School's out for... Chanukah

In honor of the end of the fall semester I have decided to hand Philadelphia it's report card for all of 2008. My grades have just been posted and while some resemble the Sixers more so than the Phillies, they all count towards my GPA, just as every one of our beloved teams (except the Soul, Wings, and Kixx) represent our beloved city - Philadelphia. It has been a hell of a year, with many ups and downs. While it is safe to say this for just about any year, it's hard to top '08.

First and foremost, more foremost than any team I have ever rooted for, are the World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies.

Offense: The Phils were 3rd in runs, 1st in home runs, 2nd in RBI, 3rd in stolen bases (although 1st in percentage), and 2nd in wins in the entire National League. Add in playoff numbers and it is safe to say that the offense would probably be number one in just about every category. With the most potent infield in the game, Howard, Utley and Rollins are a formidable trio. When one is not hitting, the others are. In most cases however, you will find it hard to get around all three of them in one game. Pat Burrell finally cemented his place in left field for Phillies eternity. Regardless of where he signs, he will be a lifelong Phillie and a fan favorite. More to come on Pat the Glove in another post. Grade: A+

Defense: Adding Pedro Feliz was one of the least publicized moves of the offseason. But what it did for this team was more many can understand. We added the best defensive third baseman in the national league. Add that two now 2-time gold glove winner Jimmy Rollins and one of the best fielding and smartest second basemen in the game in Chase Utley and you have a pretty leather-y infield. Even the DH with a glove on his hand picked up his defense in the final quarter of the season. Pat Burrell may not be fast, but he lets singles be singles. He doesn't turn them into doubles. Oh yeah and he lead Major League Baseball with 12 outfield assists. Boo-ya. Shane Victorino added a gold glove to his resume, and Jayson Werth proved to be a starting right fielder, by no means an easy task. Carlos Ruiz showed in the World Series why batting average is overrated, by calling some of the best games that anyone has ever seen out of Cole Hamels, not to mention an unheard of like Joe Blanton. The Phils finished 3rd in the NL in fielding percentage and 3rd in all of baseball as well. Grade: A-

Pitching: 4th in ERA, 2nd in saves, 1st in blown saves, 3rd in shutouts, and 1st in overall bullpen. Pitching was supposed to be the problem wasn't it? Only having two proven starters in injury plagued Cole Hamels and Senior Citizen Jamie Moyer while relying on a head case to make the switch back from closer to starter, rookie semi-sensation Kyle Kendrick and... the pitcher who must not be named...

...

... fine, I'll say it. Adam Eaton (Lightning crashes). And here come some more parenthesis... (Look, Adam Eaton is a nice enough guy. To bash Gillick on this signing is not fair. Every general manager makes brilliant decisions and some that couldn't be more idiotic. To boo Adam Eaton is not fair. He did not hold out for the most money that he could find. He did not turn down teams offering him money left and right. He was sort of sitting around when the Phillies shoved an unprecedented 24 million dollars in his face. I'm sure he said something along the lines of, "wait you want me to do what with that ball? Pitch it? In a starting rotation? In Philadelphia? For HOW much money? OK sure, but just remember, YOU asked ME." This is not a bad guy. Anyone expecting him to be even a competent fifth starter was expecting too much. This man even got shelled in Single-A ball. Nice guy and I hope he enjoys his paycheck, as long as he is enjoying it far away from the Phillies)

To continue, an unbalanced closer, and the worst bullpen in the league in 2007. Add it all up and... the best rotation in the National League. World Series Champs. Wahoo! Grade: A+

2008 Grade: A+(plus)+(plus)+(plus)+(plus)+(plus) in honor of Ralphie's Red Ryder Carbine Action Two-Hundred Shot Range Model Air Rifle BB Gun Essay

Philadelphia Flyers. The worst team in the league from 2006-2007 couldn't even win at being the worst which is why they received the number 2 draft pick instead of the number 1. We all knew what to expect after that short lived playoff birth in 05-06. We saw that our defenseman pretty much forgot how to skate and that our big signing, Peter Forsberg, was a diva with a "boot-fitting" problem, something unbeknownst to, oh say anyone who has ever watched hockey. Forget about that lost season. It was necessary to bring in the talent that got us to where are now. After an improbable run to the Eastern Conference Finals where we got shelacked by the Penguins, we knew what we had. 2008 has been kind to the Flyers. The rebuilding process is supposed to take a few years, not one year.

