The Phils continued their series with the Astros tonight as the ageless Jamie Moyer got his first start of the season. For a while it looked like it would be a great start as he rolled through the first 2 innings and had 2 outs in the 3rd with the pitcher coming up. Then that pitcher, Felipe Paulino ripped a double and suddenly everything fell apart. The Astros went on to score 5 in the inning and it looked like that might be it for Jamie. However, he managed to tough out another 3 innings, all scoreless, and at least gave the Phils a chance to win. Let's just say they took advantage of it. Before Moyer imploded in the 3rd, the Phils had actually jumped out to a 4-0 lead. Ryan Howard tripled and scored in the 1st for a 1-0 lead. Then a walk by Howard and a double by Jayson Werth with the bases loaded pushed it to 4-0.
From there after Moyer gave up the lead and then hung in there for those last few innings the Phils found themselves down 5-4 in the 7th with 2 out. Then Chase Utley walked, Ryan Howard crushed a 400 + foot homer, and Werth, Raul Ibanez, and Shane Victorino collected 3 straights hits to put the Phils back ahead 7-5. Later Victorino put the Stros away for good with a 2 run homer in the top of the 9th to push the lead to 9-5. After Chad Durbin and Danys Baez had tossed scoreless innings in the 7th and 8th, Ryan Madson took the ball for the 9th, in a non save situation. Despite allowing a leadoff double to Micheal Bourn and a run, Madson was able to close out the Astros for the 9-6 win, the Phils 4th in their first 5. In addition to their 9 runs the Phils racked up 11 more hits for their 5th straight game with 10 hits or more. That is just amazing and I just wonder how long they'll be able to keep it up.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Memphis tonight for a doubly meaningless affair with the Grizzlies, also eliminated from playoff contention. Maybe because they were playing a team that also didn't care anymore, blowing it again without looking too bad just wasn't possible. Instead after yet another listless 1st half that left them down 7, the Sixers exploded for 69 points in the 2nd half, thanks to 57% shooting and 53% shooting from beyond the arc with a season high 14 treys.All I can say is, where's this been all season and why now when they're so close to locking up the 3rd worst record in the league and a high draft pick? I guess they just got tired of losing and no one likes to lose. So you had to expect to try for at least one more win before the end of the season and if they were going to win one this had to be it, with the rest of their games against playoff bound teams.
Maurice Speights wound up the Sixers leading scorer with 22 off the bench, almost all in the 2nd half. Jason Kapono drilled 5 of 7 from beyond for 15 and Andre Iguodala knocked down 7 of 10 from the field for 15 points of his own. Jodie Meeks, Willie Green, and Lou Williams all came off the bench to score in double figures. Heck, even Elton Brand woke up enough to score 10. So in all 7 Sixers scored in double figures to help the team collectively amass 120 points, their highest total of the season, in an easy 120-101 win. With the win the Sixers improve to 27-53 overall and yes they're back up to 12th in the East again. We'll see how much longer that lasts.
Maurice Speights wound up the Sixers leading scorer with 22 off the bench, almost all in the 2nd half. Jason Kapono drilled 5 of 7 from beyond for 15 and Andre Iguodala knocked down 7 of 10 from the field for 15 points of his own. Jodie Meeks, Willie Green, and Lou Williams all came off the bench to score in double figures. Heck, even Elton Brand woke up enough to score 10. So in all 7 Sixers scored in double figures to help the team collectively amass 120 points, their highest total of the season, in an easy 120-101 win. With the win the Sixers improve to 27-53 overall and yes they're back up to 12th in the East again. We'll see how much longer that lasts.
Friday, April 09, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils traveled to Houston tonight to begin a series with the Astros. J.A Happ made of his start was solid tossing 5 scoreless innings. He would have gone deeper into the game but his control wasn't quite there and he ended having throw 103 pitches in those innings. So the Phils were forced to take him out after the first batters reached safely in the 6th. It didn't matter though as the Phils racked up 8 runs and 16 hits, their 4th straight games with 10 hits or more. It's hard to lose when you have that kind of firepower night in and night out, and seemingly a different hero at the plate every day. Tonight Raul Ibanez, who went 3 for 4 and drove in 3 of the 8 runs. Jimmy Rollins, Placido Polanco, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and Jayson Werth all had 2 hits today as well. In fact as of now all 5 are hitting over .300, and Rollins, Polanco, Utley, and Howard are all hitting over .400. Obviously they aren't going to stay that all here, it's about 50 years now since anyone did, but I am going to enjoy it while they are.
