Phillies Silently Making Key Moves

  The Phillies made a major-league splash late in 2009 when they sold part of the farm and Cliff Lee for Roy Halladay.  This move proved to be the start of a rather productive off-season for the red-pinstriped gang.  Ruben Amaro Jr.’s prying Halladay out of Toronto was his biggest move yet all in hopes of another stroll down Broad St. amidst a sea of red.

  They upgraded at 3^rd base by adding one of the game’s smartest hitters.  Placido Polanco, who will replace Pedro Feliz, should prove to add even more potency to this line-up.   Polanco returns to Philly a bit older, yet still remains a productive force, always putting the ball in play and flashing some leather at the hot corner.  Not to mention that Polanco can occupy just about any position on the diamond.         

  The low-key addition of utility infielder Juan Castro ensures Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins some much deserved time off.  This could be monumental down the stretch, possibly supplying a healthy middle infield come playoff time.

  Amaro Jr. solved in-house issues by signing 3^rd starter Joe Blanton and also maintaining All-Star Centerfielder Shane Victorino and playoff phenomenon Carlos Ruiz.

  Blanton, the team’s best pitcher at times in ’09, needs to consistently pitch 6-7 innings out of the 3-spot to compliment Halladay and Cole Hamels.  Blanton must avoid the early “BIG” inning and be exceptionally effective.           

  Victorino and “Chooch” tend to go hand in hand because of Polanco. “Chooch” will be hitting behind Victorino, which ought to raise his offensive production significantly.  Ruiz should get up to the plate with runners on quite often with such a strong line-up in front of him.  

Walk Brian, Don't Run

Philadelphia Eagle workhorse Brian Westbrook at age 30 faces the decision of his football life. The question: Is now the right time to hang ‘em up? With two concussions in 2009, along with a laundry list of leg injuries to boot, Westbrook must look ahead to life after football.

Many had suspected that this would be a difficult season in the “30-club” for B-West, yet no one could have expected such career-threatening injuries. Due to the events of this season, a decision must be made, not from a football standpoint, but a life standpoint.

It’s time for “Route 36 West” to take a detour and end his professional football career. At this point, Westbrook has solidified himself as one of the franchise greats, so now is his time to walk.

The Eagles gambled on Pitt’s LeSean “Shady” McCoy for a reason, it was a smart football move in hindsight. “Shady” (reasoning behind nickname.) appears ready to be a suitable replacement, albeit with much to learn. He is, at this point with the direction of the team, a surefire staple in this West Coast offense.

Westbrook became seemingly non-existent without a clear niche in the offense that he had, in prior seasons, been a mainstay.

The UFC in 2010

  Despite a slow start to 2010 with “Sugar” Rashad Evans unanimously defeating Thiago Silva at UFC 108, the UFC is in for a big year. In the first half of the year, every title will be defended; this is a big start to the new decade for a company with great expectations going forward.

  At UFC 109: Relentless, there will be a number of key fights starting off in the Welterweight Division covering up to Middleweight.
  In Welterweight, Matt "The Terror" Serra will do battle with Frank Trigg. Serra looks to redeem himself for his past two losses to rivals Georges "Rush" St. Pierre (UFC 83; lost Welterweight Title) and Matt Hughes (UFC 98; Fight of the Night Honors) Trigg looks to avenge an ugly loss to Josh Koscheck back in September.
  Brazilian submission specialist Demian Maia, coming off a loss to Nate "The Great" Marquardt, is ready to take on fellow submission fighter Dan Miller. Miller’s latest fight was a loss via unanimous decision at the hands of Chael Sonnen. Sonnen and Marquardt will also fight on the 109 card.
  The main event from Las Vegas on February 9th will feature two UFC Hall-of-Famers. Randy "The Natural" Couture and Mark Coleman will go at it in the Light Heavyweight division. The legendary pair wrestled one another in a freestyle match at the 1989 Olympic Festival at Oklahoma State where Coleman won the match by one point. This fight will mark the oldest combined age of fighters to go head to head in the UFC.


  In Sydney, Australia, 11 days later, the UFC will present UFC 110: Nogueira vs. Velasquez. The main event bout between Antonio Rodrigo Minotauro Nogueira and Cain Velasquez will play a huge factor in the Heavyweight title picture and essentially will determine the #2 contender behind the winner of the Carwin-Mir bout.
  In the co-main event, Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva makes his 185 lb. debut against the U.K.’s Michael “The Count” Bisping. Silva, in dropping down to middleweight, needs to rebound from losses to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Rich “Ace” Franklin at 205. Bisping’s time in the UFC ought to be much smoother with Dan Henderson gone. He needs a big win here over one of the greatest of all-time. This should have been Yoshihiro Akiyama’s fight with Silva.

  On March 21, the UFC will head to Bloomfield, Colorado to make its Versus debut. Headlining the card will be a Light Heavyweight bout between newcomer Jon “Bones” Jones and Brandon “The Truth” Vera. “Bones” needs a quick rebound from his DQ loss to Matt Hamill in Rd. 1 at TUF 10 Finale. As for Vera, he needs to once again prove that “The Truth” hurts.