Offense: The most consistent power play in the NHL is lethal. Add Simon Gagne, back with vengeance (he can keep the 07-08 season's motto since he didn't really get to use it that much), Captain Mike Richards, ankle-blood-clot-free Kimo Timonen, and newfound MVP Jeff Carter to the equation, they are pretty much a given to score on the power play. The problem comes in the form of 5-on-5 ice time. This team gets its goals, but is pretty reliant on the power play. This can become a problem in the playoffs where the referees are less likely to take over a game. They let the players play, thus subtracting the Flyers main scoring threat. Grade: B+

Defense: Inconsistent? Surprisingly no. The first month of the season saw the Flyers learning how to play with speedster Luca Sbisa and without Ryan Parent or Randy Jones. Throw in Andy Alberts and take away part of the team's heart in Derian Hatcher, the team was out of sync defensively. Trading insane, wanting to hit anything that moves, forgetting that talent is supposed to be used, former first round pick Steve Downie for young defensive stud, Matt Carle, really breathed some life into the Flyers D. The reason that the Flyers lead the league in shorthanded goals is because of their defense-first approach. Worry about stopping the other team and our own chances will come. Richards is playing like the penalty killer that we have always known he is, Gagne is back from injury, and Carter recently learned how to commit his body to staying behind the blue line. Grade: B+

Goaltending: Biron has stepped up his game when he needs to. He seems to defeat his childhood rival team in the Montreal Canadians, and when the going is good, Biron is a steady goaltender. Nittymaki is an above average backup, making up for the average goaltender that Biron is. He can step in and easily dominate the Atlanta Thrashers, and when it comes to real NHL teams he can compete too. Grade: B-

2008 Grade: B

Oh those Eagles. It's always something with them isn't it?

Offense: Donavon McNabb. Based on what we have seen from Five, it is apparent that he might be a little crazier than we all thought. Sure the benching against the Ravens scared him into becoming the QB we've been used to seeing for a decade, but why does an all-pro quarterback need to be scared into losing his job to save himself? When on, McNabb is as good as a passer as he has ever been. He threads the needle and if need be he can run a little bit too.

Westbrook is the monster that we have come to expect out of Route 36 when healthy. We all know that. He can block, run, catch, and apparently run down 98 yard interceptions too. The wideouts don't boast big names besides rookie sensation The Sean Jackson, yet they are not the problem. They get open and give McNabb the opportunity to make plays. The tight end position has a week-to-week success rate. The one thing that never changes is my heart stopping every time LJ Smith runs with the ball... does he not threaten to fumble after every catch? The O-Line seems to be missing Shawn Andrews, but John Runyan has given the Eagles a reason to bring him back for one last contract and maybe another after that. But for the love of God, can we get a real fullback? Grade: B-

Defense: A deep secondary forces the opponent to run in situations where they might pass. Our run defense has been nothing short of dominant for the most part. Removing Omar Gaither for Akeem Jordan has improved the run defense even more. Maybe that 5th round draft pick who was supposed to be the heir apparent to Jeremiah Trotter didn't pan out too well. Lito Shepard has not been a distraction. He is not happy yet has been as professional as a former pro-bowler can be in his situation. He bears no ill will towards Asante Samuel. I'm guessing that he will follow up this season with a starting job on some mid-range team and he will probably do pretty decently. Pro bowl numbers? No, but numbers worthy of a starting position. Trent Cole may not be on pace for as many sacks as he had last year (12.5) but he has not lost an ounce of ferocity in his game. Darren Howard lost some weight and has contributed 8 sacks to the overall 3rd best defense in the NFL. They seem to have dropped that "bend but don't break" label too. Grade: A-

Special Teams: Looks like it's time to draft a new kicker. David Akers is definitely average, and is above average on some days, but his contract does not warrant keeping someone around who does not have the ability to kick a 50 yarder. Our return game is above average on both levels. Desean Jackson needs to learn that taking 8 yards is better than scrambling backwards and eventually falling forward for 2 yards. I respect that he wants to do more than we have become accustomed to in Philly, but a mediocre return is always better than trying to do too much and ending up with nothing. Quintin Demps is a major improvement in the kicking return category. Grade: B

2008 Grade: C Why is this letter lower than ALL of the grades so far? Not that this question needs to be answered by anyone who has watched this team play all season, but this team has not had it together for 2008. Tying the Bengals, benching an all-pro QB, blowing a 14 point lead over the now inept Redskins, losing the game on the goal line to the Kyle Orton lead Bears, and week after week of red zone failures leads to a C grade for the year. And that's being nice.

And the forgotten team. The team that fans forget to buy tickets to enjoy. That fans forget to watch on TV. Why? Because there are no results.