Anyway back to the game now. The Phils got going right away with 3 in the 1st inning as Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez both smashed RBI doubles. After leaving runners on for a couple innings, Chase Utley slammed a solo homer and Ibanez crunched another RBI double in the 4th to make it 5-0. 3 straight hits with 2 outs in the 5th, from Rollins, Polanco, and Utley netted 2 more runs and 7-0 lead. Finally in the top of the 7th, Polanco ripped a one out single to make it 8-0. The Phils bullpen took it from there. After getting out of Happ's jam in the 6th, David Herndon tossed a scoreless 7th. Danys Baez followed with a scoreless 8th, and finally Jose Contreras completed the shutout with a perfect 9th. So the Phils move 3-1 overall and I can't wait to see what they do next.
Anyway back to the game now. The Phils got going right away with 3 in the 1st inning as Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez both smashed RBI doubles. After leaving runners on for a couple innings, Chase Utley slammed a solo homer and Ibanez crunched another RBI double in the 4th to make it 5-0. 3 straight hits with 2 outs in the 5th, from Rollins, Polanco, and Utley netted 2 more runs and 7-0 lead. Finally in the top of the 7th, Polanco ripped a one out single to make it 8-0. The Phils bullpen took it from there. After getting out of Happ's jam in the 6th, David Herndon tossed a scoreless 7th. Danys Baez followed with a scoreless 8th, and finally Jose Contreras completed the shutout with a perfect 9th. So the Phils move 3-1 overall and I can't wait to see what they do next.
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers traveled to Madison Square Garden tonight for huge game with the New York Rangers. A win in this one would clinch a playoff spot for the Orange and Black, and overtime loss would all but clinch a spot, but a loss would keep the Rangers alive in playoff hunt. As they have lately, the Flyers put up a strong effort, but made too many mistakes right in front Brian Boucher and couldn't score in the 3rd period when they had to. New York was better defensively with a better goalie and they didn't make any dumb mistakes. If nothing else the Flyers should have been able to take this game into overtime, but Henrik Lundqvist proved to tough in the 3rd period and on most of their scoring chances in the period the Orange and Black couldn't really keep it together long enough to even challenge Lundqvist anyway.
They actually had the lead early with Mike Richards beating Lundqvist 1 on 1 just 40 seconds into the game. Two turnovers in front Boucher later and they were down 2-1 heading into the 2nd period. About 7 minutes into the 2nd, Boucher let up his only soft goal of the day and it was 3-1 Rangers and all hope of victory seemed lost. The Orange and Black battled back though. A couple minutes after that Danny Briere scored to cut it to 3-2. Then without about 5 minutes left in the period Richards racked up his 2nd score of the day to knot it up at 3. Unfortunately, the tie lasted just 2 minutes Marian Gaborik beat Boucher on a breakaway for a 4-3 lead. The thing this Chris Pronger was right there in front of Gaborik the whole time, but he had rare senior moment, whiffing on an attempt to poke the puck away. Then as mentioned the Flyers could not come up with the equalizer in the 3rd period. So now the Flyers and Rangers are tied for 8th in the East, but with 40 wins to the Rangers 38 the Flyers at least have the tiebreaker over them.
