison. This team is far
superior -- on paper, which means nothing -- to the teams from the 2000-2003
seasons. - 11/1/08

That right there just blows my mind. Far superior on paper? Just what is he looking at? The defense is pedestrian at best. The offensive line stinks. McNabb's skills as an athlete have eroded. And, the Coach makes decisions as if his brain is comprised of cream of wheat.

And, here's the best one. "Jeremy Bloom is coming, folks." Let that one sink in for a second.

I could go on and on for the rest of the afternoon about this, but those are a few of the ones that really stood out to me. Hope you enjoyed.

Just 90 days until pitchers and catchers report. We better hope the Sixers play better this winter.

No Regrets

2008-11-19T09:40:00.000-08:00

McNabb says at his press conference today he has no regrets about not knowing the rule

First there was "Practice Gate" with A.I. And, then there was "Hoagie Gate" in 2003 when the Eagles opened up The Linc and wouldn't allow hoagies into the stadium. Then, there was "TO Gate" in 2005. Alas, our latest controversy is here and it's called "OT Gate." Just flip them letters around and with the Eagles you get another controversy. With the Phillies flip 80 around to 08 and you get a winner. Just food for thought!

OT Gate has reached it's fourth day and McNabb spoke about it at his weekly press conference at noon.

When he was asked about whether he has any regrets about not knowing about the OT-tie rule he said he had "no regrets."

I'm not shocked by that one bit. How can he defend himself at this point? It's indefensible. When Andy Reid was grilled about it on Monday he tried his usual BS-spin tactics, but could only offer, "he's not responsible" when asked by a reporter about McNabb's ignorance to the rule.

While some may say we're making a mountain out of a molehill, I couldn't disagree more. This whole thing speaks to the incompetence of the Eagles' organization as a hole and is a microcosm of how far this team has fallen.

They used to be the class of the NFC. We expected them to make a trip to the Conference Title game, not just hope for them to make the playoffs. And, now they are the armpit of the NFC East, just an absolute joke.

When people rip me for destroying this team (like our one reader yesterday) my question to you is this. What exactly has this team done in the past FOUR years?

Four years is a long time.

A presidency lasts four years.

Four years ago our economy was in the midst of a boom. Now, our nation is on the verge of economic collapse.

Four years ago my father was alive.

Four years.

The Eagles are in the state they're in today for one primary reason-talent evaluation. It's horrific. Take a look at their drafts between 2003 and 2007. I'll leave out 2008 since it's unfair to judge rookies.

2003 Draft:

1-J. McDougale
2-L.J. Smith
3-B. McMullen
4-J. Green
6-J. Bridges
7-N. Lejune

2004 Draft:

1-S. Andrews
3-M. Ware
4-JR Reed
4-T. Darilek
5-T. Tapeh
6-A. Hall
6-D. Wynn
7-A. Clark
7-B. Perry
7-D. Furio

2005 Draft:

1-M. Patterson
2-R. Brown
2-M. McCoy
3-R. Moats
4-S. Considine
4-T. Herremans
5-T. Cole
5-S. Young
6-C. Armstrong
7-K. Marshall
7-D. Bergeron

2006 Draft:

1-B. Bunkley
2-W. Justice
3-C. GoCong
4-M. Gilles
4-J. Avant
5-J. Bloom
5-O. Gaither
7-L. Ramsey

2007 Draft:

2-K. Kolb
2-V. Abiamiri
3-S. Bradley
3-T. Hunt
5-C.J. Gaddis
5-B. Celek
6-R. Barksdale
7-N. Iloa

There were a total of 43 players drafted in those five drafts. Out of those 43 players just 17 players remain with the team. And, of those 17 players, just Shawn Andrews, Mike Patterson, Todd Herremans, Trent Cole, Brodrick Bunkley, Omar Gaither, and Stewart Bradley are guys you can call difference makers. And, I'm being very generous because all of the above players have problems staying healthy or playing consistently throughout an entire year.

It's an indictment on an organization when you have five drafts and can come up with just seven players of consequence.

The drafts that really killed this team were in 2004 and 2005, they drafted 21 players and just six of them remain with the team. Just one player (Shawn Andrews) survived the 2004 draft class, where they had ten selections.

I bash Andy Reid and McNabb about as much as any person out there-be in in the blogosphere or in the media. But, he should be fired solely on his poor talent evaluation skills. The supporters or Reid will try to spin it and say how he just has "final say" and pin it on his flunkies like Tom Heckert and Howie Roseman, but the bottom line is he has a huge hand in who plays for this team.

And, you wonder why the Eagles can't get a fullback to block on a friggin' third and one play. Or, why they can't get a push up the middle. They don't learn from their mistakes. What the hell were they thinking of drafting an undersized lineman in Trevor Laws this past year when they clearly needed another playmaker like Felix Jones. Instead they drafted Laws (who stinks) and traded for Lorezno Booker who is more suited to play in the CFL than even on an NFL practice squad.

The only thing that outweighs the Eagles' arrogance is their utter incompetence. They truly are the laughing stock of the NFC East.

It didn't happen overnight as you can see. It started in 2003 after they fired a lot of their quality scouts and let Reid and his flunkies exercise more control.

And, you wonder why they'll be a bottom feeder once again in the NFC East.

McNabb should regret taking the field when he has to suit up with the likes of Low Rent Booker on Sundays. I'd be embarrassed if I had to share the field with stiffs like him and L.J. Smith.

It's been a long way down and the Eagles aren't there yet. And, it will be a long way back up again.

Replacements

2008-11-18T09:47:00.000-08:00

Possible replacements for Reid the GM, and so forth

It's a sad state of affairs when your football team has played it's 10th game of the year and what you can look forward to is who they'll bring in to inject some life into the front office.

And, even more so it's a sad state of affairs when you start to look forward to the draft to see who your team will pick in April. But, wait a minute? This is the Eagles so we know they'll probably trade out of the first round again anyway so we don't even have that to look forward to.

What we can be pretty much certain of is that Kevin Kolb will be the quarterback next season. And, Andy Reid will likely return as the coach of the team for his 11th season.

G Cobb seems to think that Reid will step down if the Eagles ask him to relinquish his vice president of football operations title.

Hugh Douglas is hearing grumblings that Howie Roseman would be the new GM and Heckert will be forced out.

The word around the grapevine is that Roseman is Banner's guy and it would be a cluster F if he becomes the GM, because this guy is about as qualified to make football decisions as Scott Peterson is qualified to be a good parent.

The organization is without a doubt at a crossroads. Something is going to happen in the front office.

Whether this team lures Scott Pioli out of New England or even goes with somebody like Ron Jaworski, they need someone from outside the organization to come in and bring a fresh set of ideas to the table.

That's what the Phillies did when they fired Ed Wade and brought in Pat Gillick in 2005. And, look what it got them within 3 years.

The Eagles are probably a little behind where the Phillies were at that point because they are more than a few players away.

This team first off needs a quarterback who can get it done. Kolb is an uncertainity. You can't go by game film or what he did in Lehigh. They also need a stud left tackle, upgrades in the interior of the offensive line, a superior interior defensive lineman, a big pass rusher, fullback, and tight end.

We're talking massive changes and this is something that can't be done in all likelihood within the span of one offseason.

You can expect the Eagles to be players in free agency and the guy at the top of my wish list is Panthers defensive end Julius Peppers, who is clearly playing for a new contract. He has 9 sacks on the year and is a one-man wrecking crew. Some other free agents include, Matt Birk (Vikings center), Mark Tauscher (OL Packers), and Albert Haynesworth (DT Titans).

There will be many rumors to come flying out there as the Eagles' season continues (goes downhill). In my opinion I can't see them winning more than two games the rest of the season.

I hate to ever say I root against my team, but if this team implodes it will be a catalyst for some real change.

Abominable

2008-11-17T09:27:00.000-08:00

Eagles and Bengals play to a tie in horrid fashion

At approximately 4:45 PM on Sunday November 16 the Eagles became an abominable franchise. This didn't happen overnight though and I'm certain rock bottom hasn't arrived yet.

The Eagles seem to outdo themselves every week. If they shock you with their ineptitude at the end of a game, then they stupify you with a whacked out pass to run ratio. And, if that's not enough then they find a way to lose a game even when they protect their quarterback and score 31 points.

Yesterday was a new low for Donovan McNabb and the organization. Forget that they played a tie against a horrid 1-8 Bengals team. But, they threw the ball as if they were down by three touchdowns throughout the entire game.

McNabb went 28 for 58 and had 3 picks and a lost fumble. He should've thrown about five or six interceptions, but was saved by the ineptness of the Bengals' defensive backs.

Between McNabb's dreadful play and Reid's self destructive playcalling it's enough to make one vomit. Merrill Reese summed it up perfectly before signing off yesterday when he said you'd be torturing yourself if you rebroadcasted this game.

As if that wasn't bad enough, Donovan McNabb as you probably know, admitted to not knowing that a tied game after an overtime period is ruled a tie. Sure, there haven't been many ties since the AFL-NFL merger, but there was a tie in 2002. And, Donovan McNabb was in the league then. It's appalling that the quarterback of a team, and one who's been in the league this many years wouldn't know that.

At Reid's press conference today he was under attack from media and rightfully so. He can continue to try and dodge questions and use doubletalk, but it's not going to fly in this town.

There is an underlining problem going on with the team. Judging by their play yesterday it looks like this team is quitting on the coach. And, I'd be willing to bet many are giving up on McNabb.

Reid made a fruedian slip today when he said "Kevin would be the QB-I mean Donovan will be the quarterback and get through this."

I think even Reid knows that McNabb's time is up. You can't say that McNabb doesn't have the players. This is an offense that put up 31 points on the Giants. They have players that can make plays. The problem is the coach, who wants to keep "firing away" to try to get the job done is willing to piss the season away just to try and prove his system works.

And, for Reid to insinuate that a tie was better than a loss is a joke. New flash! The following teams in the NFC all have more wins than the Eagles: Giants, Redskins, Cowboys, Panthers, Bucs, Falcons, and Cardinals. That's seven teams! And, somebody from the NFC North has to win that division, despite three of the teams being 5-5. So, that's a total of 8 teams ahead of the Eagles for a playoff spot.

Doesn't this remind you of the latter stages of the Ray Rhodes and Kotite eras? You see a team of zombies out there. And, the head zombie is leading them down the sewar.

Here's your team people, the Philadelphia Bottom Feeders. But, they still think they're better than they are. The armpit of the NFC East, once again in the cellar will miss the playoffs for the third time in four years. And, they're one game above .500 since the meltdown in Jacksonville in Super Bowl XXXIX.

How bad can this team get? It could reach mythic proportions. You have a quarterback playing to get out of town and a team that's giving up on the coach. And, the coach doesn't give a damn.

Yesterday's game could be a harbinger of what will portend. You witnessed a comedy of errors on Sunday. But, it will get worse.

I'd be surprised to see this team win 3 games the rest of the season. They may not win another game and this team could outdo the epic collapse of the 1994 Eagles, which started out 7-2, only to lose the final seven games of the season to finish 7-9.

But, hey get this. It's only about three months until pitchers and catchers report in Clearwater! We can look forward to that.

No Buzz

2008-11-14T09:34:00.000-08:00

This Sunday's game against the Bengals epitomizes Eagles franchise

There is just no buzz with the Eagles anymore. When they were in the their golden years, or as Jeffrey Lurie stated, when they were the "Gold Standard" of the league, each week was an event.

It didn't matter if they played the Houston Texans or the Arizona Cardinals; you looked forward to every game and expected this team to win. Most importantly, you expected the Eagles to display that Eagles brand of football we love.

Now that the Ray Rhodes holdovers are gone and Reid's defensive selections are in there this team's defense has about as much heart as a cadaver.

So what if they win this Sunday against the Bengals. They're supposed to beat a 1-8 team, especially one that is arguably the worst team in the NFL. When this team plays games that actually matter against division opponents they flat out stink on ice. They're 0-3 thus far this season and they were 2-4 against their NFC East foes last year.

Even though people have been saying it for years, they truly have become a predictable team and it's not an Eagles team that we can identify with-not like the ones of the Buddy Ryan era, early Ray Rhodes era, or the early years of the Reid era.

Brian Dawkins is coming to the end of the line. Mike Patterson and Brodrick Bunkley look overmatched anymore. Gocong looks like an experiment gone awry and Omar Gaither is just ok. Stewart Bradley aside from the game on Sunday night hasn't been the impact linebacker we hoped he would be. Asante Samuel isn't tough enough.

So, what's there to look for on Sunday? We want to see a win naturally, but we won't learn anything new about this team if they do win.

It's what football has become in this town-just another game each week.

The Ideal Eagles

2008-11-12T09:46:00.000-08:00

Imagine the Eagles the way they should have been assembled

John Lennon's famous song "Imagine" spoke of a world without greed, war, or the yoke of religion.

Many of us have imagined what it would be like if the Eagles had hired Jeff Fisher or Jon Gruden instead of Rich Kotite, drafted Warren Sapp instead of Mamula, and if McNabb had an offense built around his strengths.

We can argue until we're blue in our face what this team would be like if certain conditions were satisfied, but the bottom line is we don't know. It's like the age-old argument as to who would win between the San Diego Chargers of the AFL and George Halas' great Chicago Bears-it's all theoretical. But, that's part of the fun about sports-imagining and debating.

I'm certain of one thing. Had the Eagles drafted Warren Sapp instead of Mamula and had he been on the Andy Reid-coached teams of the early 2000's they would've won at least two Super Bowls.

It's clear that the whole operation needs to be overhauled. Jim Johnson's defensive scheme is yesterday's flavor. The Eagles' opponents in the NFC East are making mince meat out of them and they can no longer stop the other teams in the red zone. Sure, they gave up chunks of yards on the ground during their other runs to the Super Bowl, but there were players with heart, whom offenses feared, that could stop them within the 20's.

That's no longer the case. Their under-sized defensive line is a joke. The linebackers look pedestrian at best and make a play once or twice a game. Lito Sheppard thinks he's Deoin Sanders and contributes to the defense about as much as a drug junkie contributes to society. Brian Dawkins, I hate to say it has to hang 'em up.

So, where do they go from here? The only way to go is to get a coach like Bill Cowher in here who adheres to a 3-4 philosophy. And, enough with drafting 290 lb. defensive tackles. They just can't cut it in the rough NFC East. I said it then and will say it now this team needed a force like Haloti Ngata in the 2006 draft. But, that would never fly with the Eagles' braintrust. A championship defense like New England's is built around an anchor like a Vince Wilfork or Sam Adams (2000 Ravens) and bigger ends that can rush the passer and stop the run.

The linebackers need to be more physical. Gocong is ok, but seriously have you heard Stewart Bradley's name called much this year?

And, we've seen how poor this offense is in contrast to teams that have a true tight end and fullback that can set up blocks for his comrades.

The wide receivers believe it or not aren't so much of a problem. Not many of us could have predicted that heading into the year. But, that's the organization's job to detect these faults before they come to a head!

My hope for the Eagles is they somehow lure Jimmy Johnson out of the Fox Studio and bring him in as the president of football operations. Then, they can lure Bill Cowher from North Carolina and hand him the reigns.

What would that portend for Kevin Kolb? It's hard to tell, but this team needs to be blown up. And, they need to build the defense around big, physical defenders that put the fear of God into opposing offenses.

I've spoken to a few people who are respected in the media and the verdict on Kolb ranges from tons of potential to "anybody's guess." I'm inclined to go with "anybody's guess." But, that's what the new regime can assess next year. Let Kolb take over the team and if he can get it done then go with him, if not then they'll stink and be in a position to draft a franchise QB.

It's better that this team start the process sooner than later. We all saw how long it's taken the Sixers to rebuild and so far they're not off to great of a start.

Decisions, Decisions

2008-11-11T09:49:00.000-08:00

What should the Eagles do beyond this season?

I think we can safely say that the Eagles have to at the very least strip Andy Reid of his GM duties and move on from the McNabb era.

If your quarterback goes three seasons without leading his team to a 4th quarter comeback, continues to come up small in the big spots, and is injury prone then it's time to move on.

I defended McNabb until I was blue in my face. I did it last year when the team was throwing him under the bus and meanwhile he had little to no weapons to throw to.

But, the facts are the facts. McNabb comes up small in big spots. Years ago he used to come up with a big play by using his legs or finding the receiver when they needed it most. He was 50% of the reason why 4th and 26 became a reality and not fantasy.

Against the Giants in 2002 he came up big on Monday Night football when the Eagles had a 9-3 lead in the 4th quarter. But, he sealed the win with a 40 yard touchdown run.

He was a major reason why the Eagles were so successful in their early years of the Andy Reid regime. The other reason was their dominant defense.

Those years are in the past. It's been four years since this team was "that" team. They weren't even "that" team in 2006. This team was headed for a mediocre season before the defense woke up and Jeff Garcia played efficient football to lead the team into the playoffs.

Andy Reid, who for many years was great at preparing his teams is no longer that coach. And, his talent evaluation is sorely lacking. The years of bad drafts where they struck out on high draft picks like Jerome McDougle, L.J. Smith, Billy McMullen, Matt Ware, Reggie Brown, Matt McCoy, Ryan Moats, and Winston Justice have made this transformed this team into an also-ran.

And, those busts I mentioned were drafted between 2003-2006. Added to that, they were all drafted in the first three rounds.

The two drafts that were deathblows to the Eagles' team were the 2004 and 2005 drafts.

In 2004 and 2005 they ended up with just four quality players in Shawn Andrews, Mike Patterson, Todd Herremans (I'm being lenient there), and Trent Cole. The rest of the players are either out of the NFL or barely contributing to the team any longer (i.e. Considine).

Don't expect the Eagles to cut ties with Reid just yet though. He has three years remaining on his contract. They may take away his GM powers, much like the Seahawks did with Mike Holmgren.

Reid and McNabb have given us some great years of football and are their winningest coach and quarterback in franchise history, but 10 years has shown us they cannot get the job done.

I would cut ties with Reid completely if I were in Joe Banner's shoes and get Bill Cowher on the phone. And, perhaps entice Jimmy Johnson to come out of the Fox studio to handle GM duties.

We can wish can't we?

Two things are certain, Reid probably won't be the GM next year. And, McNabb won't be back.

Mark it down.

Primetime Pounding

2008-11-10T09:45:00.000-08:00

Eagles lose their 8th straight prime time game

Remember when the Eagles used to be dominant on Sunday and Monday nights?

Remember when the Eagles used to be unbeatable once the calender turned to November?

Remember when Donovan McNabb would come up with a big play in the 4th quarter?

Remember when Donovan McNabb was in shape?

Remember when the defense would come up with a huge turnover in a big spot?

Remember when Andy Reid would seem to at least have his team prepared to play?

Ok, you get the point.

I went back in forth on this game so many times and on this very blog I predicted an Eagles win on Friday. I didn't expect it to be easy and in order to win they had to accomplish a few things: not making early mistakes and passing too much.

Well, it turns out they did a fantastic job in protecting McNabb, who had to pass the ball a lot. But, their defense couldn't stop a drop of water last night if they held up a bucket the size of the Hoover Dam.

Many will point to McNabb's choke job in the 4th quarter and rightfully so. But, they should have never allowed 37 points. I don't care who you're playing, but if a defense is any good they'll hold a team in the 20's at most.

When your defense gets abused over and over again, failing to stop the run, or rush the passer then you're not going to win many ballgames.

Andy Reid and McNabb have proven once again that they aren't able to get it done during the clutch.

Remember the last time McNabb had a 4th quarter comeback?

Keep thinking, because I have it right here. It was in 2005 against the Oakland Raiders.

Sure, many will say the Eagles had a 4th quarter come from behind win against the Redskins last year, but it was on 57 yard TD to Westbrook. Sorry, but that's not a 4th quarter drive, that's all Westbrook.

McNabb's last 4th quarter comeback occurred over three years ago on September 25, 2005 one Sunday against the Raiders.

This is a stat that can't be measured in a quarterback rating, clutch play. I feel the most important barometer of a quarterback's success is his ability to come up big in big spots. John Elway, Joe Montana, and Tom Brady come to mind. Hell, Ben Roethlisberger has 13 career 4th quarter comebacks and he's only been in the league half as long as McNabb!