  Later in the same week, the UFC makes its return to New Jersey for a doubleheader, in title matches that is.

  UFC Welterweight Champion Georges “Rush” St. Pierre looks to silence the #1 contender, Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy. Hardy, who came out of the blue (in terms of the title picture), earned a shot at the Welterweight Title after beating Mike “Quick” Swick. This will be the young Brit’s first UFC fight in The United States. “Rush” should make quick work out of Hardy as he did with Thiago “The Pitbull” Alves at UFC 100. Right now there is no logical competition for “Rush” at 170, hence, now is the time to move up in weight.
  In the co-main event it will be another title match, this one for the Interim Heavyweight Title. Frank Mir takes on Shane “The Engineer” Carwin for the title. Both men want a shot at UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar, Mir has split two bouts with the champ already; while the undefeated Carwin is still waiting for his shot.

  The UFC makes its Abu Dhabi debut in April featuring another championship doubleheader.

  Anderson “The Spider” Silva will be defending his UFC Middleweight Title for the first time since UFC 97: Redemption against Thales Leites, this time against fellow Brazilian Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort. Silva ran through Forrest Griffin in Philadelphia at UFC 101: Declaration, proving that he is the best in the world right now.
  Frank Edgar has earned a shot at the UFC Lightweight Championship in the spring. Even though Gray Maynard appeared to be the most likely choice, Edgar will challenge B.J. Penn next. The undefeated Maynard has a win over Edgar, but will have to wait his turn due to a lackluster performance against Nate Diaz at Fight Night 20. “The Prodigy” is the best in the world at 155 bar none; he has proved that time and time again.

  On May 8 the UFC returns to Montreal’s Bell Centre featuring a Light Heavyweight Championship rematch between Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. The undefeated “Dragon” will try to prove that UFC 104 was no fluke as he still heads a deep Light Heavyweight division. PRIDE’s famous “Shogun” looks for revenge and to be called champion. Their October 24th fight was too close to call; many believe that the judges were at fault in their decision.
  Kimbo Slice will be taking on Matt Mitrione. The Heavyweight division only will continue to grow due to TUF 10. Kimbo, the internet street fighting sensation/bodyguard from Miami looks to launch his UFC career at the age of 36. Mitrione needs to make a name for himself quickly and become a formidable young competitor in the very deep Heavyweight division.
  In probably the most anticipated non-title fight of the 1st half of the year, welterweights Paul Daley and Josh Koscheck will do battle in Montreal. The ever-emerging Daley looks to continue to climb the welterweight ranks and a victory against Kos would be his best yet. Instead of facing off against Paulo Thiago again, Kos draws the young British striker. Kos remains one of the top welterweights in the world, yet has already had his chance at gold. Daley would be an intriguing next opponent for GSP, expect his name to be thrown around in discussion IF he defeats Kos.

  Finally, at UFC 114, the quite anticipated bout between TUF 10 coaches will go down in Las Vegas. Now that the “A-Team” gig is behind him, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson returns to the Octagon to face “Sugar” Rashad Evans. These former champions meet for the first time and can now bring closure to their rivalry with the winner possibly getting a shot at the Light Heavyweight Title.
  For the 3rd time their careers will cross paths, this time in Canada. After coaching in TUF 11 which debuts on SPIKE on March 31st, Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell will face his biggest rival “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz. This will be their first fight in which a title won’t be involved. Liddell and Ortiz helped shape this sport into what it has become and their rivalry is one of the best ever.

Action Jackson

The Eagles’ DeSean Jackson has rode his big-play prowess to superstardom in the pros. Jackson is the most explosive player in the NFL and can change a game in a flash. To this day it remains puzzling as to how there were 48 players picked ahead of Jackson in the 2008 NFL Draft. Jackson compiled 11 TDs this season, 8 of which went for 50+ yards.
The dynamic Cal product has been a godsend for an Eagle team that was looking for a deep threat and also, in turn, got a #1 receiver. Jackson’s swagger reminds Philly fans of a former wide-out from Tennessee-Chattanooga. Jackson doesn’t just get it done offensively; he is also a special teams weapon for the midnight green.
For the Eagles to succeed in these playoffs, Jackson will need to get the ball. Despite Dallas’ Michael Jenkins’ tight coverage, Jackson needs to produce some plays. Jackson has 5 catches for 76 yards in 2 games against Dallas this season; this must change on Saturday evening.
DeSean Jackson has faced criticism for size, but Philly’s little stick of dynamite hasn’t been stopped. Expect Jackson to be a leader of the future for a team that is filled with good, young stars.

NFL WildCard Weekend!

"Like Father, Like Son?"