They actually had the lead early with Mike Richards beating Lundqvist 1 on 1 just 40 seconds into the game. Two turnovers in front Boucher later and they were down 2-1 heading into the 2nd period. About 7 minutes into the 2nd, Boucher let up his only soft goal of the day and it was 3-1 Rangers and all hope of victory seemed lost. The Orange and Black battled back though. A couple minutes after that Danny Briere scored to cut it to 3-2. Then without about 5 minutes left in the period Richards racked up his 2nd score of the day to knot it up at 3. Unfortunately, the tie lasted just 2 minutes Marian Gaborik beat Boucher on a breakaway for a 4-3 lead. The thing this Chris Pronger was right there in front of Gaborik the whole time, but he had rare senior moment, whiffing on an attempt to poke the puck away. Then as mentioned the Flyers could not come up with the equalizer in the 3rd period. So now the Flyers and Rangers are tied for 8th in the East, but with 40 wins to the Rangers 38 the Flyers at least have the tiebreaker over them.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers welcomed the Milwaukee Bucks to the Wachovia center tonight as they looked to snap a 5 game losing streak. Playoff bound Milwaukee came in on a 3 game winning streak, but without top big man Andrew Bogut, so the Sixers at least had a chance in this one. They played fairly yet again with 9 treys, and managed to hang in there with Milwaukee for most of the night, but as always came up in short in the end. They just couldn't stop the Bucks on the other side of the floor. They hit 10 treys, and 21 of 23 free throws, a near perfect performance from the line. Carlos Delfino alone, had 5 treys and really lit them up with a game high 23. Brandon Jennings also shredded the Sixer's defense with 18 and 7 assists. Still with 20 seconds left the Sixers found themselves within 2 after Jrue Holiday drilled a three, to cut it to 89-87 Milwaukee. After a couple Milwaukee free throws, Andre Iguodala drilled another three with 13 seconds to cut it to 91-90. That would be as the close as the Sixers would get though. With 9 seconds left Holiday missed a three that would have tied it at 93 and then Sammy Dalembert lost the rebound out of rebounds.
Two more free throws and a missed Iggy three and Bucks had held on to win 95-90. Iggy ended as the Sixer's leading scorer on the night with 21, while Holiday chipped in with a solid 13 and 8 assists. Lou Williams,Willie Green, and Jodie Meeks also came off the bench to score in double figures. Other than that it was pretty much status quo for the Sixers in this one. There was plenty of O but not much D and that usually doesn't get you anywhere. Maybe the only other interesting tid bit from this game was that Francisco Elson was actually activated for the night and got a chance to play, probably just so that other teams can get a look at him, because he won't be back here next season. He actually scored a couple points and pulled down rebound in only 4 minutes, showing that maybe the Sixers should have put him out there sooner. Anyway so the Sixers drop their 6th in a row and at 26-53 now, they finally drop to 13th in the Eastern conference, only 1 game ahead of the 14th place Wizards.
Two more free throws and a missed Iggy three and Bucks had held on to win 95-90. Iggy ended as the Sixer's leading scorer on the night with 21, while Holiday chipped in with a solid 13 and 8 assists. Lou Williams,Willie Green, and Jodie Meeks also came off the bench to score in double figures. Other than that it was pretty much status quo for the Sixers in this one. There was plenty of O but not much D and that usually doesn't get you anywhere. Maybe the only other interesting tid bit from this game was that Francisco Elson was actually activated for the night and got a chance to play, probably just so that other teams can get a look at him, because he won't be back here next season. He actually scored a couple points and pulled down rebound in only 4 minutes, showing that maybe the Sixers should have put him out there sooner. Anyway so the Sixers drop their 6th in a row and at 26-53 now, they finally drop to 13th in the Eastern conference, only 1 game ahead of the 14th place Wizards.
Thursday, April 08, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The finished their series with the Nationals tonight as they looked to complete the sweep. Kyle Kendrick got the start in place of the injured Joe Blanton and unfortunately was roughed up allowing 5 runs on 6 hits in the just 4 innings. That put the Phils behind early 5-2 and they couldn't quite dig out of that hole despite a valiant effort. In the top of the 5th, an error gave the Phils 1 run and then a Ryan Howard single knocked in a 2nd run to cut it to 5-4. Then in the top of the 6th Jimmy Rollins sac flyed in a run to knot it all up 5. Ryan Zimmerman untied it in the bottom of the 7th with an RBI double for a 6-5 Washington lead, leaving the Phils to rally again and they almost did successfully. In the 8th and 9th innings they had chances to tie it up again, but Placido Polanco grounded out with runners on 2nd and 3rd and 2 out in the 8th, and Jayson Werth, Raul Ibanez, and Shane Victorino all flied out with the tying run in scoring position.
