Archive for November, 2014

Deconstructing The Phillies: Outfield

November 30th, 2014 by Mike H. | Comments Off on Deconstructing The Phillies: Outfield | Filed in Baseball, Phillies

Finally, we make our way to the outfield. Where hopes and dreams have gone to die. Ben Revere must be Juan Pierre’s illegitimate child, without the bunting skills. Marlon Byrd had one of the best offensive seasons at a discounted rate, but has very little value due to his age. Then there is Domonic Brown. I had a lot of hope for Brown. Five years ago, Brown was hitting .320 with 20+ home run power. His defense was a little suspect, but the offense more than made up for it. Heck we had dealt with Pat the Bat and Rauuuuuuuuul, so why not one more. Yeah, so his defense didn’t get any better and his offense has gotten significantly worse. If you look at the numbers, 25% of Brown’s CAREER home run total came in May of 2013. 12.5% of his CAREER runs batted in total are also from the same month. Yes, they are glimpses of what could be/have been, but I doubt anyone expects that to happen again in red pinstripes. Let’s put this baby to bed, so that we can have one last look at how this team would be different if I was calling the shots. (more…)

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Philadelphia Eagles (8-3) at Dallas Cowboys (8-3); Preivew, Injury Reports, Staff Predictions

November 28th, 2014 by Ryan Waterman | Comments Off on Philadelphia Eagles (8-3) at Dallas Cowboys (8-3); Preivew, Injury Reports, Staff Predictions | Filed in General

Most years, Thanksgiving Day is known for Turkey Dinners, Pies, and Family. Today, it is also known as “Cowboys Day” to Eagle fans. That’s because in just a matter of minutes, the 8-3 Eagles step foot into “Jerry World”, to do battle with the hated rival Dallas Cowboys. Both teams currently sit at 8-3 in a tie for 1st place in the NFC East, and this game will likely go a long way towards determining the division winner. Coming off of an emotionally-draining victory over the New York Giants on Sunday Night Football, the ‘Boys return home, where they’re 3-3 on the season. On the other hand, the Birds enter Arlington with a 2-3 record on the road, looking to hand Dallas their third straight home loss. Mark Sanchez will make his 4th straight start in place of the injured Nick Foles. For the past week, most have been focused on the two-year anniversary of the infamous “Butt Fumble” on Thanksgiving 2012, but that’s not the main headline, going into the game.  The Eagles and Cowboys each boast top 5 rushers, with DeMarco Murray and Shady McCoy coming in at #1 and #4 respectively.  The offensive lines of both teams, have been amongst the NFL’s best all season long, and the special teams portion have been generous to each team.  Both teams are entering this game rather healthy, but each are missing their defensive leaders. Sean Lee tore his ACL during Cowboy OTAs, and DeMeco Ryans ruptured his Achilles Tendon during the game against the Houston Texans. For a more in-depth look, let’s take a peek at each team’s injury report:

Dallas Cowboys:

Jack Crawford (Thumb)- OUT
Tyler Patmon (Ankle)- OUT
Dekoda Watson (Hamstring)- OUT
Jeff Heath (Thumb)- Doubtful
Josh Brent (Groin)- Probable
Doug Free (Foot)- Probable
Nick Hayden (Shoulder)- Probable
Tony Romo (Back)- Probable
Rolando McClain (Knee)- Probable
Terrance Williams (Finger)- Probable
Tyrone Crawford (Knee)- Probable

Philadelphia Eagles:

Nick Foles (Collarbone)- OUT
Emmanuel Acho (Groin)- Questionable/Active
Jason Peters (Quadricep)- Probable
Cody Parkey (Groin)- Probable
Nate Allen (Ankle)- Probable
Brandon Bair (Elbow)- Probable
Jordan Matthews (Knee)- Probable
Zach Ertz (Oblique)- Probable

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Tanking: Why Us?

November 26th, 2014 by Jeremy Bonnette | Comments Off on Tanking: Why Us? | Filed in Basketball, General, NBA, Sixers

No sportsfan wants to swear their allegiance to a team who is in a “rebuilding”, phase, nor to a team that is “playing for next year”. However, the idea and theory that intentionally losing games now for the chance to acquire young and potentially great talent is very real.

I feel like in the 24 years that I’ve been on this earth, 10 of those years have been spent glued to the TV, internet, newspaper, and plenty more regarding Philadelphia sports, and the teams that reside here. This city has always been one that goes for the championship whether it be in the form of a pennant, a huge cup, or simply a trophy. Any time our teams came up short, it wasn’t for a lack of effort. However, last week I witnessed something that was truly horrible. That horror took the form of my (our) Philadelphia 76ers losing to the Dallas Mavericks 123-70.

Now, in the NBA, blowout wins (or losses depending on your allegiance) happen ALL the time. However, this particular loss infuriated me beyond reason. Why you may ask? it’s simple really T-A-N-K-I-N-G.

Those of you who follow Philadelphia sports know that the Sixers are bad…like…really bad. But how bad does one team have to play before everyone realizes that it seems like everyone is just OK with it?

