Phinally Philly

As soon at the “Westbrook needs surgery” headlines started cropping up you could hear the simultaneous groans from the beleaguered legions of Eagles fan around the world. We’ve been through this way too many times before, and it rarely ends well.

After an outstanding 2007 campaign Westbrook was hobbled for much of the ’08 season with injuries and finished with worse stats and seemed to lack the homerun hitting ability he had in years past. His lower yards per carry (4.0 vs. 4.8 in ’07) and yards per catch numbers (7.4 vs. 8.6) are an obvious hint that Westy was just not his usual self last season.

Now that Westbrook is having an ankle surgery that should sideline him until Week 1 of the new season it’s time for the Eagles to find a proven Plan B.
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Snoop is a Sens fan? Who knew?!?

With Martin Biron being a free agent, you have to figure the focus of the Flyers brass shifted to the crease the moment the orange and black got bounced in the first round. There were a few rumors about a potential move for Canucks star Roberto Luongo but for the most part things had been all quiet on the Flyers front up to this point.

Now the rumor mill has started up again, only this time Ray Emery is the subject and it looks like he is very close to coming to Philly. Reaction to the potential move has been pretty positive so far, which is surprising given the fact that the last time Emery played in the NHL he was putting up mediocre numbers and getting himself kicked out of Ottawa for having a very T.O.-like attitude.

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A report turned up this morning on Baseball Digest’s website that the Phillies are very interested in Tom Glavine and Vicente Padilla. Both of them were recently let go by their teams, the Braves and Rangers respectively.

As the post points out, it does kind of make sense to take a flyer on either one of these two pitchers to see if they still have it before committing a hefty price tag to land one of the top available pitchers.

Glavine had just come off his last minor league rehab start and rather than add him to the roster, they asked him to retire. He then asked to be cut. Atlanta wants to go with a younger staff, and really, can you blame them? Glavine is old, but he might still have some left in the tank for one more season.

Padilla was 3-3 this season with a 5.57 ERA for the Rangers before getting released. Those numbers aren’t bad for an AL pitcher, but he has given up a lot of walks and hits. Plus, the Phillies already had Padilla and they got rid of him. It’s time to end this trend of bringing back former Phillies pitchers. Adam Eaton anyone?

If these rumors are true, then I’d much rather have the Phillies go after Glavine. As a former pitcher for both the Mets and Braves, he knows the NL East and would definitely help the Phillies if he is healthy. Apparently, he’s already made a call to Ruben Amaro, so Glavine definitely wants to stay in the East and show the Mutts and the Braves that he still his something left.

This is a low risk-high reward type move for the Phillies. They could sign either one cheaply and see what they give the team. If they fail, cut them loose and move on. If they can help, great, a cheap addition to the pitching staff.

When I first read that report, I was skeptical, but after writing this, I think this would actually be a pretty good move for the Fightins’. When you can acquire a 305-game winner for a cheap price, you do it.

-KK

A little while back you may remember a post here about T.O.’s Twitter stalker. Well Terrell is generating some more “controversy” with his Twitter page, only this time ESPN picked the story up and ran it on their front page.

Honestly, there isn’t a whole lot to this; basically T.O. wasn’t allowed to rent a place in Orchard Park because the residents didn’t want to deal with the inevitable ensuing media circus.

Late Tuesday night, the Bills receiver posted a message on his Twitter.com site that read he’s “tripping about residents” who won’t rent a home to him in Orchard Park because they “[don't] want any drama n their neighborhood!! LOL!!! Wow!!.”

How this story warrants a front page spot on one of the biggest sports web sites on the web baffles me…maybe there really is something to T.O.’s “they’re out to get me” attitude? Probably not, but still pretty weak move on the WWL’s part.

Also drawing headlines today is Jake Peavy’s performance against the Phillies last night. 1 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, and a supposed “upper respiratory infection” that took him out of the game. How pissed is the Padres front office at this guy right now? He nixes a trade to Chicago, continues to be a pain in the ass in terms of where he will and will not go, and then goes out and puts up a stinker against a team that may have interest in him.

Look Jake, wanting to be moved to a contender is fine, but at the very least you need to sack up and at least play well enough so that the Pads get decent value for you. As it stands now who is going to pay $15+ mil a year for a guy who can’t stay healthy, gets shown up by rookies making their first career start, and shows incredibly questionable toughness?