Offense: After getting semi-excited about that first round playoff exit last year, where the games played in Philadelphia were not even closed to being sold out, the team has taken a gigantic step backward. Signing Elton Brand to a 5 year mega-deal and locking up Iguodala for the prime years of his unproductiveness looks like it will only keep us in the basement for another few years. Elton Brand is slow and it looks like out of shape. Anyone who gets injured twice in his first 25 games with the team is not worth a hefty 16 million dollars a year for five years. And for those that argue and say that Iguodala's 4 points in a win over Milwaukee is fine because it led to a win - well it isn't even close to being fine. Paying that much money to someone who shoots 2-14 and cannot get to the line in a win over a bottom 10 team only points towards disaster. Oh and Sammy Dalembert is completely untradable now. Grade: D

Defense: Iggy's defense has shown spurts of life here and now but again, it is not enough to warrant his contract. While only allowing 94.6 points a game, a solid 8th in the league, the team isn't shutting down when it needs to. Sammy Dalembert averaged 2.3 blocks a game a year ago, now that is down a whole block to 1.3. His rebounding is down by more than 2 a game and his points per game have been cut in half, just to keep with the trend of regression. While the beginning of '08 looked nice for Sammy, his shortcomings this year may keep him from ever really breaking out. Grade: C

2008 Grade: C- The team moved in the right direction, but their inability to take another step forward has bad implications for this team. One coach and a star player down less than two months into the season and the few fans that actually care may be in a state of apathy by midseason.

So long 2008. You have been the best sports year of my life thanks to the Phillies. A good quote to look forward to from Jimmy Rollins, ""You don't repeat a World Series," Rollins said. "You don't repeat a game. You don't repeat a pitch. You don't really repeat a swing. You just try to do it again. And that's different."

Lets hope for a "different" kind of year in 2009.

Flyers 5-Game Win Streak Ends

The Flyers lost tonight on Montreal to the Canadiens 5-2. As much as you would like to win every game and try to win every game, that is not always the case as the Flyers were fighting from behind all night long.

But, as I have said before, this Flyers team has a history of being streaky. Hopefully this is not the start of one of those horrible win less streaks.

Lidge, Manuel and Gillick win TYIB Awards

Well, along with the Phils being crowned World Champs, there is some justice in this league in terms of end the season awards. 

The Phillies had three of their members win "This Year In Baseball" awards, which are voted on by the fans.

Brad Lidge was named the closer of the year and Charlie Manuel and Pat Gillick won the manager of the year and executive of the year respectively.

I do not know if this is making up for the fact that Lidge should have won the NL Cy Young Award and Manuel should have been named the NL Manager of the Year, but we will take what we can get. 

In the end, all that matters is that we are WORLD F*****' CHAMPIONS!!!

Brand Injury

Elton Brand will be out for the next month due to a nasty fall to floor in last nights game against the Bucks in which the Sixers did end up winning 93-88. 

A Pro-Bowl Snub

Congratulations to Brian Dawkins and Asante Samuel of the Eagles for making the Pro-Bowl. Both candidates were well deserving of their positions on the roster, their was one Eagle however who was unjustly left off. Quintin Mikell has been a steady anchor in the Eagles defensive back field for the entire season. He's second on the team, only to Stewart Bradley, in tackles with 82. He's also second on the team in interceptions with 3. The only player Mikell trails in that category, is Pro-Bowler, Asante Samuel. Mikell also has 2 forced fumbles and 2 sacks to add to his record as well. If you compare Mikell's numbers to Dawkins' numbers you would have to give the edge to Mikell. Dawkins has 17 less tackles and only 1 interception, however Dawkins does have 4 forced fumbles to his credit. Perhaps more significant comparisons can be found when matching up Mikell against the starting Pro-Bowl safeties for the NFC.  The first safety is Nick Collins of the Green Bay Packers, Collins recorded 65 tackles thus far and has 5 interceptions, Collins however, has not recorded a sack and only has 1 forced fumble. The other safety is Adrian Wilson of the Arizona Cardinals. Wilson has put up a solid 65 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 2 interceptions and 2 forced fumbles. Mikell's numbers stack up against any safety in the NFC, it's a shame he had to be left off the roster, however with any luck hopefully Mikell and all the Eagles will still be playing ball in February.   

Catching Up

With finals in full force for me this week at Ithaca College, it has been rather hard to post everything that has been going on. Well, I have a bit of a break now and I figured it is time to get caught up in the AWESOME world of Philadelphia sports.