The Eagles' braintrust will continue to tell us they're a hair off, or right there with everybody else, but the fact is they're 5-4 and there are several teams in the NFC with better records than them. 10 wins won't get them into the playoffs.

Looks like another year of mediocre football in Philly with our team watching the playoffs from home come January.

When will Lurie and Banner get a clue? Hell it only took the Phillies 8 years of the Ed Wade regime to make a change.

We are talking about Lurie and Banner though. Their prodigal son Andy Reid can never do any wrong.

And, we still suffer with mediocre football.

Showdown in South Philly

2008-11-07T09:46:00.000-08:00

Eagles and Giants set to face off on Sunday

This is the Eagles' biggest game of the season thus far. And, the Giants will actually play a real team for once this season.

I've said it before and will say it again that the Giants are the luckiest 7-1 team ever. They've played ham and eggers and caught teams on bad weeks throughout the season. They only decent teams they've played (Pittsburgh and Washington) played their worst games of the year in those weeks.

The Eagles as we know are horrific in primetime games. That is the reason why I think they're in for a tough game. For whatever reason this team just doesn't perform on the national stage.

They have just one primetime victory since 2004. Now, that's pathetic. At some point this trend will come to an end.

I feel it will on Sunday night. I've gone back and forth on this game and it will come down to the Eagles' pass rush and pass protection-yes the cliche "whoever wins the battle on the lines of scrimmage" factor.

But, it's true. Eli Manning is a slightly above average quarterback. And, when he's under duress he's a bottom feeder.

The Eagles will need to utilize Westbrook all over the field and work Buckhalter into the mix as much as possible. The key is 30 and that's number of rushes. If the Eagles run for more than 30 times Sunday night they will win. Mark it down.

If they get down early and are forced to pass the ball a lot then it will be a very tough match.

The Birds will need to avoid making an early mistake on defense or special teams in order to set the pace for this game. And, they've had a plethora of early mistakes this season-against Dallas, Atlanta, Seattle, and Chicago.

Fortunately they've woken up in the second half of games in the past month, but against a pass rush like New York's it will be a mountain to climb if they find themselves down by 14 or more points early on.

The Eagles have pretty much everybody healthy except for Shawn Andrews, but it's looking more and more like a lost season for him.

The Giants have a 7-1 record going into this and should the Eagles win they'll be just one game behind them.

----------------------------------------

Phillies interested in Holliday?

I thought this was a ridiculous trade rumor the first time I heard it and now I think it's even more ridiculous.

Todd Zolecki is reporting that the Phillies are talking to the Rockies about a potential trade for Holliday if they can't resign Burrell.

There's two problems though. Scott BorASS is Holliday's agent and he's scheduled to become a free agent after 2009.

That means the Phillies would be renting him for one year.

The other problem is the Rockies are asking for the world for him. They want Victorino, Carrasco and other prospects. Or, they'll take Werth, Carrasco, and other prospects.

They must be high if they think the Phillies will do that.

Sorry, but Holliday isn't coming here and they don't need him anyway. The Phillies already have a great team and need to re-sign Burrell for two years and develop Greg Golson and their other youngsters so they can have a left fielder of the future.

Hitting The Ground Running

2008-11-06T09:36:00.001-08:00

Amaro heads to the GM meetings with a full slate

Many questions abound as Ruben Amaro Jr. has the most challenging job of any GM in town and much more pressure. Like newly-elected president Barack Obama, he has a full plate and many challenges ahead.

While he doesn't have the tough task of Barack Obama, he has about as challenging a job you could have in sports.

That's because the Phillies have a reputation to live up to now. They are the talk of the town and have eclipsed the Eagles as Philadelphia's team.

Sure, the Eagles may get better TV ratings, but make no mistake about it, we are crazy about our baseball now.

Win a title and that's what it takes.

Amaro and Charlie Manuel have headed off to the GM meetings in Cali and already are engaging Ryan Howard's agent.

That's about the least of their worries right now. Pat Burrell is a free agent. Cole Hamels is arbitration eligible. So is Jayson Werth. And, Ryan Madson. And, Joe Blanton.

Shane Victorino will need a new contract soon as well.

Don't expect Manny Ramirez to put on the red pin stripes though. Reports are he is being offered a three year deal from the Dodgers in the 23-27 million dollar per YEAR range. No, that's not a misprint people, they are going to offer him $70 to $80 million over three years.

Amaro has stated they'll try to keep Burrell if he accepts a two-year deal. It's been stated publicly that they offered him two years and $22 million, but his agent turned it down.

Don't expect Jake Peavy to wind up here either. We know the Phillies' brass abhors paying pitchers long-term deals for big money. He may end up in Atlanta or Chicago and that would be bad. The Yanks are a front-runner and have the most to offer in Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, and Austin Jackson. Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope he ends up in the AL.

Let's not expect the Phillies to make that big splash in free agency. They have a great team and will have plenty of work just trying to retain their players.

Now, a trade could happen. Look for them to find a diamond in the rough like Joe Blanton or Jayson Werth. And, since Burrell most likely won't be back all eyes will be on Amaro Jr. to find that diamond.

The GM Meetings are taking place this week.

Changing Of The Guard

2008-11-04T09:44:00.000-08:00

Ruben Amaro Jr. named Phillies' GM; Gillick to say on as an adviser

The Phillies made it official yesterday (what we felt they would do all along) by naming Ruben Amaro Jr. as their new GM.

Pat Gillick, who is retiring, will stay on as an adviser.

If this would have happened last year I'd be pretty angry with the move. And, if the Phillies didn't win a World Series, I'd be angrier.

The bottom line is they're a winner and Amaro was part of it. Mike Arbuckle resigned when he got passed over once again for the GM job and I won't miss him. Nope, not one bit. The reason why is Chuck Lamar will be spearheading the youth movement for the Phils. He was the former GM of the Tampa Bay Rays and made that deal to get Scott Kazmir and drafted such elite talents as Carl Crawford, B.J. Upton, and James Shields.

The word around the grapevine is that Amaro is one of the better young baseball minds in the business and he learned from one of the greatest GMs in major league baseball history.

Before we bury Amaro, let's give him a chance to do his thing.

He will have his work cut out for him though because Ryan Howard and Cole Hamels will need to be extended to long-term deals in the next couple of years. Ryan Madson and Jayson Werth are arbitration-eligible. And, Shane Victorino will need a long-term deal. Pat Burrell will most likely not be back. And, the free agent list this offseason includes some players that the Phillies would find in their best interests to target: Sabathia, Sheets, Manny, etc. And, Jake Peavy is being dangled by the Padres.

Amaro is walking into a great situation though. Their main cogs are in the prime of their careers. And, there's going to be some talented prospects ready to contribute to the everyday roster next year (Golson, Happ, Marson).

I love the fact that Gillick is staying on as an adviser. Amaro will not only have him to count on for some input, but Dallas Green as well, who has been an adviser for years.

Free agency is now underway.

Detroit Bound

2008-11-03T09:38:00.001-08:00

Iverson to be traded to the Pistons

Already people are going crazy about the trade that will send Allen Iverson to the Detroit Pistons for Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess.

I say bring it on. This trade will help the Sixers.

There's no question that Iverson is a great talent, but he'll never win a title as long as he's the go-to guy on a team.

It didn't work in Philadelphia and it didn't work in Denver.

Guess what? It won't work in Detroit either. Sure, he'll have some electrifying performances and get everybody talking about the Pistons (like with Denver in the early-going) but they'll turn into a poor defensive team faster than a dip in the stock market.

This is a boon to the Sixers because it will help them in the end. Heading into this season I was actually concerned that Detroit might give them some trouble. Not any longer.

It will be fun to watch though because now we'll get to see Iverson and the Sixers go at it more than twice a season.

Here's the Sixers' main competition in the East:

Boston, Toronto, Detroit, Cleveland, and Orlando.

Out of those five teams I would have been worried about Boston, Detroit, and Orlando heading into the season. Now, this will make Detroit a worse defensive team and they'll ultimately be a 5-seed and nothing more.

The Sixers now just have to worry about Boston and Orlando-two teams with dominant big me in Garnett and Howard. And, it's unfortunate that they're in the same division with Boston, but with Elton Brand in the low-post they will be much more equipped to deal with KG.

In sports, defense is what ultimately wins and if you have a big men, then you're well on your way. Had Detroit landed Tim Duncan (which would never happen) then I'd be worried.

The Sixers will take on the Kings tonight at The Wach.

Spiteful?

2008-11-02T05:14:00.000-08:00

Reid and Eagles' team leaders congratulate Phils, but Lurie and Banner remain silent

The Eagles recently released a tribute video on their website congratulating the Phillies on their World Series victory. They probably felt a little heat after being pretty much silent in regard to the Phillies throughout the playoffs and the World Series.

Andy Reid stepped up. So did Donovan McNabb. And, Brian Westbrook stepped to the plate. So did Brian Dawkins. They all congratulated them in a video that appeared on their website and on the local news stations.

However, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the gigantic elephant sitting on the footstool in the living room. Where were Jeffrey Lurie and Joe Banner? They all of a sudden have a case of lockjaw that we haven't seen in quite some time-if ever.

Why are they completely silent on this? Is it really that much of an effort for them to simply congratulate a fellow team on a championship victory.

Their silence speaks volumes and further solidifies what we all know. They look down on other teams in town and are in fact most likely spiteful that the Phillies beat them to it. Sorry guys, but you had your chances in the early part of this decade and blew it. And, since then you've done little to get back to that point aside from making a PR move in signing Asante Samuel this past offseason.

The 76ers were willing to let fans into the game on Friday night for $10 if they wore any Phillies gear. Would the Eagles ever do something like that with say-some extra standing room only tickets. Obviously their games are all sold out, but wouldn't it be a good gesture for them to make say an extra 1,000 SRO tickets available at their next home game and give them to the first 1,000 people wearing Phillies gear?

That would never happen though. Lurie and Banner just see dollar signs. These are two businessmen from the New England area who when the day is said and done, don't have a real connection to this city. They just see us as dollar signs. That's fine and good if you're going to look at us like that, but then you should probably do everything it financially takes to win a friggin' championship. It's fine and good if they are Boston Red Sox fans. I understand, but they are burying themselves more and more each day by not taking the high road and at least offering a public congratulations to the Phillies. That's all we ask for.

And, the latest reason why they're unwilling to do that is by not getting Tony Gonzalez. And, instead of explaining why they failed to get him they mentioned how the Cowboys paid too much for Roy Williams and Joey Galloway in 1996-as if that was the sole reason they failed to win a playoff game in 10 years.

Say what you want about Jerry Jones as a football man, but at least he gives it his all to the fans that he's connected to. He might not have been born in the Dallas area (he was born in LA) but he's about as big of a Dallas fan you'll ever see. Just look at what he's doing with Mark Cuban in terms of uniting both teams so they can host the NBA All Star game in a few years.

That's the fundamental difference between an owner like Lurie and Jones. Jones gets it, gets his fanbase, and does whatever he can to make them happy. Lurie doesn't get the fans, allows Banner and Reid to do it their way, and sees the fans as strictly dollar signs.

I'm not prepared to agree with TO's comments in 2005 when he said the Eagles as a whole are a classless organization. After all, Andy Reid stepped up to the plate and congratulated them. However, Lurie and Banner are completely classless in this regard and they are further isolating themselves from the city by remaining silent.

I will give Andy Reid his due though. He made it public that he was rooting for this team and even was watching them while holed up in his office.

That small Phillies flag that was flown at the Eagles game last Sunday is about all Lurie and Banner are willing to express. Remember, they are the gold standard in this town because they won how many titles...

Oh yeah, none.

We all know who the real gold standard is in town and it's a team wearing red and white, not midnight green.

World F'ing Champions!

2008-11-01T05:59:00.001-07:00

Phillies' parade draws over 2 million people

Alas after 25 long years we finally had our day to bask in the sun.

And, literally did we bask in the sun.

The temperature was 65 degrees yesterday, the antithesis of the weather during Game 5, parts I and II...

Chase Utley said it best yesterday when he said, "World Champions. World F---ing Champions!" when he stepped to the podium during the final ceremony at The Bank.

I personally don't have a problem with Chase Utley said. Everybody will point to the "protect the children" argument, well boo hoo. New flash. Children curse. I hear children curse when they're not around their parents in public and myself and many people I went to school with in elementary school cursed. Utley got caught up in the moment and was a human being. I'm fed up with people holding athletes to some higher standard like they're a politician-they're not. They are entertainers, plain and simple, and people like us. Utley's statement was a catharsis if you will and if you notice the stadium erupted in cheers because he felt our pain and frustration and boy was it great to let it out when we celebrated.

That's what yesterday was-the celebration of a triumph and a catharsis. I doubt you'll see many parades like this in the world anytime soon, if ever again. To see Broad Street covered in red like that is a testament to why we are the greatest sports fans in the world.

And, now begins the fun part of the offseason as we can expect the Phillies to make some serious moves to remain a World Series contender because now that this ownership group got a taste of how much money they can make in this situation, you can rest assured they'll make sure this team makes it back to the postseason and beyond.

Mark it down. The Phils will win another title within the next two years, if not next year.

But, we should still bask in the moment because it's been a hell of a long time.

Kudos to the Phils and our wonderful fans for a magical season!

The New Gold Standard

2008-10-30T10:16:00.000-07:00

The Phillies are the new gold standard in town

It was a total of 12 outs stretched over 3 magical innings and it didn't even get that scary by the end.

We were gasping after Rocco Baldelli of all people tied the game up 3-3 in the top of the 7th after the Phils had the lead heading into it.

But, fear not-Pedro Feliz got the game-winning hit when he singled in Eric Bruntlett in the bottom of the 7th.

But, this game was won after Chase Utley pulled off one of the most brilliant plays in World Series history, making it a Philadelphia classic moment. When the ball was hit to him he thought about making the play at first, but made a split-second decision and made the play at home and Bartlett was tagged out by Carlos Ruiz ending the Rays' chances there.

All postseason the Phils have been getting key plays out of their non-stars like Ruiz, Werth, Feliz and Matt Stairs. But, in the moment of truth Chase Utley answered the call and made us a winner once again.

Had he not made that play we're talking a whole new ballgame.

Fast forward to the 9th and Brad Lidge didn't even make it that scary like so many of us expected. Sure, he allowed a double, but other than that he was smoother than a mayonnaise sandwich.

And, the final pitch faded into an eruption of joy from Broad and Pattison all throughout Montgomery and Chester County.

25 Years of Tears is over. A new chapter shall begin.

Maybe Andy Reid and Joe Banner can take a page from Pat Gillick's book and see what it takes to win a title. Because they're as far from the Gold Standard as any team has been in town. The Phils are the new Gold Standard. And, despite a horrible ownership set-up the players, the coaching staff, and front office perservered.

And, boy wasn't it great to see Bud Selig get booed last night? That was the icing on the cake.

I've been waiting for this day for a long time. After work today I can purchase a Phillies flag and put it on my father's grave. Dad, they finally did it!

Parade starts at 12:00 on Friday. Hope to see some of you there.

FINALLY!

2008-10-29T19:28:00.000-07:00

The Curse is over. The Phillies end the drought.

At approximately 10:00 PM, the Phillies did the unthinkable and ended the 25 Years Of Years.

In a game that became an event when it was split into two parts, the Phillies stepped up like they've done all postseason and killed the ghosts of Philadelphia postseasons past.

T Minus 8 Hours

2008-10-29T09:41:00.000-07:00

Less than 8 hours until the start of game V, part II

In what has become a circus of a World Series, tonight's game 5, part 2, will be a compelling event for the entire country.

We've already beaten it to death by now about the game that should have never been played and the conditions the players played in, but the game tonight will be as compelling a game as we've ever seen in Philly.

And, it's not just because the curse could be broken. Never before has a playoff game been continued like this. And, the weather conditions will be football-like. Game time temps are expected to be in the 30's and with the crowd down there I must say it will be tough for the Rays to pull this one off.

I'm sure I'm not alone here, but I feel a lot better about this game than I did yesterday. It took a day for it to settle in and was good to take a step back. Maybe it helped the team as well. No doubt they'll be mad as hell that they are forced into this position and look for the Phils to channel that anger and take it out on the Rays.

Look for the Rays to put their stud rookie David Price on the hill tonight. He hasn't been tested too much thus far. He pitched 14 innings in the regular season and had a 1.93 ERA with 12 K's. And, in the postseason he's logged just 4 2/3 innings and allowed 1 earned run, and it came against the Phils in game two.

He's the wildcard in all of this. Rookie pitchers can sometimes go unconscious and pitch lights out. Just remember Francisco Rodriguez's performance in the World Series in 2002. Or, they can be lit up like Rick Ankiel was in the playoffs. And, he never bounced back.

Charlie Manuel will most likely go with Chad Durbin tonight. And, if he struggles immediately (which he has a few times in the playoffs) then he won't hesitate to yank him. Manuel has done a masterful job of managing the pitching staff and bullpen and is further proving that he's a pretty good manager at the Major League level.

Make no mistake about it-the Phils have the upperhand here. They'll have the amazing Phillies fans roaring behind them and they have 12 more at-bats to the Rays' 9.

Game starts at 8:37.

A Dark Cloud

2008-10-28T09:28:00.000-07:00

Monstrous storm rolls in, spoiling Phils' chances to end the drought

Yesterday, I got sucked into the excitement. I was as confident as 95% of you (with the other 5% being your typical negative types) that we'd finally do it. This was our year and last night was our night.

Then, it starts to rain as many of us leave work yesterday and it got heavier. And, it continued to get heavier, and heavier, and heavier.

Then they get into the game and like the Tampa game in 2003 we started out on fire, going up early.

And, the rain got worse and the temperature continued to drop like bank stocks.

Then of course they made Cole Hamels pitch the top of the 6th and the Rays of course tied it up 2-2.

And, leave it to us to be involved in the ONLY suspended game in postseason history. No, not just World Series history, this is the first suspended game in playoff history.

Sure, there was the earthquake game in the 1989 World Series, causing a 10-day disruption in play, but this was a game that should never have happened.

Allow me to quote one of the Phillies players after the game, per Michael Radano's blog on The Courier Post. This is one of the pitchers, who didn't want to be named, but you can probably figure out who said this.

“That (expletive deleted) guy,” one pitcher said as he saw commissioner Bud Selig before walking out the back door of the clubhouse. “I wouldn’t let him supervise one of my (bowel movements). He has no clue. Not one (expletive deleted) clue.”

I'm about 100% certain Brett Myers came up with that gem, and it's a masterpiece of a quote if I've ever seen one.

He's right though. Selig is a complete bufoon and the least respected commissioner of any sport probably in the history of American sports.

Once 6:00 rolled around last night the rain came through this area and got heavier. You could see on the radar something was brewing and it wouldn't let up last night. But, they decided to play.

Now, the Phillies have become victims of the ultimate screw job. The game will resume in the bottom of the 6th inning once weather permits. And, it probably won't happen today or maybe not tomorrow. This forecast looks nasty.

Go figure, when it looks like the stars are aligned a dark cloud comes in and stays for a long time.

This could go down as a worse debacle than the Eagles' defeat to the Bucs in 2003. Should this series go back to Tampa, I declare it will go seven games with the Phils falling in defeat.

Maybe it's my defense mechanism kicking in. Can you blame me though?

Our only hope is that the Phillies channel their anger (and they were angry) and destroy the Rays when they play this truncated game, when it finally does resume.

Otherwise, it will be a collapse of mythic proportions. And, by Philadelphia standards it would be the worst.

Not, that we didn't expect something like this could happen. It's just we didn't think it would happen this time.

One More Win!

2008-10-27T09:20:00.001-07:00

Phillies are one win away from city's first championship since 1983

It can't be this easy can it? Well, with last night's 10-2 stomping of the Tampa Rays, it may be this easy.

This series is over. Mark it down. The Rays are not coming back from the 3-1 series deficit and if Joe Maddon's press conference after last night is any indication then he doesn't even think they can do it.