So in the end Phils came up just short in this one, losing 6 -5. It is too early in the season to panic over a loss like this. Kendrick can only get a better from here on out and he only figures to be in the rotation for another month so when Joe Blanton comes off the DL. While the pitching struggled a bit tonight the Phils continued to hit, racking up anoher 12 hits and 5 runs in the loss. Most Impressive tonight was Werth who slapped 3 hits and scored a run. Unfortunately for him it just wasn't quite enough to get the Phils the win. Rollins, Howard, and Chase Utley also continued to look with each collecting 2 hits and an RBI on the night. So the Phils drop to 2-1 overall, but that's fine because 2 out of 3 in each series is all you need to be successful. The sweep would have nice though. Next up for the Phils will be Brett Myers and the Astros. Unfortunately Myers won't be available to pitch against his old team, but it should be an interesting series anyway.
So in the end Phils came up just short in this one, losing 6 -5. It is too early in the season to panic over a loss like this. Kendrick can only get a better from here on out and he only figures to be in the rotation for another month so when Joe Blanton comes off the DL. While the pitching struggled a bit tonight the Phils continued to hit, racking up anoher 12 hits and 5 runs in the loss. Most Impressive tonight was Werth who slapped 3 hits and scored a run. Unfortunately for him it just wasn't quite enough to get the Phils the win. Rollins, Howard, and Chase Utley also continued to look with each collecting 2 hits and an RBI on the night. So the Phils drop to 2-1 overall, but that's fine because 2 out of 3 in each series is all you need to be successful. The sweep would have nice though. Next up for the Phils will be Brett Myers and the Astros. Unfortunately Myers won't be available to pitch against his old team, but it should be an interesting series anyway.
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils returned to action tonight Washington as Cole Hamels made his long awaited 2010 debut. It probably wasn't quite what he or the Phils were hoping for but it was okay for a first start of the season. He went just 5 innings, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits while striking out 5, but against the Nats that was just good enough to get him the win. Mostly, because the Phils again had too much firepower for Washington to handle. Jason Marquis started for the Nats and was rocked for 6 runs on 8 hits as the Phils just wore him out. Jimmy Rollins walked and scored and Placido Polanco was hit by a pitch and scored in the 1st inning. In the 4th, Hamels himself slapped an RBI single for a 3-0 lead. In the 5th, Polanco doubled and scored and Ryan Howard crushed a 2 run homer to put the Phils up 6-3 through 5 innings. From there the Phils bullpen took over.
Chad Durbin pitched two scoreless innings, Danys Baez was a little shaky allowing 1 run on 2 hits, and recording only one out, Antonio Bastardo and Ryan Madson then combined to end the inning and bail out Baez with the lead holding at 7-4. Raul Ibanez got one back in the next inning with a sac fly to push the lead back up to 8-4 and that was about it for the Nats. Madson kept them scoreless the rest of the way to close out the 8-4 win and send the Phils to 2-0 for the 1st time in a long time. So ultimately the Phils bats appear to be 2nd to none, but the pitching is not quite at the same level, at least not yet it seems. There's plenty of time to fix that though. Hopefully Cole will continue to win games like this one, but he'll want to make it at little bit easier to do so, otherwise he could end up blowing some game down the road he should have been able to win. At any rate though it has been great watching the Phils so far and I just hope they keep it up.