1. Raul Ibanez deal with the Phillies has been finalized

2. Chase Utley's rehab is going great and he has some advice for kids on the appropriateness of profanity

3. This is pretty old...but Pat Burrell had a feeling it would not work out with the Phillies and him this offseason

4. Randy Jones is not coming back to the lineup just yet

5. Mo Cheeks is classy as always

That Pat Burrell post is coming. Just wait until I am done with finals. It is going to be a great and nostalgic post of "Pat the Bat." 

Also, I think this beats Matt Stairs quote by a long shot. Chase Utley informs young people on the appropriateness of cursing. The bold is the part I am emphasizing. It is not like his tone or whatever changed.

Utley said, " 'That was definitely an emotional day that we all had. That drive down Broad Street to the park was one of the best days of my life. I imagine for a lot of Phillies fans it was the same. I could have used different words to express myself. At the time, I didn't. I tell all kids not to use that word. IF THEY'RE 29 AND THEY WIN THE WORLD SERIES, I THINK THEY CAN SAY THAT. But I definitely would say to all the kids out there, 'Kids, it's a bad word. Don't sa it.' And I'm dead serious.' "

Remember kids, if you are 29 and win a World Series, curse away. But otherwise, keep it to yourself. 

Flyers Remain Hot

The Flyers continued their white hot winning streak against the Colorado Avalanche. The Flyers defeated the Avalanche 5-2 to improve their record to 17-4-3 since Oct. 23 and are currently on a 10 game home winning streak. The Flyers scoring contributers included Mike Knuble, Mike Richards, Joffery Lupul, Simon Gagne and obviously Jeff Carter, who netted his 22nd goal of the season from a beautiful pass from Gagne to complete the Flyers league leading 11th shorthanded goal of the season. Not to be forgotten is Kimmo Timonen who also added a pair of assists. The Flyers next action comes on Thursday against the Canadiens at 7 p.m.

B-Dawk and Asante Make Pro Bowl

It was announced today that Brian Dawkins and Asante Samuel were named to the NFC Pro Bowl roster.

For those who do not know, I am not the biggest Asante fan. I feel that corners should not be paid as much as he was and I think last night was his first defensive touchdown. Yeah...that's right...the one he almost pulled a "DeSean" on.

As far as Dawkins goes, good for him. A lot of people at one point or another this season have given him a lot of crap for "not having it" anymore. With his heart and determination, he has proved everybody wrong. He makes me proud to be an Eagles fan.

Good Old-Fashioned Ass Whooping...

albeit against the Cleveland Browns. Still it is always nice to see your team win 30-10 on the national stage.

The whole offense, from Donovan McNabb to Brian Westbrook to even Greg Lewis had a productive game once again. And the defense, even though it was against the Browns, had a tremendous game as well.

I am in the middle of papers and stuff for finals. I am predicting less than 10 hours of sleep for me this week. 

However, I want to touch on a specific part of tonight's game in a post to be posted later on. That's it for now. Stay tuned.

Park Thinks He Is Going To Start

According to the Korean Times, newest Phillies pitcher Chan-Ho Park thinks he is a going to be a member of this years starting rotation.

" 'I was a little worried about the Citizen Bank Park, the home of the Phillies, which is hitter-friendly, but as they considered me a starter, I signed with Phildelphia,' " he said during a press conference in Seoul on today.

So, according to Park, he is going to be a starter. I guess the Derek Lowe scenario is history and I guess Kyle Kendrick/Adam Eaton/J.A. Happ/Whoever Else are not going to be starters. Of course, this is according to Park.

So, here is...according to Park...what the potential 2009 Phillies starting rotation will look like:

1. Cole Hamels

2. Brett Myers

3. Jamie Moyer

4. Joe Blanton

5. Chan Ho Park

You make of this what you want. I still do not like the signing of Park. I would have rather have had Lowe or a new found Kendrick as a starter. Remember, Lowe and Kendrick are sinker ball pitchers. Citizens Bank Park, like our heavily informed Park mentioned, is a hitters ball park. A sinker ball pitcher, especially for this team, is always nice to have in the rotation. I will leave it at that though.

Taking Naps Are Bad...When You Do That...You Miss Phillies Signings

OK...so it is finals week here at Ithaca College and I have been lured into poorly timed naps. While I was being lazy and sleeping, the Phillies have made some moves.

A. They Re-Signed Jamie Moyer...YES!

B. They signed Chan-Ho Park...ehh.

The Moyer deal is worth two years with the amount of money not disclosed yet. I am surprised that it is two years. I know that the Phils were very hesitant to do that, but I guess they gave in to what Moyer wanted. Quite frankly, until this guy's arm falls off, I do not care how long you sign him for. He is a left handed pitcher in a rotation that has Cole Hamels as the only other lefty. Also, when the umps give Moyer the edges around the strike zone, he is masterful.