You know a team is bound to win it all when their pitcher (Joe Blanton) pitches a magical game and becomes the first pitcher in over 30 years to hit a homer in a World Series game.

And, it happened to be his first career homerun.

For a little while last night this was a game-for the first 3 1/2 innings. Then at the top of the 4th, the Rays made it 2-1.

The game was officially over after the Phils knocked in three runs in the bottom of the fourth and officially ended their drought within a drought-knocking in runners in scoring position.

Despite going 1 for 28 with runners in scoring position in the first two games the Phillies are dominating the Rays in this series. And, it's because of the pitching.

Yes, they scored 10 runs last night and pulled off a stunning win on Saturday night, but these are the key numbers in this series: TWO, FOUR, FOUR, and TWO. They've allowed just 10 earned runs in four games thus far, good for a 2.50 team ERA and that's why they will win the World Series.

Great pitching is a team's best friend and the equivalent of a shutdown goalie in hockey or a great defense in the NFL or NBA.

The Phillies may not have had great overall pitching in the regular season, but in the playoffs they've had it, just like the St. Louis Cardinals in 2006.

Now, we can finally put to rest of the demons of Edmonton in the 80's, Toronto in 1993, Detroit in 1997, LA in 2001, Tampa in 2003, Tampa in 2004, and Jacksonville in 2005.

And, it couldn't be more fitting that the Phils will end the drought in Philly-the way it's meant to be.

On May 31st 1983 the Sixers won the last title in LA.

Now, it will happen on the other side where it belongs.

Unlikely Heros

2008-10-26T06:40:00.000-07:00

Carlos Ruiz and Eric Bruntlett win the game for the Phils

What a bizarre game last night. First off it gets delayed to probably the absolute latest time it could've started-10:00.

Then the Phillies decide to play some weird song about fish while the Tampa Bay players are getting introduced. Just, who comes up with this stuff?

Of course this game had to be on during Saturday Night Live, so I was constantly flicking back and forth. It was a challenge but I managed to pretty much watch every SNL sketch while catching the key moments of the Phils game. Don't ask me how, but I pulled it off.

With a pair of back-to-back homers by Utley and Howard, the Phils had a 4-1 lead, taking it into the 7th inning and then the ump pulls the ole screw job on the Phillies by calling the runner out safe when Howard clearly got him out. Good point by McCarver though-umps usually go by the sound of the ball hitting the glove and there's just no way you could hear the ball hitting Howard's bare hand with nearly 50,000 screaming Philly fans.

This resulted in the Rays scoring two runs to make it a 4-3 game. And, if you managed to stay awake for the 8th inning you were treated to one of the most excruciating innings in the history of Phillies baseball. Enter B.J. Upton who get on base with an infield hit. Then, he steals second base. Then, he steals third base and Carlos Ruiz overthrows Pedro Feliz and Upton scores to tie it up at 4 apiece.

I wouldn't be lying if I didn't say I thought the Phils were in trouble. Moments like that made me question why I continue to torture myself as a sports fan. Then I texted my friend Joe Vallee of disgruntledfans.com while he was at the game and told him I'm going to have faith that the Phils pull out a 5-4 win.

Now, if you managed to make it past the 1:00 hour and stay awake for all of that to get to the top of the 9th inning then you saw the most bizarre display of managing you might ever see. First, Eric Bruntlett gets on base by getting plunked by J.P Howell. Then, Balfour comes into the game and Joe Maddon makes the most insane decision I've ever seen in a World Series game. He has right fielder Ben Zobrist put on his infielder's glove and come into the infield so they have a 5-man infield.

Mind you, the Phils have just one runner on base at this point with nobody out. Maddon was clearly trying to look like a genius and it back-fired on him. Bruntlett made it all the way to third base on a wild pitch and throwing error by Navarro.

And, then Victorino and Dobbs were each intentionally walked so they could pitch to Ruiz, who mind you is having a stellar World Series and may end up as the MVP now. Now, this must be the bizarro world.

So, rather than just bring in a new pitcher and play this game like a typical 0-out, 1-runner on situation Maddon decides to try to look like John McGraw by over-managing the game. And, between that and the constant delays and trips to the mound the Rays choked.

EVA Longoria had zero chance of making a play on Carlos Ruiz's infield single up the third base line with the bases loaded and ends up doing a horrible Brett Favre impression by under handing the ball 10 feet into the air, thus allowing Bruntlett to score.

There you have it-the most bizarre 9th inning in Phillies postseason history.

They are now just two wins away from breaking the vaunted Philly sports curse. Could it be possible? With nights like last night it almost seems like there's some sort of cosmic event resulting in the fortunes swing their way at the right moments.

One thing is probably certain, tonight won't be as bizarre of a game. I just hope they don't roll out that creepy fish song when the Rays players come onto the field. And, keep those EVA chants coming. That's proof why we're the greatest fan base in the country.

Blanton will take the hill tonight against Andy Sonnanstine. Game will start at 8:35, barring any cosmic events, disasters, or any other unforeseen event.

Missed Opportunity

2008-10-24T09:22:00.000-07:00

Werth's error in first inning aids Tampa's 4-2 victory

Many will attribute last night's stinkfest to homeplate umpire Kerwin Danley and the fact that the Phillies' offense was hideous with runners in scoring position, but the fact of the matter is it was over in the first inning.

After Iwamura reached base last night, B.J. Upton hit a shot to right field that should have been picked up by Jayson Werth. Instead, Werth misplayed it and Iwamura reached third base and Upton was on second.

This ultimately resulted in two runs being scored and put the Phils in a quick 2-0 hole.

Had Werth picked up that ball, runners would have been on first and second and you're talking about a completely different ballgame. A double play could have been turned and maybe Iwamura never would have scored.

That's why defense is so important in sports, especially in baseball in the postseason.

Sure, Brett Myers wasn't "lights out" but there's no excuse for a team to go 1 for 28 with runners in scoring position in two games.

But, the series is heading back to Philly and all is well right? Well, yes and no. Sure, Jamie Moyer will be fired up to pitch in his first World Series in what may be his last season. And, it's even sweeter for him since he's a Philly native. However, they are going to need to out-pitch and out-play the Rays on defense to cover up their deficiencies on offense.

That's the only way the Phils can expect to win this series, because these games will all be of the 3-2, 2-1, and 4-2 variety except for maybe a shoot-out thrown in.

The Phils have shown us that they can grind out tough games and win them in different ways. Look at how they won game one. They hit a 2-run homer in the first inning, but Carlos Ruiz ultimately won that game with his RBI in the 4th inning.

If-and that's a big IF this game is played tomorrow night due to the heavy rains on the way, Jamie Moyer will need to give up no more than 2 runs. Added to that, the right side of the Phillies' defense-Howard and Werth cannot afford to make anymore defensive miscues.

Moyer will take on Garza in game three. It's a 50/50 shot that the game will be played-if the rains end by 8:00 tomorrow night.

And, if you go to weather.com you'll see there's a pretty widespread stretch of rain headed this way, so don't be surprised to wait until Sunday for game three.

But, at least we have the Eagles to hold us over right...yeah that other team in town.

King Of The Hill

2008-10-23T09:26:00.000-07:00

Hamels and Utley lead Phils to 3-2 victory in game one

Cole Hamels and Chase Utley continued to solidify their legacies as big game players by single-handedly carrying the Phillies in last night's 3-2 nailbiter.

Hamels, improved to 4-0 in the postseason, pitching 7 remarkable innings, while allowing just 2 earned and striking out five. The key number is seven and that's how many baserunners he allowed in seven innings (5 hits and 2 walks).

Suffice it to say, he's lived up to his billing as a dominant ace and slowlly closing the gap after every start between himself and "Lefty" as the best big game pitcher in franchise history.

Chase Utley, who we can now call a big game player came through with a 2-run shot in the first inning that kept the Phils in the game. Carlos Ruiz, of all people had a go-ahead RBI in the 4th that gave them a 3-0 lead.

And, that's all they needed, but it wasn't easy most certainly. Crawfod and Iwamura answered back with a dinger and RBI double in the 4th and 5th to make it a ballgame, but Hamels shut them down the rest of the way before handing the ball off to Ryan Madson, who has allowed just one earned run in the entire postseason. In fact, Madson and Lidge are the Phillies' answer to the Reds nasty boys from 1990. They are virtually unstoppable when they are on---Madson, with the change-up and lights-out fastball and Lidge with his three different sliders.

I can't believe I'm saying it, but Madson has finally emerged into an unbelievable relief pitcher. He scared the daylights out of myself and many other Phillies fans throughout the season, but he has been a boon to the team in this postseason.

Now, as far as the broadcast from last night goes, it was sickening to hear them play Tom Petty's "Running Down A Dream" over and over again-almost as annoying as Direct TV beating that Poltergeist spoof commercial to death the last two weeks. I was delighted to see Direct TV finally put a different ad out there. Now, they can run that one into the ground.

And, the fans in Tampa are beyond annoying-they are brutal. If I see another knucklehead with a faux mohawk I might just jump off the balcony from my apartment head first into the ground. Enough already! It seems like every time a small market or phony (in the case of LA fans) fanbase jumps on the bandwagon when their team finally does well they latch on to some ridiculous or annoying fad-ala the 2002 Angels with that Rally Monkey and the Dodgers fans with their Manny Ramirez wigs.

Aside from that it's just peachy to see the Phils win game one. 10 of the past 11 teams who have won game one in the World Series have won it all.

It will be a tough one tonight as they go up against one of the top pitchers in the AL in James Shields. He's a high strikeout pitcher that doesn't allow too many baserunners. But, he's a right-hander, which should be good news to Ryan Howard.

Game starts at 8:35. Myers will take the hill against Shields.

8 Hours and Counting

2008-10-22T09:46:00.000-07:00

First pitch of game one to take place at 8:35

Now, we can move on from the build-up, the ESPN simulated games, and the sub-plots and finally get this series underway.

The Phils, coming off a week-long hiatus will take on a Rays team that has had just a three-day break. This will certainly factor in tonight's match-up, so expect that offense to take some time "warming up."

Looks like the Phils may catch a break tonight though, with Rays' ace Scott Kazmir reportedly banged up. His fastball is only hitting around 91-92 (as opposed to the high 90's) and unlike Josh Beckett, he's not somebody that can out-duel you when his fastball isn't on.

Look for the Phils to take game one and nullify the ridiculous homefield advantage that was granted by the All-Star game.

Can Bud Selig finally wake the F up and get rid of this ridiculous rule which awards homefield advantage to the winning team of the All-star game? If the NBA salary cap is the worst thing in sports, then this rule has to be a very close 1a.

I'm predicting the Phillies win this thing in seven games. I'm going out on a limb here and for once being positive.

I hope they don't let me down! No matter what though, you have to be on drugs to think the Phils will sweep the Rays. They will not get swept with a starting rotation like that-even with Scott Kazmir at 80%.

Hamels will take the hill against Kazmir tonight at 8:35.

Tampa Once Again

2008-10-20T09:45:00.000-07:00

Phils to face off against Tampa on Wednesday night

I don't even have to utter the words "Tampa Bay" without most of you remembering the most horrific defeat in modern Philadelphia sports memory. Yes, I'm talking about The Debacle I-otherwise known as the 2003 NFC Championship game.

The date was January 17, 2003 and the week prior to it we as Eagles Nation felt that we had this game in the bag. We were already packing our bags and reserving hotel rooms for the Super Bowl.

The stars were aligned that year. Last game at the Vet. The Bucs were a woeful 1-30 in games under 40 degrees and we owned them in previous playoff meetings.

The game started off in wonderful fashion with Brian Mitchell returning a punt down near the red zone and Duce capped things off with a TD. And, then things went downhill from there once Joe Jurevicious took a reception for 70 yards down the field swinging the mometum the other way. And, the game got worse and worse and worse-it was like watching a relative die from cancer.

But, we were still alive even when it was 20-10 and McNabb led us down the field with a few minutes left. Finally we were put out of misery when Ronde Barber returned McNabb's pass attempt all the way down the field to end the game 27-10.

That game stole my innocence as a sports fan. I was never the same again. I still remember 1993 and it hurt, but this one really hurt because that year the Eagles should have won a Super Bowl. They were a better team that Tampa and would've beat Oakland.

And, a year later the Flyers tormented us by taking the Tampa Bay Lightning to the brink, but they couldn't win in Tampa. The home team won each game in that Conference Finals series with Tampa winning in seven and going on to win it all.

Now, with Boston losing last night we have to look forward to another matchup with a Tampa team. And, I don't like it at all.

I know I'm not supposed to be a negadelphian and be positive, expect the best because the Phillies have so far done the unthinkable.

That's fine and good, but my heart has been broken so many times I take every playoff series with a grain of salt and enjoy the ride.

But, I don't expect anything and especially when it comes to one our teams playing a Tampa team.

What makes matters worse is the Tampa fans are the phoniest, biggest front-running fans known to man. They were drawing about 7,000 people per game when they stunk and their attendance sucked for much of the year.

Case in point, let's take a sample of their attendance AFTER they became a good team this year.

Friday May 6th against the White Sox, they drew slightly under 15,000 people. And, this was on a Friday night game!

August 6th against the Indians they drew 27,500 against the Indians during a Wednesday game. That's about 75% capacity.

September 2nd during the heat of a pennant race against the Yankees, they drew slightly less than 22,000 people! How pathetic is that?

Only did their attendance get good down the stretch in September when they played the Red Sox.

They were 100% full against the Sox on September 17th.

No matter what happens though I expect this one to go seven games. As I wrote last week, Shields, Kazmir, and Garza are as strong of a one, two, three punch you'll see in the bigs.

And, the offense is no joke either. Upton is hitting lights out along with Evan Longoria. Carl Crawford is a 5-tool player and a terror on the basepaths.

Both teams have until 10:00 Wednesday morning to set their World Series rosters.

One Team, One City, One Dream

2008-10-17T09:48:00.001-07:00

The Eagles' slogan from 2004 now belongs to the Phillies

Now, all we can do is wait as the hours count down to Wednesday evening when the first pitch is thrown.

Who would we rather face? Tampa or Boston? That's the biggest question facing us right now. It's a good position to be in.

My question is, will this 6-day layoff hurt the Phillies' momentum? Now that the Red Sox defeated the Rays last night they have a lot of momentum heading into tonight's game 6 match-up and it wouldn't shock me at all to see them take them in seven games.

Just yesterday I was ready to write off that series and had Cole Hamels slated to go up against Scott Kazmir in game one.

Even at that I was still nervous about the prospects of a Philly-Tampa World Series. And, the main reason is the stigma of the Tampa teams. That loss to the Bucs in January 2003 still hurts. And, the Flyers' defeat in game 7 to the Lightning in 2004 stings.

No matter who we face we know it's not going to be easy. It never is for us when it comes down to the nitty gritty. But, finally we have a team that we can embrace once again as they make it to the biggest stage. Look at this timeline here since our last championship in 1983 of the teams that have had a chance to play for it all.

1983 Phillies-lost to the Orioles in the World Series
1985 Flyers-lost to Oilers in Stanley Cup Finals
1987 Flyers-lost to Oilers in Stanley Cup Finals
1993 Phillies-lost to Blue Jays in World Series
1997 Flyers-lost to Red Wings in Stanley Cup Finals
2001 Sixers-lost to Lakers in NBA Finals
2005 Eagles-lost to Patriots in Super Bowl

Notice the pattern? Since the 6-year layoff of championship appearances for all of our teams, otherwise known as The Dark Ages, each team made a trip every 4 years to the final round or game.

The Phillies technically are still holding to that pattern since the 2004 Eagles went to the Super Bowl in 2005.

Could the 8th time be a charm? Some point to this being the reverse of '80 and that's why it's our year.

And, the last team in this town to nearly win it all lost to a Boston team. And, the Tampa teams broke our hearts twice this decade. Now, the Phillies will play either a Boston or Tampa team.

No matter what though, we're holding our breath in hopes that Mayor Nutter doesn't put that damn jersey on Billy Penn.

We've become a superstitious lot as sports fans. It happened to the Red Sox fans and the Cubs fans. It's what happens when you go through horrific periods and in this case the worst drought in sports history for any 4-sport town.

A friend of mine told me there's no chance the Phillies win this on the basis of how the NL teams fared against AL teams during the regular season.

As we all know the postseason is a completely different season making the regular season all but irrelevant. For instance, the Angels and Cubs were the best teams in baseball throughout the regular season and look where they're at.

As a Phillies fan I'm fearing the worst and at the same time expecting this team to bring their all.

The crushing last-minute defeats burn inside our minds like traumatic memories. And, the winning moments (i.e. Wednesday night) which are few and far between are what make this journey worth it.

That's what binds us together as Philadelphia fans.

4 years ago the Eagles were our Dream Team. Now, it's the Phillies' turn.

BACK TO THE WORLD SERIES!

2008-10-16T09:43:00.000-07:00

Phillies make it back to the World Series for first time since '93

Not once last night did any of us think the Phils would lose it.

It wasn't your typical down to the wire, nail-biting clincher that's caused us much torment over the years.

The Phils won this one in lopsided fashion 5-1, in what turned out to be a lopsided series (defeating LA 4-1).

Now, the Phillies own the town. The area was teetering on the brink between choosing the Eagles or the Phillies and with the Eagles window of opportunity all but closed, it's now the Phillies' stage.

And, they're making the most of it by playing their best ball since 1993 when they blew threw the Atlanta Braves 4-2 in the NLCS to take on the Toronto Blue Jays-then run by Pat Gillick. The Phils are on fire, having won 20 of their last 25 games dating back to the regular season. And, they're 7-2 in the playoffs.

Things have come full circle as the Phillies, now run by Pat Gillick are on the big stage for the first time since autumn '93 when many of us were just in high school. Many of us weren't even born yet that are following this team now!

While we shouldn't have a parade just yet, because the Phils are most likely going to play yet another Tampa Bay team in the playoffs, we should be encouraged by the fact that they've made it this far without Rollins and Howard-the past two MVPs.

Cole Hamels earned NLCS MVP honors and rightfully so. While, Victorino was money when it counted and unbelievable on defense, he did hit just .222 in this series. Hamels was 2-0 with a 1.90 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 14 innings-in other words unstoppable.

If anybody doubted whether Hamels was a big-game pitcher, they can put those doubts to rest now. He's 3-0 in this postseason with a 1.22 ERA in 22 innings, with 22 strikeouts. Those are Josh Beckett numbers.

The World Series will start on Wednesday, October 22nd in Tampa. We can expect to see Hamels matched up against Scott Kazmir-who if you remember the Mets literally gave away in one of the worst trades in the past 20 years (the Rays gave them Victor Zambrano who's out of baseball).

The Rays have a lights out staff led by Kazmir, James Shields, and Matt Garza. All three of them are strikeout pitchers, who don't walk a lot of guys. And, their 4th starter Andy Sonnanstine isn't too shabby.

Here are their regular season stats:

Scott Kazmir 12-8 3.49 ERA 166 strikeouts 152 innings 1.27 WHIP

James Shields 14-8 3.56 ERA 160 strikeouts 215 innings 1.15 WHIP

Matt Garza 11-9 3.70 ERA 128 strikeouts 184 innings 1.24 WHIP

Andy Sonnanstine 13-9 4.38 ERA 124 strikeouts 193 innings 1.29 WHIP

This series will come down to starting pitching and defense. And, right now the Phillies' starting pitching is not quite there with the Rays, but they make up for that with great defense and key hits.

It will be a scary series, but right now it's time to enjoy the ride because lord knows our teams only get to a championship series or game every 4 years or so.

Failure to Deliver

2008-10-15T09:28:00.001-07:00

Eagles fail to get Tony Gonzalez at the trade deadline

Normally the NFL deadline is about as boring as preseason hockey, but in the past two years some action has started.

Last year Chris Chambers got moved at the deadline to the Chargers from the Dolphins.

Yesterday, the Cowboys gave up WAY too much for Roy Williams, by giving up a first, third, and sixth rounder for him and the Lions' 7th rounder.

However, one player who was available in Tony Gonzalez, a player who could have solidified a dire need, was asking to be traded, but...the Eagles didn't get him.