Chad Durbin pitched two scoreless innings, Danys Baez was a little shaky allowing 1 run on 2 hits, and recording only one out, Antonio Bastardo and Ryan Madson then combined to end the inning and bail out Baez with the lead holding at 7-4. Raul Ibanez got one back in the next inning with a sac fly to push the lead back up to 8-4 and that was about it for the Nats. Madson kept them scoreless the rest of the way to close out the 8-4 win and send the Phils to 2-0 for the 1st time in a long time. So ultimately the Phils bats appear to be 2nd to none, but the pitching is not quite at the same level, at least not yet it seems. There's plenty of time to fix that though. Hopefully Cole will continue to win games like this one, but he'll want to make it at little bit easier to do so, otherwise he could end up blowing some game down the road he should have been able to win. At any rate though it has been great watching the Phils so far and I just hope they keep it up.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Miami tonight for a matchup with Dwayne Wade and Heat as they looked to snap a 4 game losing streak or maybe not who knows. Anyway they actually played pretty well tonight, shooting 50% from the field and and 44% from beyond the arc with 8 treys, just good enough to give themselves a chance to win. Playoff bound Miami also didn't play its best otherwise the Sixers probably would not have been able to keep it close. At any rate, whether it was Miami playing poorly or the Sixers actually playing well for a change, the two teams were tied after the 3rd quarter. Despite the best efforts of Wade they were still tied with 48 seconds to play in the 4th. Then Jason Kapono missed a three pointer, Wade sunk a couple free throws, the Sixers followed with a couple of stupid turnovers, and finally sent Carlos Arroyo to the line for the game clinching free throws. He missed both, but of course the Sixers failed to gather in the rebound, fouled Arroyo again and then had watch him sink two free throws to rap up the 99-95 Miami win. What a team.
In the loss Sammy Dalembert was great with 19 and 16 rebounds, Andre Iguodala put up 16, 6 assists and 5 rebounds, Lou Williams chipped in with 12, 4 assists and 4 rebounds, Jason Kapono added 13, and Willie Green provided 10 off the bench. So it was another good night for the Sixers offensively. They simply didn't do enough defensively. They did actually out rebound Miami 45-42, but other than that they weren't very good. They also committed too many fouls and loss the turnover battle, not a recipe for success. The Sixers have now lost 5 in a row to drop to 26-52 overall, which is still good enough for 12th in the East, but only by a game now.
In the loss Sammy Dalembert was great with 19 and 16 rebounds, Andre Iguodala put up 16, 6 assists and 5 rebounds, Lou Williams chipped in with 12, 4 assists and 4 rebounds, Jason Kapono added 13, and Willie Green provided 10 off the bench. So it was another good night for the Sixers offensively. They simply didn't do enough defensively. They did actually out rebound Miami 45-42, but other than that they weren't very good. They also committed too many fouls and loss the turnover battle, not a recipe for success. The Sixers have now lost 5 in a row to drop to 26-52 overall, which is still good enough for 12th in the East, but only by a game now.
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles continued with their off season duties today, signing OL Nick Cole to a one year 1.75 million deal. Cole is the Eagles is most versatile OL and is pretty much the go to guy to fill in whenever someone on the line gets hurt. Thanks to injuries he spent much of last season in the Eagles starting lineup, not always in the same position. He was pretty good but most agree he should go back to being a backup. He is just more valuable to the Eagles in that capacity. At any rate he's a good guy to have around.
FLYERS NEWS
Jeff Carter was cleared to practice with his teammates again today so maybe he'll be back on the ice soon. Considering he is the Flyer's leading scorer this season they could use him.
Tuesday, April 06, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers traveled to Toronto tonight for a key game against the lowly Maple Leafs. After their huge win over the Red Wings on Sunday, the Flyers had to have this one to consolidate their playoff positioning. Thanks to superb defense and Brian Boucher's best game of the season, they got it. The D held Toronto to just 23 shots on goal and Boucher saved them all. Toronto went on the power play 6 times and yet they could not score. That shows how bad they are and how sterling the Flyers were on D tonight. While the defense held its own, Claude Giroux made sure it did not go for naught, scoring on the power play late in the first period and assisting Mike Richards on game clinching empty netter late in the 3rd period. So in the end the Orange and Black took the win 2-0.
It was perfect night for them by any means but it was exactly what they needed. They simply took care of business. They only had 23 shots on goal of their own and went on the power play 6 times as well, cashing in just that one time. That's fine against Toronto, but in the playoffs, if they make it, that won't be good enough. Speaking of the playoffs with the win the Flyers now have 86 points overall which jumps them up to 7th in the East. They also move 4 points ahead of the 9th place Rangers, with just 2 games to play, as New York lost today. So if the Rangers lose their next game the Flyers are in, or if the Orange and Black win on of their final 2(both against the Rangers), they'll be in. Hopefully one or the other will happen.
