Ryan Howard Wants to Get Paid

The Phillies first baseman asked for $18 million in arbitration Tuesday, the third-highest figure submitted since the process began in 1974.

Philadelphia brass offered $14 million to the 2006 NL MVP. Howard had a major league-leading 48 homers and 146 RBIs last year, helping the Phillies win their first World Series title since 1980. Before the season, he was awarded $10 million in arbitration rather than Philadelphia’s $7 million offer.

With the Yankees just shelling out $20 million per year to Mark Teixeira, I definitely think Howard gets his $18 million.

A good read over at MoreHardball, about what they would do with $18 million.

Charlie Extrended through 2011

A World Series ring was enough for the Phillies front office to want manager Charlie Manuel around a few more years.

Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro rewarded Manuel on Tuesday and picked up the option for 2010 on his contract and added a guaranteed year for 2011.   Manuel has won two straight NL East titles with the Phillies and led them this year to their first championship since 1980.

Some Phillies Parade Pics

We all know Chase Utley was hammered during the parade after his awesome speech but here are a few pics of others getting in on the action.

Werth with his Banquet beer.

Geoff Jenkins hitting up the local brew.

Chase’s face after a Shot.

Parade Tomorrow

I am taking a sick day, courtesy of the boss letting me of course and attending my first ever Philadelphia Championship Parade.  CANNOT WAIT.  My Ticket I was able to attain off of Phillies.com today:

PHUCKIN’ PHINALLY

10,000+ losses, 28 years, and a Joe Carter later, we did it, we won the World Series.

Pics and video to come of the street level view of the celebration.  Stay tuned.

Weather Forecast for Game 5 Start

After a rain soaked Tuesday, the 215 region is on edge as we wait official word from MLB as to the start time of the final 3.5 innings of World Series Game 5.    As of right now, the teams are tentatively set to resume at 8:37 PM Wednesday.  The forecast according to weather.com for the hours around gametime is COLD, real cold with a 20% chance of precipitation, which would most likely be snow flurries.

This will be a battle of the bullpens and hopefully our NL leading ‘pen can get the job done and let the good times roll on the city streets tonight.

Sixers Season Preview

Yourrrrr Philadelphia 76ers open up a new campaign tonight against the Toronto Raptors (game time has been moved to 6pm due to the potential Phillies Game 5 with high hopes and great expectations coming off last season’s playoff run and off-season moves.

A Brand New Era starts tonight as free agent signee Elton Brand makes his debut.  Brand brings great optimism to the run and gun Sixers off their playoff run last year.  “Anything less then the 2nd round this season is a disappointment” Brand recently said.  Look for Band’s low post ability, more importantly combined with his defensive rebounding to spark the up tempo Sixers into even quicker outlets and fast breaks.  Throughout the season the Sixers will look to wear out teams with running style offense and intense defense.

The Sixers are one of the handful of up and coming teams in the not so JV Eastern Conference anymore.  They are in an Atlantic Division with the defending world champion Boston Celtics, and Toronto Raptor team that also was in last years playoffs, and added all-star center Jermaine O’Neal to form a nice front court tandem with power forward Chris Bosh.

This team has a nice mix of veteran leaders at the right positions, point guard Andre Miller is a floor general, with emerging young starts at other positions.  I feel the Sixers can live up to the pre-season expectations they’ve set for themselves.  While I do not see them beating out the defending champs for the division title, I think the Sixers will be in the 4,5 seed battle all season, advance to the conference semifinals losing to the repeat champion Celtics in a 7 game epic.

Final Record: 48-34, 2nd Atlantic Division, 5 seed in East

MLB: No Game 5 Tuesday

Game 5 Postponed, Again

World Series Game 5 Recap…So Far

First Joe Carter, then Ronde Barber, now mother nature.  Now its not only players and teams that are keeping Philly teams from winning championships but now nature wont even allow it.  Game 5 of the World Series was postponed last night do to pouring rains, the first time in history that a World Series game is suspended.

In the top of the 6th inning, the Rays got a RBI from Carlos Pena after BJ Upton slip ‘n slided into second base on a stolen base, tying the game at 2.  Within minutes the tarp was on the field and MLB brass decided that the game will try and be resumed tonight at 8pm.

After 25 years of playoff heartache after playoff heartache, the Phils are now this close to winning the World Series, up 2-0 in the first inning, this close to breaking the 100 season title drought and Mother Nature rains on the parade ruins the evening and we have to wait, hopefully, only one more day.

Whenever the game picks up, it will be top of the 6th inning Ryan Howard (I hope this is right, think I remember hearing/knowing that) leading off most likely against Ray rookie phenom David Price who could be called to pitch multiple innings in the 2-2 game as the Phillies are now 3 ½ innings away from the title.

John Romano, A Classless Douche to Say the MOST

John Romano is a journalist for the St. Pete Times.  He decided to write this unsettling piece on Philadelphia sports fans based on his second (perhaps third) hand account of some alleged actions that happened at Saturdays Rays Phils world series game.  His piece was about how Philadelphia fans are the worst. The headline: “Phils fans live down to their reputation.”  You like my own play on words in the title of this post John.

He went on to write:

During Game 3 of the World Series on Saturday night, Rays family members and employees say they were harassed and abused by Phillies fans at Citizens Bank Park to an unacceptable degree.

Children were cursed at, and one 9-year-old boy had beer poured on him. A Rays family member stayed locked in a bathroom stall because, he said, Phillies fans were banging on the walls and threatening him.

First of all, who throws an $8 beer on a kid.  What a waste and I have a very hard time believing that any self respecting Philly fan would pour a delicious brew on some kid in a Rays shirt.  If you take a look at the Philly.com article where Dan Rubin bashes Romano’s article as well, nobody saw this incident at all.  Romano once again making stuff up for a piece, sorry ass journalist if ya ask me.  Some comments from the fans themselves:

• Posted by darshall
  I was in Section 106. The Rays fans are mistaking booing and supporting your team for this hostility. This was one of the most mild games I’ve seen (probably because no one takes Rays fans seriously). I bounced around and met up with friends and didn’t even see any Rays fans get booed at. They are just looking for excuses on munson-ing a world series.
• Posted by thepress
  I am a member of the press who is in Philly at this moment. I am fromoutmof town with no alligence to either team. TB Rays friends and families are being seated by the press box and the events described in this article NEVER HAPPENED. Funny as I am unable to post this at the St. Pete Times website. Do the rules of journalism not apply to them?
• Posted by KarenD
  IF THESE FANS ARE SO AFRAID, MAYBE THEY SHOULD JUST WATCH IT FROM HOME!!
• Posted by Gmilst1
  I demand a Philly writer/reporter to ask this guy who writes for St. Petes newspaper to ask him for some sources. This guy is making it all up except for what John Maddon said. And they don’t even have packets of mustards at phillies games. just relish! WE DEMAND A SOURCE FROM THIS LIAR!!!
• Posted by lcammisa12
  DITTO! I pay too much for a beer to just let a 9 yr old enjoy it…And they were knocking on the bathroom stall bc they needed to use the bathroom and were tired of a Tampa fan throwing up over the bad performance they made them watch!
• Posted by EaglesFanInStPete

  Before you rip us Rays fans, keep in mind the vast majority of us are not like this. John Romano is a hack; he had no business writing an article so scathing, so vile, so accusatory, WITHOUT DOING HIS RESEARCH! He’s basing it off 2nd-hand accounts of what people said happened; he never actually saw it happen himself.