I’ve been having some conversations with a few of my closest friends via group text, and the Sixers situation (among other) comes up at least once every two weeks. I have one friend in particular who, despite the extremely poor play, is excited for the young guys to develop into a team that can contend for a championship…in 5 years. Yup…5 YEARS! I’m not someone who is constantly watching the clock, but I’m definitely not looking forward to 2019. As we followed the Sixers throughout last year, it became clear that we clearly had a team that was playing for a high first-round pick. In the entire season, they had 21 different starters (most of which came from the NBA D-league). The draft comes, and we get 2 top 10 picks. One of them cannot play for at least a year, and the other will stay overseas. Ok…obviously planning for the future. This season gets underway, and it’s almost like a continuation from last year…except worse.

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Random Thoughts: Yasmany Tomas

November 21st, 2014 by Mike H. | Comments Off on Random Thoughts: Yasmany Tomas | Filed in General

The recent rumors around Tomas are that he’s getting impatient and wants to sign with a team as soon as possible, but he’s being advised to remain patient to try and cash in on a massive payday. Yahoo’s Jeff Passan has been informed that the Phillies, Giants, Padres, Braves, Royals, Mariners, and Diamondbacks are still in the running to try to sign the young slugger. Kiley McDaniel of Fangraph’s hears that the Padres won’t go much past $70M for a contract. Only the Phillies and Giants have payrolls committed to $100+M dollars out of those seven teams. I can’t see the Giants pushing a nine-figure contract in front of Tomas. If I’m the Phillies, I offer a 7-year, $85M dollar contract with a $15M signing bonus and an opt out after year four. Backload the deal so that contract looks similar to this: $4M in ’15, $6.5M in ’16, $10M in ’17, $10.5M in ’18 and $13M from ’19-’21. You use Citizens Bank Park’s small dimensions as a selling point over AT&T Park’s massive dimensions. If the Giants want to push nine figures, go ahead and let them. Just a thought.

Rule V Draft: Roster Decisions

November 21st, 2014 by Mike H. | Comments Off on Rule V Draft: Roster Decisions | Filed in Baseball, Phillies

As the final roster moves are made, we can begin to prepare for the Rule V Draft on December 11th. In less than three weeks, the Phillies will have the opportunity to select someone who could be a long-term help. Players like Johan Santana, Shane Victorino, and David Ortiz were all examples of how some talent just slips through the system. The Phillies added LHSPs Jesse Biddle and Adam Morgan, and RHRP Nefi Ogando to their 40-man roster to protect them from being lost. Once Jerome Williams is added, the 40-man roster will have two openings.

A trade could still happen, and some teams are facing roster crunches now. The Boston Red Sox, a frequent destination in Cole Hamels trade rumors, has a full roster. They will have to either trade talent or attempt to pass them through waivers if they are to sign free agents linked to them such as Pablo Sandoval and Jon Lester. Updating our list from last night, barring any trades or designation for assignment, the draft to close out MLB’s Winter Meetings looks like this:

  1. Arizona (40)
  2. Colorado (40)
  3. Texas (40)
  4. Houston (39)
  5. Minnesota (40)
  6. Boston (40)
  7. Chicago (AL) (40)
  8. Chicago (NL) (39)

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Flyers- 0- Rangers- 2- Post-Game Recap

November 20th, 2014 by Kyle Lutz | Comments Off on Flyers- 0- Rangers- 2- Post-Game Recap | Filed in Flyers, Hockey

Rick Nash celebrating a second-period goal (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

SHOTS BY PERIOD

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Rule V Draft: Series Primer

November 20th, 2014 by Mike H. | Comments Off on Rule V Draft: Series Primer | Filed in Baseball, Phillies

Decisions, decisions. Expect to see a series of roster shuffling and waiver claims on Thursday. No, not the kind that is franchise altering, but the kind that help fill positions of depth and even possibly long-term solutions. Teams have until 11:59 PM EST to protect eligible draft players by adding them to their 40-man roster. Eligible players include any player that first signed at age 18 or younger and have five or more years in the minors. Players who signed at age 19 or older are limited to just four years of development time before needing to be added to the 40-man roster. The Phillies, as of time of post, are currently sitting at 34 people on their 40-man roster and the only prospect in their top 20, according to MLB.com, is LHSP Jesse Biddle.

There are currently eleven top 100 prospects that need to be added to their respective rosters and a total of seventy-one total prospects that are on a team’s top 20 organizational prospects. Once the roster adjustments come thru, we’ll start narrowing down who the Phillies should consider taking on Thursday, December 11th. The Phillies currently hold the 9th pick in the draft. The draft order prior to the Phillies is as follows, followed by current number on the 40-man roster and the number of players that need to be protected in parenthesis.

  1. Arizona Diamondbacks (37, 2)
  2. Colorado Rockies (40, 2)
  3. Texas Rangers (40, 2)
  4. Houston Astros (38, 3)
  5. Minnesota Twins (36, 3)
  6. Boston Red Sox (36, 3)
  7. Chicago White Sox (37, 2)
  8. Chicago Cubs (38, 1)

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