As far as Park goes, he signed for a one year deal worth $2.5 million with incentives that could eventually rise his pay day to $5 million.

We saw Park in the post season and he was nothing special. That guy Kuo was a better reliever than he was on the Dodgers. I really hope he does not screw up the young, tremendous bullpen that we saw last season in Phillies pinstripes. 

So, those are the signings I slept through. Woe is me. 

I got to go back to studying now and just to let everyone know, I am working on a big Pat Burrell post that I started the day the Phils signed Raul Ibanez. However, I have not had that much time to work on it. At the latest, it will be up by sometime this weekend. That is at the latest though. To me, the timing really does not matter. Burrell has cemented himself as such a legend in Philadelphia sports that hopefully we will be talking about Pat the Bat for generations to come. 

Pat Burrell

Many Phillies fans are mad, upset, sad, the list can continue on the somber emotions being felt over the release of Pat Burrell. The question that I ask is why? Pat Burrell was a 10 year tenured veteren in Philadelphia, no easy accomplishment by any means in the bussiness of sports now-a-days. Burrell also was a "Met killer" which will go over very well with Phillies fans. Not to be over looked is the fact he was a key component to the Phillies development of this core of guys, their playoff run, and championship. I can see why in a bussiness and a town of "what have you done for us lately" where that would buy you a lot of slack.

If you judge Burrell solely on numbers, a career .257 average, 251 career home runs, 485 slugging percentage, and 367 on base percentage, you have a solid ball player.

Pat Burrell was the 1st overall pick in the 1999 MLB Draft. In 2002 Burrell had his break-out year hitting .282 with 37 homeruns and 116 RBIs, Burrell would never touch those numbers again until 2005 where he hit .281 with 32 home runs and 117 RBIs. Burrell would never eclipse 100 RBI besides those 2 years in a Phillies uniform. 

It would be fair to say that Pat Burrell never had any "bad" seasons (as long as he was healthy). His worst statistical season was in 2000 where he hit .260 with 18 home runs and 79 RBIs in 111 games. Most Phillies fans would agree, when Burrell struggled, it was painful.

Let me conclude by saying that I am not happy that Pat Burrell is gone, I'm simply not saddened by it. Burrell put up averege numbers, for a player that should not be average. The first pick in the draft and a 6-year 50 million dollar contract quite frankly are unacceptable. The Phillies did not lose a star player by losing Pat Burrell, they lost a solid bat, a good arm in the field (although sub-par feilding skills), and an overall nice guy.

Sixers 1-0 Under DiLeo

Elton Brand had a great game, but I am still not sold that this could be a possible turn around. A 104-89 win against the now 4-17 Wizards at the Wachovia Center is not very convincing. Stats do not matter to me in this game. As a matter of fact, the overall play of the team does not matter to me in this game. The Wizards, believe it or not, are worse than the Sixers.

Start defeating higher caliber teams and do so on a consistent basis. I am not off the bandwagon by any means. I am a Sixers fan to the end. But, one win is not good enough, obviously.

And...I still believe canning Maurice Cheeks was a mistake. It was not his fault the team was doing poorly. I do not even think it was the fault of Ed Stefanski. I truly believe this team has the capability to beat you with speed and with a good half court offense. They just were not clicking and that is the fault of the players. I will leave it at that.

Flyers defeat Penguins

The Flyers took care of their interstate rivals today at the Wach, defeating the Penguins in a route, 6-3.

The Orange and Black are 12-1-3 in their last 16 games. Hopefully these guys can keep the ball rolling and continue to pick up wins.

In the game, Mike Knuble scored twice, while Mike Richards and Jeff Carter both collected three points. Man, those guys are just awesome. Not to mention, Kimmo Timonen handed out four assists.

All in all, it was a great day for the Flyers...

The question is, can the Sixers, a new coach in the place, get on any sort of similiar Wachovia Center roll?

Phillies Sign Raul Ibanez

After the Yankees signed C.C. Sabathia and the Mets brought in Francisco Rodriguez and J.J. Putz, the Phillies make their own acquisition in the signing of a left-fielder.

According to reports, the Phils have signed free-agent outfielder Raul Ibanez to a $30 million deal over three years.

Ibanez will be the new everyday left-fielder, which means Pat Burrell will be somewhere else next season.

Our newest player, who was a Mariner last season, hit .293 with 23 homers, 110 RBIs, a .358 on-base percentage and a .472 slugging percentage.

However, he is a left handed bat, which does make this lineup overloaded in lefties and lacking righties. 