Finally, a big shoutout to Titans BACKUP QB Vince Young. Speaking of toughness…VY makes Jake Peavy look like Bear Grylls. Young made comments to a Baltimore TV station hinting that he may want to be traded if he can’t win the starting job from Kerry Collins, then had his agent come out today and say he actually doesn’t want to be traded.

Look Vince, it’s bad enough you can’t beat out a mediocre old fart for the starting spot, why draw anymore attention to the epic failure you have become? Unlike in the college game you actually need to be a smart, accurate passer to be an NFL QB and VY is neither of these. Good luck in your next endeavor Vince, I hear Walmart might be hiring.

Thanks to drunkathlete.com for the Peavy pic.

Antonio Bastardo had an incredible major league debut for the Phillies last night, getting the win in the Phillies’ 10-5 win. Of course, getting handed a 4-0 lead against the other team’s ace before throwing a pitch helps, but Bastardo held his own.

San Diego’s Jake Peavy didn’t make it to the second inning and the reasons for this constantly changed from soreness in his ankle, to tightness in his shoulder, eventually to a “viral respiratory infection.”

Bastardo was being thrown to the wolves in his first start, but he was very good last night. His fastball seemed to be a lot faster and better than the scouting reports indicated it would be. From last night, it looks like he might be sticking around for at least a few starts, until Amaro eventually decides to pick up another starter, who just might be Peavy.

As usual, Rauuull Ibanez was a beast, this time on his birthday. He hit two 2-run home runs to keep up his torrid pace that he’s been on for the first part of the season. At this point, he is a legitimate MVP candidate and will almost certainly be named to his first all-star game at the ripe young age of 37. Way to make a good first impression Raul.

-KK

Clash of the Titans

Is it that unlikely that the Orlando Magic are in the Finals? If I told you before the playoffs began what the Magic have gone through so far these playoffs you certainly wouldn’t believe they would end up in the Finals. They barely survived in 6 games against the 76ers, then beat the defending Champion Celtics, and topped it off by beating LeBron and the Cavs in six. All of this without Jameer Nelson. 

The Lakers road to the Finals isn’t so unbelievable, they are a very talented team who was expected to be there. However, the Rockets and Nuggets did give them all they could handle. In the end the Lakers talent out weighed the heart of the Rockets and out lasted the grit of Denver.  Read the rest of this entry »

So there you have it…my run-in with one of the most dominant pitchers in Phillies history. I was incredibly tempted to take a picture or get an autograph, but he was hanging out with his family and friends and I felt like I was intruding enough as is. It brings up a good question though of what is, and isn’t ok when you meet an athlete in-person.

A few other observations from last night, and thoughts on tonight’s game in San Diego…

- Joe Blanton looked really good aside from those back-to-back jacks he gave up to Gonzalez and Hairston. He did get some great defensive help in some key moments, including a beautiful sliding catch in the outfield by Raullllll (Happy birthday by the way!) but all in all you really can’t ask for too much more from your third starter. His strikeout pitch wasn’t as effective as it was in his last 11 K start (he missed the corners pretty consistently when he was ahead in the count), but even so he still managed to go seven strong for the W.

- When the top of the order hits, this is an incredibly scary offense to face. Now that J-Roll and Shane have really got going it is setting up the big bats with plenty of RISP opportunities.

- One area of concern dating back to last season is runner left in scoring position. The Phillies stranded 11 runners on base last night including coming up empty-handed with the bases loaded twice. This didn’t kill the Phils last year but with the division more competitive than ever I’d like to see them start getting some more timely hits when runners are on base.

- The next two games against the Pads should be very interesting from a pitching perspective. Tonight rookie Antonio Bastardo makes his first career start against Jake Peavy, and tomorrow J.A. Happ will face Chris Young. You have to figure the Padres will have the advantage in each of those matchups, although Happ has looked pretty good of late. I am thrilled or Bastardo’s chance tonight: if the scouting reports are true he could be a valuable contributor throughout the rest of the season.

- I got some interesting responses to me “Trade Jake Peavy to us Please!” sign last night. Most Padres fans responded with amusement but the sign almost got taken away from me at the stadium entrance. The attendant gave me a sideways look but let me hang on to it. For what it’s worth most of the Padre fans I talked to had now clue who my “Raullllll for MVP!” sign was referring to.

