Phinally Philly

I’ve got to hand it to “buffsquad.” He’s taken the lead and hung on to 1st place since the second round. The Final 4 is on tonight and we’ll find out if 2nd place holder, Kieran Kelly “KK” from Team Phinally can move up. We also have David Foley “Goin’ with my Gut,” another Team Phinally member in 3rd. “andrew zingle” is in 4th and our newest writer, Mike Santa Barbara “Broad St. Bias” is in 5th.

I’m impressed with the domination by Team Phinally, holding down 3/5 top spots. Let’s see if we can keep it up – now that the big points are up for grabs.

Only 3 games left until a winner is decided. Good luck!

With all the Vicks, Owenses, and A-frauds of the sporting world it can be easy to become a jaded, narcissistic Negladelphian. But with all the ever-present negativity/stupidity, there is some good to talk about every once in a while as two former Philly athletes have shown us.

Take Brian Dawkins for instance: the former Eagles safety recently decided to give his allotment of tickets to the Eagles/Broncos game to former team employee Dan Leone (the guy who got fired for calling the team “retarted” for letting B-Dawk go.) Regardless of whether Leone deserved to get fired (he did, by the way) it’s still a classy move by Dawkins…

“I thought it’d be a good gesture. Had I not … signed with Denver, that guy would still have his job.”

If that doesn’t speak to a man’s character, I don’t know what does.

Continuing our Friday Night/Saturday Morning theme of high class, former Flyer Keith Primeau has decided to donate his brain to the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy when he dies. Primeau’s playing career was cut short due to multiple concussions and he decided to make a sacrifice so others wouldn’t have to deal with what he went through…

“Many former athletes are suffering from (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) and are in urgent need of treatment or a cure. There is no easier or more important way to support this research than to give a piece of yourself.”

There’s not much I can add to this post that hasn’t already been said about either Dawkins or Primeau: they are both incredibly talented athletes who not only made a big difference on the field/ice, but off it as well. I’m proud to say both of them played for teams we love and support.

Enough with the mushy stuff, though. In the comments section of that Primeau article I linked to there was a comment from “oregonwingsfan” about Keith that epitimizes to me how ignorant and pathetic some people can be.

“If he could skate, his brain would not have suffered so much. Waste of size.”

Aside from the fact that that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, how the hell can you post something like that about Keith?!? On an article about how he’s  donating his brain to finding a cure for something awful nonetheless!!

Look, I understand you’d be a bitter human being, oregonwingsfan. I mean if my hometown team falsely declared itself to be “Hockeytown” even though they can’t sell out their own arena in the playoffs and no one gave a damn about the team when they sucked back in the early 90′s…I might be a bit frustrated too. Doesn’t give you an excuse to pile on a classy, talented player like Keith Primeau (and I don’t care what anyone says, if you saw the way he carried the Flyers at certain points of his career you wouldn’t question his playing ability.)

Then again, having to live and work in a place like Detroit might be enough to corrupt even the most well-meaning of individuals.

Whew, try saying that 3 times.

After a long and grueling spring training, the Philadelphia Phillies are finally back at Citizens Bank Park.

They have their On-Deck Series with Pat the Bat and the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday and Saturday and then open the season on Sunday Night against the Atlanta Braves.

There are still a few questions left to answer before the season opener on Sunday.

-Will the Phillies get Gary Sheffield? I don’t think so, and it’s good that they won’t. They don’t have enough playing time to give him. Plus, he’s been a cancer in the clubhouse for years, he wouldn’t fit in here. Apparently, the Mets are interested in him. Good, let him go there.

-Who will get the final spot on the roster? It looks like Miguel Cairo will take that final spot on the bench at this point. The Phillies have made trades right around Opening Day before, so don’t put it past Ruben Amaro to pull off a trade for the right handed bat they’re looking for.

-What will the rotation look like? It will be Myers, Moyer, Blanton, Hamels, Myers again, and then Chan Ho Park. They’re going to push Park back and let Myers get in another start before they use Park. I also see J.A. Happ sticking around in the bullpen for a while and eventually getting the start when the Phillies inevitably need another starter. In my opinion, Happ will end up making more starts than Park this season.