It was perfect night for them by any means but it was exactly what they needed. They simply took care of business. They only had 23 shots on goal of their own and went on the power play 6 times as well, cashing in just that one time. That's fine against Toronto, but in the playoffs, if they make it, that won't be good enough. Speaking of the playoffs with the win the Flyers now have 86 points overall which jumps them up to 7th in the East. They also move 4 points ahead of the 9th place Rangers, with just 2 games to play, as New York lost today. So if the Rangers lose their next game the Flyers are in, or if the Orange and Black win on of their final 2(both against the Rangers), they'll be in. Hopefully one or the other will happen.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers welcomed the Detroit Pistons to the Wachovia center tonight as they continued to play out the rest of this lifeless season. This one was another total drag. Sammy Dalembert and Elton Brand each played only about 12 minutes, so there wasn't much defense for the Sixers to speak of. In fact Detroit shot a whopping 62% from the field and 47% from the beyond the arc with 8 treys. You're not going to win very often when the other team can't miss and the Sixers didn't tonight. In fact they got blown out by 21, 124-103, against a team that had lost 12 in a row. Only the Sixers could do something like that. It's just another clear sign that they've given up and perhaps that they're throwing games to improve their draft positioning.
If nothing else the Sixers did score tonight. Jrue Holiday was solid with 11 and 9 assists, Andre Iguodala chipped in with 12, and the Sixer bench combined for 61 points(21 from Mo Speights, 19 from Jodie Meeks, and 12 from Lou Williams who finally returned from the DL tonight). So that at least kept things somewhat exciting, but that's about all there was to cheer for the Sixers tonight. With the loss they drop to 26-51 overall, incredibly still good for 12th in the East.
If nothing else the Sixers did score tonight. Jrue Holiday was solid with 11 and 9 assists, Andre Iguodala chipped in with 12, and the Sixer bench combined for 61 points(21 from Mo Speights, 19 from Jodie Meeks, and 12 from Lou Williams who finally returned from the DL tonight). So that at least kept things somewhat exciting, but that's about all there was to cheer for the Sixers tonight. With the loss they drop to 26-51 overall, incredibly still good for 12th in the East.
Monday, April 05, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils opened their 2010 campaign this afternoon in Washington against a supposedly improved Nationals team. Thanks to Roy Halladay and the hot bat of Placido Polanco, Washington looked like the same last place team as usual on this day. Halladay went 7 strong, allowing just 1 run on 6 hits, while striking out 9. That's about as good as an opening day start as you can get. Meanwhile, Polanco racked up 3 hits and 6 RBIs, 4 on a grand slam in the 7th inning. Even if no other Phils had hit safely in the game they still would have won somewhat convincingly 6-1. However, it wasn't just Polanco in this one. All 9 members, of the Phils starting lineup, yes even Halladay, hit safely in the game. Jimmy Rollins leadoff the game with a single and tripled in a run in the 6th, Chase Utley had a hit and a run scored, Ryan Howard slapped 2 hits including a 2 run homer in the 4th, Jayson Werth singed and scored a run, Raul Ibanez ,who struggled all spring, had a hit and 2 runs scored, Shane Victorino rapped an RBI single in the 4th and later scored, Carlos Ruiz collected 1 hit a scored a couple of runs, and finally Halladay himself beat out an RBI infield single.
Put it all together and you get 11 runs, 13 hits, and a dominating 11-1 season opening victory for the Phils. Things really couldn't have gone any better for the Phils. Their 2 biggest off season acquisitions came through big time and even the bullpen had a pretty good day with three scoreless innings. Antonio Bastardo was a little shaky but he managed to get a couple outs and Danys Baez bailed him with just a few pitches. Still, since he's the Phils only left handed arm out of the pen, at least until J.C Romero comes back from the DL, he's gonna have to do better than that. Other than Baez and Bastardo, rule 5 pick Dave Herndon got a chance to show his stuff in the 9th inning and did himself proud with ,an albeit shaky, scoreless inning. Of course when you have an 11-1 lead you don't have to worry about the bullpen too much. So it was great start to the season for the Phils, but it's a little early to pencil them in to the world series again just yet. The real key for the Phils this season will be how they fare when Halladay isn't on the mound. We still have to wait until Wednesday to see how that pans out.