Make of this signing what you want. Personally, I wanted Burrell back. I really feel that even though he was not the greatest defensive player and he was slow on the bases, he was a right handed power bat who hit home runs and drove in runs. Left handed pitchers, unless Ibanez can hit lefties, will have a field day with us this season. Left handed relievers will be able to be brought in at will during the late innings.

I am sorry, but so far, Ruben Amaro Jr. has been very sub par as general manager. Sure, it is early and we have not played yet. I will still give him a chance. But, on paper he has not improved the team (maybe this guy's overall numbers are better but like I said, he is left handed). 

Just do not look at the fact that left handed pitchers will have an easier time, but think about how the lineup will have trouble being broken up considering all of the left handed batters. I wonder what Charlie Manuel thinks about this move. I really do. His job is much harder now.

But like I said, enough giving Amaro flak. Let's see how it plays out.

Random Thoughts

A different type of post this morning. Rather than a specific topic to be discussed, I'll be going on a rambling tangent of sorts.

- I didn't get to watch the Flyers tonight, as I was attending a post-funeral for Josh Uram, father of Dave. Before I go on with this post, I just want to say that Josh will be greatly missed. He was a great man, doctor, father, and community man.

- Having said that, I watched the replay at 1:30 in the AM. The Flyers showed real character coming back from a referee-induced 5-1 deficit last night. While the first few goals could have been saved by Nittymaki, the refs did their best to ensure a 'Canes victory. Midway through the second, just after the Flyers made it look like this could be a semi-interesting game with a Hartnell deflection goal, the refs decided to turn a blind eye to any cheap shots taken by the Hurricanes, and instead punished the Flyers - and heavily. After three fights broke out on the ice, Aaron Asham was slapped with an instigation penalty for his fight with Scott Walekr and Andrew Alberts was given two penalties for roughing Scott Walker. This all resulted in a 5-on-3 advantage for the Hurricanes. After former Flyer Joni Pitkanen scored on the 5-on-3, Eric Staal decided to show up to the NHL. After taking most of the first quarter of the season off, he poked in his second goal of the night on a four minute Carolina Power Play, to go along with an assist. The third period, was quite a different story. Hartnell played like a man with something to prove and skated all over the 'Canes for a hat trick. Adding goals were Scottie Upshall and Simon Gagne. Richards and Gags scored in the shootout after a scoreless overtime to give the Flyers their biggest comeback victory in team history. This shows how scary this team can be if referees don't make every effort to give away the game -although anyone who watched the playoffs last year knows that the NHL has a bias against the Flyers.

-Terrell Owens has decided that Tony Romo and Jason Witten are in together on a plot to keep the ball from TO. They are devising plays together when they share a room on roadtrips. Romo is deliberately throwing the ball to Witten even though TO is open. I could spend the time coming up with a few witty lines to make sense of how moronic this is, but it's just not worth my time. If you have anything clever enough to say on this subject, leave it in the comments.

-The Eagles appear to have a fair shot to make the playoffs. If they can win their final three games they stand a fair chance at grabbing the final playoff spot. And as the Giants proved last year, a hot streak late in the season means anything can happen. And with the potential that this team has, they could be very scary. Key word there: Potential.

-The Mets receieved J.J. Putz in a three-team-trade. This now means that they have two closers. Putz will play the role of set-up man in the eighth, while K-Rod will close out ball games. The Mets really improved their main priority thus far in the offseason - their bullpen. Although the Phillies still had the best bullpen in the league last year and I see no reason why that should change. With the resigning of Burrell, all signs point towards an even stronger season from the Phightins.

-The Panthers are asking for a first rounder, a top prospect, and an everyday player for 24 year old defenseman Jay Bouwmeester. This is a bit ridiculous in my eyes. Maybe a prospect and an everyday player, or a first rounder and everyday player. But for a defenseman who is performing way below the standards he has previously set for himself, the Panthers should consider being a bit more lenient in their demands.

-Trivia Question: What is the Carolina Hurricanes mascot's name? Answer at the end. (The answer is obviously ridiculous)

-Have you watched the Sixers play recently? While I am trying not to be too critical until 25 games into the season (we're at 22 right now), things are looking less than inspiring. Elton Brand seems to play his own game, and the four other players on the court play a different game. There is no cohesiveness. Of course when Iguodala is on the court the formula is Brand playing his own game, Iggy playing his own game, and the other three players playing a different game. Iggy needs to reevaluate his game and fast. Soon it will be too late to change the inevitable first round loss to the Pistons/Celtics coming from our 7th or 8th place seeding.