Howard Eskin insisted on his show yesterday that the Chiefs never "got serious" about the discussions for him, while sources reported KC wanted a 2nd and 5th rounder for him.

Let's be real here. If the Eagles would've got on the horn over the weekend and offered a 3rd rounder for him, it would've been a done deal. Instead, the team that likes to tell us they're taking the pedal to the metal did nothing when an opportunity was there.

They'll still tell us that L.J. Smith is their guy and if he stays healthy and plays up to his capabilities then he'll break through.

We've been waiting for that to happen since 2003 and it hasn't happened, so by golly it's not about to happen now.

Shame on the Eagles for once again sitting pat when it comes time to improving their team. God forbid they give up a precious draft pick for a player. Hell, they don't seem to value them much when it comes down it because they felt they were too good to use a first round pick in the past two drafts, opting to trade them both.

But, Lurie insists this is a team putting the pedal to the metal. It's more like they're sticking crazy glue to their money and keeping it in their pockets.

Shocker!

2008-10-14T09:27:00.001-07:00

Phillies turn the momentum their way and take game 4

Many of us fell asleep (myself included) when the score was 5-3 last night. I awoke at the top of the 9th only to discover that the Phillies somehow had a 7-5 lead.

Turns out the Phillies' MVP of the playoffs thus far tied it up at 5 apiece with a 2-run shot in the 8th. And, Matt Stairs of all people did his best Terry Crowley impersonation and hit the game-winner in a pinch-hit at-bat.

Victorino, who hit .357 in the Milwaukee series, was hitting just 2 for 13 coming into the game last night. While, he did have a great game two (4 RBI and a 3B) he was held hitless in games one and three. Last night he hit another clutch homer to save the Phillies, and stop the Dodgers momentum.

What's even more special about it is that Victorino was a rule 5 pick-up from the Dodgers and at one point the Phillies offered him back to them for $10,000 and they refused to take him. Enter Victorino who has taken the opportunity to get revenge against the team that gave up on him.

Revenge is best served in October.

While the Flying Hawaiian is hitting just .188 in this series, he's making those hits count.

And, we can finally put to rest our worries about Chase Utley being a big-game performer. He went 3 for 5 last night and raised his average in this series to .462.

And, finally Charlie Manuel is doing what most of us have asked for and that's walk Manny Ramirez as much as possible. He had just two opps to sting the Phils and went 2 for 2 with 1 RBI. He's hitting .500 in the series, but hasn't killed them with the RBI and homer numbers.

Not only do you have to love this series if you're a Phillies fan, but it's a big FU to the networks who are dying for a Manny vs Red Sox World Series.

The Phils are idle tonight and will send Cole Hamels out there on five days rest tomorrow night against Billingsley.

2 Down

2008-10-12T09:19:00.000-07:00

Phils take game two and are just two wins from WS

Who'd have thunk it? Two games down and two wins against an LA team that was hotter than the equator.

The Phils are just two wins away from the World Series after an offensive onslaught in game two.

So much for my 2-1 prediction in game two. Billingsley got lit up to the tune of 7 earned in 2 1/2 innings pitched and looked like Kyle Kendrick out there with just a few more strikeouts. I don't think Kyle Kendrick could strike out five batters in two starts.

Brett Myers went 3 for 3 and helped his cause despite not pitching a great game and had 3 RBI. And, get this-Ryan Howard has three hits in the playoffs while Myers has four.

Tonight Jamie Moyer will go up against Hideki Kuroda at 8:22. I don't feel a Phillies sweep in this series; it's just too tough to achieve that especially when you consider the fact they're traveling across the country.

Then again, I didn't even think the Phillies would make the playoffs a month ago.

Red October

2008-10-10T09:21:00.000-07:00

Phils hit two homers in 6th to take game one 3-2

Derek Lowe was his usual, unstoppable self in the postseason for 5 1/3 innings last night. He wasn't striking out many batters, but he recorded 11 groundball outs.

The Phillies had no answer for Lowe, who came into the game 7-1 with a 1.50 ERA in this past 11 starts. That is until Chase Utley got ahold of his sinker, to launch it into the seats. It was a new ballgame, suddenly a 2-0 stinker turned into a 2-2 tie.

And, two batters later Pat Burrell hit a solo shot, to make it 3-2 and that's all she wrote. Lowe then exited the game. That's the difference between being a hero and a goat. Lowe was perfect except for two mistakes.

Pitching is the equivalent of a great defense in the playoffs and Cole Hamels was a tad bit better than Lowe last night. Hamels went 7 strong, striking out 8, walking just 2, allowing 6 hits, and 2 runs. He is now 2-0 with a 2.57 ERA this postseason.

Manny Ramirez did have two hits, but only really inflicted his damage in the first inning when he nearly took Cole Hamels deep. Fortunately, only one run scored.

If I were Charlie Manuel I'd impose the equivalent of the "Shaq foul rule" by walking Manny Ramirez every time he's up to bat, thereby rendering him a non-factor.

Brett Myers will take the hill against Chad Billingsley this afternoon at 4:35. Billingsley shut down the Cubs in his first postseason start, going 6 2/3 with 7 K's and allowing one earned run. He was 16-10 during the regular season with a 3.14 ERA and 201 K's. Suffice it to say Billngsley is the Dodgers' young ace in the making.

All Myers has to do is make it out of the first inning without much damage and this should be a very winnable game for the Phils.

As I said yesterday in that the game would be 3-2 or 2-1. I'm predicting a 2-1 Phils victory today.

Game starts at 4:35 on FOX.

1980 vs. 2008

2008-10-09T09:34:00.000-07:00

This Phillies team shares many similarities with the 1980 squad

On paper this is about as even as series gets. While their regular season records certainly don't reflect it, these are two teams that have basically redefined themselves in the latter part of the season.

The 1980 champs, finished with a 91-71 record, while the 2008 team finished up with a 92-70 record.

Back on September 10th, the Fightins were 79-67 before going 13-3 down the stretch. Aside from the two losses to Atlanta, they were virtually unstoppable.

And, with their 3-1 series victory over Milwaukee, they are now 16-4 in their last 20 games, good for an .800 winning percentage.

Now, here's where things get scary similar. The 1980 Fightins were 79-67 on September 20th, having the same identical record as the 2008 squad after 146 games after going up and down for much of the season, much like the 2008 squad, which seemed to go into a funk after catching fire, only to go in a funk again.

The 1980 Phillies went 12-4 in their last 16 games dating from September 20th and wrapped up the division with a 91-71 record. And, they went on to beat the Astros 3-2 in the NLCS and the Royals 4-2 and won their first title.

Looking at both teams they were and are completely different teams down the stretch. I can't explain it and many of us can't, because this team looked dead in the water on September 10th. But, something happened, be it a spark, or maybe a rally cry in the clubhouse, or maybe they finally "got it", but whatever it is, this team has it and looks poised to take on a Dodgers team that is equally hot.

The Dodgers like the 1980 and 2008 Phillies squads finished the regular season with an 84-78 record, hardly a great record, but what's scary about this team is the fact that they just swept a Cubs team that was the best team in the NL all season long. It wasn't even a contest; the Cubs got their asses handed to them.

The Dodgers were hardly a hot team down the stretch, going just 7-7 in their past 14 games, and they had to win those games considering Arizona was just a few games behind them for the latter part of the season.

But, October is a whole new season. For the Phils, their new season began a month ago.

Tonight Derek Lowe will take the hill for the Dodgers. He along with former teammate Manny Ramirez will give the Phils quite a difficult time and try to prevent them from facing the Red Sox in the World Series. Ramirez is hitting nearly .400 since joining the squad and has nearly 20 homers in just 50 some games. Lowe is a big game pitcher. He was a big part of that 2004 squad that came back to defeat the Yanks after falling down 0-3 in the ALCS.

Cole Hamels will take the hill for the Fightins and look to continue his dominance in the playoffs. He was unhittable against Milwaukee and should give the Dodgers' bats plenty of fits.

Expect a 3-2 or 2-1 game tonight; it will be a grind out victory.

Game starts at 8:22 on FOX.

Kings of the Town?

2008-10-08T09:34:00.000-07:00

More in the media say Phillies own the town; ratings say otherwise

So, the topic of conversation now that the Eagles are tanking like the Stock Market and the Phillies are the latest team in Philly to become our "hope" is whether or not Philly is a football or baseball town.

Well, the ratings came in from Sunday and the Eagles had over 45% of the viewership and the Phillies clocked in at 25%. According to Howard Eskin, roughly 300,000 more people were watching the Eagles based on those figures.

I think if you take it a little further you have to account for sports bars. If you look up how Nielson TV shares are defined, they determine it by the number of televisions that are tuned in to a particular broadcast. Let's take it a step further and think about sports bars. They have many more TV's than your average home. Usually they'll have 6-12 TV's in a room and some may have many more.

Let's go even further. What has been the biggest sports product in demand for Philly fans? The Eagles of course. So, sports bars are naturally going to have the Eagles game on more TV's. Go to any sports bar when they're on even while the Phillies are on and they might put the Phillies on one or two screens, but the Eagles will be on most of the other screens.

This will certainly skew the numbers a lot. Now, how can we quanitify this? It's hard to tell, but we would be kidding ourselves by dismissing this because Nielson Ratings are determined by numbers of TVs, which doesn't necessarily mean numbers of people.

With that said, based upon the interest in the Phillies and the Eagles looking to be headed for their third playoff-less season in four years it's about even in terms of interest for both teams. And, if the Phillies win the World Series this year, thereby breaking the curse, then it will become a baseball town again.

For years the Eagles reigned supreme for obvious reasons. The Phillies ownership basically pissed on the fans from the time of the strike up until Citizen's Bank Park opened in 2003. Meanwhile, the Eagles were on the ascent and made it to the playoffs for five straight seasons, from 2000-2004, including four straight trips to the NFC Title Game and a Super Bowl appearance.

Now, the Phillies have ascended and finally broken through the barrier of mediocrity that marred that organization during the Bowa years and Charlie Manuel's era from 2001-2006. They took their first step last year in making it to the playoffs and have now won a round for the first time since '93.

The Eagles organization on the other hand is appearing to be headed down the Rabbit Hole of Oblivion, yet they keep fooling themselves into believing they're better than they are, but more and more fans are having none of it.

One team goes up, another falls down. And, once it's sustained for a period of time that's what it takes for a town to become a quote unquote baseball or football town.

Sure, the Eagles are Philly's answer to the Boston Red Sox, but the Phillies have nearly caught up to them because the Eagles pissed away a window of opportunity that the organization may not see again for another generation.

The Phillies despite being held hostage by a penurious ownership and at times an incompetent front office have done the unthinkable by mirroring the 1980 World Series team in having an up and down season only to surprise us at the right time. Remember, the team that won the World Series had a season much like the 2008 Phillies in that they struggled throughout the year and barely made it in the postseason only to catch fire at the right moments.

8 more wins and this is a baseball town. Mark it down.

Downed Birds

2008-10-07T09:46:00.001-07:00

The Eagles are on their way to yet another mediocre season

If you take a poll and ask people what should be done about a team that's 26-27 in it's past three-plus seasons and just 2-3 this season with a team that should be 4-1, they'd probably agree unanimously that the team needs a major shake-up.

While I think it's premature to say "fire Reid" or "replace McNabb" right now, it's looking more and more evident that this ride is coming to a close. Put it this way; the Eagles won't win a championship with Reid and McNabb. You can pretty much write it off.

They aren't last year's version of the New York Giants-not even close. In order to be that team, they'd need a superior pass rush and while they have great overall sack numbers, it's skewed by the Pittsburgh game when they had nine sacks.

With a better coach, this team probably could go places, but he's totally clueless out there. For DeSean Jackson to be pretty much thrown on the bench during a game when they failed to generate any kind of offensive momentum against the Redskins after the first quarter is abominable.

This organization seems to think they are a lot better than they are. It echoes down through the front office and to McNabb, who can't fathom how the Eagles are losing to these teams that are less worthy than they are. News flash McNabb and front office; your team sucks!

Plain and simple. At the end of the day you are what you are and that's a 2-3 team and a 26-27 team since 2005. No longer can we write off 2005 as an aberration because of injuries and TO. 2006 was headed down the sewer too before the team caught lightning in a bottle with Garcia. And, 2007 was another version of 2006. And, this year is no different.

No longer can we look at the Eagles as a team that "should" win certain games. They're just not that good of a team anymore and the chronic mediocrity that has beset this team rests on the shoulders of the front office and Andy Reid.

They have to play this season out and see what happens, because it's just unrealistic for a team to fire a coach like Andy Reid mid-stream. But, if they have another 8-8 season or 7-9 season then it's beyond the time to cut their losses and start over.

Calling Bill Cowher....

Two Teams-Two Directions

2008-10-06T09:05:00.000-07:00

Phillies make it to the NLCS, Eagles look like same mediocre Eagles

Yesterday, we witnessed the ultimate high and ultimate low of Philly sports. With the Phillies, they advanced to the NLCS, making it the first time in 15 years that they will play for a chance to get into the World Series. It also marks their second straight postseason appearance.

The Eagles on the other hand, once again showed us why they're just a mediocre team and franchise at this juncture. They seem to disagree with that assessment though.

Donovan McNabb acted as if the Eagles had no business losing to Washington, when they (the Redskins) beat Dallas and won four straight games. Ray Didinger couldn't have said it better on 610 WIP's Morning Show when he brought up the fact that the Eagles have done neither this season and haven't won four straight games since 2004.

Not only have the Eagles not done that, but they've missed the playoffs two out of the past three years, are a sub .500 football team since 2005 (26-27 since then), and are in dead last in the NFC East. They are 2-3 and 2 games behind the Redskins, Cowboys, and Giants-three teams who have clearly passed by them.

As much as Charlie Manuel has been maligned during his tenure as the Phillies skipper, Andy Reid makes just as many tactical errors if not more. And, Manuel's team seems to continually respond to him, while the Eagles are mired in mediocrity and looking more like the Eagles during the Kotite and Rhodes eras than that team from the early 2000's.

Five games does certainly not make a season, but have the Eagles shown you anything to make you believe they're anything more than a 8 or 9 win team and a cellar dwellar in th NFC East?

The Phillies on the other hand are showing us that they can win the whole thing. Nobody in baseball is that superior. And, the Phils are arguably the hottest team right now since the latter part of September.

Two teams, two directions. With the Phillies we're being treated to the most exciting season of baseball since '93. And, with the Eagles, it's more of the same.

KO'd

2008-10-03T09:14:00.001-07:00

Phillies move one step closer to NLCS with thrashing of C.C. Sabathia

Say it aint so, the Phils are one win away from facing the Dodgers (most likely) in the NLCS!

The vaunted C.C. Sabathia, who hasn't allowed 5 runs in a start since April was shelled yesterday to the tune of 5 runs in 3 2/3 innings, throwing 98 pitches.

The irony is that Brett Myers (who had 4 walks all season) essentially made it game-set-match when he forced Sabathia into walking him. The psychological effects of a dominant pitcher like that walking a batter could be felt throughout the stadium as the thunderous "C.C." chant could be heard in China. And, then the wheels came off when Rollins walked, Victorino launched a fastball into the left field seats.

And, you know the rest.

Last night the Cubs were demolished 10-3 by the Dodgers, which will in all likelihood make it a Philly-L.A. showdown for the NL pennant.

Last night we were treated to a classic game. It was a game that the Phillies were supposed to lose, but we were almost ok with it because we would have been beaten by the best and still would be able to to beat the Brewers' sclubs in games three and four.

It's a death blow to the Brewers now. They're gonna trot out Dave Bush against Jamie Moyer tomorrow night. I never would have thought it possible before this series started, but it's looking like a sweep is in order.

On the other side, Boston holds a 1-0 lead over the Angels.

Could it be a dream scenario with Boston and Philly in the World Series? The Phillies certainly have heated up at the right time, so it may just happen. But, the Dodgers are no joke though, should they shock the Cubs.

The fans deserve major props for this win. They were into this game and never let up on Sabathia the entire time. Some players are able to block that stuff out, but I doubt even Michael Jordan would have been able to stand up under that pressure.

The Phils take their show on the road to Milwaukee and will face them tomorrow night. Moyer will take the hill against Dave Bush.

King Cole

2008-10-02T09:16:00.000-07:00

Hamels comes up huge and Lidge hangs on for scary save

Yesterday was the happiest I've ever been to be wrong in quite some time. I predicted a Phillies loss yesterday because I figured Gallardo would give the Phillies' offense fits yesterday. He pitched ok for a few innings, but the Phils got to him in the third, before he left after 4 innings.

Hamels was an absolute beast-going 8 innings, giving up just two hits, zero runs, and striking out nine. It was the stuff that legends are made of. He's their franchise pitcher and his heart has been questioned in big starts and boy did he come up big.

I got into a discussion with a few people today about Charlie Manuel's decision to yank Hamels after 8 innings. I agree with the move. If you can't trust your closer who's been perfect all season to get the job done with a 3-0 lead, then when can you trust him? Not to mention, they don't want to burn Hamels out like the Cubs did with Prior back in 2003. I always point to that when people criticize Manuel's decision to not let Hamels "go all the way."

Chase Utley came up with the biggest hit of his career in the third inning with the two-run double that scored Ruiz and Hamels.

And, that's all they needed. It was certainly not a memorable performance by the O, but they needed dominant pitching and a clutch hit to get it done, which they did.

Tonight is huge because the Brewers are sending the dominant C.C. Sabathia (11-2 with a 1.65 ERA) against Brett Myers. If Myers can pitch like he did in the previous Milwaukee series then this series is over. If not, then it's still a series.

Game two starts tonight at 6:00.

Pregame Preview

2008-10-01T09:45:00.001-07:00

Phillies and Brewers set to face off at 3 PM

A lot of interesting subplots in today's opening game between the Phillies and Brewers in the NLDS.

Yovani Gallardo made a triumphant return from ACL surgery to just make it back in time for the end of the season and will go up against the Phillies' franchise ace, King Cole.

Pat Burrell wound up tweaking his back during batting practice yesterday and will possibly miss this game today, leaving the door open for Geoff Jenkins to play as he hopes to sting his former squad.

The Phillies and Brewers were two teams who were dead in the water a few weeks ago. And, the Phillies swept the Brewers, thereby forcing them to replace their manager (Ned Yost) with former Brewer and Phillie Dale Sveum.

On paper it's a pretty evenly matched series. The Phillies were 3rd in the NL with 799 runs, and the Brewers were 7th with 750. Both teams can mash it; the Phils had 214 homers and the Brew Crew had 198 dingers.

Pitching, the Brewers get the edge slightly. They were 2nd in pitching in the NL with a 3.85 ERA, while the Phils were 4th with a 3.88. The Phils have a superior bullpen, but the Brewers have a pair of studs in Sabathia and Gallardo who will give the Phils serious problems. Hopefully Hamels and Myers can step up like they did in that series a few weeks back-that will be the key.

Expect a 3-2 game today. I think the Phils will lose today because Gallardo has a serious fastball and serious breaking stuff that will shut their offense down. Not to be a buzz kill, but Gallardo is that good. The Phils can win this series in five though.

Game starts at 3:00 PM on TBS.

Ready To Go

2008-09-30T09:20:00.000-07:00

Brewers to send Yovani Gallardo to the hill in game one

Cole Hamels will take the hill tomorrow at 3:00 at The Bank against The Brewers' Yovani Gallardo, who is one of the top pitching prospects in the bigs.

This guy is a stud. And, what's remarkable is that the 22 year-old suffered a torn ACL way back in April and he has made a recovery in time for the playoffs.

He went 9-5 last year with a 3.67 ERA and 101 K's in 110 innings last year. This year, he was on his way to another good season before being sidelined in April. He is so good, that some scouts feel he is the next Johan Santana-yep that good.

For people to say this series will be just a walk in the park is sheer idiocy. The Brewers may have stumbled down the stretch, but all that matters is they got in the playoffs and it's a whole new season. They haven't been to the playoffs since we last enjoyed a championship in Philly. And, teams like that can very likely go on a run out of nowhere (i.e. The 2005 White Sox).

