Philly Sports Blogs

Top prospects suffer letdowns in conference tournament

Joseph Birmingham — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:06:27 +0000

The Big East is so tightly contested, both Syracuse and Villanova suffered losses today. Ranked 22nd nationally and seeded 8th, the Georgetown Hoyas stunned the Number 1 seed Syracuse Orange (28-4) 91-84 with an impressive second half surge led by 27 points from Chris Wright. More important than the loss and the chance of it costing the Orange a number 1 seed in the tournament, was the loss of starting center Arinze Onuaku.

Conference player of the year Wes Johnson led Syracuse with 24 points and seven rebounds in his Big East tournament debut. Johnson’s efforts were not enough as the Orange loss marked the 6th time a number 1 seed has lost in the opening game of the Big East tournament. The loss marked [...]

The Sixers have quit on city, team

Eric Schwartz — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:28:11 +0000

It is pretty much a forgone conclusion that Eddie Jordan will not be welcomed back next season as the coach of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Hopefully, half the roster is shown the door with him.

The Sixers do not have the least talent in the NBA. Their roster includes a former All-star at power forward (Elton Brand); a talented, if overpaid guard (Andre Iguodala); a $12 million center (Samuel Dalembert); a young guard scoring 14.9 PPG (Lou Williams); and a young forward with big upside (Thaddeus Young).

Yet they play like the Washington Generals.

The Sixers aren’t just losing, they are failing to show up. In nine of the most recent 10 losses the team has suffered, the Sixers have been defeated by double digits.

Some [...]

Hamels shows old form on mound

Eric Schwartz — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:51:39 +0000

I believe it is foolish to get wrapped up in Spring Training statistics, particularly when they come from players who have already secured roster spots.

When a player goes through an 0-for 10 stretch at the plate, it’s not something that gets me worked up, and likewise if a young player goes through a 7-for-10 stretch I don’t jump to the conclusion that the Phillies have the next great thing on their hands.

But once in awhile I see something in Spring Training that holds my attention. Today Cole Hamels did exactly that.

The notion that the Phillies chances of winning a second World Series in three years hinges on Hamels being the pitcher of 2008 and not the sub-.500 one of 2009 [...]

Eagles sign Marlin Jackson

Eric Schwartz — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 20:56:38 +0000

The Eagles secondary now has a new member.

Philadelphiaeagles.com is reporting that the Eagles have signed cornerback Marlin Jackson to a two-year contract. Terms have not been released.

A report from profootballtalk.com says that it is believed the Eagles will convert Jackson to free safety — an area the Birds had all kinds of trouble with last season.

Jackson played both cornerback and safety in his five seasons with the Colts, but is coming off of a season where he played just five games due to a knee injury. He has missed 22 games over the last two seasons due to ACL injuries on both knees. That was likely the reason the Colts declined the option to tender him when they had the [...]

Not even you, Bud Selig, can be this dumb

Eric Schwartz — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:53:45 +0000

Sometimes it’s hard not to want to slap Bud Selig in the head.

This is one of those times.

SI.com’s Tom Verducci put together a piece today about a 14-person committee for on-field matters that was put together by the MLB commissioner four months ago. Well the committee has already come up with an idea — make that a ridiculous idea.

There is now talk of baseball doing away with its current division alignment in favor of ‘floating divisions’, as Verducci puts it.

Here is an excerpt:

As with most issues of competitive balance, floating realignment involves finding a work-around to the Boston-New York axis of power in the AL East. In the 15 seasons during which the wild-card system has been in use, the [...]

Eagles trade Reggie Brown to Buccaneers

Eric Schwartz — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:15:59 +0000

One of the bigger busts in the Andy Reid era is leaving town.

The Eagles traded Reggie Brown to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for an undisclosed 2011 draft pick. Brown never quite found a home with the Eagles, bouncing between roles as high as their No. 1 receiver, to as low as their No. 5. Some weeks he wasn’t even activated.

The Eagles selected Brown with their 35th pick of the 2005 draft, a move that excited the teams fan base. The Birds had spent little attention to their receiving core in years previous and this was a move that looked to change that.

Outside of 2006, when Brown made 61 catches, Brown was never used as more than a last option. Last year [...]

Leave your message after the beep

Eric Schwartz — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:41:22 +0000

On rare occurrences this blog will be include items that grind my gears not involved with the world of sports.

Today is one of those occurrences.

When I woke up today and stepped outside into the beautiful 58 degree weather, I thought to myself: Nothing can grind my gears on a day like today.

For most of the day I was right. Weather has a way of positively impacting ones life. I’m not sure why but the little things just don’t seem to get to me when I can open up a window instead of turning up the heat.

But then, inevitably, it happened.

As a reporter much of my day is based upon making phone calls and talking to people. For the most part, [...]

Eagles lock up Jason Avant

Eric Schwartz — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 15:24:36 +0000

Julius Peppers and Aaron Kampman are not coming to town to help the Philadelphia Eagles.

However the team is taking care of its own.

The Eagles announced a contract extension with wide receiver Jason Avant. Avant, who was a restricted free agent, signed a five-year deal, but terms have yet to be disclosed.

The move comes on the heals of the team’s decision to pick up the $1.5 million bonus for Michael Vick. The bonus is part of the $5.25 salary Vick is set to earn this season. The move does not guarantee that the Eagles will keep Vick and it could just be a way to buy time for a trade.

The other news out of Philadelphia came on Friday when the Eagles [...]

Greek’s Pics – AL East

BigGreek24 — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:20:15 +0000

Now its time to look at the American League beginning with the home of the past three American League Champions(Red Sox, Rays, Yankees) and two of the last three World Champions (Red Sox and Yankees). This quite possibly is the toughest division in Baseball. Here is how I see 2010:

1. New York Yankees – The Yankees spent freely last season, bringing in Mark Teixera, C.C Sabathia and AJ Burnett and it resulted in their first World Championship since the 2000 season. This offseason has been much different. They made trades to get Curtis Granderson from the Tigers and Javier Vazquez from the Braves and in the process lost only Melky Cabrera from their roster. It remains to be seen what [...]

Harry the K The Remarkable Life of Harry Kalas

Doug — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:41:49 +0000

“Harry the K: The Remarkable Life of Harry Kalas” is currently the number 4 in Biographies and Baseball books at Amazon.com.

From Amazon.com – To Philadelphia Phillies fans, he was the soundtrack of summer. To millions of football fans across America, he was the “Voice of the NFL.” And as open and giving as Harry Kalas was throughout his professional and personal life, there are countless layers of the man that have remained unknown . . . until now.

Author Randy Miller interviewed more than 160 people—including all of Harry’s surviving family, many of his close friends from childhood to present, numerous colleagues from baseball and the NFL, and even Harry’s longtime personal psychologist—to craft a loving and shockingly honest [...]