Put it all together and you get 11 runs, 13 hits, and a dominating 11-1 season opening victory for the Phils. Things really couldn't have gone any better for the Phils. Their 2 biggest off season acquisitions came through big time and even the bullpen had a pretty good day with three scoreless innings. Antonio Bastardo was a little shaky but he managed to get a couple outs and Danys Baez bailed him with just a few pitches. Still, since he's the Phils only left handed arm out of the pen, at least until J.C Romero comes back from the DL, he's gonna have to do better than that. Other than Baez and Bastardo, rule 5 pick Dave Herndon got a chance to show his stuff in the 9th inning and did himself proud with ,an albeit shaky, scoreless inning. Of course when you have an 11-1 lead you don't have to worry about the bullpen too much. So it was great start to the season for the Phils, but it's a little early to pencil them in to the world series again just yet. The real key for the Phils this season will be how they fare when Halladay isn't on the mound. We still have to wait until Wednesday to see how that pans out.
Sunday, April 04, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
Fresh off a huge loss to the Canadiens, the Flyers had to get the win this afternoon against the Detroit Red Wings, or risk watching their playoff hopes go up in smoke. Detroit came in as the hottest team in the NHL so it didn't seem likely the slumping Flyers would be able to knock them off. Guess again. The inspired play the Flyers exhibited in their last game carried over into this one and fueled the Orange and Black to a quick 2-0 lead, off scores by Danny Briere and Kimmo Timonen, just over 7 minutes into the game. The Flyers then broke down a bit defensively, as Detroit scored a pair of soft goals late in the period to rally back to a 2-2 tie. The Flyers fought back in the 2nd period though with Claude Giroux scoring just seconds into the period for a 3-2 lead. Later with a little under 3 minutes to play in the period Aaron Asham made it 4-2 Orange and Black.
Early in the 3rd period Pavel Datsyuk scored to cut it to 4-3 ,but from there despite a furious late push from Detroit, the Flyers hung on to win, as Brian Boucher and the defense both rose to the occasion. Boucher was solid again with 31 saves out of 34 opportunities, and Detroit's red hot lineup was kept under wraps with just 25 shots on goal, and no real scoring opportunities down the stretch. Meanwhile, the Flyers simply did enough themselves, with those 4 goals, to hang on for the win. With the win the Orange and Black now have 84 points overall, still 8th in the East, and 2 points up on the 9th place New York Rangers. So they must remain in must win mode like they were today, and keep winning if they are to hang on to a playoff spot.
Early in the 3rd period Pavel Datsyuk scored to cut it to 4-3 ,but from there despite a furious late push from Detroit, the Flyers hung on to win, as Brian Boucher and the defense both rose to the occasion. Boucher was solid again with 31 saves out of 34 opportunities, and Detroit's red hot lineup was kept under wraps with just 25 shots on goal, and no real scoring opportunities down the stretch. Meanwhile, the Flyers simply did enough themselves, with those 4 goals, to hang on for the win. With the win the Orange and Black now have 84 points overall, still 8th in the East, and 2 points up on the 9th place New York Rangers. So they must remain in must win mode like they were today, and keep winning if they are to hang on to a playoff spot.
EAGLES NEWS
It's official the Donovan Mcnabb era is over in Philadelphia. The Eagles traded him today to the division rival Washington Redskins for the 37th pick(2nd round) of this month's draft. On the one hand the Eagles now 11 picks, 5 in the 1st 3 rounds, in what supposed to be a deep draft so they should be able to improve the team now with a good draft. Also Kevin Kolb will now get his chance to start for the Eagles. On the other hand they sent him to Washington so the Birds will have to play him twice this season, and Washington, already a good defensive team, could improve enough with Mcnabb to move past the Eagles in the NFC East and become a playoff team. Also I can't imagine Donovan in a Redskins jersey so that should be interesting to see. In the end it is hard to know at this point whether this was a good or bad trade. We'll just have to see how the draft goes and how Kolb fares next season.
PHILLIES NEWS
A new season and the pursuit of a 4th straight NL East division title and 3rd straight National League Championship begins for the Phils tomorrow. I can't wait.
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