Gallardo features a high-90's fastball, excellent control, and the stuff that makes GM's drool. This will be a pitching duel-make no mistake about it. And, Sabathia is waiting in the wings for the game on Thursday.

Expect to see this series go five games not a three-game sweep like many are predicting.

Prime Time Busts

2008-09-29T09:37:00.000-07:00

Eagles fall to 2-11 in their past 13 prime time games

The Eagles laid another turd last night in their 24-20 defeat to the Chicago Bears. And, it marks their 6th straight defeat during a prime time game, and seventh straight if you count their defeat to the Saints on that Saturday Night playoff game back in early '07.

The offense will take a lot of flak for last night's defeat and while they deserve some of the blame, the defense should not allow a hideous quarterback like Kyle Orton to throw three touchdowns on them, EVER, let alone in a half of football.

We're talking about a quarterback that shouldn't even be in the NFL. He's only starting for this team because whoever scouts QB's for the Bears organization must be high on crack and heroine. Seriously, this is an organization that's come up with the likes of Cade McNown, Craig Krenzel, Rex Grossman, and Kyle Orton. You don't get much worse than that.

While the Eagles had an effective pass rush throughout the game, the opening drive in which they allowed Chicago to go down the field at will was inexcusable. Orton is a terrible QB and in the first half, the Eagles made him look like Tom Brady out there.

Now, onto the red zone offense, which is by all accounts offensive at this point; it's abominable. For a team to miss two field goals, blow 4 plays on the goaline is beyond comprehension. That falls on the coach. Anybody who has not been lobotomized could figure out that you run a QB sneak somewhere during one of those four plays. Andy "I invented the game of football" Reid-the all-knowing, powerful coach, with zero Super Bowls seems to think running the same play over and over again will get it done.

While it was a disgusting loss, it's not shocking. The Eagles are 2-11 in their past thirteen regular season primetime games. Yes, 2-11! They were 0-4 in prime time in 2005, 1-2 in 2006, 0-4 last year, and 0-2 so far this year.

Can the networks please do Eagles Nation a favor and stop putting this team on primetime. They just can't get it done when the lights are on.

They are now 2-2 and last in the NFC East. Ahead of them are the 3-1 Cowboys, 3-1 Redskins, and shockingly the 3-0 Giants.

Their schedule gets much easier from here on out, despite playing a Redskins team next week that has suddenly looked like a playoff team again after their debacle in their season opener.

They had better hope Brian Westbrook gets healthy and fast because the Red Zone is cryptonite for their offense.

Clinched!

2008-09-28T07:30:00.001-07:00

Phillies clinch the NL East with win over the Nats

The Phillies did what many of his doubted they could do two weeks ago; clinch the NL East. It was a tough, gritty, grind it out victory, and full of enough drama to last you a season.

They hung on to win the game 4-3, but came within inches (literally) of losing it as Jimmy Rollins ultimately aided Brad Lidge in his bid to stay perfect in save opps for the season.

Jamie Moyer stepped up in a big way, by going six innings and allowing just a pair of runs. The bullpen did their job and Ryan Madson got the job done, despite nearly giving many of us cardiac arrest.

It was a game that the Phillies were supposed to win (the Nats are a 100-loss team) but very likely could have lost. We've seen it so many times in this town, with our teams choking when it counts, but yesterday it was a wonderful surprise.

Now, there will be no worries about having to start Hamels today, thus screwing up their rotation for the playoffs. Everybody will get enough rest, as the playoffs will start on Wednesday.

Hamels will take the hill on Wednesday against either the Dodgers or Brewers. If that's the case, then I hope the Mets make it in. Even though the Brewers have been shaky, you don't want to face that pitching staff in a short series.

Choke Job

2008-09-25T09:22:00.000-07:00

Phillies lose two out of three to Atlanta, holding 1 1/2 game lead over Mets

Disgusting is how I describe this past series against Atlanta. I got sucked in, like so many. And, here we are again wondering what in the world the Phillies are doing.

Once you think they're on a roll, they lay a complete turd against a bottom feeding Atlanta Braves team. Brett Myers all of a sudden has reverted back to his evil twin before the stint in the minors. And, the offense went to sleep the past two nights.

Thankfully the Mets have been equally horrendous of late and the Phils still are holding onto a 1 1/2 game lead. With three to play, their magic number is three because the Mets still have four games to play. So, if the Mets win all four, the Phils have to win all of their remaining games or else they could risk finding themselves sitting at home in October, because the Brewers are tied with the Mets for the wild card.

Myers has allowed 16 runs in his past 8 1/3 innings. Ouch! Do the math and that's an ERA in excess of 17.30. And, it couldn't have come at a worse time. What's even worse is that with the rain coming this weekend the Phils might have to play a double-header on Sunday or Monday and their playoff rotation will get screwed up.

Looks like Joe Blanton may be counted upon in game one, SHOULD they make the playoffs. Do you want Blanton as your game one starter?

I didn't think so.

The Phillies are cementing themselves as the Chicago Cubs of the NL East because it seems like something goes wrong with this team every year.

Even though I'm down on this team I'm holding out hope that they can catch fire after making it in. The Cardinals did it and did the unthinkable in beating the Tigers to win the World Series in '06. And, don't forget the White Sox stumbled down the stretch and got hot once they got in.

It is not impossible, it's just these things don't happen to Philadelphia teams. And, they wonder why we're such a negative lot.

HAPPening

2008-09-23T09:30:00.000-07:00

J.A. Happ gives strong pitching performance, leading Phils one step closer to NL East crown

Can we officially say it now that J.A. Happ is a starter of the future? And, unlike Kyle Kendrick (who was smoke and mirrors until the All-Star break) he can actually strike guys out, and he has better control.

The star of last night's 6-2 win over the Braves was Happ, who had 93 total pitches (55 strikes), pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowing just two earned, and striking out five, while walking just one.

In each of his four starts he has not allowed more than two earned runs and his control has steadily improved. He still gets behind some batters 3-1 in the count, but he'll figure out a way to put them away. Kendrick on the other hand, gets swept up in a vortex of poor control and looks lost out there anymore.

Maybe the Phillies' future isn't so bad after all. Happ looks like he could develop into a very good third starter and if you put him behind Hamels and Myers, this pitching staff could be one of the best in the NL for years to come.

Another, member of the Phillies' youth movement in Greg Golson pitched in by scoring the go-ahead run in the 8th making it 3-2. Despite blocking the plate, Atlanta catcher Clint Sammons was a tad late on his tag, thus enabling Golson to score his first career run in the bigs.

The youth movement on the Phils could perhaps the key to extending their window of opportunity. We know that David Montgomery will never allow his people to go out and get big-time free agents or make splashes at the trade deadline, but if these youngsters like Happ, Golson, Marson, and Donald can provide an influx of talent, maybe Burrell and Moyers' departures at the end of the season will be moot points.

We shall see about that.

The Phils have just 5 games remaining and are 2 1/2 up on the Mets in the East and three games up on the Brewers in the loss column, thereby making their magic number-three.

Tonight, Cole Hamels will take the hill against Mike Hampton at 7:05.

Double The Fun

2008-09-22T09:34:00.001-07:00

Eagles win defensive showdown and Phils win series against Fish

What a day it was for Philly sports yesterday. First, the Phillies started off their rubber match against the Marlins at 4:00. And, the Eagles kicked off against the Steelers at 4:15.

When it was all said and done and the smoke cleared the Eagles knocked the snot out of the Steelers 15-6 and really the game wasn't that close had it not been for an ineffective Eagles' offense that sputtered inside the 20's. And, this wasn't a mediocre team either; the Steelers could very well represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.

And, the Phillies came out ahead of the Marlins, winning the series and retaining possession of first place in the NL East and a commanding lead in the Wild Card over Milwaukee.

I will be the first to say that I predicted both the Phillies and Eagles to lose yesterday. I saw this series against Florida as a letdown for the Phils and they came up with some serious clutch pitching on Saturday night and handed their asses to them yesterday.

And, the Eagles showed me a lot yesterday. Their defense swarmed like a pack of blood thirsty lions and didn't let up the entire time. It was shades of the Eagles of the early 2000's and the Buddy Ryan era. They came up with 9 sacks overall, one pick, and two recovered fumbles.

This is without a doubt a very good defensive unit and it's mind boggling that they let the Cowboys go up and down the field on them Monday Night.

I'll man up and say this Eagles team is better than I predicted heading into the season. I'll also man up and say the Phils will get into the playoffs and win the NL East.

We got quite a scare yesterday when B West twisted his ankle in horrific fashion and limped off the field, thereby not returning. It looked like a high ankle sprain at best, or even a torn ligament, but you can never jump to conclusions until things are all said and done. Good news just now though; at Andy Reid's noon news conference today he announced that Westbrook is fine and he could return this week if they absolutely needed him and hurried him. Odds are they'll take it day by day and he'll be out this week and he'll return in two weeks.

Looks like we could be heading back into that long-awaited Golden Age for Philly sports. The Phillies are hitting their stride at the right time. The Eagles look to be better than that 10-win team many including myself predicted before the year. The Sixers will be a 50-win team and no worse than the third best team in the East. And, the Flyers remember made it to the Final Four.

It's good to feel good as a Philly sports fan, because it doesn't happen too often.

The Phils will take on Atlanta tonight at 7:05, who just bounced back against the Mets yesterday. J.A. Happ will take on Jair Jurrjens once again, whom he defeated just a few nights ago.

The Phils hold a 1 1/2 game lead over the Mets and are 3 games head of Milwaukee in the Wild Card.

Flyers Open Camp; Thoughts Part One

2008-09-20T16:34:00.000-07:00

Not much can be told after only one day of camp. The first day, which is usually some half-hearted light skating, and then a "pond hockey" type scrimmage. The Flyers have few questions when it pertains to who will don Orange and Black sweaters this season. However, the few roster questions are intriguing to say the least.

The Flyers have a number of young exciting players in camp, some that could challenge for roster spots. They also have some veteran players looking for a fresh start. However, in part one we'll discuss the younger guys.

We all know Steve Downie and Claude Giroux, chances are both will make the squad. First I'm going to focus on some of the young talent you might not of heard of yet. And not just "prospects," guys who could legitimately challenge some veterans for spots.

RW Andreas Nodl

At St. Cloud State Nodl posted 46 points in 40 games. Subsequently, Nodl earned the WCHA Rookie of the Year award. Nodl has size and speed, and a nice accurate shot. He sometimes lacks the "motor" necessary for an NHL caliber player. He sort of lets the play come to him. One other knock on him was his lack of defensive pursuit, however, last season he seemed to have improved that aspect of his game. All in all Nodl could be a real deal player, with his offensive ability, his improving defensive skills and board work he looks to have a bright future. Challenging for a spot on the wings might not be as easy as it seems, but Nodl is capable of having a good camp and the Flyers brass may not be able to ignore him. Regardless, I see him in a Flyers jersey sooner rather then later.

D Michael Ratchuk

The Flyers couldn't be higher on Ratchuk, he is the definition of a "New NHL" defensemen. Speedy and great handling the puck he's a coaches dream. Ratchuk had played forward his entire life but switched a few years back when his team was in need of defense help. Playing at the blue line and with his skills Ratchuk realized how much more room he had to handle the puck. And anybody whose played hockey and had success knows that space can make all the difference. Ratchuk most likely won't crack the Flyers line-up because surprisingly the Flyers are kind of deep at D. However, like Nodl I see him in the Flyers uniform sooner rather then later.

D Kevin Marshall

Another guy the Flyers are real high on is Kevin Marshall. Marhall is what I'd describe as a smaller yet more physical Braydon Coburn. He's a very good positional defensemen, great skating ability and rarely gets caught where he shouldn't be. Finishes his checks and is an exactly example of a "stay at home" defensemen. Like Ratchuk he most likely won't crack the line-up early. However, we all know that hockey is a rough sport and your going to have injuries. So in the end it's nice to have good options back at the blue line.

Do I see any of these guys making the Flyers right out of camp? Barring injuries no, but it shows you the Flyers do have some talent waiting in the wings. All three I believe have futures in the NHL very soon. What do you think?

Mike Santa Barbara

7 and 2

2008-09-19T09:41:00.001-07:00

Phils make it seven straight wins and two consecutive sweeps with win over Braves

Seven and two. Those are two numbers that are good news to any fan of the Phillies. The Fightins have amassed even straight wins and two consecutive sweeps after a 4-game sweep over the Brewers and a 3-game sweep over the Braves.

And, 7-2 over their final games, is what the Phillies will have to do to ensure they make the playoffs in my opinion.

Since they lost to the Marlins over a week ago, the National League playoff race has turned inside out. The Brewers have collapsed and fired their manager after a debacle against the Phillies. And, the Mets have relinquished their once seemingly insurmountable lead to the Phillies.

As I wrote yesterday, Pat Burrell was headed down the tubes. His once .300 average from early in the season had plummeted to below .250 when he was 0-2 at the plate last night. Then, he hit a homer to seal the win. It looks like this team is starting to capture the magic from last season. And, I was wrong because I really had this team dead in the water. And, I'll man up and say when I'm wrong on something unlike some people I know or hear in the media.

However, they still need to win 7 of 9 games. That will ensure they get into the playoffs. The Mets are still keeping pace with them and just a 1/2 game back. And, the Brewers are two games behind the Phils in the loss column. That means in order to clinch the Wild Card, they'll need to go 7-2 and if the Brewers also go 7-2 and tie the Phils then they'll duke it out in a one game playoff. And, with the way the Brew Crew has gone down the tubes, I wouldn't even bet on them winning that many in their final 9 games. The Brewers are just 4-13 in the month of September-playing easily the worst baseball of any team in the National League and perhaps the majors.

The Phils will play a very tough series starting tonight against the Marlins and it's in Florida against a pitcher they've had little success against in Josh Johnson. I think they'll lose two out of three in this series and I'm sure I'm not the only one. However, I'll go out on a limb and say they'll win their final six games and get that 7-2.

I could be wrong though; after all I counted this team out a week ago and they've proven me wrong.

Brett Myers, the second half Cy Young winner and arguably the MVP of this squad is going tonight so I'm expecting a win. He takes the hill tonight against Johnson at 7:10.

Stepping Closer

2008-09-18T09:30:00.000-07:00

Phillies keep pace and remain a 1/2 game ahead of Mets in NL East

The Phils came up with another win over DeadLanta last night as J.A. Happ pitched six scoreless innings to give this team exactly what it needed out of it's fifth starter. Kyle Kendrick should perhaps take a page from Happ's book.

The Phillies have 10 remaining games; one against Atlanta, and three each against Florida, Atlanta (at home), and Washington.

Of these 10 games, it can go either way. Atlanta looks dead, but we've seen over the years how teams like them and Washington can spoil things. After all, the Nats did take two of three from the Phils a few weeks ago. And, Florida will battle and battle everybody in the East just to rain on their parade.

So, as they head into the final 10 contests the Phils can take 8 or 9 out of 10. Does this mean I think they can? Probably not. I do think 7-3 is a realistic number and won't be surprised to see them lose two of three to either the Marlins or the Braves when they face the Braves again.

Just imagine how good the Phillies can be in the playoffs if they can get their offensive studs to work together in unison. Who would've thought that Pat Burrell would be hitting .250 at this time and Ryan Howard would catch up to him in batting average after the way they started off their seasons in April? Burrell is hitting a paltry .176 this month with one homer and 15 strikeouts in 45 at-bats. Howard, on the other hand is .393 with 8 homers, 23 RBI, and 12 strikeouts in 56 at-bats.

Talk about two players heading in opposite directions. Honestly, I don't want Burrell to leave after this year and it will be sad to see him go on this kind of note.

Tonight, Hamels takes the hill against Jo Jo Reyes. Look for a second straight sweep tonight.

Back On Top

2008-09-17T09:41:00.001-07:00

Phillies reclaim first place with win over Braves and Mets loss

I've been all over Ryan Howard like green on grass this year-no doubt. He's killed many a rally by striking out or grounding out to right field when they put on that infamous "Howard shift." His defensive miscues have equalized his RBI output on plenty of occasions.

But, when he is good, he's damn good. I don't know about calling him an MVP candidate like Jim Salisbury says, but he's managed to get that average back up to .249 which is quite impressive considering the funk he was in for the first month and a half and that it was back down in the .220's a few weeks ago.

His 45th of the year is arguably the most important because it put the Fightins back on top in the NL East as the Mets lost.

Am I sold yet? Not one bit, because I've seen it all with these teams, but I'm starting to get sold. I'll really be sold when they make it in and I'm stunned by their turn-around over the past 5 games. Last night had let-down written all over it down in Atlanta, which is as silent as a crypt and more empty than the Grand Canyon. Seriously, how ridiculous is it that there empty seats above the dugouts?

The Phils and Braves will go back at it again, same time, same place. The Phils are putting J.A. Happ on the hill against Braves' ace Jair Jurjens. It's a risky move, but they can't trot Kendrick out there again. There is absolutely no way Happ can be worse than Kendrick and that's the bottom line.

One For The Ages

2008-09-16T09:32:00.000-07:00

Eagles come close, but can't hold up in the end

The latest Eagles-Cowboys game...err shall I say battle was a slugfest in the mold of a Hagler-Hearns boxing match. From the opening moments, the excitement never wavered.

There were seven lead changes, 78 points, and about as much drama in 60 minutes of football you'll ever see. This might have been the greatest Monday Night game ever, but certainly the greatest Monday Night game in the past several years-since the amazing Rams-Broncos game from 2000.

Ultimately, McNabb will take the fall for this loss and while he should assume much of the blame for the poor hand-off, but he also wasn't getting it done in the fourth quarter, compared to the first half when he was on point like a sniper rifle.

The bottom line is the defense and special teams should never give up 41 points. If you expect to compete in this league against the big boys that's a no-no. And, even with that going against them the offense namely B West and D Jack gave McNabb enough firepower to overcome the consistent onslaught of the Cowboys' juggernaut.

Maybe when these teams face in week 17, things will be much different and the Eagles will come out on top like they did late last year, but there are certainly some shortcomings on defense that need to be addressed. They can't allow Brian Dawkins to be isolated in man coverage or allow their young linebackers like Bradley to get exploited by tight ends. Jason Witten had a field day last night and the offensive line of the Cowboys allowed Marion Barber to attack at will in the second half.

Before this season began I didn't think the Eagles would realistically win this meeting. The fan in me wants them to always win, but I have to be objective for the sake of this blog. But, going into last night I expected a high-scoring match and felt the Eagles would keep it close. It was theirs to win and just as heartbreaking a game as the Patriots game last year.

If we learned anything though it's that they aren't far from the Cowboys and the Eagles are a very good team, perhaps an 11 win team. And, that may nab them the NFC East crown. They have a tough game this week against Pittsburgh and you can bet your bank account that it won't be a high-scoring match and will come down to who controls the line of scrimmage and defensive stops in the clutch.

Already last night this team accomplished what couldn't last year and that's get touchdowns on special teams and defense. There are no moral victories, but those two things right there tell you this is a much better football team a year later.

The Birds will travel to Pittsburgh next week.

Back To Life

2008-09-15T09:32:00.000-07:00

Phillies complete 4-game sweep of Brewers and are back in business

In a matter of four days, the Phillies have gone from also-ran to running the Brewers out of town and into a tie with them for the wild card lead.

Added to that, the Phils are one game behind the Mets in the NL East. Just why did they wake up all of a sudden? It seems that whenever this team is playing from behind they elevate their level of play, but when they have a 3-game lead, that's when the falter.

They didn't just barely beat the Brewers either; they thoroughly crushed them, winning 6-3, 7-3, 7-3, and 6-1.

Last night, Brett Myers answered the call and stepped up big-time, delivering a complete game two-hitter in the 6-1 victory. Is it any coincidence that since Myers' resurgence, the Phillies have gotten much better, especially during his starts?

It did help that they just missed C.C. Sabathia, who pitched on Wednesday and isn't due to pitch until today. The Brewers, who haven't been to the playoffs since 1983, look like they'll be left out again. They are folding like a low-rent check cashing company and are losers of 7 of their past 8 games.

This doesn't mean the Phillies are certainly going to make the playoffs, but it's a hell of a push they made by sweeping the team they're currently tied with in the WC chase.

