Wear this and never wash it... okay... do wash it. It's a long season.
Do you like this t-shirt? How could you not?!
Well, I have good news for you… it can be yours!
For just $10, you can own the “Aces in the Hole” tee from Stitch Graphics! If you’re interested (and you know you are), you can contact J.B. Worster at JB@stitchgraphics.net.
I just ordered mine in time for Spring Training in four days, so don’t hesitate. Get your shirt now, and tell J.B. that Seriously Ryan sent you!
Dope.
He’ll call you a nitwit, he’ll call you a dope, he’ll hang up on you when you’re speaking mid-sentence.
But this time, Howard Eskin looks like the nitwit. Because anyone who saw “Sports Final” on NBC Sunday night was subject to a two-minute rant on Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay that was completely undeserving.
The Cy Young Award winning Halladay was berated by Eskin for declining to speak with the media this weekend during an autograph signing. Eskin had this to say:
“Now, we in the media, we’re really the connection that bring you what the players are thinking. That’s one of the reasons that we, the media, talk to the players. The fans have not heard from Roy Halladay since the end of the season. Not heard, what he thinks about what he thinks about Cliff Lee coming to the Phillies. Not heard, what he thinks of the new Phillies rotation. Not heard, what he thinks of Jayson Werth moving on to the Washington Nationals.
Now I think you would like to know what one of the four best pitchers in baseball is thinking, all ‘feel good’ stuff. but, no. Roy Halladay did today what he does during most of the season. He does not speak to the media, other than game days when he becomes Steve Carlton afterwards. And Carlton did so, and not talked, because his family was criticized by one member of the media.
Fans and media worship Roy Halladay in this town, he didn’t even speak the next day after his playoff no-hitter. Major League Baseball, I’m told, forced him to speak to the media, but that was two days after his historical no-hitter.
Halladay told me and the rest of the media today that he would pass on talking… too bad. I thought we would all wanted to know what it’s like to be a part of this incredible pitching rotation. Heck, I’m told he didn’t even say ‘hello’ to Cliff Lee. But don’t feel bad for him… he did get a big check today… for signing autographs.”
For me, I just don’t see the point of this. The guy threw two no-hitters and won the Cy Young in the first year with his team. He talked to the media plenty over the course of the season, and I haven’t heard one bad thing about Roy Halladay… ever.
Leave him alone… let him workout two months before Spring Training, let him sign autographs… hell, let him fool around with your female friends that you’re really protective of. What the hell does it matter? If he keeps pitching the way that he does, let him do whatever he wants.
Eskin has been known to stir the pot, and that’s part of his persona. I get it, but why go after Halladay. We’ve seen in the past how radio hosts in this city have affected a player’s relationship with this city. I’m looking at you, Angelo Cataldi.
Cataldi was the mastermind behind the “Dirty 30″, a traveling pack of colossal jackasses that went to the NFL Draft in 1999 in support of the Eagles drafting Texas running back Ricky Williams. When the Eagles drafted Donovan McNabb instead, they booed as loudly as they could… loud enough to make you think the New York Knicks made a draft pick. McNabb has always said it never bothered him, but it was clear that the first impression of Philadelphia for McNabb was ruined.
The difference is Cataldi had 30 guys on his side for his cause, Eskin probably can’t find 30 supporters for his. In fact, Kyle Scott from Crossing Broad has written not one, but two pieces on Eskin’s unjustified tirades and inaccuracies.
Eskin continued bitching and complaining on his radio show yesterday saying that “[Halladay] has not uttered one word since the end of the season.”…
…read that second link from Crossing Broad. Eskin, though usually accurate, could not be more wrong in this case. And now this becomes a matter of getting your shit straight. Eskin has been working in this medium for more than 40 years. He’s not a dummy. This attack, however, is completely out of line and more than anything, inaccurate.
An apology from Eskin is unlikely, but it would really help clear the air with something like this.
When you’re wrong, you’re wrong.
And Howard Eskin… you ain’t right.
But I love your Whoppers…
…okay, I’m done now.
"Please...stop... hitting me."
The Eagles play the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, the team that many say no one wanted to play.
Fair enough. The Packers are 5th in overall passing, 5th in passing defense, and 5th in overall defense. That’s a lot of “5ths”. Let’s stick with the number five (No Donovan McNabb mentions here, I promise) and have a quick chat about what the Eagles cannot let happen when they host the Pack at the Linc late Sunday afternoon. View full article »
"Not five wins! Not six wins! Seven, baby! We're in! WOO-HOO!"
Stop complaining.
Yes, conceptually it is a shame that not one, but two 10-win teams were kept out of the playoffs in the NFC. That doesn’t happen very often. It’s even worse when a 7-9 team does enter the postseason because they were tied for the best record in their division.
They didn’t have the best record outright, they were tied…
…tied.
Icing on the cake? Sure! The Seattle Seahawks were outscored by 97 points in the regular season and were 2-7 in their last nine games going into last night’s regular season finale.
Yeah, I know… but here’s why you can’t complain. View full article »
Cliff Lee informing us where we'll finish in the NL East this year.
At 3:00 pm today, Cliff Lee was reintroduced to the Philadelphia media as the newest member of the Phillies. Earlier, the left-hander signed a five-year, $120 million deal with a vesting option for the sixth year. Lee seemed happy and mentioned during the presser that “good things are going to happen.”
Lee was asked about his journey through free agency, mentioning a number of times that he wanted to return to the Phillies, but also said that “going into the offseason I wasn’t sure how serious the Phillies were going to be.”
Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. added that “it wasn’t an easy decision to get here… we went a little bit out of our element.” He continued. “This was a special circumstance. This was too important to the organization, and too important for the present and the future of our franchise not to do it.”
The move was certainly out of character for an organization that doesn’t typically offer contracts beyond three or four years. Even Phils’ ace Roy Halladay received just a three-year contract with a fourth year vesting option included. But now with Halladay and Lee pitching on a staff with Roy Oswalt and homegrown Cole Hamels, the foursome has the potential to be a part of something special.
“Being part of this rotation is going to be historic I believe.” Lee said. The trio known an H2O was part of what made Lee want to come here. “Halladay, Oswalt, Hamels? That’s all I need to see right there.”
Now, “H2O” has becoming the wildly popular “R2C2″.
Lee’s deal isn’t the six or seven years that had dominated much of the talk surrounding him all offseason, but the pitcher seemed to be excited and relieved that he would remain in the same place for awhile, maybe the rest of his career.
“Hopefully this is… where I end my career. No more getting traded and traded again… and getting traded again.
Lee’s comment drew some chuckles from the assembled media, who asked a number of questions regarding Lee’s initial departure from Philadelphia. When asked if there was any resentment from being traded the first time, Lee responded.
“For me to be here kind of says enough. I never held any grudges.”
And we are so thankful that he didn’t.
Other notes from the press conference:
