PHILLY SPORTS CORNER

This week in Philly sports..

PHILLIES-

Good to see the Phils win their opener for a change. They have a chance to go home and play division rivals Washngton and the Mets win momentum.They do have a concern with their closer. Gomez did the job during the first half of 2016, but he picked up where he left off yesterday, surrendering a 2-run homer in the 9th inning to make the game close vs. Cincinnati. It seems Gomez rarely has a 1-2-3 inning. He doesn't have the stuff of a Neris, Benoit or Ramos, who can all  get key strikeouts without the ball being put into play. Gomez relies on his sinker, and if the ball is up, he gets hit.

At least the manager is aware and concerned as well. Hopefully Gomez is on a short leash, as the manager knows this is a critical year for the team ( and himself) and he can't afford to lose winnable games.

As stated here before, I would personally like to see Neris get the closer's role.Gomez was an effective 8th inning set-up guy before, and would thrive in that role again, if need be.

Without Tommy Joseph and Caneron Rupp contributing yesterday in the Phillies 4-3 win over the Reds, the team still banged out 10 hits, 7 of them for extra bases. Galvis ans Hernandez are not home run hitters, but their homers jump=started the team to victory. As long as they know their roles and don't swing for the fences each time. I think new batting coach Matt Stairs will keep them under control. Both Galvis and Hernandez know they are being pushed for their jobs by up-and -coming prospects. The Phils would love for them to play well this season and force the organization to make some hard decisions down the road.

John Kruk was good in his Phillies' debut in the broadcast booth. He has a certain homey, Richie Ashburn-type personality, like he is one of the fans, not talking down to the fans, as previous announcers after Whitey displayed ( think Jamie Moyer). He knows his baseball yet is entertaining too, as long as Kruk doesn't try too hard to be funny. Just be yourself.

Hopefully Aaron Altherr and Brock Stassi get playing time this summer. Good to see Howie Kendrick knock 3 hits in the opener.This Phillies roster is definitely deeper than previous teams. Mackanin will have a lot of flexibility from his bench.

Here's hoping Obdubal Herrera doesn't dog it this summer. He didn't slide yesterday on a play, and he has a history of making mental mistakes and being lazy on the base paths. The concern with signing him to a long-range contract was his motivation and desire. It's early, but I would feel better if he got off to a fast start.

Friday's home opener vs. the Nationals should be fun. Matt Scherzer vs. Vince Valasquez. Plenty of strikeouts in a good duel.

FLYERS-

The Flyers are now "Officially" dead, at least for this season. The team, their stepford fans and the media were kidding themselves for weeks with delusional thoughts of this team making the playoffs. They are still light-years away, and it will be interesting to see what GM Ron Hextall does this summer to improve the team. The goalie situation is a priority, as is what to make of Claude Giroux' bad season. A fluke or a sign of aging?

EAGLES- quiet for now, with the draft approaching. Next week the schedule is released, always a fun time. It will be interesting to see if the league granted the Eagles' wish of having two of their west coast games in the fall be back-to-back to save on travel. Preferably, the two Los Angeles games against the Rams and Chargers be ion a Sunday and Thursday, ideally later in the year when the teams are out of playoff contention, and the weather is bad in the east. How many prime-time games will the Birds be in? Will they open at home? Will the division games be bunched together, as they were last year?

SIXERS-

Who cares? Better for the 76ers to lose their final five games for better odds in May's NBA draft lottery. It will be an interesting summer, with the draft and Summer League action looming. Will Embiid and Simmons be healthy for October? Will the Sixers start to bring in high-priced free agents? Will Brett Brown have a job?

Also...North Carolina won the NCAA Men's Basketball championship last night. President Barack Obama was right. He had them winning the tournament in his bracket ( beating Duke). Villanova's victory seems so long ago.