Could it be that this offense is coming to life and they're getting the quality pitching they need at the right time? Right now yes. I'm cautiously optimistic about this team because I've seen them look great over stretches this season then lose 2 of 3 to the Nats.

They'll take on some ham and eggers from here on out in Atlanta, Florida, and Washington. Hopefully they don't let their guard down and play down to their weaker opponents' level.

They are idle tonight and will take on the Braves tomorrow night at Atlanta.

Stepping Up

2008-09-12T09:54:00.001-07:00

Jamie Moyer takes the mound on 3 days rest and delivers solid performance

Jamie Moyer had some things to say after last night's game that clearly looked to be directed in Cole Hamels' direction.

I have mixed feelings about it actually. Moyer said "somebody had to pitch" and stepped up and took the ball for game one with just three days rest.

Many are criticizing Hamels for not displaying that sort of bravado. Here's one problem though. He's already pitched more innings than he has at any point in his career and the Phillies still have 3 weeks of baseball left to play and if they get to October, he'll be counted on heavily.

Do you want another Mark Prior? I sure don't. That's what happened to Prior during the 2003 season when he was logging 130-plus pitches in his starts down the stretch and in the playoffs. After that he was never the same pitcher.

Just something to think about when criticizing Hamels and the coaching staff for not using him "enough."

Needless to say it was an impressive win for the Phils against the Brewers' Ben Sheets who got hit around left and right.

They will go back at it tonight at 7:05 at The Bank.

Make or Break

2008-09-11T09:26:00.000-07:00

The series this weekend with Milwaukee in South Philly could decide their season

16 to play in 17 days and 3 1/2 games back is the predicament the Phillies now find themselves in after failing to seal the deal yesterday against the Marlins.

Once again, the offense failed to show up and not that Myers had a particularly great start-he did go 7 1/3 and keep them in the game, by allowing 4 earned and striking out 9.

Ricky Nolasco was just a little better and the offense was offensive. Although they left just 9 runners on base, when you consider that they had just 7 hits, that's no good.

Teams have to grind games out at this time of the year and the Phillies are no grinder. They are to grinding out games what Elliot Spitzer is to public relations.

And, yesterday the attitude of the organization towards the fans reared it's ugly head when Charlie Manuel said the fans were flat. This is an organization that clearly likes to piss on the fans in more ways than one, but they'll be happy to take your money at The Bank by selling you overpriced food and beverages.

The Phillies are 4 games back in the loss column from both the Mets and the Brewers. And, with a 4-game series this weekend against the Brewers at home, it very well could mean the end of their season if they don't at least split. If they do lose 3 out of 4, or god forbid get swept, then you can look forward to a long offseason where the front office blames this failure of a season on an offense that had a down year and brings in more Jon Liebers and So Taguchis to serve as a band aid for a laceration the size of the Delaware River.

Sure, the Phillies have 9 games against the Braves and Nationals combined during their last 16 games, but the Brewers and Mets have easy schedules as well. If they fail to deliver this weekend then it's over but the shouting as they say.

Jamie Moyer will take on Ben Sheets tonight at 7:05.

Killin' Kendrick

2008-09-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

Kendrick buries the Phils once again

I think it's now safe to say the Phillies should pull the plug on Kyle "bleeping" Kendrick. He's absolutely killing this team. His ERA has risin like google stock during the second half of the season as he is now taking that nosedive that so many (including myself) predicted would happen this season. He's been garbage in recent starts, but with last night's disaster he was the pitching equivalent of Chernobyl.

Face it, he did a nice job last year, but it was smoke and mirrors. He gave up way too many hits, struck out far too few batters, and was getting away with it due to groundball outs last year.

Turn to this season and he's walking far more batters and giving up an alarming number of hits. In 121 innings last year he had just 25 walks. Compare that to this season where he has 55 in 149 innings. And, he's given up 20 homeruns.

Sure, he's an easy target, but he represents something that has held this team back for years and that's a failure to evaluate pitching talent. Behind Hamels and Myers this is the best the Phillies have managed to bring up from their farm system and it's pathetic that they have this maelstrom to deal with everytime he steps foot on the mound. He has now been annhilated four times in his past six starts. It's time for the front office to put J.A. Happ out there in his place or go with a four-man rotation the rest of the way. And, since a four-man rotation isn't an option (because Hamels has already pitched too many innings) they have to let the kid pitch.

Of course, they're trying to be careful with how much they pitch Happ so he doesn't get to arbitration quicker. Again, this goes back to the ownership. And, we've already beaten that horse to death a hundred thousand times over the years.

When the Phillies do blow their shot at winning the division (and they aren't winning the division because the Mets are pretty much unbeatable)---we can pin it on the ownership's unwillingness to add any significant names at the deadline and poor scouting by the braintrust serving under one Mike Arbuckle.

Hopefully Chuck Lamar, the new director of pro scouting will turn things around. Because if they had the players to get C.C. Sabathia or Matt Holliday we wouldn't be worried about Kyle Kendrick burying this team. And, I believe he will, for he has a great track record from his days in Tampa Bay---look at that team now with minor leaguers that he scouted.

Better days might be ahead, just not this year.

Even though I don't think they'll make it to see October, if they hope to do so they need to pull the plug on Kendrick ASAP.

The Phils will take on the Marlins again today at 4:05. Brett Myers goes up against Ricky Nolasco.

Showdown in Big D

2008-09-09T09:47:00.000-07:00

Eagles and Cowboys head into first big-time match-up since '06

For the first time since 2006, the Eagles-Cowboys match-up will really mean something. Last year, the Birds were 3-4 heading into their meeting with Dallas, who was 6-1 and all but a cinch to win the division.

This time however, both teams are good again. The Eagles are a 10-win team in mine and most people's estimations and some have them winning 12. Just check out Steve Olenski's recent poll on his site. And, the Cowboys look poised to be the team to beat in the NFC.

Last year they split, but the games didn't have as much meaning, because let's face it we by their match-up last year that the Eagles weren't winning the division. This year they're much more competitive and the meeting in Big D will carry many playoff and division implications.

On paper, the Cowboys are a better team. There's no doubt about it. I predicted before the season that they would lose both games to the Cowboys, but I see this one being a lot closer.

In order to win, it's obvious what the Eagles need to do; get lots and lots of pressure on Romo. If they can do that and put 8 men in the box on Barber (who's nursing sore ribs) then this game will resemble last season's 10-6 defensive shutdown.

If they don't do that, then expect it to get out of hand.

The X-factor this Sunday will be one DeSean Jackson. If they can get him isolated on Roy Williams, then he'll have a field day on him. Williams is a disaster when it comes to coverage. Expect Andy Reid to work that wrinkle into the offense.

The good thing here is there are no new Eagles on the injury report. Everybody on the Cowboys appears ok to go including Barber, who will likely play through the sore ribs.

A Star Is Born

2008-09-08T09:19:00.000-07:00

DeSean Jackson silences the critics

Eagles rookie wide receiver was all the talk yesterday after the Eagles' 38-3 win. Sure, McNabb looked like Donny Mac from 2004. Sure, Brian Westbrook was his usual lights-out self, rushing for a pair of TD's. Sure, the defense shut down a Ram offensive attack that is but a shell of it's former self.

But, D Jack had 106 yards receiving on 6 catches and eased concerns (for now) about the Eagles' mediocre wide receiving unit.

And, he also had nearly 100 punt return yards as well, including a 50 yarder to set up a field goal.

Alas, a star has been born and the weight of the world will rest atop the 165 lb (when soaking wet) receiver's shoulders. There's one caveat to consider though. Rookie wide receivers and any skill players for that matter always hit a wall at some point during their rookie season. It is only natural because the rigors of the NFL not only require one to play nearly 50% more games than they did in college (16-20 vs. 12-13) but everything is at a whole 'nother level.

Even with that said, Kevin Curtis will probably return in October and he'll take some weight off the rook's shoulders. We can pretty much assume at this point that Jackson will be a starter or the entire season.

What other positives can we draw from yesterday? The offense looked fluid. And, while they were playing a horrible football team, McNabb displayed a poise that he lacked for most of last season. Added to that, his accuracy and timing were unbelievable during the onslaught.

This game will give the Birds plenty of confidence as they head to Dallas next week. The Cowboys looked lights out yesterday on offense and even though Marion Barber left yesterday's contest with bruised ribs, they are confident he'll play against the Eagles.

Preseason Prediction

2008-09-05T09:35:00.000-07:00

Eagles are on track to win 10 games this year

It's that time of year again. Last year, my preseason prediction didn't fare so well. I predicted that they would win 14 and they of course looked very mediocre on their way to 8 wins.

Here goes my prediction for the '08 edition of the Eagles-Reid and McNabb Year 10.

Week one St. Louis

Even though Andy Reid is just 3-6 in home openers during his nine years as Eagles head coach, this should be a win. His three wins came in 2000 against Dallas in the infamous "Pickle Juice" game. And, another win in 2004 against the Giants in TO's debut-ah it still feels like that bullet McNabb through to TO in the corner of the endzone was yesterday and McDougle jacking up Jeff Feagles on the punt. And, the third opening-day win came against the Texans in 2006 as Donte Stallworth owned them that day and appeared well on his way to becoming the next great wide receiver in Philly. The common theme among their opening day wins, their opponents were clunkers. The Rams are still in rebuilding mode and not very good offensively. This game is a win.

Record: 1-0

Week two at Dallas

It's unusual for them to be up against Dallas this year in the season. They were 1-1 against them last year, 2-0 against them in 2006, and 0-2 against them in 2005. Despite shutting them down last December in their past meeting I don't see that happening again. This will be an L for the Eagles.

Record: 1-1

Week three Pittsburgh

Even though they're facing the Steelers at home, that won't matter. The Steelers have an unbelievable rushing attack and Big Ben owned the Eagles in their only regular season meeting. Look for that success to continue. The Eagles will fall to 1-2 after a loss here.

Record: 1-2

Week four at Chicago

Last year was a brutal loss for the Birds at the hands of Brian Griese, who marched down the field in under a minute on the Birds defense like Grant's army took Richmond. The Bears have nothing on offense and a defense that isn't as good as it once was. The Eagles will have revenge on their minds for that ugly last-second loss last year and get back to .500.

Record: 2-2

Week five Washington

If last night's game was any indicator, the Redskins will stink on ice this year. Their offense looks inept and Jim Zorn's playcalling in the clutch resembles a poor man's Andy Reid. And, if you're a poor man's Andy Reid in clutch playcalling then you've got issues. No way they lose to the Skins.

Record: 3-2

Week six at San Francisco

Former Rams O-coordinator and coach Mike Martz may be calling the plays, but that doesn't matter. They are throwing the likes of J.T. O'Sullivan and Alex Smith out there at QB. Frank Gore is their offense and the Birds will gameplan as such. The defense will give them some problems-primarily because of a guy named Patrick Willis who many on the east coast might not know about, but I know about him. He's on my fantasy football team in my IDP league and the best linebacker in the business. The Birds will still overcome Mr. Willis and get their third straight win into the bye here.

Record: 4-2

Week seven BYE

Week eight Atlanta

Andy Reid's teams have typically either lost a game heading into the bye or after the bye. But, come on this is Atlanta. I know they're supposed to lose a game that they're not supposed to, but again. This is Atlanta. They have no offensive line, their QB is a rookie and Jim Johnson feasts on rookie QB's. The Birds' winning ways will continue.

Record: 5-2

Week nine at Seattle

Seattle is one of the toughest places to play in the NFL and they have a stout defense. Mike Holmgren is in his final year as coach up there and will want to bid farewell to his protege Andy Reid in a winning fashion. The Seahawks have the upper hand here based on their D. And, that will give the Eagles their first loss in nearly two months.

Record: 5-3

Week ten NY Giants

The Giants owned the Eagles last season namely because of two guys named Osi and Strahan. And, it certainly helped that Winston "Human Turnstile" Justice aided Osi's 6 sack explosion in that Sunday night stinker. I think the Eagles will prevail here though.

Record: 6-3

Week eleven at Cincinatti

One thing that benefits the Eagles this season is they won't have long road trips. They have just one two-game road trip this season and this is the first stanza of it. The Bengals will be just about done by this point and the Eagles will be licking their chops against a decimated offense and a brutal defense. WIN.

Record: 7-3

Week twleve at Baltimore

Every year there's a game on the docket that the Eagles aren't supposed to lose (that's when they're a good team) discounting 2005 and last year of course because they stunk. Baltimore is a young team but Jim Harbaugh knows Reid's system inside out and will school his teacher. I see this one as a loss.

Record: 7-4

Week thirteen Arizona

The Birds will head back home after their only two-game road trip of the season and face those stinking Cardinals who have given them much trouble over the years. They will be fired up by the Philly faithful after an ugly loss the week before and shut down the Cards' receivers. So, maybe the Anquan Boldin talk will die down some...then again it won't because they need him in the worst way.

Record: 8-4

Week fourteen at NY Giants

Now, we are in the final quarter of the season and the Eagles have matched last year's win total. The Giants at this point will be fighting for their playoff lives and hoping to avoid the Super Bowl to bust jinx. The Eagles will be in for a long day at the Meadowlands in this contest.

Record: 8-5

Week fifteen Cleveland

By this point the Eagles will need two wins to get in and throw the kitchen sink at the Browns. The vaunted defensive backfield will shut down Braylon Edwards, Donte Stallworth, and Kellen Winslow. They'll get their 9th win against Romeo Crennel's squad.

Record: 9-5

Week sixteen at Washington

The Redskins will be fixing to go for the highest draft pick possible in the NFL draft. I'm certain Rock Cartright will be the main man at running back and Jason Campbell will be either hurt or on the bench. Jim Zorn should be looking for another gig too. This is a win all the way and the Eagles will get their 10th win.

Record: 10-5

Week seventeen Dallas

In the regular season finale all eyes in the nation will turn to Philly as the Eagles will try to c**kblock Dallas' bid to get the #1 seed in the NFC. Sorry to say it, but it's not happening. The Cowboys are the class of the NFC as much as it sickens me to say. I can see Dallas winning 14 games this year. But, the Eagles will be a wildcard team at 10-6, but close out the regular season with an L to the Cowboys.

Record: 10-6

So, there you have it. I'm not drinking the kool-aid this year like I did last year when I predicted the Eagles would win 14 games. Not sure what the hell I was thinking. I'm being realistic about this team and they are a good team. Merrill Reese says they're the best Eagles team since 2004. I think the 2006 version wasn't too shabby, but poorly coached and they played under their capabilities. With that said, this team has it's share of flaws and some good young talent.

If they get good production out of McNabb, Westbrook, and D Jack on offense, combined with good special teams play, and solid defensive play the most they can win realistically is 10 to 11 games. They're just not a Super Bowl team. If you look at a team like Dallas, they have some serious impact players and a better QB in Romo. I simply see this being their season and they'll be the class of the NFC.

I hope I'm wrong though because I was wrong as hell last year, but I'm standing by my prediction of 10 wins and you can all berate me if I'm wrong!

Whitey’s Weekly Winners

2008-09-04T09:08:00.000-07:00

Week One in the NFL
By Chris White

Last Week: 0-0
YTD: 0-0

The last time we spoke, I was calling for the Giants to shock the Patriots in the Super Bowl. Since then, I penned many a column on the indecisiveness of Brett Farve and how completely nauseating that whole Packer situation was. On a hot and muggy August Friday afternoon, my phone rang off the hook and my inbox had reached its bandwidth.

Brett Favre was a Jet. This is one Jets fan that was not impressed with the addition of the future Hall of Famer. Brett Favre is not the long-term solution so many Jets fans are looking for. After awhile I came to the realization however, that in the NFL, long term is just a 16 game season. We shall see.

Nonetheless, I’m very stoked to be back in the football element of offering up weekly NFL picks to any and all that care to read. Keep in mind; these picks are worth exactly what you paid for them.

Washington at Giants: Home opener for the defending Super Bowl Champions and the ‘Big Blue’ crowd will be in mid-season frenzy. I wonder how long before the first round of boos kick in? Will new Skins coach Jim Zorn's (who by the way was easily the coolest lefty quarterback in the late 70's) fate be any different? The G-Men started off last year with poor play, and with Strahan retired and Osi Umenyiora out with a pre-season, season ending knee injury; one of the Giants greatest assets has taken a major step back before it even started. I think Zorn and a healthy Clinton Portis keep this one very close, plus the road team has won the past three...
Giants 23 - Redskins 20.

Tampa Bay at New Orleans: The Saints under performed last year, digging themselves a hole early in the season. With the addition of Jonathan Vilma on defense, and Jeremey Shockey's fiery attitude on offense, I look for New Orleans to get back to 2006 form. If Deuce Mcallister can contribute at all, this team will move the football on anyone. The Bucs on the other hand just don't have anything special that jumps out at you. Galloway 36, Hilliard 32, and Garcia 38. Not exactly spring chickens in those skill positions either...
Saints 36 - Bucs 20.

St. Louis at Philadelphia: Not sure what to think about Philly this season. McNabb can look sensational early in the season, but could also go three-and-out way too much for my liking as well. Losing Kevin Curtis was a big blow for that passing game. Still though, the Eagles have Westbrook and the home crowd for inspiration. This might be the first year in a long time the Rams defense outplays the offense…
Eagles 24 - Rams 20.

Jets at Miami: Brett Favre...
Jets 27 - Dolphins 17.

Kansas City at New England: Wow, no respect right out of the gate for those
Chieftains with Vegas posting a huge opening day number. Sure, they still don’t
have much of a passing game, and Larry Johnson doesn’t evoke the fear he once did. I think the key to this game will be KC’s defense vs. the Patriots passing attack, which could be rusty with Tom Brady having a very light camp. The Pats win an easy one, but I’d take the number if offered…
Patriots 30 - Chiefs 17.

Houston at Pittsburgh: The Texans have bitten me on more than one occasion in their short history on opening day, and I think this is a team that turned the corner last year. Is that good enough for a playoff birth this year? Probably not, considering the division they play in. I’ll take the Steelers to win and cover. They are healthy offensively, very strong at home, and I don’t think much of the Texan
running game yet…
Steelers 26 - Texans 17.

Cincinnati at Baltimore: Its opening day and I don't give a crap about either of
these teams already. The Bengals have lost both starting receivers on a ‘pass
first’ based offensive mentality, although were smart enough to invite back Chris
Henry. Apparently “Character Counts” is just a flashy motto in elementary schools. Baltimore’s defense is aging, but still rock solid against the run. One thing I like developing in the Inner Harbor is that Delaware standout, and starting rookie quarterback Joe Flacco. I just like saying Joe Flacco…
Ravens 23 - Bengals 17.

Detroit at Atlanta: I'd like to see this game. Detroit has an awesome passing
game, with Calvin Johnson and Roy Williams perhaps the best wideout duo in the NFL. Matt Ryan debuts as the NFL's only other starting day rookie (Joe Flacco- said it again), with renewed enthusiasm in Atlanta. A new start. Let's call for the
shootout and the over... Falcons 38 - Lions 35 (OT).

Seattle at Buffalo: Giving the Bills some home turf respect with the line. As I’ve
said in the past, the Bills at home are always a tough game on the schedule for any opponent while they are still live. Seattle is the better team here, but Hasselbeck has not been as healthy as you’d like to see, they are already out Bobby Engram, and I think Julius Jones is a soft NFL runner. Not the case with the youthful Marshawn Lynch. I’ve talked myself into selecting the Bills…
Bills 20 - Seahawks 17.

Jacksonville at Tennessee: Jacksonville and Jack Del Rio ended 07' with a bad taste in their mouths and have been looking forward to kicking somebody's ass since then. Throw in the emotional angle of this game with Jaguars lineman Richard Collier fighting for his life after a drive-by shooting, and I don’t give Tennessee much of a chance. I didn’t give Vince Young much of a chance against USC either though....

Jaguars 24 - Titans 6.

Dallas at Cleveland: The Cowboys have looked pretty solid in camp, and also have an axe to grind after yet another playoff upset loss. While the Browns are certainly on the way up, facing Dallas on opening day seems to pose too great a threat. Let’s just hope Derek Anderson stays healthy, I have him in one of my twelve fantasy football leagues…
Cowboys 34 - Browns 24.