-I don't know why ESPN is even wasting Bottom Line space by talking about a possible Arena Football League season cancellation. No one watches,  no one cares, thus no one wants to read about it on the bottom line. Hell, I'd rather read the same "Yankees and C.C. Sabathia agree to terms on a 7-year 161 million dollar deal" announcement over and over then waste my time being tricked into reading about the AFL.

-Sean Avery is funny. All he did was give the NHL press.

-LeBron James is 6 foot 8, 273 pounds according to ESPN on Wednesday night. This man played wide reciever in high school. Can you imagine a receiver of that size going across the middle? He might be a better receiver than he is basketball player. I can't imagine that is possible, but the thought is just plain scary.

-Pitt basketball is number 3 in the nation, and no one is really caring to notice. Continue to ignore us and we'll somehow sneak our way into the tourney as a #1 seed.

-The Phillies traded former '04 second round pick Jason Jarimillo for former big-league Pirates catcher Ronnie Paulino. Both are young, both haven't panned out. Maybe a change of scenery will help.

-Cole Hamels is completely justified in calling the Mets chokers. Any Mets fan who disagrees is not being truthful about their ballclub.

-I love Scott Hartnell.

-Trivia Answer: Stormy the Ice Hog

Hartnell...Where ya Been?

I was in my house with a few of my friends getting updates over the phone. Tim Hindin receives the ESPN update texts and that is how we were following the game. The first one I heard was 3-1 Canes. The second one I heard was 4-1 Canes. The third one I heard was 5-1 Canes. Conceding a loss was what I was ready to do.  

But then I heard 5-3 Canes in the third period. Hmm...maybe a comeback brewing? Then I heard 5-4 Canes. Is this possible? Then I heard 5-5 tie. F***ers! They do this all of the time. They get down but they fight back. I love it, but if they did not give up those goals we would not be in a "have to comeback situation." But, it was well worth it. 

Scott Hartnell had three goals in the contest for a hat trick. My boy Scottie Upshall scored a goal and Simon Gagne scored a goal.  Overtime was scoreless, but they won a shootout. They actually won a shootout. It must be raining. Well...it was, but you know what I mean. They scored two, while Antero Nittymaki stopped all that came his way.  

The final score was 6-5 Flyers over the Canes at the Wach in a shootout, in one of the most historic comebacks in Flyers history. 

Fit for a wacky game, the Flyers wore their road white uniforms instead of their normal black home uniforms or orange alternates. It was because the Carolina Hurricanes, who the Orange and Black have played more than a deck of cards in the past couple of weeks, had made another trip to the Wachovia Center. It was just a night to change it up. We fans saw too much of the same uniform. Weird that they did this...yes. But does it matter...no. 

What mattered is this equaled the greatest comeback in Flyers history as they were down 5-1 in the third. It also mattered because it gave the boys in Orange and Black two points.  All in all, for the fans, great night at the Wach. Let's keep this thing rolling.

A Sad Loss

The reason the posts have been so brief the past couple of days is because "South Broad Street" has sadly lost a member of its immediate family. 

Before, I was not sure if this was the appropriate setting to let this tragedy be known. However, I realized it is OK to let this be known.

My Father, Josh Uram, sadly passed away at 49 years old late Sunday afternoon due to what doctors are calling a fatal arrhythmia. In other words, this could not be foreseen and nothing could be done about it. 

It happened shortly after the Eagles game, where the Birds upset the Giants.

Dad was a wonderful man, who loved his family, friends and people. He was an extremely hard worker and did his job, being a oral surgeon, to the fullest everyday. 

He had several hobbies, one of which was watching and going to Philly sports games with his family. Even though he grew up in Pittsburgh and as a Steelers, Pirates and Penguins fan, Dad introduced me to Philly sports back in the early 90s with the Phillies. 

Of course, as time moved on, my passion for this grew. 

The last Philadelphia sports game my Dad ever went to was Game 5 of this year's World Series. For those of you who do not know the story, I came home for the game and went with him. Obviously, we all know what happened with the rain. I had to go back to school, but my younger brother, Jake, went to the resumption of the game two days later.

The last Philadelphia sporting event my Father ever went to was Game 5 of the 2008 World Series when Brad Lidge striked out Eric Hinske to win the World Series and be crowned World Champions. He went with both of his boys.

Sadly and unfortunately, Dad never knew about "South Broad Street." I wanted to wait until more people started to read and I figured he might find out about it on his own anyway. However, if he would of known about it, he would have been reading it all of the time. He loved the work I did and always wanted more. I am sorry that I did not tell him initially.

Although, I know that his spirit is everywhere and that he is reading this blog now. In his memory and honor, "South Broad Street" will go on in full force. He would have wanted that. I hope that somewhere...where ever he may be...that he is enjoying the work done on this blog.