New York Jets @ Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals have been the NFL’s Cinderella story this season. Riding a tidal wave of emotion since the deaths of wide-out Chris Henry and Vicki Zimmer, the wife of Defensive Coordinator Mike Zimmer, the Bengals have played inspired football all season long. Carson Palmer stepped up and became the leader that Coach Marvin Lewis needed him to be and the Bengals relied heavily on workhorse Cedric Benson’s emergence. Chad Ochocinco, whether he was tweeting, bribing, or donning a snuggie, he entertained fans and did so in the name of sportsmanship.
With a rookie QB-coach tandem such as Mark Sanchez and Rex Ryan, it’s no surprise that the Jets are the lone Big Apple playoff representative. While last Sunday’s debacle may not have much meaning towards this weekend’s game, the Jets’ confidence has to be even higher heading into Cincy. The Jets have Thomas Jones, probably the most underrated tailback in the game, he now boasts five consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. Their power-running game plus a nasty defense are key ingredients to playoff success. Oh, and did I mention that Darrelle Revis is the top shutdown corner in the game.

Jets win 20-13 in frigid Cincinnati.



One MORE BIG Mistake!?!

Philadelphia Eagles @ Dallas Cowboys


The Dallas Cowboys roll into these playoffs with the momentum that they need to end a long, complex playoff drought. On Saturday evening they will be facing the Philadelphia Eagles for the third time this season, a team that they have defeated twice already. They ended the New Orleans Saints undefeated season in the month of December, and even played the San Diego Chargers tough. This game will come down to the intangibles and coaching schemes—and to some level, history. “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it.” Remember: The Cowboys have not won a playoff game since 1996 and Wade Phillips is 0-4 in the playoffs throughout his career.
The big knock against the Philadelphia Eagles has been strength of victories, but this is not the crooked BCS system that the NCAA uses, is it? The NFL doesn’t let computers determine the match-ups, the games are played and decided on the field and that is why these teams will face off for a 3rd time. Dallas’ ability to contain Philly’s home-run threat DeSean Jackson was monumental in the regular season, but 5 days was a long time ago and it’s a whole new season, the post-season. Jackson is the Eagles big-play threat and that’s something that this team has lived and died by this season. Yet, this season Donovan McNabb has numerous weapons in his arsenal. If Defensive Coordinator Sean McDermott learned anything from Jim Johnson it should have been this: A Philadelphia Eagle defense thrives off of the blitz and might as well be on the sidelines without it. MEMO: Keep the heat on Tony Romo! If history tends to repeat itself in more ways than one, the winner will come out of the NFC. Each time they have met in the playoffs, the winner went to the Super Bowl.

Eagles survive a thriller in Dallas 23-21.
















The Patriot Act

Baltimore Ravens @ New England Patriots

The Baltimore Ravens, under John Harbaugh once again sneak into the playoffs looking to make some noise. The Baltimore defense has lost its touch and has been playing more on respect and reputation than anything this season. Don’t expect that to intimidate “Terrific Tom” this weekend. Their defense just wasn’t the same this season without former coordinator Rex Ryan. Even with an offense that put up big numbers, “defense wins championships,” and quite frankly, neither team in this game has much of it. Ray Rice and Joe Flacco, both 2nd-year studs have emerged quietly for the Ravens this season. Their first meeting in Foxboro was close and this game will present much of the same on Sunday afternoon.
Even without his top target Wes Welker, the NFL’s newly-crowned Comeback Player of the Year, Tom Brady is ready for the playoffs. Brady brings a career 14-3 record into the playoffs, making him possibly the greatest playoff QB in NFL history. New England’s defense has definitely taken a hit since the days of Richard Seymour, Asante Samuel and Tedy Bruschi, yet they still remain poised. The offense is on the prowl and ready to attack an old Raven D. I’m not sure if Julian Edelman, a former college QB, will make Pats fans forget Welker, but he will certainly give them slot speed. Boy that Bill Belichick sure is something on that April weekend, isn’t he?!

Pats win on respect and the best playoff QB of all-time, 31-27.















We Meet Again!

Green Bay Packers @ Arizona Cardinals

This is the most difficult game to pick this weekend and it should be a good one. The Packers have one of the best QBs in the sport in Aaron “A. Rodge” Rodgers. To go along with that, they have a vicious 3-4 defense that boasts talent all around. Charles Woodson has become a force all on his own in the secondary and most likely will win NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Their LB corps is the best in the NFL right now as well. They get enough push and pressure up front which will be needed to throw Kurt Warner out of his comfort zone early. Mix this with a top flight QB like A. Rodge and this team sexy pick to do damage in a strong NFC.
The Arizona Cardinals were the NFL’s Cinderella of 2008, and nearly pulled off a miraculous upset (Santonio is still CLEARLY! in!) in Super Bowl XLIII thanks to Larry Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald became a household name last January and looks to make another run at the Vince Lombardi Trophy. With little offensive help outside of Fitz and Anquan Boldin, Warner will need to rev up some of that old postseason magic of his. Expect a tight game with constant lead changes; also it should come down to a final possession.

Pack attack Cards to solidify a trip to Minni for a Part III! 30-27 Packers.