Overall, this is a stronger team than the one that opened up last season. But, the other teams in the NL East have also gotten better. The Mets got two impressive pitchers and Atlanta has the potential to make a run for the division. This is going to be a great year for baseball in the NL East.

I can’t wait to get it started tonight.

And about that whole “No Booing” thing? Screw that. We’re in Philly. If a team doesn’t play up to our standards, let them know about it.

Cheesesteaks and booing, that’s what Philly does.

-KK

Update: Gary Sheffield has signed with the Mets, according to SI.com

After learning that second-year forward Thaddeus Young would be out for the rest of the regular season one would figure that the  Sixers could be due for a let down. And for a little while during the first half against the Milwaukee Bucks it looked like a let down was a strong possibility.

After a lackluster first half which saw them fall behind by 13 points, the Sixers rebounded in the second half for a 105-95 victory.

Taking the injured Thaddeus Young’s place in the starting line up was grinding power forward Reggie Evans. Who came up with a uncharacteristic 13 points, a season high.

Contributions off the bench were crucial, and rookie Marreese Speights pitched in with 14 points.

This is the first step to getting through a rough stretch without the their third-leading scorer. If the Sixers have any chance of securing the 5th seed in the NBA Playoffs they will need contributions like that from Speights and Evans. They currently hold a half game lead over the Miami Heat for that much coveted spot.

Losing Young could be a blessing in disguise for the 76ers. Some players show their true worth to a team when the odds are stacked against them. Reggie Evans was evidence of that scoring 9 of the Sixers first 13 points. And in situations like this young players can step up and show that they can be counted on to make a contribution. Much like Marreese Speights did Thursday night.

Expecting contributions like that from Evans and Speights for the remainder of the season may be asking too much. However, it may be necessary if the Sixers are to head into the playoffs with any sort of momentum. And avoid falling low enough in the standings to have to face one of the dreaded big 3 in the East.

-Mike Santa Barbara

Since Roger Goodell took over for Paul Tagliabue as NFL Commissioner, he has made it abundantly clear that he is not afraid to decisively deal with any problems the league might encounter.

But for the Commissioner with the iron fist and the league that prides itself on the ideals of parity and discipline, there is surprisingly little control when it comes to the start of free agency. Twice already we have heard rumors of tampering…first it was the Rams signing of former-Raven Jason Brown (a player the Eagles supposedly had interest in) and now today the Titans have officially asked the league to investigate the Redskins signing of Albert Haynesworth.

Wait, you’re telling me Dan Snyder might have bent the rules for his own team’s benefit? Knock me over with a feather! While today’s development may not surprise anyone (there were rumors circulating that the Skins would sign Haynesworth days before the free agency period started) it is a sign that the time for the league to act has come.

Goodell already made it clear he wants tampering rules enforced, but he will need the support of the owners to make this happen. Whether they add a week to negotiate with players prior to the start of the signing period, or add more harsh punishments for teams that do break the rules (a loss of draft picks maybe?) Either way, something needs to be done if the league really is serious about presenting a level-playing field for all 32 teams.

Skins Might be Close to Acquiring Cutler

Unfortunately this isn’t an April Fool’s joke…the Redskins might be close to trading for disgruntled Bronco QB Jay Cutler. Some of the rumors are less believable than others (If the Redskins traded Chris Cooley who else would Cutler have to throw too?!?), but regardless Cutler would be a huge upgrade over Jason Campbell. Let’s hope all this falls through and Cutler stays in the AFC.

**UPDATE**

Thankfully Cutler ended up in Chicago, and while he didn’t stay in the AFC he didn’t end up in the NFC East either, which is perfectly ok with me!

Phillies Nation provides us with this week’s Random Phillies Gear Sighting.

Per their recent tweet

best water ice truck ever

I’d say yes. That truck is awesome. I wish I saw that because I would definitely give some of my hard earned (not really) money.