- If you ever get a chance to go to a Padres game make sure to head out to the Gaslamp District afterwards. There are so many places to check out and get some fairly-priced liquor at and who knows, you might even run into a World Series MVP after a game too!

Phillies’ prospect Antonio Bastardo takes the mound tonight for the Fightins’ in his Major League debut.

He doesn’t get an easy assignment, going against potential future Phillie Jake Peavy. It’s a long shot that Peavy will end up in Philly this season, but Ruben Amaro has stated he’s looking for a top of the rotation kind of guy. Peavy would have to waive his no-trade clause in order to leave his Southern California paradise, and he’s sated that he doesn’t want to leave there, so that’s a huge stumbling block. It’s going to be an interesting month for the Phillies and seeing if they actually do land a pitcher.

Many people have questioned the call up of Bastardo over other pitchers such as Carlos Carrasco, Kyle Kendrick, or even Vance Worley. Bastardo was picked because he’s got the hot hand right now and has shown he can get people out. Kendrick just got demoted to Reading, Carrasco hasn’t been consistent enough, and while Worley has been good, he’s just not ready for the majors.

Plus, I think Amaro was thinking that this kid has the greatest potential for a CBP fan group since Randy Wolf. As suggested on our Facebook page, who is going to start the Fat Bastardos?

In other minor news, John Mayberry was sent back to Lehigh Valley in order to make room for Bastardo. He’ll be back up again when the Phillies play an American League team on the road, but he just wasn’t getting at-bats up here. Another move will have to be made tomorrow to bring J.C. Romero back. Probably going to have to send Sergio Escalona back down. I can’t wait to have Romero back. One more day.

-KK

* Welcome to Philadelphia Piotr (Peter to the papers here) Nowak. He said all the right things at his introductory press conference on Friday, even mentioning the Sons of Ben and their President, Bryan James, by name.  

Nowak, as speculated, is not a “head coach”, but a manager.  Not only will he be responsible for the fitness and playing style of the team, he will also be responsible for identifying talent and bringing it into the club at the Senior and Junior levels (more on the Union Academy and kids playing for the club starting in their early teens in a future column).

Nowak will meet the fans at Tir Na Nog in Center City on Wednesday night. All are welcome and you can be safe assuming that there will be a lot of light blue there. The team set up the event from 8 to 10 which perfectly leads into the US World Cup qualifier against Costa Rica.

* Speaking of the SoB’s, and heck Comcast SportsNet does all the time, Bryan James did a 25 minute interview with Denver sports radio this past week. Former National Team star Marcelo Balboa hosts the weekly From the Pitch show. Listen here starting at the 28th minute.

* The US Men have two important qualifiers this week. They face Costa Rica in Saprissa Stadium in San Jose, CR on Wednesday, then return home for a Saturday clash in Chicago v Honduras.  The team had been training in Miami to acclimate to the tropical weather before heading out.

* Barcelona withstood 9 minutes of pressure from Manchester United, counter punched with a goal and then played attractive and effective football for the remaining 80 minutes.

* Finally, for those learning the game, there are set periods across the world in which players can be bought, sold, or, very rarely, traded. These are called transfer windows. The European summer transfer window opens July 1 and closes at the end of August and their winter transfer window only lasts one month, January.   The MLS transfer windows are January 15th to April 15th and June 15th to August 15th.

Think of transfers like this, remember a couple of years ago when the Sox and Yanks were hot after a Japanese prospect and they had to pay an astronomical fee to the team that had him under contract to let him break that contract?  That’s the transfer fee. Then the team has to negotiate a new contract with the player.  

Then there are the words that make everyone happy “on a free”. Basically being available on a free means that the player is a free agent and it won’t cost the team negotiating for his services a dime beyond the actual contract.

"The Proof Will Be in the Pudding"

Eddie Jordan was clearly a little nervous as he answered questions from the Philly media for the first time Monday.  However, if you look past the nervousness you saw a very confident Basketball coach. One who believes whole heartily in his system and his work ethic. 

Per usual the Philadelphia media did not hold back, they asked all the tough questions. To his credit Jordan had an answer for all of them. When asked about Samuel Dalembert Jordan said all of the right things and added a little more. Saying how it was his responsibility to get Samuel to “buy in.” Jordan also broke down his offensive system, that it would allow everyone on the floor to make each other better players. He said players like Elton Brand would be able to make their teammates better intern making themselves better. Read the rest of this entry »