I will always miss my Dad. I love him. So, I just wanted to say this one last thing. Dad, this is for you.

Latest Updates

Alright, today was another hectic day. So, here are some more links for updates. Expect things to be the way they were possibly tomorrow or Friday and definitely Saturday.

-The Sixers lost at home to the Cavs tonight 101-93.

-Phillies, Pirates swap catching prospects; Amaro says it is to add depth, not swipe at Coste

The Big Names Are Not Always the Biggest Moves

If we look back to last year at this time, what had the Phillies done to improve their team? First they allowed Aaron Rowand and his leadership to go San Francisco where the Giants showed why they are one of the worst-run franchises in sports (see Zito, Schmidt...). They decided that Jayson Werth, someone who had cracked 100 games just once in his big league career, a year in which he batted .234, would be starting in right field. The other starter in right field was to be Brett Favre look-alike, Geoff Jenkins, who in the previous season hit .255, his worst average since oh-two. They traded away quite possibly the fastest man in the major leagues in Michael Bourn to the Astros. In return? We received a closer who had lost his job three times in the past year, someone known for his inopportune ability to give up a big home run (i.e. Albert Pujols) in Brad Lidge. Sounded perfect for Philly at the time - a city known to get on a player the second something goes wrong. Along with a former star-closer, we received some utility man - a baseball player with a hefty blonde beard.

(Nothing is wrong with a healthy blonde beard... over 40 days long thanks to the Flyers improbable playoff run. Let's hope this year's is longer.)

The Angels signed Tori Hunter to an enormous contract worth 90 mil over 5 years. If a percentage of that money is for his leadership, then I applaud them. If not... well... enjoy your investment.

The Braves picked up Tom Glavine for a cool 8 million dollars. They got a solid 13 starts and 2 wins out of him.

The Dodgers shelled out 36 million over 2 YEARS for Andruw Jones, who apparently worked hard at spending that money on ice cream while batting .158 in 75 games.

The Yankees decided to commit 27.5 million dollars a year on one player, A-Rod. Looks like half of that money will be going to his ex-wife now, as that marriage is not the only thing he lost last year.

Randy Wolf, Carlos Silva, Luis Castillo, the list goes on and on. Looking at the Phils, they hardly made much of a splash in the free agent pool. They made small moves and spent less on a few players than many teams spent on one player. What I'm getting at, is that the big names don't necessarily add up to a World Series Trophy... which we now have.

The Yankees throwing out over 140 million dollars for 7 years of C.C. Sabathia just to make sure that C.C. knows who has the money to top the Santana deal (137.5 over 7 years) may not be the smartest way to spend what is equivalent to more than the Marlins entire team payroll for 2008. The Mets deciding to spend 37 million plus incentives on Francisco Rodriguez may look good at the present. So did signing Barry Zito to what was then the richest contract for a pitcher. "K-Rod" as Francisco has come to be known, is not living up to the K part of his nickname, which stands for strikeout, for those who do not know. His strikeouts per 9 innings dropped dramatically by almost 2 strikeouts last year, and have steadily dropped since 06, which was also his best year with regards to ERA and saves to blown saves ratio. The bottom line, is that this is a good signing. It is the correct move by the Mets organization, just as signing Jevon Kearse in 2003 was the right move. It looks good on paper, but lots of signs point to trouble in the future. K-Rod's '08 postseason line for the best-in-the-AL Angels? A loss and an ERA of almost 8. He walks into New York with the record for most saves in a season, lots of money, high expectations and a slider that isn't doing the wonders that it once did.

What did that blonde bearded dude do for the Phillies in 08? Only scored the game winning run in game 3 of the world series and game 5, which gave Philly its first championship in 25 years. And that head-case, Lidge? Only went 48 for 48 in save opportunities overall including a 1.95 era and 92 strikeouts in 62 regular season games. Pedro Feliz? The signing that no one outside of Philadelphia even cared to notice had the second best fielding percentage in the National League and drove in the aforementioned Eric Bruntlett for the World Series winning hit.

Some big signings work out. Many do not. It's hard to argue with a lot of signings, but the ones that matter are the Bruntlett's, the Feliz's, and the Chad Durbins. They help solidify ballclubs. With all that said, I would love to sign Derek Lowe and keep Jamie Moyer and Pat Burrell, but let's hope that we can pick up another Bruntlett for the departure of So Taguchi and another Scott Eyre for the gone-in-longer-than-a-Flash Tom Gordon. Here's to hoping that K-Rod finds as much success with the Mets has Andruw Jones has with the Dodgers!