I think this may be the best Random Phillies Gear Sighting so far. I need some more submissions to keep this going.

I know all of you out there see Phillies things all over the place. Take a picture and send it in. Send them here.

-KK

Will he? Won’t he? It’s all over folks. The prize for a blemish on the Flyers’ legend during the 06-07 season is PHINALLY coming to town. It has been two long seasons of prosperity for the Flyers since van Riemsdyk was drafted 2nd overall out of New Jersey, and while the disillusionment had begun for the Flyers’ faithful over their star prospect everyone is now breathing a sigh of relief. JVR had decided to return to the University of New Hampshire for a sophomore season much to the frustration of Flyers’ GM Paul Holmgren, but now all that is in the past. Van Riemsdyk will suit up tonight for the Philadelphia Phantoms in their 3rd to last game at the Wachovia Spectrum ever.

“Obviously, this is a thrill of a lifetime,” said van Riemsdyk. “This is a day I have been dreaming about ever since I got drafted by the Flyers. Just to have this opportunity is something I am really grateful for.
 
“I thought the sooner I made this decision the better it would be for all parties involved.  Since I’ve decided to leave school, I’ve told the UNH coaching staff and everyone else early on so they will have more time to fill my spot there. I just thought signing at this point would help me get my feet wet a little bit in the professional game and start working on some things that I want to improve upon. Obviously, this is a huge jump in level of play. I know I am going to have to work hard and basically that is what I am expecting. I am going to work hard and learn a lot from this experience.”

While JVR is excited, the city of Philadelphia is equally excited to get their hands on this giant of a winger. He has the skill set, the size, and the motivation to become a future star for the Flyers.

In order to keep him from losing a year of his contract status with the Flyers he has officially been signed to an Amateur Try Out (ATO) with the Phantoms for the remainder of the season and through the AHL playoffs. His contract becomes official with the Flyers’ organization as of July 1st. This however is just a technicality, but it does mean that you shouldn’t expect the forward to wear orange and black for the postseason run. In all honesty, he’s not ready yet. He’s still young, and still has to get more of an edge to his physical game. He is a star though so don’t expect for it to take him too long to get his mind wrapped around the system. This bright young kid will learn quickly with the Phantoms. He wasn’t breaking a 3.5 GPA at UNH for nothing.

I won’t rattle off his records or accolades or stats. Instead I will show you what this kid is capable of.

The future of the Flyers, Giroux, van Riemsdyk, and Sbisa, answer questions last summer at the Flyers’ prospect camp:

If you want to read more about JVR, his history, his ability, and his future please read my article here.

Chris beat me to the punch with the whole “psych the readers out” thing, but I didn’t want the following Photoshop effort to go to waste. Besides, maybe if we hang this picture up in our locker/office/bedroom and pray for it to happen the Birds will come to their senses and bring Q to Philly…

Eagles head coach Andy Reid has named Kevin Kolb the starter going into the offseason. That means it will be Donovan McNabb’s job to win back as of today. Though many don’t know what it will do to the Eagles’ Super Bowl chances along with the offseason loss of locker room leader Brian Dawkins, Kolb was originally drafted to eventually be McNabb’s successor.

While many are wondering if a possible trade to acquire Jay Cutler from the Denver Broncos will begin to form with the organization Reid has other ideas. He seems very confident in Kolb’s abilities to compete at this level. In fact Andy has mentioned that he likes what he has seen in the young quarterback when he has been given a chance to play.

Remember, while Philly fans booed when Andy picked McNabb they also scratched their heads when Kolb was taken 36th overall in 2007. It’s been a couple of years so the hope is that the young Kevin has matured enough to take the reigns from Donovan. While the decade plus long starter at quarterback for the Eagles will be given the opportunity to win back his job during the offseason and preseason it is a general consensus that the young slinger is ready to lead the Eagles deep offense to a championship. Brian Westbrook and DeSean Jackson have had high praise for Kolb so let’s see where this kid can take us.

Have a happy April 1st, 2009 as we look forward to not only NFL draft weekend, but for bustle of a busy offseason to get ready for a long, successful season.