Carolina at San Diego: Charger LB Shawne Merriman is going to attempt to play with his badly injured knee. I'm very surprised the team is letting this happen, as he will in no way be playing at 100%, and can apparently further injure himself by
trying. Antonio Gates is another All-Pro Charger coming off the nagging toe problem. Must have been some big toe. I think the Panthers offensively are going to quietly put together a solid season, that being said the line is too ambitious for me, even with Steve Smith suspended...
Chargers 21 - Panthers 17.

Arizona at San Francisco: Does anyone remember when the Niners were really good? Weren't they the good old days in the NFL? 1982-1998 all winning seasons, couple of pretty decent players like Montana, Rice, Craig, Hacksaw, Young, and yes even a TO. Walsh, Seifert, Mariucci. Winners. Anyone remember when the Cardinals were really good? Anyone? Buehler? Beuhler? Buehler? Does anyone know how Anquan Boldin hasn't been traded to Philadelphia for Lito Sheppard yet? Just checking...
Cardinals 31 - 49ers 17.

Chicago at Indianapolis: Very intriguing opening day AFC vs. NFC game, another I'd like to watch. Peyton Manning missed most of camp, but that shouldn't matter too much for this Hall of Famer. How Marvin Harrison rebounds from his most ineffective season last year is the big question with the Colts for me. If he is back 100%, the Colts should continue to run with the AFC elite. Same old Bears apparently this year. Crummy quarterback play, and an untested running game are going to make for a lot of under plays with Chicago again this season. Not Sunday though...
Colts 31 - Bears 17.

Minnesota at Green Bay: Will be unwatchable on TV due to the continued overuse for the B word. Make it five straight for the Pack over the Vikes, and one in a row for Rogers..
Packers 28 - Vikings 20.

Denver at Oakland: Jay Cutler has been getting a lot of off-season praise as a breakout quarterback this year. If Denver is going to return as a major player in the AFC West, he is going to have to. I have my doubts, especially with suspect players in the skill areas. The Raiders on the other hand have no pressure of returning to greatness. They haven’t been any good since Marcus Allen. Will be good to see these two rivals line up on Monday night, however. Even without tons of skill, Denver and Oakland just don’t like each other, which makes for good TV…
Broncos 25 - Raiders 13.

Aced

2008-09-03T09:49:00.000-07:00

Hamels pitches seven scoreless to lead Phils to 4-0 victory

The Phillies got just what the doctor ordered last night, with another gem from Cole Hamels. In what is a sea of inconsistency for this Phillies squad, Hamels has proven time and time again to be a solid ship.

Last night marks his 6th straight start where he's gone six or more innings and allowed less than three earned runs. He's in Curt Schilling territory with that type of pitching.

And, in his past 17 starts, Hamels has only allowed more than three earned runs three times.

Suffice it to say he's the MVP of this team because it's certainly not one of their "bats."

Utley, displayed that Pete Rose-esqe style of play that we've come to love, but he's not MVP material this year. Hurt or not, he hasn't delivered like he was last year or earlier this season.

Hamels not only gets my vote for Cy Young, but MVP. He won't even win a Cy Young though because MLB places so much importance on wins and that will go to Brandon Webb who will win it (he has 19 wins to Hamels' 12).

I can do without Hamels' dodging of questions, like after the game and his standoffish attitude toward the media and fans, but I want him pitching every fifth day.

Hopefully the Phillies get a long-term deal done with him ASAP because the number will only go up the longer they wait.

The Phils and Nats will duke it out again tonight, same time same place at 7:10. Joe Blanton is on the hill against Odalis Perez.

See-Sawin'

2008-09-02T09:24:00.000-07:00

Phillies follow up their series with Cubs with ugly loss

I'll admit when I'm wrong and eat crow when it comes time. And, I'll admit that I thought the Phillies would certainly get swept in four games this week out in Chi-town.

I was shocked to see them win the way they did on Saturday and then on Sunday. They were impressive wins against a very good team. Say what you want about Zambrano not pitching on Sunday-the Phillies still faced a very good ballclub and got the job done.

Then yesterday they fell back into the abyss when Kendrick made yesterday's game against the Nationals an abortion. He buried them with another 6-run outing and with Tim Redding on the hill (whom they usually struggle against) they were as good as done.

It's time now for the Phillies to cut the cord on Kendrick and go with Happ in the five spot. I think we've seen enough 6 and 7-run outings to come to that conclusion. At this point they're playing Russian Roulette whenever they send Kendrick out on the hill.

This marks the third time in five starts that Kendrick has allowed 6 runs or more. And, for a pitcher who strikes out as few batters as he does to do that makes it pointless to keep trotting him out there.

It's time to yank him or as Brett Myers would say, "Boom. Get him outta here."

The Phillies are what they are. They're a good baseball team capable of some big nights, but they'll regress on the next day. And, they better watch out because the Nats are the hottest team in the bigs, currently riding a 7-game winning streak.

They will go at it again at 7:10. Hamels is on the hill against Tim Lannan.

Another Meltdown

2008-08-29T09:42:00.000-07:00

Phillies' bullpen collapses in the 8th inning once again

If there's one thing our Philadelphia teams are good at, it's choking. We've seen it in all shapes and forms and in every year over the past 25 years.

The Eagles have reinvented the art of choking in playoff games. The Sixers rarely get there anymore, but when they do they simply stink it up. The Flyers have been to the brink on countless occasions only to run out of gas or choke. And, the Phillies...well when they have their big games during the regular season (since they made the playoffs just twice in 25 years) they remind us what a kick in the gut it is to be a Philly fan sometimes.

This is why I decided to reserve judgment on them until after this Chicago series this weekend. Sure, they had a 5-game winning streak and the win against the Mets on Tuesday night was magical, but the fact remains they are a very inconsistent team. They are capable of coming back one night and just as capable of laying an egg the next night, or looking great four nights in a row, then stinking it up the next three.

You get the idea. They are just not that good of a team despite what their record states. They have talent, which is capable of producing a 90-win (or better team) but they don't have the heart of last year's team.

There was no doubt in my mind that Durbin was going to give up a grandslam last night after Ryan Madson buried them with 2 runners on base with no outs and allowing a homerun. And, from the tone of Harry Kalas and Wheeler after Aramis Ramirez's grandslam, they didn't seem upset. And, neither was I. I'm sure I'm not alone.

Neither was Shane Victorino, who just looked over his shoulder when Durbin's pitch got launched like a shoulder to air missile to center field. He must have surely been disgusted.

If I were Cole Hamels, I'd demand to be traded from this team if the ownership doesn't get their asses in gear and put the cuffs on the front office every single season when the team obviously needs help at the trade deadline or afterward. No, Matt Stairs is not the answer!

And, why Ryan Madson is still being brought into games in clutch situations is beyond me. He's a batting practice machine out there when the game is on the line. He absolutely sucks in any other role other than mop-up duty.

Sure, it sucks to see them lose like this, but don't you feel almost used to it by now?

This is what 25 years of losing does to many people who are either in my age range (25-30) or even people who are in high school and in college. You are so used to the disappointment that you become desensitized to it.

So, why was last night any shock? Going into this series I felt the Phillies would at best split this series. Now, I am almost certain they'll get swept.

They have walked into a buzz saw in Chicago, just like last year when they faced the Rockies in the playoffs. The Cubs are the hottest team in baseball and boast the best record at home, while the Philies are a little over .500 on the road and just not that great of a team.

Sure, the St. Louis Cardinals, like the Phillies weren't that great of a team either as they stumbled down the stretch in 2006. And, they got unbelievably hot and rode the wave. The same went for the White Sox who were great all season in 2005, stumbled down the stretch, then caught fire. But, come on, this is Philadelphia we're talking about here. Those types of things don't happen to our teams.

Joe Blanton takes on Rich Harden tonight at 8:00.

Disaster Strikes

2008-08-28T09:46:00.001-07:00

Phillies lose the game on disastrous 8th inning

For nearly 8 innings the Phillies had this game in the bag last night. They were about to steal a game they should not have won going into it.

Santana vs. Kendrick-looks like an easy win for the Mutts you say. Right?

Well, the Phils actually carried a 3-2 lead into the 8th inning, but saw that lead vanish and turn into a 6-3 defeat within the matter of a few pitches. Brad Lidge, who has been amazing this season came into the game in the 8th in a non-save situation, which is anathema to a reliever. And, he promptly blew the lead by giving up 2 runs on the heels of Rudy Seanez's clunker of a relief appearance (blowing the lead in giving up 2 runs).

The bullpen has been a stalwart for the Phillies this year, but last night they did their best Mets imitation and gave the Mets a 1/2 game lead over the Phils for first place.

And, I keep asking myself why in the hell was Delgado pitched to? Why? He's a Phillies killer and should've been walked on that at-bat when he belted it out of the park.

This will be a dogfight, but with the Mets' issues it will keep the Phillies in it until the end.

I hate to sound like a pessimist after the Phillies' just rang off 5 wins in a row and won 8 of 9 games, but with last night's disastrous performance in the clutch and a 4-game series with the best team in baseball looming it could get ugly this weekend.

Figure this, the Cubs have a .721 winning percentage at home, good for the best home record in baseball at 49-19. The Phillies have a 34-31 record on the road.

The Cubs have their four best pitchers going up against the Phillies' 1-4, but with how the offense has played lately the Phils could get swept this weekend.

It will be a brutal series and four-game series' at this stage of the season are very hard to win, especially on the road.

Cole Hamels takes the hill tonight against Ryan Dempster at 8:05.

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Dr. Z is on crack

In his annual NFL preview, Dr. Z is picking the Eagles to go to the Super Bowl.

Either he's high or he's desperate to stir people up so they talk about his prognostications.

Nobody in their right mind would pick this Eagles team to even make it to the NFC Championship. I'm stick of hearing about the Giants analogy. They got lucky, plain and simple.

Teams in Philadelphia never get lucky. And, we've seen this script play itself out before. Do you really think Andy Reid and McNabb are going to get it done together? I can see the end of this regime coming.

9 years and nothing to show for and their team is worse than it was in 2000 before they made the climb up.

Who will rush the passer besides Trent Cole?

Who will catch the ball aside from DeSean Jackson and Westbrook?

These are legit questions and why the Eagles aren't a Super Bowl team. Hell, they don't have a Super Bowl defense to cover up for their dearth of playmakers on offense.

First...Again

2008-08-27T09:25:00.000-07:00

Phillies reclaim first place with dramatic win in 13 innings

"Here we go again", could be heard in unison throughout the Delaware Valley last night when the Phillies got down 7-0 early on in the game.

Jamie Moyer had his shortest (worst) outing as a Phillie and the offense was nowhere to be found. They were once again choking in a big game.

While many of us were this close to turning off the TV at that point, we couldn't bring ourselves to do it. Not after what we've seen out of this team in the past.

Despite their struggles in the middle part of the season this year we've seen them come back and do some crazy things. Turns out it couldn't have come at a better time last night as they outlasted the Mets 8-7 in 13 innings.

Jimmy Rollins continued his awakening from a coma with a 5 for 7 night. And, Chris Coste, the hero had 4 hits in 4 at-bats off the bench!

Ryan Howard contributed to the comeback despite going just 1 for 6; he's now below the .230 mark.

Seems like on nights like this it's just going to amount to a win no matter what. Everything Charlie Manuel did worked to perfection and the Phillies capitalized on the Mets' atrocious bullpen, which have now blown 22 saves on the season.

That right there could bury the Mets. Don't count them out yet because Santana takes the hill tonight against Kendrick and the Phils have four tough games against the Cubs this weekend, but they have won 8 of their last 9 games and are riding a 5-game winning streak.

They will go at it again tonight at 7:05.

SWEEEP!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-08-26T09:30:00.001-07:00

Phillies complete the 4-game sweep of the Dodgers

This was the weekend of redemption for the Phillies and they delivered in a big way.

After hitting rock bottom two weeks ago and getting swept by LA in 4 games for the first time in 60 years they made it Even-Stephen with this sweep of the Dodgers.

Jimmy Rollins got a taste of what it's like to be cheered as he nearly hit for the cycle last night in going 3 for 3 and reaching base all five times. After his heroics of last night, he still has a long way to go before we forgive him for his ridiculous comments, but it's nice to see him get off the schnide.

One player who has been off the schnide is Brett Myers, who had another great start, going 7 innings and giving up ZERO runs. He has now gone two straight starts and 14 innings without surrendering a run.

The next six games could very well make or break the Phillies' season. They face the Mets tonight and tomorrow. And, then they go out to Chi-town to face the Cubs for a 4-game set.

The pitching match-up favors the Phillies tonight. Jamie Moyer goes up against Pedro Martinez tonight. Tomorrow night they had better hope Kendrick has a quality start, because Santana is on the hill and he's been on fire of late.

And, in the Cubs series the match-ups go like this:

Game one: Hamels vs. Dempster
Game two: Blanton vs. Harden
Game three: Myers vs. Lily
Game four: Moyer vs. Zambrano

The only game where they're overmatched is in game two. I even think Moyer can keep them in the game against Zambrano.

Game one of the quickie series against the Mets starts tonight at 7:05 at The Bank.

Redeem Team

2008-08-25T09:40:00.000-07:00

Phillies redeem themselves with 3-game sweep of Dodgers

Here we go again. The Phillies are sucking us back in once again.

Another September is upon us and they're 11 games above .500 and they've redeemed themselves by sweeping the Dodgers in 3 games this week, one week after getting shellacked by the Dodgers in L.A.

Earlier yesterday the "Redeem Team" won gold in the Olympics over Spain. Philadelphia's version of The Redeem Team finally woke up on offense and found a way to win the game last night after falling behind, tying it and then Feliz won it in the 11th.

What does this all mean? Not sure yet. We've seen the Phillies play well for spurts during the past two months, but then they faltered again.

It is certainly encouraging to see their offense really come alive for once when Hamels pitched on Saturday.

They have now won three straight series', but two of those series wins came against bottom feeders in San Diego and Washington, and they didn't exactly look great against either of them.

The bottom line is they are winners of 7 of their past 9 games and with three straight series wins, it's their best stretch in that regard in two months.

We'll have a much better picture of what kind of team this is after they play the Mets twice this week and the Cubs for a brutal 4-game stretch over the weekend.

They have to get the Mets while they're down because now John Maine is gone for the season and with Billy Wagner on the fritz, this division is right for the taking.

The Phils take on the Dodgers once again tonight at 7:05.

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Getting the job done

On Friday night the Eagles' special teams was the big story, with a kick-off and punt return in the same game.

Not only did this team not have a punt return for a TD last year, but they failed to get a kick-off return TD as well.

That's pretty pathetic. And, while this was "just a preseason game", the third game does give you a pretty good read on what sort of team it is.

I'm hesitant to say the Eagles are anything more than a 10-game winner right now. Their defensive end rotation looks shoddy at best. You're talking about Trent Cole and a bunch of pedestrian players being plugged in on the opposite side of him. And, while D Jack looks like a star in the making, let's remember that Andy Reid is Larry Brown's answer to rookies in football; he dislikes playing them a whole lot.

Friday night should make you more optimistic though. McNabb looked sharp and got the job done against a Patriots defense that looks older than a beat up pair of Chuck Taylor's.

Botched

2008-08-22T09:49:00.000-07:00

Phillies can't complete the sweep of the Nats

Poor hitting and fundamentals will kill a team usually. Except even if you have those two things fall into place even a good team can beat a team like the Nats who are 44-83.

But, the Phillies managed to screw this one up last night thanks in part to Jimmy Rollins' botched play in the 7th.

Sure, they won the series with two wins out of three games, but they should not have lost this game last night.

Ryan Madson blew a 3-2 lead and instead of the Phillies having a 3-game winning streak, they instead have another disgusting loss under their belts. And, it really hurts to lose to a team that had a 12-game losing streak.

Let's face it, they're not going to have a magical run this year. And, they certainly won't win the division.

A shake up is needed for this team because we've been through it with this group of players and they can't get it done.

Ryan Howard got his ten million and is too lazy to become a great defensive player and unwilling to change his approach to hitting. That type of play is what has marred this franchise this year.

And, if Jimmy Rollins doesn't put the team first, then maybe they should consider moving him as well.

The Dodgers come to town tonight. Kyle Kendrick will be on the hill against Greg Maddux, who will make his debut tonight for the Dodgers.

Standing Pat?

2008-08-21T09:33:00.001-07:00

What will the Eagles do now that Curtis is out?

The $50,000 question today has to be, what will the Eagles do next?

Well if you listen to Howard Eskin, who is the mouthpiece for the Eagles, then they probably aren't doing much.

They look at the Curtis injury as a one-month injury and anybody they'd be bringing in, would be a stop-gap option.

If they truly believe that their problem is as simple as that then we're in for a very long season.

The wheels are falling off the Eagles van and we're still two weeks away from the kick-off of the NFL season.

Victor Abiamiri may or may not play this year. Chris Clemons, the Joe Banner bluelight free agent special gets hurt if a mosquito lands on his arm. The special teams are a trainwreck. Reggie Brown is banged up. Curtis is out until at least the end of September.

I don't mean to sound totally negative, but I'm a realist. During this offseason I had this team pegged to win 10 or 11 games, possibly more if they have a stellar defense. I just don't see how their defensive ends will contribute. They're trying to sell us on Jerome McDougale coming back from the dead and finally contributing. He got drafted in 2003! That was during George Bush's first presidency! And, the five years of McDougale's career have seemed longer than Bush's entire presidency.

And, if that isn't bad enough the Eagles are trying to sell us on Darren Howard, their free agent bust that they signed in 2006.

What are the positives on this team? Well, McNabb is healthy, fighting for his NFL life and playing not just for his future in Philly, but potentially auditioning for his next team. Brian Westbrook is an elite back. The defensive backfield, while laden with drama is probably the best one in the game. The linebacking crew with Gocong, Gaither, and Bradley is among one of the most athletically gifted young groups in the league. Bunkley and Patterson are stud interior lineman and Cole is a pro bowler. But, you can't dismiss the fact that they have pedestrian defensive ends aside from him.

What does this all translate to right now? It's hard to say. This team could surprise everybody and win 11 games. Or, we could be in store for a very long season if Banner, Reid, et al. don't take a long, hard look at what they really need and that's a difference maker on offense.

It would behoove them to call the Cardinals ASAP and get Boldin.

Or, maybe they think they're just fine. After all, that resulted in one playoff visit in the past three seasons with that line of thinking.

A New Low

2008-08-20T09:24:00.000-07:00

Phillies ownership covers up the boos in the first inning

Last night the Phillies may have won the game 5-4, but for those of us who watched on TV, we were the losers.

And, the Phillies owners wouldn't have had it any other way.

What you witnessed is indicative of what Communist China would do in terms of the cover up.

During the first inning last night when Rollins stepped to the plate, during the broadcast on Comcast Sports Net, it was decided by somebody to play a pre-game interview of Rollins over top of the fan reaction as he stepped to the plate.

This was timed perfectly and was about as disgusting a move you'll ever see out of this cowardly ownership group.

The reason why anybody watched this game last night was to see what the reaction of the crowd was going to be like when Rollins stepped to the plate in the first inning.

Not that the ownership group advertised this game as any sort of event, but it's just another example of this ownership sticking their heads in the sand like ostriches when controversy ensues. But, this transcended the lowest of the lows by even this ownership's standards.

I compare the Phillies ownership group (David Montgomery) to a dictator that is holding a beloved franchise hostage. I spoke to one of my friends in the media about this and he believes the broadcast team at Comcast made the decision to cover up the boos, but I disagree. They were ordered to cover it up because it's the Phillies' broadcast! The PHILLIES did the interview with Jimmy Rollins before the game and it was a cunning rouse on their part.

After this display I say enough is enough and we the fans should run this ownership out of ground like in an old-time movie when people are chased out of a town as rocks are being thrown at their caravan as it heads out of dodge.

There's no place for dictators in professional sports and that's all David Montgomery amounts to.

