Jody Mac
11-01-2010, 11:15 AM
November has arrived and the year that is 2010 is slipping away. It will be a year of mixed results and emotions for the Philly sports fan. The Flyers made a historic run to the Stanley Cup finals and with the way they got there even the casual fan believed they could beat the Blackhawks. Superior talent finally won out in the finals! The Sixers suffered through another lost season, but were reward with the second pick in the draft for their futility. We'll get more into that later. The Eagles started the calendar year off with major problems both in the regular season and the playoffs, deep in the heart of Texas. That led to the banishment of the best statistical quarterback in the franchise's history. Which of course lead to the Kevin Kolb to Michael Vick back to Kevin Kolb and soon returning Michael Vick rodeo we now find ourselves watching? In the middle of it all was the Phillies....
When you've made the World Series two years running anything but a three-peat into the fall classic was going to be a letdown, and it surely was!! Despite Roy Halladay excellence (including perfection), Roy Oswalt's acquisition, Brad Lidge's return to prominence, Placido Polanco's return period, and the most wins of any team in baseball in the regular season the banishment by the Giants in the NLCS was deflating. The Phils were a flawed team throughout the year and their offensive inconsistencies came back to haunt them against San Francisco. It is the thing they must address most during the off season. Because of their lack of payroll flexibility Ruben Amaro is going to have to be creative. If Jason Werth is elsewhere as expected, he has to add a right handed outfield bat. A trade centered on a Carlos Lee /Raul Ibanez swap with his buddy Ed Wade in Houston should be explored. I wouldn't even suggest a swap of top prospect right fielders like Mike Stanton (Marlins right hand hitter) for Dominic Brown (Lefty swinging) because Stanton is further along and I believe a higher ceiling player because of his immense power. However, there was some pretty prominent scuttlebutt going around that Florida offered the potential future home run champ to the White Sox for ....their manager Ozzie Guillen. That's even more incomprehensible that the Marlins giving him to the Philles. As the rumor goes it was the White Sox who declined, deciding to keep their skipper. If all of this is true, it is mind boggling on several levels. If Florida needs Pete Mackanin as a throw in to the Brown/Stanton trade, tell Pete he'll look good in teal and you'll see him 18 times during the season. Then again, the Phils could find a way to resign Jayson Werth...don't get your hopes up!
Andy Reid is undefeated after the bye for his career as head coach of the Eagles. That bodes well to their return to the field next Sunday against the Colts. The fact that Indy will come in to Philly on a short week doesn't hurt either. Add to that the fact that Peyton Manning's weapons are physically compromised is also a Philly positive. But those who take Mr. Manning lightly usually end up paying a price for it. Beware! Beware!
While the Birds got their scheduled down time, most of the rest of the NFC continued to show their less than awe inspiring wares. Comparing the Eagles to the other supposed top conference squads is a mixed bag. The Pack looked good shutting out the Jets and the Eagles will not get a chance at redemption for their opening week loss till the postseason. The Falcons were also inactive and we certainly know the Birds from Philly can play with the birds from the A-T-L. And we'll get 2 looks at how the Eagles compare to the Giants over the next 7 week. They are still very much in control of their NFC destiny.
Circling back, I know that the second pick in the NBA draft is suppose to be a big deal but the over analysis of Even Turner is reaching epic proportions. First, too many people elevated his game to all-star status before he ever donned a Sixer uniform. Mistake. Then, when he struggled in his first professional camp he became a bust and a gigantic mistake, blight on Ed Stefanski's tattered resume. Over-reaction!! I'm sure when he has his first triple double (points, rebounds and it could be either assists or turnovers) there will be those ready to send him off to Springfield. (That’s the Hoops Hall of Fame for those of you who have forgotten) Sloooooow down everybody. Let's give the young man a chance. The Sixers aren't going to be real good this year and Evan Turner's growing pains are going to be just a small part of it. Doug Collins will bring him along at the pace he should be brought along at, not any faster, to get the Sixers from 28 to 32 wins!