Rollins Returns

2008-08-19T09:27:00.001-07:00

Rollins makes his first appearance in front of Philadelphia fans tonight

What should we expect when Rollins plays for the first time in Philadelphia after making that foolish comment last week?

Chances are it will be a mixed reaction. You WON'T see a unanimous chorus of boos. That is certain. And, here's why.

There are Philadelphia fans that feel that Rollins' comments were warranted. They'll tell you that Philly fans really are brutally harsh on the players and they got what's coming to them.

And, there are some who feel that in this day and age of vanilla comments from players it's refreshing to see a player speak his mind and if fans are going to let players have it, then the door should swing both ways.

Finally, there are people who think his comments are completely off-base and while he's got a right to speak his mind, what he said was absolutely foolish and he should be ripped for it. I'm in that group of people.

It's completely (expletive deleted) stupid to call Philadelphia fans front-runners. Colorado Rockies fans are front-runners. They hide in the sewer when their team sucks and when their team starts winning, then they come out in droves.

Front-runners don't support their teams when the times are tough. And, the times have been tough for the Phillies over the past two months, but guess what-they are still selling out The Bank on many nights and packing the stadium with 35,000-40,000 fans on a consistent basis.

This town wants a winner and Jimmy Rollins is the last person who should be running his mouth when he's had a horrible year by his standards.

If he wants to rip anybody, it should be himself for a shoddy overall performance this season. And, he should be ripping himself for being a "ME" player this season on many occasions, often times showing up late before games and not hustling all of the time.

What really annoys me is the fact that Rollins' team mates are silent during all of this and the front office and management have head their heads in the sand like a flock of ostriches.

You know why? Because ultimately the players probably agree with Rollins and the front office abhors trying to approach anything controversial, so they just ignore it.

Here's to you Phillies fans, let Rollins have it tonight. The door swings both ways.

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Sixers make Iggy deal official

And, the Billy King award goes to Ed Stefanski for caving into Iguodala and his agent.

Why in the world would they pay Iguodala almost as much money as they paid to Elton Brand?

Earlier this summer the Sixers signed Brand (the top free agent out there) to a 5-year $82 million deal.

This week, they signed Iguodala-a career 13 PPG shooting guard to a ridiculous 6-year $80 million deal, which averages out to $16 million per season.

Can you say pissing money away?

Moves like this are what got the Sixers into the mess they were in. Now, they had better hope that Iguodala can do more than dunk and become at least a great defensive player.

This deal is nearly as bad as the max contract that the Magic signed Rashard Lewis to last offseason.

If I were Stefanski, I would have called Iguodala's bluff and allowed him to become a free agent next offseason. When a player like Josh Smith gets $52 million over 5 years-who has a much higher celing than Iguodala you really have to scratch your head over a contract like this.

A Win At Last

2008-08-18T09:30:00.001-07:00

Phillies win a game for Hamels for first time in 6 weeks

Had it not been for Pat Burrell's heroics last night, the Phillies' offense would have screwed up another great start by Cole Hamels.

It's time that we throw the towel in on the "they can't possibly be this bad" theory on the offense. Yes they can be this bad. They are this bad.

They just wrapped up a series against the second-worst team in baseball and managed just 6 runs of offense in three games. The Padres are hardly a juggernaut in the pitching department. They sport the 16th ranked staff in the majors and actually trail the Phillies in team pitching (they are ranked 11th). You can thank the Padres' 28th worst offense for this gift this weekend.

And, it was a gift because the Phillies certainly didn't do much to win this series. In their two wins they had three measly runs and nearly spoiled great starts by both Jamie Moyer and Cole Hamels. Their 5th starter (and yes he's nothing more than a 5) Kyle Kendrick had about as awful a week as you'll ever see out of any of their pitchers. He threw batting practice on Saturday night to a bottom-feeding offense and buried the team deeper than if they were a sunken submarine entrenched in the far depths of The Mariana Trench.

The Phillies' offense is still ranked 11th, but it's really because of their output over the first two months of the season. Forget about the runs they've scored overall; they have a .252 team batting average. That's good for 25th out of 30 teams. This team flat out cannot hit and they strike out more times than a military junta tortures civilians.

That is the reason why their season will go down in flames as we head into the final six weeks of play. It's not because of the pitching staff because Hamels, Moyer, Blanton, and Myers are getting it done right now and when they go 6-7 innings they'll take the weight off the bullpen. I'm ready to write Kyle Kendrick off as a 5-starter that you won't know what you'll get, but that's most teams.

We know what they'll get out of this garbage of an offense and it's a low on-base percentage, lots of strikeouts, and more stranded runners than Cheesecake Factory has...well you know what I'm saying.

Jackson Shines

2008-08-15T09:47:00.000-07:00

DeSean Jackson one of the loan bright spots in the first half

While the Eagles won this game last night, let's face it, what really counted was who played in the first half and they were hideous.

You can spin this however you want and say there was a 58-minute rain delay and that the players were playing in torrential rain. Greg Lewis didn't let that ball go through his hands (that even a mediocre receiver should catch) because of the poor conditions.

It went through his hands because he's a poor player.

McNabb stunk. Westbrook stunk. The line stunk.

The defense was OK, but consider this; they were playing the low-rent Carolina Panthers, whom should be one of the NFC's worst teams this year. And, they faced this Panthers team without Steve Smith on the field.

Sure, Kevin Kolb may have looked like a million bucks, but it was against scrubs.

The star of last night was DeSean Jackson. He had 7 catches for 71 yards and showed that fearlessness that the other receivers not named Curtis clearly lack.

You will get acquainted with Mr. Jackson on special teams this year, but after this season expect to see him emerge as the #1 WR this team doesn't have at this point.

The problem is this team doesn't have a #1 this year. If last night is any indication they're going to need a top 5 defense in order to be any kind of threat to the Cowboys this season, because the Cowboys are the class of the NFC.

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The Phillies get sweep

What else can I say about this team that hasn't been said? It's getting old now and I write basically the same thing over and over again, that everybody else is writing over and over again.

Game after game.

Day after day.

Week after week.

The offense can't produce runs when they get quality pitching and conversely when their pitching blows, the offense doesn't show up.

Jimmy Rollins is a headcase that's the "new TO" and talking his way out of town. The lockerroom is imploding and so it this team's chances for the postseason.

Forget about this team making the postseason. It's not happening unless some divine gift from the Gods in the form of injuries to Santana, Hanley Ramirez, and the other key players to the Mets and Marlins occurs.

I expected them to lose three out of four to the Dodgers, but even this motley crew has exceeded my expectations for how bad they can perform. Now, I'm not sure they can win more than one game against the Padres.

They'll head there tonight. Fortunately for them they don't face Jake Peavy. Then again, they can barely hit against even bottom feeder pitchers anymore.

Jimmy Says FU

2008-08-14T15:03:00.001-07:00

Jimmy Rollins says Philly fans are front-runners

Unless you've been on your dream vacation to a resort in the far east or on a Honeymoon in the Mediterraneon, you've probably heard about Jimmy Rollins' idiotic comment on the Best Damn Sports Show.

To review, Jimmy Rollins said that Philadelphia fans are "front-runners" and they'll support the team when they win and get down on them when they lose.

Sorry Jimmy, but that's not the definition of a front-runner. A front-runner is someone who was a 49ers fan in the 80's, then a Cowboys fans in the 90's, and a Patriots fan today.

Front-runners jump from team to team and if they do happen to get interested in just Philly teams, then they "get interested" when they're on a playoff run. See the bottom-feeding Florida and Colorado Rockies fans for proof of that.

Philadelphia fans will be totally behind players when they play hard and do the right things, but when they're dogging it or taking the proverbial dump, then they get on them. That's not front-running; that's being a passionate fan.

And, Jimmy Rollins then mentioned how Ryan Howard is from St. Louis and that they always support their teams.

WRONG.

St. Louis Cardinals fans might be the biggest sheep I've ever seen in my life. They just sit there in unison like a bunch of sheep and refuse to boo even when their team gets blown out by the Phillies 20-2 like back in June. If you remember that game they just sat their and took it like a guy in a dunking booth. St. Louis fans are a joke compared to Philadelphia fans.

This is rather disturbing because it goes to show you that athletes like Jimmy Rollins are so childish that they can't even deal with being criticized in the form of booing when they play mediocre baseball, which Rollins has been pretty much the entire season.

Jimmy Rollins basically said FU to the Philadelphia fans and I've lost just about all respect for him.

Maybe it's a plow to write his ticket out of town. Maybe he just always felt that way and it's coming out because his season has gone way down hill.

Jimmy doesn't care and many of us don't care if you're with the team much longer.

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The Sixers are on crack

There are about 80 million reasons why I think Ed Stefanski was hitting the crack pipe this week.

Come on, 80 million dollars for Andre Iguodala? You've gotta be kidding me. During his past two seasons he's averaged 19 points a game, but plays the shooting guard position like a tweener. He's good for some dunks and highlight reels, but ultimately will kill the team with his shooting.

I think the team should have traded him and gone after a player like Michael Redd. The Sixers are a shooter away from becoming a real contender in the east and they can certainly do that without Andre Iguodala.

This is the sort of crap that got Billy King into the boat he was in. Billy King was the equivalent of a middle income person in over their head deep in credit card debt. He signed scrubs like Kenny Thomas to large contracts and took in big-money players like Glenn Robinson, Keith Van Horn, and Chris Webber and destroyed the team by hanging onto Allen Iverson and his enormous contract for far too long.

Sixers Looking For a Big Man; Maybe Ratliff?

2008-08-14T11:31:00.000-07:00

It's no secret that the Sixers are looking to add a big man after Jason Smith suffered a torn ACL in Summer League action earlier in the week. The big surprise is one of the names that is surfacing. Former Sixer, and relative fan favorite, Theo Ratliff. The Sixers have not come out and said they are interested in Ratliff, however, Ratliff has made it know that he would love a return to the city of brotherly love.

What do you think?

So Bad

2008-08-13T09:42:00.000-07:00

Phillies waste another excellent start by Hamels

Normally you won't see Cole Hamels' name along with So Taguchi's in the same sentence. They may be on the same team, but they are in completely different stratospheres.

Hamels is one of the game's five best pitchers right now. He's in that class with Johan Santana, Jake Peavy, C.C. Sabathia, and John Lackey. So Taguchi on the other hand is a bottom feeder and an absolute waste of a roster spot.

Why he's on this team is beyond me.

I said it going into this road trip and will say it again. The Phillies will lose three out of four to the Dodgers and possibly get swept. And, they'll win two out of three in San Diego only because they're not facing Jake Peavy.

I have zero confidence in this Phillies team. We're in mid-August and they don't have that ability to constantly find ways to win like they did last year. Last summer they would have found a way to win this game last night. And, they sure as hell didn't have a bum like So Taguchi with a spaghetti arm trying to throw somebody out in the ninth innings.

Right now, the Marlins are the team I'm expecting to win the division.

With yet another offensive stinker last night, Hamels ranks 51st out of 60 pitchers in run support with just over 4 runs a game in support.

Major changes should be in order in this offseason and one of them includes acquiring an offensive catcher and offensive third baseman. They shouldn't stop there though. Signing Mark Texeira as a free agent should be in order and trading Ryan Howard to an AL team for top-notch pitching would go a long ways to making this team a true contender.

Until they do these things expect more of the slop you've been seeing the past two months.

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Is he or isn't he signed?

ESPN is saying that Andre Iguodala and the Sixers are close to inking a 6-year $80 million deal, but the team is mum on it.

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Brodrick Bunkley's house gets robbed and his arsenal is stolen

Sometime between the beginning of training camp and this Saturday, the home of Eagles defensive tackle Brodrick Bunkley was broken into.

Looks like he had a pretty heavy arsenal from what they're saying. Two Desert Eagle .50-caliber handguns, an Armalite rifle, a custom-made .223-caliber rifle, a .45-caliber Glock handgun and ammunition for all of the weapons were stolen.

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Shawn Andrews in hiding?

Apparently the Eagles are keeping Shawn Andrews out of the spotlight. There have been no sightings of him at Lehigh despite the team's claims that he's up there.

Shelled

2008-08-12T09:44:00.000-07:00

Kyle Kendrick gets lit up in 8-6 loss

The Phillies were getting great pitching out of their staff in the past five games, despite splitting their past four games including the two straight shutouts.

They gave up 10 combined runs over that five-game span and Kyle Kendrick had three straight quality starts heading into last night.

So much for streaks and trends. He got absolutely shelled last night, giving up 7 runs and 9 hits in just 3 1/3 innings of work. It was a career-worst start for him in terms of most runs in the least amount of innings in any of his starts.

It was a game of catch-up for the Phils from that point and they came up short in an 8-6 defeat to the Dodgers, who's offense was anything but a world beater this season, that is before Manny got there.

Since Manny Ramirez switched coasts, he's hitting nearly .500 with four homers and 13 RBI.

Cole Hamels will put the Phils on his back today and try to get them back in the W column. He'll take on rookie Clayton Kershaw at 10:10 PM.

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Here's what's doing in Eagles Nation...

McNabb flip-flops on the whole TO saga from two years ago. Now he says he wishes he would have stayed. My, my, my how our opinions flip-flop.

Shawn Andrews is finally in camp, but he's not participating in any drills yet.

Andy Reid is in no rush to get him into a preseason game though.

According to G Cobb the Eagles are working harder than ever on red zone drills. Seems like that offensive futility within the 20's got into Big Red's head.

Now that the Eagles have released Kimo Von Olhoffen, Dan Klecko could very well make the Eagles' opening day roster.

And, looks like Winston Justice is going to be yet another high draft pick who turns out to be a bust for the Eagles in the realm of such greats as Matt McCoy, Quentin Caver, Bobby Williams, and Jerome McDougle.

He's no longer viewed as their future left tackle and if anything will be just a back-up. King Dunlap, their 7th round pick this year is getting a lot of work at left tackle and the team is really high on him.

Bouncing Back?

2008-08-11T09:44:00.000-07:00

Phillies take two straight from Pirates to win the series

Brett Myers had arguably his best start of the season on Saturday night and did something you never do in sports; show up your coach.

In a season where you have your reigning MVP questioning the authority of the manager and then this display on Saturday night it doesn't bode well for the structure inside the clubhouse.

The bottom line is these things can be masked when a team is winning and the Phillies rebounded with a pair of wins over the weekend after a horrific 23 inning drought which saw them get shut out for two straight games, for the first time since 1999.

The Phillies head to the west coast to take on the Dodgers and Padres, two teams they should do well against. The Dodgers' pitching staff isn't anything special and they won't have to face Peavy in San Diego.

These west coast trips are never easy and the next seven days will tell us a lot about this Phillies team. It seemed that they would break out of this two-month long slump many times and then go back to losing three in a row after winning four straight.

After the rebound this weekend they very well could win six of seven or dare I say it implode. Nothing is out of the question at this point.

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Eagles Camp Report

I took in training camp yesterday and was lucky enough to score some VIP passes. Nothing beats being right in the middle of the action during camp.

A few things I noticed. Hank Baskett and L.J. Smith were catching just about everything thrown to them and looked like they were being utilized in downfield drills.

Now, how that translates into the regular season is all speculation. Word is that Baskett will be used a lot in the red zone this year, particularly on fade routes. McNabb never really threw a fade before because he's not a touch passer, but they have made a concerted effort to get that down.

And, L.J. Smith looked like a million bucks out there-or five million if you count his salary. He looks like a completely different player this year and maybe this will be the year he breaks out.

The major thing we saw yesterday is Asante Samuel's return to the practice field for the first time. They were busting his chops before he stepped onto the field, but he took it in stride. And, Lito Sheppard looked like Deoin Sanders out there in one-on-one drills.

Rock Bottom

2008-08-09T13:46:00.001-07:00

Phillies go 23 innings without a run in second straight shutout at home

For the second game in a row the Phillies have been shut out at home.

It's now a crisis. This marks the first time since 1999 that they've been shut out in two straight games.

1999. They didn't even manage to pull off a feat like this during the Bowa era.

Our good ole friend Les Walrond did it again, by giving up the only two runs of the game and earning the Phillies a loss.

While Walrond shouldn't deserve most of the blame because this offense is an absolute abomination, he shouldn't be in the majors either, and is a consequence of the mindset of this organization.

If the Phillies had an effective Minor League scouting system like say the Marlins then you wouldn't see a Les Walrond being thrown to the wolves in the heat of a pennant race. Added to that, the ownership wouldn't be forced to skimp on salaries of pitchers and bench players if they could constantly bring in new, young talent.

With that said, this team is in a tailspin. They may be in first place, but it's only because the teams behind them are mediocre. The Phillies are not a good team right now. And, you can point to a few reasons. One of them is Jimmy Rollins. Another is Aaron Rowand.

Rollins isn't playing at 60% of the level he was at last year. Also, I can't fault them for not signing Rowand to that ridiculous $12 million annual salary, but it should have never gotten that far. He should have been extended back in 2006.

End of story.

Utley and Howard deserve much of the blame too. They have overall good numbers, but they are chronically inconsistent and put up numbers in bunches. And, when your best players do that, you see erratic play or in the case of the past two days, you witness some brutal baseball.

Brett Myers will take on Ian Snell tonight at 7:05.

Westbrook and Birds Agree On New Deal; Sixers Smith Tears ACL

2008-08-08T15:49:00.001-07:00

Ain't this the life of a Philly fan? Finally, the Birds agree to give Brian Westbrook a new deal, it's supposidly worth an extra 13 Million in BWest's pocket. Awesome right? Then word comes in that the Sixers promising young big man Jason Smith has torn his ACL at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.

First off, the particulars of the Westbrook deal are not in yet, according to many sources the deal was about 80% done last night and the Eagles shored up the loose heads this morning. Like I said before many are speculating that the deal will pay Westbrook around 13 Million dollars more. It's a great job by the Birds, sort of swallowing their pride here, getting the deal done. So now everyones happy, except for Lito, but you all know how that stories going to end, we just don't know when.

As for Jason Smith, according to reports he planted his foot down to go up for a lay up and thats how it happened, a "freak thing," is what the Sixers are calling it. It's presumed that Smith will be out most of the next campaign, however the Sixers would not speculate on a timetable. The Sixers also said they were going for a second opinion sometime this week.

No Support

2008-08-08T09:37:00.000-07:00

Phillies' offense plays disappearing act once again with Hamels on the mound

Cole Hamels must cringe when he watches the offense from the dugout during his starts.

Look at these pathetic numbers:

3-0
3-2
2-0
3-2
1-0

These were all losses in low-run games when he's given up 3 or less runs, and two of those losses came in his past four starts.

It's a chronic pattern with this team when he pitches. It seems when they get in close low-scoring games with him on the hill the offense just disappears. Kyle Kendrick on the other hand seems to always get run support.

There's no rhyme or reason for it, but maybe the offense does "take the day off" when he's pitching a good game.

Chronically complacent is how I'd describe the entire organization and the team. Howard Eskin brought up a great point about the game notes that the organization provides to the media following games. Whenever they have a sellout that is the first thing they point out in their game notes. That is not by accident; someone in that front office is putting that out there. And, it is proof that the ownership and front office are concerned with selling tickets and selling food.

Look at the marketing campaigns this team has. They show people stuffing their faces and players hitting homeruns. It's indicative of why this team is stuck in the pattern they're in.

If they're hitting homeruns in bunches then they're great. But, when they swing for the fences and miss like they have done for the most part in the past two months they flat out suck.

That falls on Charlie Manuel and the coaching staff. The hitters on this team are too talented to be striking out in bunches and leaving 15-20 runners on base almost every day and night.

For guys like Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Pat Burrell, and Shane Victorino to come up with four measly hits in a key game of the season is offensive.

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Eagles kick off the preaseason tonight

There is one player I care to evaluate in tonight's matchup against the Eagles and it's DeSean Jackson.

Word is he's catching on strong and has a chance to not only make his mark on the return game, but on offense as well.

The Eagles' second round pick in the draft has that rare game-changing ability that is the difference between a short gain and six points. He has sub 4.30 speed and can leap and catch with the best of them. When he develops, think Steve Smith. That's if Andy Reid and his crack team of coaches can let him do his thing and develop him right.