I don't know about you but I'm rooting for Pat Burrell and Aaron Rowand over Cliff Lee in the battle of ex-Phils in the World Series that no one is watching in Philadelphia...or anywhere else other than Texas or the Bay Area for that matter. I feel bad that I find myself rooting as stringently as I am against Brett Favre...but he continues to make it easy for me. He's going out with a whimper not a bang and he brought it on himself...Lebron's Nike commercial is as good a commercial as the Swoosh company has ever done and they've made some of the greatest of all time!!.... Ten days till the return of the best show on TV. BURN baby burn, take NOTICE.
When you've made the World Series two years running anything but a three-peat into the fall classic was going to be a letdown, and it surely was!! Despite Roy Halladay excellence (including perfection), Roy Oswalt's acquisition, Brad Lidge's return to prominence, Placido Polanco's return period, and the most wins of any team in baseball in the regular season the banishment by the Giants in the NLCS was deflating. The Phils were a flawed team throughout the year and their offensive inconsistencies came back to haunt them against San Francisco. It is the thing they must address most during the off season. Because of their lack of payroll flexibility Ruben Amaro is going to have to be creative. If Jason Werth is elsewhere as expected, he has to add a right handed outfield bat. A trade centered on a Carlos Lee /Raul Ibanez swap with his buddy Ed Wade in Houston should be explored. I wouldn't even suggest a swap of top prospect right fielders like Mike Stanton (Marlins right hand hitter) for Dominic Brown (Lefty swinging) because Stanton is further along and I believe a higher ceiling player because of his immense power. However, there was some pretty prominent scuttlebutt going around that Florida offered the potential future home run champ to the White Sox for ....their manager Ozzie Guillen. That's even more incomprehensible that the Marlins giving him to the Philles. As the rumor goes it was the White Sox who declined, deciding to keep their skipper. If all of this is true, it is mind boggling on several levels. If Florida needs Pete Mackanin as a throw in to the Brown/Stanton trade, tell Pete he'll look good in teal and you'll see him 18 times during the season. Then again, the Phils could find a way to resign Jayson Werth...don't get your hopes up!
Andy Reid is undefeated after the bye for his career as head coach of the Eagles. That bodes well to their return to the field next Sunday against the Colts. The fact that Indy will come in to Philly on a short week doesn't hurt either. Add to that the fact that Peyton Manning's weapons are physically compromised is also a Philly positive. But those who take Mr. Manning lightly usually end up paying a price for it. Beware! Beware!
While the Birds got their scheduled down time, most of the rest of the NFC continued to show their less than awe inspiring wares. Comparing the Eagles to the other supposed top conference squads is a mixed bag. The Pack looked good shutting out the Jets and the Eagles will not get a chance at redemption for their opening week loss till the postseason. The Falcons were also inactive and we certainly know the Birds from Philly can play with the birds from the A-T-L. And we'll get 2 looks at how the Eagles compare to the Giants over the next 7 week. They are still very much in control of their NFC destiny.
Circling back, I know that the second pick in the NBA draft is suppose to be a big deal but the over analysis of Even Turner is reaching epic proportions. First, too many people elevated his game to all-star status before he ever donned a Sixer uniform. Mistake. Then, when he struggled in his first professional camp he became a bust and a gigantic mistake, blight on Ed Stefanski's tattered resume. Over-reaction!! I'm sure when he has his first triple double (points, rebounds and it could be either assists or turnovers) there will be those ready to send him off to Springfield. (That’s the Hoops Hall of Fame for those of you who have forgotten) Sloooooow down everybody. Let's give the young man a chance. The Sixers aren't going to be real good this year and Evan Turner's growing pains are going to be just a small part of it. Doug Collins will bring him along at the pace he should be brought along at, not any faster, to get the Sixers from 28 to 32 wins!
I don't know about you but I'm rooting for Pat Burrell and Aaron Rowand over Cliff Lee in the battle of ex-Phils in the World Series that no one is watching in Philadelphia...or anywhere else other than Texas or the Bay Area for that matter. I feel bad that I find myself rooting as stringently as I am against Brett Favre...but he continues to make it easy for me. He's going out with a whimper not a bang and he brought it on himself...Lebron's Nike commercial is as good a commercial as the Swoosh company has ever done and they've made some of the greatest of all time!!.... Ten days till the return of the best show on TV. BURN baby burn, take NOTICE.